After a home, buying a car is the biggest purchase most of us will make
in our lifetimes.

It may seem like an intimidating and risky process, but actually buying a used
car is easy. If you know what checks to make and how to look a car over,
you're very likely to get a safe reliable car you can enjoy for years to come.

This KwikGuide aims to give you the basics to help you avoid a costly mistake. Some advice might seem obvious at first, but it's surprising how easily things
can be overlooked.

KwikTip: always get a car insurance quote from Direct Line too,
as they don't take part in the price comparison websites.

To start as we mean to go on, our first top tip for the best deal is: Timing. There are two main buying times for new cars in Britain - March and September - and come April and October this results in dealers having piles of cars they've taken
in part exchange. Whether they put them on their own forecourts or pass them
on to other dealers, this is when the good used car deals are there for the
taking.

Choose pages of our guide using the menu bar above left, or click the link below
to read on.

Next page:
what car to look for >>