19 tips for buying a used car

To save you time and energy trying to work this out, car experts have already done this research. You can compare running costs of different models, including the ones you're looking to buy, on several sites, including Parkers and What Car?. But, follow these rules to home in on the cheapest cars:

• Smaller engines can be cheaper. The choice of a 1.0-litre or a 2.0-litre engine isn’t just about pure horsepower. A large engine will usually burn more fuel than a smaller one. So engine size is a vital consideration if fuel economy is an important factor in your decision.

  Of course, this depends on how you use the car. A small engine is most efficient when it’s used as intended, such as to pootle around town. If a small engine is used a high speed, it'll need to work much harder to keep the car moving - burning more fuel.
   

• Petrol cars tend to be cheaper than diesel. Diesel engines are often more economical than their petrol counterparts. But don’t be fooled into thinking this definitely makes diesel a better option. These cars are more expensive, and they usually cost more at the pump than petrol.
   

• Manual cars are cheaper than automatic. Switching between gears is extra work - particularly to those of us prone to stalling at traffic lights. Yet while automatics take some of the hassle out of driving, they come with a higher price tag.

  A manual Audi A3 diesel hatchback, for example, costs £20,801. This compares to the automatic version, at £22,290 – or a rise of £1,489. Yet many automatics are more fuel-efficient than their manual counterparts, as they 'know' the best gear to be in, so you could recoup the extra cost over time.
   

• Hybrid cars are cheap to run, but cost more to buy. Technology is improving everyday with modern hybrids coming in all shapes and sizes, from superminis to luxury SUVs. Fuel-economy and cheap or even zero tax rates make part-electric models appealing, like the Toyota Prius. They also tend to hold their value for resale.

  But they usually cost more to buy – so weigh up the savings.
   

• Check CO2 emissions, as it affects the duty you pay. Buyers of the most polluting cars pay the most road tax. But choose a car (such as the emission-free hybrid Toyota Prius) that produces less than 100g of CO2/km and you'll pay nothing at all.

  An average family-type car, like a Volkswagen Golf, will set you back £30 a year. See a full list of Vehicle Excise Duty rates plus how to calculate yours.
   

• Smaller cars are cheaper to insure. If you’re looking to save money, you’ll want a car that’s cheap to cover. The cheapest to insure tend to have a lot in common, including size. Put simply, it’ll cost you more to insure a 4x4 than a small city runaround.
  
  Cars are placed in groups ranked between one and 50, using research by the Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre (Thatchem). This is based of a range of info including performance, safety features, price of a new model and cost of spare parts. The Hyundai i10, for example, is one of a handful of cars in group one, and thus is cheap to insure.
  
  Check the insurance group rating of the exact model you have in mind before buying at Thatcham Research. The higher the number, the bigger your premium is likely to be. It's also worth checking our Car Insurance guide to see what the likely cost is.

All the above's important, but if you want to nail the absolute cheapest cars to run, here they are (though do note these are all smaller cars):

Haggling isn't reserved just for backstreet bazaars, it's a dealer's classic skill – and it’s expected of you, too – so bargain hard, and play Arthur Daley at his own game. The first rule is that you should NEVER pay the list price of the car - you'd be a fool to hand over the full cost (unless buying online, where your haggle opportunities are limited!).

Arm yourself with the cheapest web prices and make dealers compete for your custom - What Car? lists a handy 'target' price for all brand new cars. Print this out and stick to it during negotiations.

Haggling can be daunting, even for hardened MoneySavers, yet there's nothing to be scared of. Here are some of Martin’s top tactics (more in our Haggling guide).

• The beginner's haggle - get them to chuck something in for free. Dealers often say they're not allowed to give discounts but if you're new to haggling, an easy start point is asking them to throw something in on top. Whether it's free sat-nav or floor mats, if you need an add-on, try not to pay extra for it.
  
  
• Look for already-discounted cars. If the price is already reduced, there's often more flexibility. The boundaries have already been flexed and the psychological loss for the salesperson is reduced as they've already given up on the idea of getting full price.
  
  
• Don't fill the silence. As negotiations come to a close, a classic sales technique is staying silent. They want you to accept the price just to fill the awkward silence. Make them fill it with a cheaper offer.
  
  
• Walk away - get them to call you back. Psychologically, if they have to chase you, rather than you being super keen, is more likely to lead to a better deal.
  
  
• Flaws mean discounts. Look for the tiniest of dents or scratches. This makes them more difficult to flog, but still perfectly nice to drive. Keeerching!
  
  
• Play them off against each other. This is covered in the point above but worth mentioning again. To really up the haggling, don't target dealers in isolation. Try to play off a number against each other. This has two advantages: it gives you a solid foundation and it prods their competitive instincts in your favour, as they want to prove they're better than the opposition.
  
  
• Be friendly, but firm. You're more likely to get a result if the staff member empathises with you. If you're polite, charming and treat the whole process with humour, you'll get further.
  
  
• Watch for the "whack-a-mole" effect. Haggle on the price of the car, and the dealer might then charge more for the finance. Haggle on the finance, and there might be no wiggle room on the price of the car. It's worth doing your sums to see how much each saving from haggling will be - and taking the most valuable.
  
  
• Ask for the sun and you may just get the moon. Remember, do it with humour, do it with style and there's no price or suggestion too outrageous. You can haggle virtually anywhere for anything.

MoneySaving success stories

You can buy all sorts on eBay, but a car? Would you want to risk this? Lots of people do. In fact, eBay is one of the most popular places to pick up a used car.

But if you pay using PayPal its purchase protection does NOT apply to cars – and neither does eBay’s own buyer protection. So if anything goes wrong, you cannot turn to either to sort it out.

So make sure you've done all the necessary checks before you place a bid.

The dealer will probably try to sell you the premium version of whatever model you've selected. This may include models they have on the forecourt with cruise control, Bluetooth, sat-nav or alloy wheels. All these will bump up the cost, but do you really NEED them? And if so, can you get them cheaper elsewhere?

For example, Navmii is a free app which turns a GPS smartphone into a sat-nav, with pre-loaded maps, route planning and voice prompts.

And then check what the dealer's 'throwing in'. This is usually anything from service plans, warranties and sometimes even insurance. But, always check these are actually thrown in for free. As above (see point 3) benchmark a price for the make and model you're after at several used car dealerships - if the price is substantially above this, then it's likely you're paying for the extras in the price of the car itself.

But, don't discount their worth. Warranties can save you £300-£500 a year compared with buying it separately, especially on used cars; car insurance is often this much in a year too. It's always worth comparing how much you'd pay for a version of that car without all the mod-cons. And then making an informed choice from there.

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