CMB

When starting a new job or there may be some uncertainty it may be worth firstly taking up a temporary car for say 3 or 6 months before committing to a long term vehicle.

My suggestion would be to lease/rent a vehicle rather than buy unless you are convinced that you can sell it easily without losing too much. The best offers without doubt will come from a leasing broker or specialist that offer short term pre-contract vehicles until you decide. It’s may be worth trying a standard daily rental vehicle from a rental company such as Avis, Enterprise, Hertz etc but I think you will find that will be to expensive unless you opt for a small category car.

I suggest you look at www.carleasingdirectory.co.uk or www.buyyourcar.co.uk for a list of offers and suppliers. If you don’t find what you are looking for just call a few as they may not advertise everything that is on offer as the market changes so rapidly.

Richard

Hi CMB,

Well, quite simply... don't buy a Fiat or a TVR! (Ie. look for a decent car which doesn't have a reputation for breaking down!)

I, personally, would look at the car's current mileage. You don't want anything with, say, 100k already on the clock. Also, don't go for anything too juicy! I would go for a 1.8 max for fuel purposes.

There are many things to look for when buying a car, especially with that sort of mileage. You might want to have a sit in the car first too... you're going to be spending your life in the car and want it to be comfortable.

Also, don't forget to include a realistic business mileage onto your car insurance.

If it were me, doing that mileage, I would probably opt for a Focus Ghia. Take out some breakdown cover just in case too!

Good luck!

I am due to start a new job and with this job I get a car allowance of £416 pcm. I will be covering the north East and doing approx 20,000 miles per year. Before I jump into the deep end and purchase any old car. What do I need to be asking myself or the person I'm buying the car off?

cheers

CMB