All about buying a second hand car in Finland

[afaquejam]

Hi all,

I know this question has been asked previously somewhere couple of years ago on this forum and there are some other post spread around that revolve around the this topic. I would like to get comprehensive and detailed answers related to this topic. If you have pointers to the respective questions, then you can go ahead and post them too. We could aim to gather all the required information related to buying and maintaining a second hand car in Finland here.

Assuming that I do not know anything about buying second hand cars in Finland, I have the following questions:
[*] I believe http://www.nettiauto.com/ is "the" place to look for buying second hand cars. Are there any similar good websites where we can find information?
[*] What all things I should take into consideration when buying a second hand car, i.e. buying from a dealer or privately, petrol car or diesel car, mileage etc.
[*] After buying, what steps I need to take to legally drive this car. I mean, inspection and other related stuff?
[*] How often and where to get the inspection done?
[*] What about car insurance?
[*] Any other suggestions that you would like to give.

Thanks!

Cheers.

[Ligence]

Nettiauto is indeed "the" place nowadays, but you shouldn't neglect the alternatives as you might miss your dream car.
http://www.autotalli.com/
http://autot.oikotie.fi/
If you're looking for something slightly out of ordinary (Alfa Romeo, Jaguar, etc), it might also be a good idea to check the "for sale" sections of the marque-specific Finnish forum sites.

When I was looking for my car a few years ago, I read a lot of threads on both the Finnish, UK & US marque forums to make myself a checklist for when I go see a car. Each model has model-specific (and sometimes year model -specific) things to take into considerations. Generally, still:
- Low mileage is always preferable, but beware of scammers who alter the mileage!
- When you have decided on a specific car model, check the model years for that generations. The early cars may have issues that were sorted out by the end of the production cycle.
- Diesel isn't much cheaper than petrol anymore, and you pay an additional diesel tax. If you drive a lot of highway miles, then diesel may be better.
- If you drive a lot, you might also consider a CNG (compressed natural gas) car, factory-fitted or later converted. That practically halves the fuel costs. Whatever you do, do not buy an LPG-converted (liquid propane gas) car from say, Germany, and import it to Finland. You'll end up paying a massive daily tax (apparently hundreds of euros!) for as long as you have the system in the car. That's why there aren't any here.
- A dealer must give a 6 month warranty for 2nd hand cars they sell, but if something goes wrong it may take a bit of fighting to get them to pay. Dealer prices tend to be higher.

If you are not very experienced with cars, or specifically that model of car, you should consider having a pre-purchase inspection. There are some garages etc (may be called "autotohtori"; "car doctor") that offer this kind of service for about 80-100 €.

The MOT-esque inspection has to be done yearly, except for new cars (first time in 3 years after purchase or something like that).

Regarding insurance, there are two kinds. First is the mandatory "liikennevakuutus", which covers the damages and expenses you cause to others in case of accident. The second is the voluntary "kaskovakuutus", which covers the damages and expenses you cause to your own car. Of the latter, there are different levels with varying degrees of cover and of course different prices.

Having said all that, I bought a 1st model year luxury car from abroad, from a private seller, without a pre-purchase inspection. I got lucky, it's reportedly pretty much the best-condition example of that model in Finland. The keyword here is "lucky", it could've all gone horribly wrong.

[Rip]

The MOT-esque inspection has to be done yearly, except for new cars (first time in 3 years after purchase or something like that).

Every year, except first, second and fourth (NOT third) year after first registration.

[Ligence]

The MOT-esque inspection has to be done yearly, except for new cars (first time in 3 years after purchase or something like that).

Every year, except first, second and fourth (NOT third) year after first registration.

Thanks for the correction.

[ablo]

[*] I believe http://www.nettiauto.com/ is "the" place to look for buying second hand cars. Are there any similar good websites where we can find information?

# Nettiauto is the first choice undoubtedly. Any way U can use other site as suggested above.

[*] What all things I should take into consideration when buying a second hand car, i.e. buying from a dealer or privately, petrol car or diesel car, mileage etc.

#Go to Dealer. It is safer and hastle free. Less probability of being cheated. If you buy from a dealer they will takecare of the points below.
Petrol, around 100k kilometer

[*] After buying, what steps I need to take to legally drive this car. I mean, inspection and other related stuff?
[*] How often and where to get the inspection done?
[*] What about car insurance?

#Pohijola is the best option. But there are other good insurance too. Make insurance for your own damage and the liability( for others damage)

[*] Any other suggestions that you would like to give.

#Suggest for the Toyota, then Nissan. They are hastle free and have good resell value. milage around 100K is a good choice. and not more than 6-7 years old. please dont compromise with tyres. Take good winter and summer tyres ór buy new one. if you have child, dont endanger his life. Use proper child car seat ,new tyres and be a good driver.

[Upphew]

#Go to Dealer. It is safer and hastle free. Less probability of being cheated.

Consumer protection laws doesn't work when dealing between consumers. But even if you buy from dealer and the price is low then you can't expect hassle free car (unless advertised as such).

#Pohijola is the best option. But there are other good insurance too. Make insurance for your own damage and the liability( for others damage)

I'd check POP too. It was discussed here last year when they offered quite low prices compared to others. I still haven't paid my 1st bill as they decided to send it few weeks ago.

[Kirsikka75]

A question about buying privately.

I've agreed a price at which to buy a car from a private individual conditional on a clean bill of health from the Autotohtori test. Assuming that comes through, logistically how does the money exchange take place? Is it normal to rock up with a big wad of cash or, this being Finland, do you transact some kind of electronic transfer in front of the other person who then sees the money in their account instantly?

I'm not overly keen on wandering around with a large lump of cash in my pocket but if that's how it's done then I best call the bank and ask!

[caster]

No matter what you buy and from where you buy - make sure your test drive also includes inspection at a workshop (ask to check rust, wheal bearing, oil leaks etc) - also make sure you check the car history at Traffi (not expensive) - not just take the word of mouth

[FinnGuyHelsinki]

A question about buying privately.

I've agreed a price at which to buy a car from a private individual conditional on a clean bill of health from the Autotohtori test. Assuming that comes through, logistically how does the money exchange take place? Is it normal to rock up with a big wad of cash or, this being Finland, do you transact some kind of electronic transfer in front of the other person who then sees the money in their account instantly?

I'm not overly keen on wandering around with a large lump of cash in my pocket but if that's how it's done then I best call the bank and ask!

My suggestion is to go to a bank (buyer's, if paying by bank transfer) to close the deal, that way both parties will know the payment has been made and there's a record of it, also the teller is there to witness the transfer of ownership.

[Pursuivant]

Also, as said in the previous old topics, make sure the paperwork is in order. Trafi database query costs some, but gives a piece of mind. I mean it is almost common sense to make sure the person selling the car is the "owner" etc.
The last thing you want is to get a hefty bill off a car thats been uninsured and untaxed and then try and find the original owner who is marked in the registry to sign it over... Or buy someones car they brought over thats not in Finnish plates and then get pounced on by Customs...

[Kirsikka75]

Thanks for the tips, top stuff.

One more question. In the Trafi report there's quite an odd list in the Ownership History:

14.10.2014-08.01.2015 (In here is the actual name and address of the first owner that I have been told about)
06.06.2013-08.01.2015 Private First operator
06.06.2013-08.01.2015 Private Other owner
06.06.2013-14.10.2014 Private First owner
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 Private Other operator
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 Private First operator
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 TOYOTA FINANCE FINLAND OY, KORPIVAARANTIE 1, 01450 VANTAA First owner

Is this rather odd looking list just a product of that fact that the car appears to have been bought on finance or is something else going on? What does 'Private First owner' mean? I would have thought you can't hide your name from the list since that's the whole purpose of it so... any ideas?

[Upphew]

Thanks for the tips, top stuff.

One more question. In the Trafi report there's quite an odd list in the Ownership History:

14.10.2014-08.01.2015 (In here is the actual name and address of the first owner that I have been told about)
06.06.2013-08.01.2015 Private First operator
06.06.2013-08.01.2015 Private Other owner
06.06.2013-14.10.2014 Private First owner
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 Private Other operator
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 Private First operator
10.06.2011-06.06.2013 TOYOTA FINANCE FINLAND OY, KORPIVAARANTIE 1, 01450 VANTAA First owner

Is this rather odd looking list just a product of that fact that the car appears to have been bought on finance or is something else going on? What does 'Private First owner' mean? I would have thought you can't hide your name from the list since that's the whole purpose of it so... any ideas?

Financed car is bank's until it is fully paid. So you get 1st owner being bank and people who pay to bank being as operators.

[Limae]

If I wish to spend a whole day walking around and looking at cars...which area in Finland has the most concentrated number of car dealers in one place?

Cheers!

[caster]

If I wish to spend a whole day walking around and looking at cars...which area in Finland has the most concentrated number of car dealers in one place?

Cheers!

Don't walk the whole Finland in one day - first try Helsinki - Herttoniemi for new and used car showrooms

[Juha C]

I'm about to leave for Finland and I'm thinking about buying a used car to use for 3 weeks. Seems slightly cheaper than renting. Will a dealer take care of all the paperwork and insurance? Ideally, I'd like to walk into a dealership and drive away with a car. Can it be done in a few hours? And would a dealer buy back the car after 2-3 weeks? At a lower price, I'm sure, but that might be easier than finding a buyer.