What to check when buying a used car
30 August 2026
· 1 min
Paint thickness, matching paperwork and service history — three checks that spare a buyer a lot.
A paint-thickness gauge is cheap and shows immediately whether the body has been resprayed.
The engine and chassis numbers in the papers must match the car.
Service history tells you whether the mileage is real — if the gaps between entries are large, ask why.