CUT AND SHUT

One last thing to look out for is the ‘cut and shut’. An extremely nasty and highly dangerous practice of gelding two halves of different cars together. Dangerous for the driver that is!

Recent crash tests on cut and shut vehicles produced some very frightening results – from ineffective crumple zones to the whole car tearing apart into its respective halves.

So how do you spot them if they are not on the write off register?

Firstly don’t think this is something that will only be done to expensive cars – if there’s a profit in it the criminal will take it.

The bodywork checks will reveal the first telltale signs – the car will have had a total respray.

Then you need to hunt for the weld seam – it will run right through the floor pan and pillars. Lift all the floor carpets and rear bench seat for starters. If there is no seam then get it up on the ramp.

• Go over the underbody and concentrate on the central section. Look out for fresh underseal. Don’t be put off if it’s old and look for the telltale ridge. If there’s a weld seam that runs from one side of the car to the other I’ll guarantee it’s not been put there by the manufacturers.

When buying a car privately you have virtually no rights within the law. LET THE BUYER BEWARE. Go through your checks and if everything is OK you have greatly swayed the odds in your favour of buying a good clean car.

The best advice I could give would be to treat every car as stolen, ringed, clocked and chopped – until proven wrong.

And if all that’s not enough you can always get a professional opinion.

Bring along a trained mechanic with you to the viewing. In many cases, they will have a very good idea of what a car is worth and will be able to assess it fairly quickly. They will also be able from their experience and knowledge to identify any major defects or faults quickly.

Many mechanics or trainee mechanics will provide this service to you on a part-time basis for a relatively nominal fee. This is money well worth spending and an outlay of £25-£35 can save you extreme grief later on, and indeed help you buy a better car than you might otherwise have done.