What a Wollongong car can hide
Rust from the salt
With 17 patrolled beaches along this stretch of coast, a car for sale here may well have lived near the sea. The NRMA warns that rust on steel can keep spreading under a painted panel once it starts. The NSW buyer's checklist says to look in the boot, the floor wells, the doors and the lower sills for dark stains and bubbled paint, and a mechanic with the car on a hoist can see the underbody as well.
Brakes that know the hills
A car that's come down Mount Ousley or Bulli Pass for years has asked a lot of its brakes. On the test drive, NSW says the car should stop smoothly and in a straight line. Ask the mechanic to check the pads, the discs and the age of the brake fluid too.
Commuter kilometres
Around 20,000 people commute to Sydney each day by road and rail, so some local cars have done big distances for their age. Consumer Protection WA puts a typical Australian driver at roughly 12,000 to 15,000 km a year, and a reading far off that, high or low, deserves a question. NSW also suggests checking the rego online to make sure the odometer hasn't been tampered with.
A car from Sydney or interstate
If the car is up in Sydney, 85 km away, have it inspected where it's parked before you commit to the drive home. If it's coming from another state, it needs a blue slip (now called an authorised unregistered vehicle inspection) to be registered in NSW, and that report is valid for 42 days.
Pink slip or pre-purchase inspection?
| Pink slip | Pre-purchase inspection | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it's done for | The owner, so the rego can be renewed | You, the buyer, before any money changes hands |
| Who can do it | Only an AIS station | A mechanic you choose |
| How long it counts | Valid for 6 months | It describes the car on the day it's looked at |
| What you learn | That the car passed the yearly safety check | What's worn, what's due and what to ask the seller about |
Buying privately in NSW
A private sale leaves you outside both the Motor Dealers and Repairers Act and the Australian Consumer Law. Buy from a dealer and you're usually entitled to a dealer guarantee under that Act. On a private sale, the inspection is the main thing standing between you and a car that needs more than you planned.
A Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) search tells you whether money is still owed on the car. Run it before you pay for an inspection, so you're not inspecting a car you can't safely buy.
What a good report on a coastal car covers
- The underbody, sills and floor, with any rust described by where it is and how far it's gone.
- Brake pads, discs and fluid, and how the car pulled up on the road test.
- Engine oil colour, leaks and exhaust smoke: blue smoke means oil is burning.
- Tyre tread, with the NSW checklist's 5mm as a guide, and any uneven wear.
- Whether the engine and VIN numbers match the Certificate of Registration.
- A plain recommendation: buy it, negotiate, or walk away.
What we'd do
We'd run the PPSR search first, then have a mechanic look the car over on a hoist, because salt damage underneath is the problem that's hardest to see from the kerb. If the seller says it does the Mount Ousley run every day, we'd add a brake fluid test, and we'd take the report to the negotiation.