This is something I get asked quite a lot, and I can only really answer it from my own taste and gut feeling.

For me, I’d compromise on mileage first.

Every time.

I’d much rather have a higher-spec car with more miles on it, provided it has been properly looked after, than a low-mileage car with hardly any history and nothing interesting on the spec sheet.

Take an old Mercedes CL500 coupe.

I love those things.

Proper big coupe, loads of presence, wood trim, leather everywhere and usually enough toys to keep you entertained for days.

Now if you find a low-mileage one, properly specced and immaculate, it’ll probably be asking serious money.

Not for me.

Then you get the other end of the scale.

Low mileage, cheap price, no service history.

Absolutely not.

That would make me more nervous than a high-mileage car ever would.

Then you find the interesting one.

Big spec.

Huge miles.

Every single service stamped from the day it was bought.

That’s the one I’d be looking at.

Because mileage on its own doesn’t scare me.

Cars are designed to be driven.

What worries me more is a car that has clearly been ignored, serviced when somebody remembered or has large gaps in its history that nobody can explain.

A high-mileage car with a proper history tells you something.

It’s been used, yes, but it has also been maintained.

Oil changes done.

Servicing kept up.

Things fixed when they needed fixing.

That matters to me far more than seeing a tiny number on the odometer.

Now, if it’s high mileage, high spec and no service history?

I’ll admit it.

I’d still be tempted.

But I’d be trying my luck on the price because I’d want some money left in the pot for whatever surprises might come next.

That’s where buying used gets interesting.

Age, mileage and specification all matter, but they don’t all matter equally to everyone.

Some people would rather have the newest car they can afford.

Others want the lowest mileage possible.

Me?

Give me the car with the toys, the right engine and a folder full of receipts.

At National Car Finder, that’s why we don’t just look at one number and say yes or no.

We look at the whole car.

Because sometimes the one with 90,000 miles on it is the better buy than the one with 40,000.

And sometimes the odometer tells you less than the service book does.

8. You’ve Got £20k. What Are We Actually Looking For?

If someone hands me a £20,000 budget and says, “Find me the best car you can,” my first question probably isn’t going to be about make, model or colour.

It’s going to be:

What’s the car actually for?

Because £20k can buy you a lot of very different cars, and the “best” one depends completely on what you need it to do.

Is it a weekend car? Something you’re going to enjoy on a Sunday morning, keep clean and probably look back at every time you park it?

Or is it a daily workhorse that’s going to do thousands of miles every year?

If it’s for work, then where do you work?

If you’re doing two hours each way every day, an electric car might need a bit more thought depending on your charging situation and route. If most of your journey is fast A-road driving, something tiny and low-powered might save money around town but leave you wishing for a bit more when you’re joining traffic every morning.

Then I’d start asking about family.

Do you have kids?

How old are they?

Are they still in child seats? Is there a pram that needs to go in the boot?

Or are they getting close to learning to drive?

Because suddenly the car you’re choosing for yourself might also become the car your son or daughter learns in, and that changes the conversation again.

You might fancy something big and powerful.

Your insurance company may have a slightly different opinion when you add an 18-year-old learner to it.

Then there’s the question of whether it’s actually your car or a family car.

If everyone is going to use it, the boot starts mattering more. Rear legroom matters. Easy access matters. Suddenly that gorgeous coupe you had your eye on becomes slightly less practical when somebody asks where the pushchair is meant to go.

And what do you actually do at weekends?

Golf?

Right, we need to know if the clubs fit.

Cycling?

Do you need a roof rack or enough space to throw a bike in the back?

Dogs?

That beautiful cream leather interior might start looking slightly less clever.

Camping?

Now boot space suddenly matters quite a lot more than having 20-inch wheels.

That’s why I think asking someone, “What car do you want?” is sometimes the wrong place to start.

I’d rather ask:

What does your life look like?

Because once you know that, the right car starts becoming a lot easier to find.

Then we can talk about the fun stuff.

Do you want petrol, diesel, hybrid or electric? Automatic or manual? SUV, estate, hatchback, saloon? Do you care about the badge? Do you want something sensible or something you’ll still turn around and look at after you’ve parked it?

And, importantly, where are you willing to compromise?

Maybe £20k gets you a newer car with fewer toys.

Maybe it gets you something slightly older with the big engine, better trim and the spec you actually want.

Maybe the car you thought you needed at the start isn’t the one that makes the most sense once we’ve talked everything through.

That’s the bit I enjoy.

At National Car Finder, the £20,000 is almost the easy part.

The important bit is finding out what that £20,000 needs to do for you.

Because “find me the best car for £20k” doesn’t really have one answer.

But “find me the best car for my life for £20k”?

Now we’ve got somewhere to start.