Should I buy an old car with low mileage?

I am tempted to buy an immaculate one owner 2013 Volkswagen Polo 1.2 TSI R Line with only 23,000 miles on the clock to replace my 2015 low mileage Suzuki Swift. Would it be a bad move as I know you have highlighted problems with timing chains etc. I just would like a small car that is more refined than the Swift.

Asked on 18 March 2022 by Robin Mansfield

Answered by Dan Powell

I'm not an advocate of buying old cars with low mileage. It suggests that this Polo has spent most of its life standing around doing nothing. And unless it has been carefully dry stored then it will have a range of age-related issues with the suspension, joints and underbody. There has also been a number of timing chain complaints about the 2009-2013 EA111 1.2 TSI.

If I was going to replace a Suzuki Swift with a Volkswagen Polo then I would swap it with the latest 1.0 TSI model, which is one of the best small cars on sale today: www.honestjohn.co.uk/volkswagen/polo/

Tags: buying a used car

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