In my opinion you should walk away or negotiate a very good deal.

As for the reported faults.

Front x2 brake disc worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened (3.5.1i)

May or may not need replacing but discs are not expensive. Sensible to replace pads at the same time otherwise it can result in poor braking whilst old pads bed to new discs. Expect £200 bill.

Nearside sill Body has slight corrosion (6.1.B.2)

Offside sill Body has slight corrosion (6.1.B.2)

Could be just surface rust, could be terminal rot, needs investigating.

Nearside Front Suspension arm rubber bush deteriorated but not resulting in excessive movement (2.4.G.2)

Offside Front Suspension arm rubber bush deteriorated but not resulting in excessive movement (2.4.G.2)

Standard problem on KA, Fiesta, Puma. Easier (and cheaper) to fit new bottom wishbone than take out old bush etc. £70 a pair for parts + fitting.

Power steering pipe(s) or hose(s) slightly corroded (2.3.2)

At least it shows there are no leaks. Just monitor.

Both front wipers split but clear screen

Cheap and simple to replace.

Child seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt

Presumably child seat has now been removed and the seatbelt can be checked.

Oil leak

Standard on older Fords. Just monitor

Nearside front wheel inner bead buckled

Needs replacing. May get one off E-Bay

Both rear and nearside front tyres are splitting on walls

Need replacing. Not sure about size, allow £100 at most.

Nearside front tyre has a sidewall repair

Needs replacing. By another pair then you have 4 brand new tyres. Another £100.

Bonnet catch sticky

Apply grease. £0.

"Power steering pipe(s) or hose(s) slightly corroded (2.3.2) At least it shows there are no leaks. Just monitor."

Don't just monitor. Put something on it to stop it.

If they're steel pipes. I'd favour sunflower oil and rubbing them with aluminium foil.

The long list of faults suggests this has not been looked after with much care. There may well be other problems on the verge of surfacing. Unless it is really cheap I'd be inclined to look for another.

Edited by galileo on 16/04/2014 at 13:24

I'll third that common sense view, only buy if its ridiculously cheap.

Many cars get a couple of advisories, but that lot's nearly into chapters.

While the common sense cautions above are appropriate, common sense cautions are ALWAYS appropriate with used cars.

You can't go wrong with common sense caution, especially if you don't have to buy a used car.

However, sometimes you have to actually take a punt.

Most of these faults are trivial, and (counsels of perfection aside) some people wouldn't bother fixing some of them (I might not fix the tyres, for example. I certainly wouldn't bother fixing an oil leak unless it was (a) easy, like, say, a rocker cover gasket, or (b) if it was an actual problem: Has it, for example, contaminated the rubber bushes and that's why they have deteriorated? Can't tell without seeing it.). So I'd probably tolerate most of these faults, yet I change my oil and filter rather often. You just can't tell.

The exception is the sill corrosion. You need to be fairly sure these aren't on the verge of needing extensive repair/replacement. If you can't asses this yourself, perhaps the seller would be willing to let you take it to a repairer for an estimate, which you could use in negotiation.

If (as is likely) they won't do that, then probably common sense caution should prevail on this occaision.

Edited by edlithgow on 17/04/2014 at 03:54