Mileage

[nic3c]

I'm thinking of buying an 02 reg Focus which has done 38,000 miles. What do i need to look at on the car to see if there's any signs of it having done more miles? It's in very good condition, only 2 small stone chips on the bonnet and a few minor scratches elsewhere from car parks. I've checked the paperwork which all seems ok. Just wondering what there is i can look at on the actual car? Thanks.

[Donquixote]

Biggest giveaways are the steering wheel, pedals and gear-lever...look for a worn, shiny steering wheel which wouldn't correlate with the shown mileage. The same goes for the pedals and gear lever. Also the gear lever can become 'loose' with wear, so check that it feels nice and tight. The best thing is also to carry out a HPI check on the vehicle first...well worth the money.
Good luck!!!

[NORMANTHEDOG]

basically,all of the above,but also driver seat wear and tear,check under spare wheel,it seems you might have found a nice car,make sure you HPI it ,that can tell you a lot as well.
Norman

[nic3c]

Ok, thanks.

[fiesata]

At 38000 miles there should be little wear on the above items but nowadays this is not a particularly good guide as it is easy to change the pedal rubbers gearstick lever and steering wheel.
Just two stone chips indicate a low mileage but cars wear well generally these days I've seen some with 150,000 which could pass for half that, so beware.
Having said this the Focus is a fine car with excellent ride,handling and performance.It is well built and reliable - in fact the best in it's class get a good one and yo'll have years of happy motoring

BTW which model / engine is it

[nic3c]

Thanks. It's a 1.6 Zetec.