When buying a used car always bear in mind that you have the advantage. Don't let the seller pressurize you into a sale that you may later regret. Try to stay detached and don't give the impression that you are too keen - remember that the seller wants to sell and let him or her do the work. Don't buy in a hurry.

Preparation
On the Phone
Inspection
Test Drive
Pre-Purchase Checks
HPI Checks
What to Pay
How to Pay
Our Responsibilites
Finally

Preparation
Before going to view the car do your homework.

If possible find someone you know who owns the same make and model, or has experience of these cars, and knows what the common problems are. Try to arrange to see more than one example - it is very risky to buy the first one you see, however much of a bargain it appears on the surface.

Contact the owners club if there is one - some clubs will offer to look over a potential purchase for a small fee, and can offer invaluable advice on what to look out for.

Read any magazine articles you can find relating to your chosen car - many magazines offer a back numbers service for this purpose.

On the Phone
When phoning about a car for sale first of all don't mention which car you are calling about. If the seller has to ask which car you are phoning about, this shows he or she has more than one for sale, and may be a dealer or 'amateur dealer' working from home.

Ask how long he has had the car, why it is for sale, has it been regularly serviced, check the asking price and other details in the ad - sometimes a car has been re-advertised at a lower price, and you dont want the seller to think you are interested in the car at the higher price. You could say a friend passed the sellers phone number on to you and ask if they could run through the details, asking price etc for you..

Stress that you are looking for a good example and ask him to be honest about the condition - you dont want to waste time travelling to look as a pile of junk if you can find this out on the phone.

If you do agree to view the car make sure you arrange to see it at the sellers home, and NEVER buy a car without confirming the sellers identity and ownership of the car. Be suspicious if the seller wants to meet half way, or says he is passing your way and can visit you to show you the car.

When arranging to view that car tell the vendor that you would like to see that car started from cold. Many problems can disappear when the engine is warm, so before starting the car check under the bonnet to see if the engine is warm.

While you are on the phone, ask if the advertised price is fixed or open to offers, so you know where you stand later on.

Inspection
If you dont know your crankshaft from your elbow, you can still look out for tell-tale warning signs which may save you the expense of having a pre-purchase inspection done on a lost cause.

Novices Checklist
Check under the bonnet to see if the engine is warm (see above).
Look at the car from a few metres away - does it sit squarely on the road? If not there may be a problem with the suspension, dampers or the car may have been involved in an accident.
Look down the sides of the car and along flat panels for rippling which may indicate body filler or low-grade repairs.
Look closely at the paintwork for signs of re-spraying. Slightly different colours between panels and overspray (look where the windscreen rubbers join the body - this is where a cheap resray is usually most obvious)
Check panel gaps, and gaps between plastic bumpers and the body for uneven gaps indicating possible accident damage.
Ask the seller if the car has ever been in an accident. Be confident - he doesn't know how much you know and may volunteer information rather than risk being found out.
Look at the tyres to see how much tread there is, how evenly they are wearing and if they are a matching set. A motley assortment of part-worn tyres is a warning that the car has been run on a low budget with corners cut on servicing.
Look under the car for evidence of oil or water leaks, rust or newly applied underseal.
Start the car. Does it start easily? Check for excessive smoke on startup. A certain amount of white exhaust is normal from a cold engine, depending on the weather but blue or black smoke suggests a worn engine.
Listen to the engine as it starts - rattling just after startup suggests a worn engine.
If it rattles even when warm, it may be just that the tappets need adjustment, but you'll need to get someone competent to judge that.
Ask to see the service history. Assume the worst if there is none, and if the seller claims to do his own servicing ask if he has any receipts for parts etc. 
For the more mechanically minded, (who dont mind getting their hands dirty) there are many more things you can look out for when inspecting the car, and you probably have a fair idea what these are, but here are a few reminders anyway.

Experts Checklist
Open the bonnet and check the oil level and colour, look inside the oil filler cap for signs of water mixing with the oil which will show as an off-white emulsion looking a bit like mayonnaise.
Check the cooling water in the header tank - is it clean with signs of anti-freeze, usually a blue or green tint (good) or rusty brown(bad). Check the water level.
Look for signs of oil leaks around the engine and transmission.
Look at the inner wings and structure for signs of corrosion or accident damage - attempts may have been made to conceal this, so look carefully. Beware of newly applied undersael - what is this hiding?
Make a note of engine and chassis numbers and look closely for any signs that they have been tampered with.
Check under the carpets and in the boot (trunk) for dampness and rust.
Sometimes the carpets cannot be lifted, so you will have to make a judgement on whether that model has bonded carpets or whether someone has stuck down the carpets to hide a rusty damp mess or repairs.
Brakes: we do not advise you to try an emergency brake test, but while the car is stationary (with engine running) apply the brakes firmly and hold the pedal down for say 10 seconds. If the pedal gradually sinks to the floor then some component of the braking system is probably faulty, and you should not risk driving the car in this state. If all appears to be OK then check that the brakes pull the car up progressively and without snatching or pulling to one side during the test drive.
Suspension and Steering: Rock the steering wheel from side to side while stationary to feel the amount of free play in the mechanism, and note any clunking. On cars with power steering you should try this with engine on and off. The design of some power steering systems means that there can be considerable free play with the engine off, but this should disappear when the engine is started.
Check operation of all electrical items - you may be surprised how much even simple things like non-functioning lights can cost to trace and fix.
Do the engine and chassis numbers recorded earlier match the logbook?

Test Drive
Take your insurance and driving license with you so you can prove to the owner that you can legally drive the car. He may still be reluctant to let you drive his pride and joy, especially if it is a high performance car or has a high value, but if he will not let you drive the car then you should ask yourself if he has something to hide and if in any doubt then we suggest that you walk away from the sale.

A genuine seller should not object to a test drive if you can show you have adequate insurance to drive the car. Remember a driver who is familiar with the car can hide a lot of expensive problems from you when he is driving and you are in the passenger seat.  

Pre-Purchase Checks
After you have decided that you have found the right car it often makes sense to have an automobile club do a pre-purchase inspection. The cost will vary, sometimes the charge is based on the engine size, but unless you are very experienced and have in-depth knowledge of the type of car in question it is money well spent. Weigh up this cost against the cost of replacing any of the major components and unless the car is going for peanuts it gives you a lot of peace-of-mind for a small percentage increase on the price.

HPI-Checks
You can have an HPI check done over the telephone for the cost of a few gallons of petrol.

This verifies that the car has not been registered as stolen, that there is no outstanding hire-purchase agreement on the car and looks up the registered owner so you see if this matches the sellers identity and address.

What to Pay
When you are sure this is the right car, should you offer the asking price, or try to knock him down a bit? Only you can answer this one as it depends on many factors, such as how badly the seller needs to get a sale, how many other interested buyers there are (if any - dont take the sellers word for this), why is he/she selling etc, what type of character you are dealing with.

Before discussing price make sure you agree with the seller on what is included and what is not. He may want to keep the stereo, he may agree to putting new tyres on, or paying for a service prior to the handover - make sure you know what you are buying.

Is the sale price fixed, or open to offers? If offers, ask what is the lowest price he will take (you'll be surprised how many sellers will drop a large percent right there and then. Consider his 'lowest' price as his starting position, and work out what your starting offer should be as follows: take the value you would be happy to pay (the final figure) , and assuming this is lower than his 'lowest' price, subtract the difference between the two figures from your final figure to arrive at your opening bid.

As an example lets say the asking price is Lm 12,000 , but the seller admits his 'lowest' price is 10,000. Now lets say you are prepared to pay 9000. The difference is 1000. Take this 1000 away from the (hopeful) final figure of 9000, so you should consider offering 8000. This puts your two figures either side of the 9000 and so you can match any haggling from there to arrive in the middle.

Once a price is agreed, double check you are in agreement on what is included in the sale.    

How to Pay
Usually a deposit of between 2 and 10 percent of the agreed price is paid in cash or guaranteed cheque at the time the sale is agreed, and a receipt is given for this by the seller. The deposit is really a gesture of goodwill and we would suggest it does not need to be more than Lm50 to 100 (say 75 to 150 ), enough to cover the costs of re-advertising the car if the buyer drops out, but not enough to leave the buyer financially exposed, so to speak.

The receipt should be written out by the seller detailing the amount of the deposit and the amount outstanding, and a brief description of the car, (make/colour/registration), date and parties names and addresses. Try to get an undertaking that the seller will not use the car again before the sale is completed, but dont be surprised if this is unacceptable to the seller.

Agree in advance how the balance of the money will be paid - there is no ideal solution to this. Cash is risky as you may be robbed leaving the bank. Cheques take time to clear, so the seller will not want to part with the car until the cheque has cleared, leaving you exposed without car or money for a short but uncomfortable time. Bankers drafts or money orders are often accepted as cash by sellers, but there is some confusion as to whether these can in fact be cancelled before they are honoured - this may not be true but everyone seems to know of a friend of a friend who has lost out in this way.

We suggest you take cash for smaller amounts, bankers drafts for larger. Take a sturdy friend or two along if you are carrying significant sums of cash around. 

Check the car over thoroughly before handing over the balance in case anything has been damaged, removed or swapped over between inspection and collection.

Our Responsibilities
All of the above information and advice is offered in good faith, but we at fiestavan.cjb.net cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. See our legal page for more details.

Finally
Finally remember that there are many millions of secondhand cars out there so there really is no excuse for buying a dud. If you have any doubts at all, walk away - use it as a reference to judge the next one on - eventually you will know when you have found the right car.
Goodluck !