Sections

• Financing Your Car
• Choosing Your Car
• Buying Your Car
• Inspecting A Used Car
• Insuring Your Car
• Breakdown Cover
• Servicing & Repairing Your Car
• Annual MOT Test
• Safety Tips
• Fuel-Saving Driving Tips
• Life As A Driver

First Things First: Financing your car

You’re excited about getting your first car. Heh, I understand, even if mine was a yellow Triumph Spitfire that (funnily enough) didn’t have the girls falling over themselves to sit in the mildly stained passenger seat. But how much can you actually afford?

Now, if you’re a girl then it’s very likely that you know how much you can afford and will have budgeted for all the other costs of running a car so you can skip to the next section “Choosing your car.” Chaps, please do read on.

“Man-maths” has been used by generations of men to justify the purchase of all sorts of unsuitable cars since, well, cars were invented. As you get older and have a bit more money then you can deploy the man-math bomb with a clear conscience. After all, your kids won’t mind if they are sitting in the back of a people carrier or a Porsche; and the loss of the odd McDonalds will be a small price to pay so that you can fill the tank with petrol.

However, you don’t have any money. And if you do have money then you are much, much better off spending it on girls and beer. £1,000 buys a lot of car these days. It’ll be as reliable as a £3,000 one and look as good.

If you have cash in the bank (£1,000, remember?) then skip to the next section. If not, then the Bank of Mum and Dad may well be exhausted by now – but, if they offer then that’s the way to go. You can make it up to them in future years by wiping their backside and fetching them from the Police Station when they’ve wandered off again.

If not then bank loans are fairly cheap these days, relatively easy to get (they want you to stay as a customer when you qualify as a Doctor or Accountant) and are your next best bet.

Credit cards are a rubbish option and so is a loan from anyone who advertises in the back of tabloid newspapers saying that they cater to those with a poor credit history. They’ll help you, but at a cost.

Choosing Your Car

Look, you can only afford to buy a small hatchback. Nothing bigger than a 1300cc engine. I know, I know. You want something bigger – but want isn’t the same as need.

A small hatchback is big enough to fit four people in it as well as their luggage for a long weekend.

You don’t need anything faster because you aren’t a good enough driver. (That’s not being rude, by the way. I had a friend who was a fully-fledged bike and car racer. Podium finishes, the lot. He had a 1,000cc Fiat as his road car and told me that he’d get a faster car when he drove his current one flat-out all the time. He regularly used to beat me in my Golf GTi. Not that we ever raced because that would have been stupid and illegal.)

Small cars are more fun too. My Subaru Legacy 3.0 Spec B is enormous fun and about the fastest way to get from A to B that I know. But I have more fun in my MX5 that has about a third of the power. There is something very satisfying about being able to rev and rev and not lose your licence.

Try searching on Autotrader for inspiration. You’ll need to register but then you can do an advanced search. Put in £1,000 as the maximum cost, add “hatchback” as the body type and an engine size of 1000 – 1300. I’d recommend adding a manual gearbox and private sales too. Oh, and make it petrol as the fuel; diesel cars might be cheaper to run initially but they are more expensive to buy and if something does break it’ll cost more to repair them.

Then press “search”.

I came up with 859 cars nationally that met my needs. I then narrowed that down to all cars within 60 miles and still got 263 (and no, I don’t live in London).

I could have picked from a Ford Fiesta, Peugeot 206, Nissan Micra or Volkswagen Lupo. Or a seven-year old Renault Clio. All great cars that’ll last you until you get a job after leaving Uni.

My pick though, would have been a Toyota Yaris that was made in 2001. Great engineering, reliable, cheap to run and decent to drive. But that’s just me; the point is that they are out there, good cars for a grand. Don’t spend more – you really don’t have to. Choose on price and condition and try to limit yourself to one make of car.

Oh, and always keep a couple of hundred pounds back for emergency repairs.

Buying Your Car

We mentioned Autotrader and it’s a great site. Don’t be afraid of buying from a motor trader but don’t expect a warranty for a car that costs a grand. If you buy privately you get the same protection and don’t end up paying a dealer’s margin either so you get more car for your money.

Other options are eBay, local papers and word of mouth.

Word of mouth is great; let people know that you’re after a cheap reliable car and you’ll be inundated, I promise. Drawbacks are that it might ruin a beautiful relationship if it blows up after a month but that’s rare; if it’s a dodgy car people tend to sell them to strangers not acquaintances.

Local papers are rich pickings. Morbid, I know, but estate sales of the recently deceased can let you pick up immaculately maintained, carefully driven bargains.

Finally there is the ubiquitous eBay. A minefield. Never, ever buy a car on eBay without looking at it before bidding. Nice middle class people really do sell their low-mileage runabout on there – but so do the sharks that pose as them.

There are bargains out there to be had but far fewer than there were a couple of years ago. I can’t recommend eBay any more I’m afraid for buying cars but if you’re brave and know what you’re doing then try using a free sniping tool from goofbay.com. I’ve used it for a couple of years and have lost precisely two auctions since then and when I’ve won I have always paid less than I would have done otherwise.

Inspecting A Used Car

Before you even go to look at a car that you like the look of (much less buy it) ask the seller for the “V5 document reference number” or “MOT test number” for the car in question along with the vehicle registration.

Go to motinfo.direct.gov.uk and put the information in. Press return and prepare to be pleasantly surprised. It will show you all the MOT information that is recorded for that car since 2007-ish.

This means that you can not only check that the recorded mileage now is consistent with that recorded at MOT time over the years but it will also show you something called the “Advisories.”

This is important information because it shows you what the car failed on – or what it didn’t this time but the things that the MOT tester didn’t like the look of. So, you’re not only getting a free inspection via the MOT but you are getting an idea of what it might fail on next time too! This one tip has saved me from going to look at a couple of cars over the years; if it says that there is major rust, for example, you know not to bother making the trip to see it!

What should you look for when buying a car? The AA does a good, but complicated inspection checklist that you can print off and use at TheAA.com.

Here’s my shorter version:

You probably won’t get full service history at this age and price but if it’s there then it’s priceless.

Have a look at the oil on the dipstick. Is it up to the top level? Is it reasonably clean? If it’s black and treacly then the car hasn’t been serviced for a while and so you should walk away. Undo the oil filler cap too. If there is a creamy mayonnaise-like substance then the head gasket has gone so walk away. (After you’ve walked away from three or four cars you’ll start to be less fussy; fight that, it’s worth it in the end, I promise.)

If the engine is cool then undo the filler cap for the coolant. The coolant should be up to the top level and either blue or green (sometimes red) in colour. If it’s a rust colour or clear water then it hasn’t been looked after.

Is the car clean? Not too clean, with shiny silicone on the tyres, but just honest-to-goodness well-looked-after clean?

Good tyres and exhausts don’t add anything to the value of the car but if you need to buy them then they’ll be a few hundred quid, so if a car has them then that’s a bonus worth looking for.

The other things are rust and cam-belts. Crawl all under car looking for rust. If you see some then press hard with your fingers. If the metal gives or sounds crunchy then walk away. If the bodywork is rippled, rusty or the shut lines (the gaps between the doors, bonnet and boot and the rest of the car) aren’t even it might have been badly repaired after an accident. Yep, you’ve guessed it, walk away.

Cam-belts are the belts that keep everything running properly in the engine. They need changing regularly and it costs a few hundred pounds when you do it. If it hasn’t been changed and it snaps then your engine – and car – are scrap. If it has been done recently 9within a couple of years) then that’s a good sign too.

So, if you can find a clean car with a recent cam-belt, tyres and exhaust and some history of being serviced recently then it’s probably going to be a good one!

Insuring Your Car

Our tips are:

• Don’t lie. If it’s your car don’t be a named driver on your parents’ policy. Yes, it’ll cost more but you’ll start to build an insurance record that’ll save you money later.

• Use your home address, it’ll be cheaper than your university one.

• Try adding a parent on as a named driver. Contrary to what you might think it’ll reduce the premium, but again, don’t lie. If you add them then they must be someone who will drive the car at least sometimes.

• Play around with combinations of voluntary excess and third party/comprehensive combinations; third party isn’t always the cheapest.

There is no getting away from it; buying car insurance is a pain but you need it so buy the bullet and do it properly. Pay in full upfront if you can but if you can’t afford it then monthly payments aren’t such a bad idea. The interest mounts up, sure, but you can budget for it easily.

Breakdown Cover

The AA and RAC will never let you down. They’ll be there when you need them and they’ll do what they say they will. But they are expensive.

Try other companies for similar service (some argue that they are better) and a lower price.

Always make sure that you’ve got a jack, wheel brace and a spare wheel/tyre and that it’s inflated properly. A cheap fluorescent vest will only cost a couple of pounds and might save your life on a dark night if you do break down.

If you break down on a motorway or dual carriageway then pull over onto the hard shoulder and get out of the car. It might be cold and wet but it beats being flattened by a lorry that doesn’t notice you.

Servicing And Repairing Your Car

At this age and price you’d be mad to go to the car’s main dealer for a service.

Try somewhere like Halfords Service Centres or Alliance Autocentres for fixed-price servicing that’s very reasonable and decent quality.

Or, if you’re brave, then go to somewhere like Kwik Fit or Halfords for a free brake inspection. They’ll probably offer a winter/summer check too which means that they’ll look at your coolant system. They’ll look at your exhaust and tyres too because that’s what they do. Ask them to show you any faults (they normally do) and ask them to quote to repair them. DO NOT GET THEM TO DO THE WORK!

Instead, phone around using their quote as a guide so you know what to ask for. You’ll save £££££’s this way. Get Halfords or somewhere similar to do an oil and filter change. Fit a new air filter yourself (Google how to do it – there will be someone on YouTube who will show you how). If it becomes harder to start then ask a garage to change the spark plugs. At this age a regular oil and filter change is the only servicing that matters for the health of the engine and you can get Kwik Fit et al to do safety checks for free; just don’t accept their quotes without getting them double checked.

If you find a small garage that you can trust then you should treasure them like you do your mum.

Check your oil, coolant an tyre pressures every fortnight and before any long journeys. If my 82-year-old grandmother could do it so can you.

Annual MOT Test

Every car needs an annual MOT test once it reaches three years of age. It’s a good chance to get an independent, expert opinion of your car’s safety every year – BUT you must follow our advice to avoid getting ripped off.

Never pay for a cheap MOT because they sometimes make their money from unnecessary repairs. Try using your local council MOT testing station. They have to be open to the public by law and they’ll be honest because there’s no advantage to them to identifying non-existent faults because they won’t do car repairs.

Look at moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-mot and scroll down to the middle to find a map to help you find the nearest council MOT station. This tip alone will probably save you hundreds of pounds over the life of the car.

Safety Tips

Here are my top ten safety tips:

• If you breakdown on a busy road then get out of your car, stand well away from the road and put on your fluorescent jacket that you keep in the door pocket. Phone for help and don’t get back into the car until help arrives. If you aren’t on a motorway then stay in your car with the doors locked but sit in the passenger seat; it’ll look like you’re with someone who has just popped out to get help.

• If someone drives alongside (or comes up behind you and flashes their headlights) and gestures for you to stop then don’t. If there is something really wrong with your car then you’d have noticed it. Drive to a busy petrol station forecourt and stop there. They’ll have CCTV and witnesses making it much safer for you.

• Carry a mobile phone at all times. Don’t use it when driving, even with a hands-free kit. It’s there for emergencies.

• Only park in a well-lit place at night. Reverse in so that, if necessary, you can drive out easily and quickly.

• Put a small LED torch on your key ring and use it to check your back seat to make sure that no one is there when you come back to your parked car at night.

• Always keep your car doors locked when you drive. The emergency services will get in if they need to but it’ll stop anyone else.

• If you’re in your car – with the doors locked, of course – and someone is on foot threatening you then drive away slowly. You only need to drive a little bit faster than they can run, don’t you? You’re much more likely to crash if you speed away.

• If the Police stop you be polite but don’t admit to doing anything wrong. If they caution you say nothing until you have spoken to a solicitor. If you are arrested then ask to speak to the duty solicitor before saying anything. If they ask you for your driving licence, MOT and insurance offer to produce them at a Police Station within 7 days if you don’t have them on you.

• If you do have a crash then stay calm, take photographs (with your mobile phone) and NEVER admit liability. Don’t say sorry even if you want to. The cause of an accidents is rarely clear-cut and your insurance company will thank you for not making their job harder.

• Wear a seat belt at all times. I know that it’s a legal requirement but 10 of drivers still don’t. And insist on your rear-seat passengers wearing one too. If they don’t and you have an accident then you will become their air bag and that’ll really ruin your day.

Fuel-Saving Driving Tips

Saving fuel is easy; balancing it against having fun too and making reasonable progress is the hard part!

You can balance the two though: keep the tyres properly inflated. Try not to rev the engine hard unless you are in the mood for a countryside blast.

Brake gently and try to anticipate the need to stop for red lights and junctions; braking hard and accelerating away is literally burning cash.

Don’t keep a load of crap in the boot; weight equals wasted fuel. Drive at 60 and not 70 and save about 10% in fuel costs. Oh, the easiest and best way to save money on your petrol bill is not to buy anything but petrol when you fill up!

Life As A Driver

Driving is great. It’s my favourite hobby and helps me to earn a living writing about doing it. Some of my best moments have been in cars; some of my favourite music takes me straight back to great drives in the Scottish hills – or to solitary drives after rows with my then-girlfriends.

I can remember both drives home with my newborn daughters – and the frantic drives to get their mother to the hospital too.

And don’t forget that it’s never the car that makes a drive great; it’s the road, the company, your state of mind, or where you’re going. Don’t waste your life wishing that you had a newer, faster, sexier car than the one that you have now – it’s always a disappointment when you finally get your dream car.

Car clubs are a great idea and aren’t just full of bearded blokes with dirty fingernails. You can trial your car , do track days in it, and hillclimb it.

There are a number of Internet forums on motoring too. You’ll eventually come across pistonheads.com so I’ll tell you about it now and save you some time. It’s friendly, informative and very, very funny.

Finally, enjoy yourself! The car is the greatest engineering innovation ever invented and it’ll enrich your life beyond measure helping you to see people and places that would have been impossible without it; and if you’re sensible it won’t break the bank either!