Hi Terry,

That’s not a bad or particularly problematic car at all, but there are a few pointers and things to look out for. First of all, try and avoid the 1.8-litre Flexi-Fuel examples, as they can be pricey to run. High-mileage diesels are better than low-mileage diesels, as it means they shouldn’t have a blocked Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF), a pricey fix on any car – and, linked to this, all the warning lights on the dash should illuminate and then extinguish soon after you’ve fired up the car. If the DPF light or the braking light comes on and stays on, walk away; the control unit for the ABS is expensive. Beyond this, creaking seats suggests the internals of the seat are broken and the only way to fix that is to replace the entire seats, while a wobbly key in the ignition slot on the dashboard is also another problem best avoided – you’ll need to replace both key and slot to fix it, and guess what? That’s right, it’s not cheap to do.