Used cars

Torre del Mar has four used car businesses, an official dealership on the coast road and three independent traders on Calle Puerta del Mar, in the centre and on the eastern promenade.

Three checks before you pay anything

• The vehicle report from the traffic authority. It shows the ownership history, the charges or liens on the vehicle and any outstanding issues. A dealer will provide it and a private seller can obtain it. Do not skip this on a private sale.
• The ITV. This is the Spanish roadworthiness test. Ask for the current certificate and check the date on it, because the next one may be weeks away and it is a real cost.
• The transfer of ownership. A change of ownership is filed with the traffic authority and there is a fee and a transfer tax. Dealers normally handle it, and an agencia or a gestoría will do it for a private sale. Until it is filed, the fines still reach the previous owner, which is why sellers care about it as much as buyers.

You need a Spanish tax number

Registering a vehicle in your name requires an NIE or DNI and an address in Spain. If you are new here, sort that before falling in love with a car.

What the ratings show

All four sit in a narrow band between four and five, on review counts that reach into the hundreds for the two largest. In this trade the volume of opinions is the more informative figure, because it reflects how many transactions have actually been through the door.