I'm a first time car owner, planning on buying a used s40 very soon.

I'm deciding between two at the moment and I don't know what to do!

The first car- 2001 s40, blue, 115k, just been serviced, new battery, new breaks, tires 85%, $4500

Second car- 2002 s40, silver, 125k, tires done at 112,000 miles and the brakes (Left rear caliper and both rear discs/pads) at 100,000 miles and front brakes (pads) at 90,000 miles, $4300

I don't know if this is enough information to make a decision, but any guidance about which should i go for would be SO appreciated. THANK YOU

 

Features look pretty much identical and hardly any options, so I'm guessing they are identical feature-wise. Have you seen the Carfax reports? They could have entirely different histories.

If they are being sold by private sellers, can you tell which seller might have treated the car better? Both by asking, and just by the seller's environment - did you pull up to a little house in a cul-de-sac and the seller is selling the S40 to get a larger car for a new baby, or did you pull up to a college kid's apartment? Was one car cleaner-looking compared to the other, indicating that the owner might regularly wash it and overall better care for it?

Beyond that, I'd give both cars close inspection of all their features. Make or find a checklist and try out everything you can to find anything that might be broken or otherwise not as good as the other car. Listen carefully to the engines, feel how nice they ride, try to get a sense for which one drives better if you can tell a difference. Also ask to see the receipt from the timing belt change; this can be indicative of the owner's care for the car as well (and if they can't show the receipt, be ready to negotiate the seller changing it before you buy - I know the second-gen S40s need to be changed at 105k, so these are probably the same or earlier).

Obviously they are two very similar cars and probably have about an equal chance of needing service (or not) in the future. Since you seem like you can't see a difference between them, I'd give them each one more long test drive, looking more closely for any minor flaws, and if they still seem identical, just pick one. Maybe the 2002, if everything else really is identical, just for the sake of it being slightly newer.

 

If I recall, the 2002 had better cup holders. Other than that, they are pretty much the same.
Stan