Over 200,000 km on the clock: buy or not?

In a modest budget, plenty of cars have over 200,000 km on them, especially estates and diesels. Some people reject such a car automatically, others say that an honest 250,000 is better than a suspicious 120,000. Where is the truth?

A few general principles to start from:

• Motorway and town are not the same. A car that did most of its distance on motorways wears the engine, clutch and brakes less than one with the same number from city traffic. The service history and the type of previous owner (sales rep, taxi, family) give a hint.
• Documented servicing decides. With high mileage, ask to see invoices for the timing drive, clutch, shock absorbers, gearbox (on an automatic, the oil change) and turbo. What has no paperwork, count into the price as a future expense.
• An honest number is an advantage. High mileage that fits the wear and the roadworthiness test records is less risky than low mileage that fits nothing. How to spot a clocked odometer is described in the pinned guide in this category.
• The specific engine matters more than the number. Some engines and gearboxes tend to have problems earlier, others last much longer. Experiences with specific models are in the category Car experiences.

In search you can set a mileage from–to and compare how much cheaper the higher-mileage cars are.

Have you bought a car with over 200,000 km? Write the model, engine, mileage when you bought it, how far you drove it since and what you repaired. And if you bought a "low-mileage" car that then gave you trouble, write that too.