Hiya,
Everything is a risk - whether brand new or second hand. Of course
brand new is a safer bet on quality, with warranty and all....but
on rare occasions, I've seen used cars which gave less trouble than
brand new ones too. There is an element of luck involved, just like
everything else in this world....
Its a good idea to get a mechanic to check the car, but do be
careful about the conditions attached. There have been cases of
high-pressured sales where the condition attached it "we can let
you bring it to a mechanic, but if the mechanic says its OK, then
you must buy it".
In fact, I've come across used car dealers who told me "we can let
you test drive the car, but if there is no problem, you must agree
to buy it". There is no way I'll agree to such conditions.
A mechanic will also usually just do a visual check to see if there
were any accidents, test drive a bit to see whether the car is
running smooth, etc. There are major problems which could not be
detected....you'll never know till too late (so its once again
luck). Of course there are ways to reduce your risks, but you have
to be quite familiar with cars to do these.....
Vicom does the most thorough checks....but still, there are things
which could escape their attention. However, most cars don't give
that much trouble, so too much paranoia is often unnecessary.
To answer your questions....
Road tax is the same for cars within 10 years old - regardless of
brand new or used.
Insurance depends on your age, your record, type of car, car
valuation, etc. Doesn't really depend on whether its brand new or
used (unless the car is really old).
Loan rates for used cars is about 0.5-1.0% higher than that of new
cars, depending on the credit company and bank. The bank will
usually impose a higher interest rate....and the used car dealer
(aka credit company) gets a commission from the interest you pay,
so you're fighting against two parties.
Er....this is something I always like to ask first-time buyers: You
do know the total costs (including the hidden costs) of owning a
car right? Not just buying one, but actually owning one. And also
the implications of taking too big/long a loan...
