5 Tips For Buying Your First Car And 5 Things To Avoid

So, you've passed your test, (first time hopefully!) and now you need some wheels so you can finally have that independence that you've longed for for so long. Read on to find some useful Do's and Don't's to consider when making your first purchase.

5 Tips for Buying Your First Car 

1) Look for something affordable.

This first tip is pretty self explanatory. Your situation is of course, unique to you so sit down and carefully look at what budget you have for your first motor. Some people immediately want to show off that they can drive and have their own car and spend a small fortune on it however that's not always the best play. For your first car you are going to want something small, economic and reliable whilst you get used to driving outside of a learning environment as it's completely different. You also don't want to spend too much in case of accidents and damage as these are more likely as a new driver. There would be nothing worse than being on the road for a few weeks then scaping up your car in a parking lot knowing you spent every last penny on it and its now going to cost you that and more to fix it. 

If you don't have the money to buy a car outright then looking at some finance options could be beneficial. This will allow you to pay a small deposit and then pay monthly for the car rather than parting with all the cash in one go. 

Also, seriously look into buying second hand as this will be cheaper and you won't be driving around scared to death that you might damage your brand new, shiny, straight from the showroom car!

2) Check insurance and tax prices.

When you make a shortlist of cars that you are interested in looking at further put the registration number into comparison websites for insurance and play around with the options to look for the best deal for you and the car. There are several ways here that you can save a little money so spend some time on this it could benefit you in the long run. Also many comparison sites offer rewards for using them so even better!

3) Test drive.

Whether you are buying from a garage or from a private seller insist on a test drive as this will give you a good insight into how the car drives and whether you feel comfortable in it. Not all private sellers will offer to allow you to do this or will insist that they drive with you as a passenger. It is then up to you whether you take the risk to purchase this vehicle or not but if you do then check that all the paperwork is available and up to date, that it is taxed and MOT'd and do a history check.

4) View with a car savvy person.

Not all of you will be able to do this and it is not a necessity BUT if you do happen to know anyone with a good knowledge of cars, or a mechanic then it is a great idea to take them with you when you view as they will be able to find out if the car is in good condition mechanically and will also put car sellers off trying to rip you off. They will know where to look for potential issues that you would not have thought of yourself even with doing research beforehand. 

5) Use online car dealers.

Websites such as Auto Trader are great to use when looking for your first cars as they allow you to set certain criteria and filters to narrow down your search. They will also show you private and garage sale cars so you won't have to go around multiple garages looking yourself. It can save a lot of time and effort! Some websites will even show you whether a car is a good deal or not and how reputable a garage is based off of user reviews so it is definitely something to consider when starting your search.

5 Things to Avoid When Buying Your First Car

1) "Category" cars.

There are 4 categories for cars; Cat A, Cat B, Cat S and Cat N. A car that is classified as being in one of these categories has been written off. Depending on what category the car is now in depends on the level of repairs completed.

You won't be able to buy a Cat A car as this means that the damage to the vehicle was so severe that it needs to be destroyed and given a certificate of destruction. Nothing on this typed of vehicle will be able to be salvaged.

You also won't be able to buy a Cat B car as again, the damage will be irreparable. These types of cars a typically stripped down and sold for parts with the body/shell being scrapped due to damage. 

You will be able to purchase Cat S cars as these have suffered structural damage but have been repaired and have passed an inspection by an accredited engineer and then re-registered with the DVLA. They will be significantly cheaper but unless your budget is very small it is potentially not advisable to buy one of these in case anything has been missed or it has been falsely re-registered.

You can also buy Cat N cars which will have suffered non-structural damage and been repaired however it is again not advisable to buy one of these as they are not required to pass any inspections or be re-registered with the DVLA so you will have no way of knowing whether or not the repairs made are of any quality or not. It is a big risk buying a Cat N and could cost you more in repairs later on down the line.

2) Buying brand new.

Not advisable! They are very expensive and it is a widely know fact that cars are one of the worst things to invest money into as the depreciation rate is very quick. As soon as that car leaves the showroom it is worth significantly less than you paid for it. There may be tempting offers around for finance on new cars for first time buyers and these can well be worth it but you need to make sure that you will feel confident driving a new car. As most car owners know, your car will become your pride and joy and any little bit of damage caused to it will be devastating. Also, with the technology available on new cars now there are potentially more things to go wrong and electrical and technical faults are not cheap! There are of course some benefits to buying new but for your first car you really don't need all singing and dancing, you just need something that you can practice in and learn how to drive on your own on the roads not as a "learner" because the two are significantly different.

3) Not doing a history check or checking MOT/service history.

A history check on a car will show you all the information you need to know about that car such as whether it is stolen, written off and average prices among many other things. These are usually a paid service however you can get free ones. Either way it is paramount that you do one before purchasing a secondhand car. 

You should also have paperwork of most recent MOT certificate and service history. A full service history is the optimal option however it is not always guaranteed and although beneficial, a part-service history can also be acceptable if the car is right for you. 

4) Limiting your options.

Most of us have that idea of our favourite contender for our first car and whilst looking for these is not a problem don't limit your search to only this type of car as you may miss out on other vehicle brands or models that could be as well suited or even better suited to your individual needs than you thought. 

5) Paying all expenses together.

My final tip of things to avoid is to group all your payments together. What I mean by this is after you have bought your car, your funds are now probably significantly lower. Now you have to purchase insurance. To save money here, buy it yearly if you can afford it, if not monthly will break the price down but you will spend more throughout the year, but this is purely personal preference. Other expenses to consider when owning a car are MOT/Service costs and tax. My tip here is to spread these out if you can. For example, if your car insurance is due yearly in April and your tax is due in July but your MOT is also due in July then it may be worth paying your tax for 6 months and then for 12 months. This will mean that after 6 months your tax will be due in January. Meaning that your main 3 big expenses are now spread out a bit so that you can recover a bit financially in between each. The last thing you want is all 3 going out in the same month and it costing you an absolute fortune! 

So, there you have it. My 5 tips to consider and 5 things to avoid when buying your first car. Hopefully you find some of them useful and best of luck to you! Enjoy your new motor!