I have found a second hand 1998 Rover 216 Cabriolet for sale, for about £600 My car knowledge is very limited, so I went to see it with a friend who is a bit more clued up than myself. He was very dubious before we went to see it and was convinced it wasn't going to be any good. After inspection he said there was very little wrong with it - very good body work, engine seems sound, though only the owner drove it and not particularly far (my friend reved the engine and went through the gears). New looking tyres, the owner said he just had it serviced, he also said the head gasket and cambelt had been replaced not long before he bought it (he's only had it 3-4 months). He has no proof of this but said he rang up the garage that the guy had it done at and they confirmed this. Also it has only done 67k miles and has a full MOT

On the less positive side, the roof now has to be put down manually and there is slight rust on parts of the mechanism, which he said from the beggining, but goes down fine (but yes has to be done manually). There is also a few patches been added to the roof top, but he has always said it doesnt leak, it was raining when we went to see it and there was no sign of leaking, but my friend has assured me this could be very differnet when going down the motorway with heavy rain! My friend thinks it will cost approximately £500 to fix the hood, but that it should last at least a year, and considering the condition of the rest of the car this should add at least that much to the value. The lock mechanism for the boot has been broken but he has knocked money off for this saying it only costs £30 for the lock. Also on the advert it said it was was a 1.3, but I have now found out they only come in a 1.6. Also it has no car tax and he said he had just sent it back. Would these be causes for concern? Also the fact it has only done

After being sceptical at first and including the above issues my friend was actually a bit worried it was too good for the price. As someone who has little car knowledge, I just wanted to know what people thought, if any of the above seemed odd/dodgy, if it was likely to get expensive/labour or parts to fix it would be expensive? If there is anything else I should check on the car when I go back? or if there are any known problems with these cars?

I also text www.cartextchecker.com to see if it had been stolen/in an accident and it came back clean. Is this sight known to be reputable?

Any help/suggestions/advise is really appreciated.
Thanks!!
Dave