Most car searches end with a shortlist of two to four cars that all look fine. That's where people fall back on gut feel — colour, a nicer interior, a friendlier seller — and pay for it later. A fair comparison asks the same questions of every car and puts the answers next to each other.
The Seven Questions, for Every Car
- What is it worth? Compare each asking price with similar cars of the same age and mileage, not with each other
- How has it been driven? Divide the mileage by the age. Around 7,000–10,000 miles a year is typical; very low mileage isn't automatically better if it came from years of short trips
- What does the MOT history say? Count the fails, note any "dangerous" items, and look for the same advisory repeated test after test — that's a repair that keeps being put off
- What is it known for? Some engines and gearboxes have well-documented weak points. Check whether the expensive job is done, due or still to come
- What will it cost to run? Road tax band, insurance group and real-world fuel economy — over three years these can differ by more than the price gap
- What evidence comes with it? Service invoices, cambelt receipts, number of keys, the V5C in the seller's name
- What's due soon? Tyres near the limit, brakes flagged at the last MOT, a service overdue — all real money in your first year
Turn It Into a First-Year Cost
The cheapest car to buy is often not the cheapest car to own. For each car, add up: asking price + repairs due + a year of tax, insurance and fuel. A car £800 more expensive with new tyres, fresh brakes and a recent cambelt can be the better buy by the end of the year. Our guide to hidden costs of buying a used car has the full list.
Comparing two to four cars?
Put the registrations side by side — MOT records, known faults, running costs and a verdict on which is the smarter buy.
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Weigh What Matters, Not What's Visible
- Mechanical condition and history deserve the most weight — they're the hardest and most expensive things to fix
- Running costs come next, because you pay them every month
- Specification and comfort matter for the next few years of your life — just don't let them outvote a bad MOT record
- Cosmetics last: a scuffed bumper is a cheap fix; a neglected gearbox isn't
When It's Still a Tie
Pick the car with the better paperwork. Two otherwise similar cars are rarely equal once you know how each was looked after — and documented care is also what the next buyer will pay for when you sell. If you're still torn, view both again on the same day, back to back: differences you missed a week apart become obvious.