We may dream of driving a Lamborghini, but outside the realms of unbridled fantasy most motorists are faced with the much less glamorous task of tracking down a reliable used car.

Annual sales of used cars have risen by 13% from 6.7m to 7.6m in the past five years and in 2006 they outnumbered sales of new cars (excluding company cars) by seven to one. Still, television car shows have tended to pander to wishful thinking and ignore the needs of the great car-buying public.

But now Used Car Roadshow is redressing the balance by offering viewers nononsense advice on how to avoid getting caught with a rip-off or write-off and how to find genuine bargains. The new series will start on ITV4 on Wednesday and is fronted by Jason Dawe, The Sunday Times’s used car expert.

“It’s not quite as adrenaline charged and glamorous as driving a DB9 across Europe or pushing a Bugatti Veyron up to 253mph,” admits Dawe, recalling two of Top Gear’s recent challenges. “But what we want to do with this show is offer people useful, down-to-earth advice on the sort of cars that, let’s face it, most of us are going to be buying.”

The shows will offer tips on how to buy at auction, the best used car deals of the week and a feature called Teenage Kicks, with examples of people who have finally managed to get their hands on the dream car of their youth (everything from a 1986 Porsche 924S to a 1962 Daimler Dart). The series is even promising tips on how to get free motoring for a year by finding the cars that won’t depreciate.

Dawe, who worked for many years as a car dealer before getting his TV break on Top Gear in 2002, will try to match members of the public with their ideal car. Participants include a growing family looking for a practical runaround, a young couple looking for a bit of fun or, in one episode, a 6ft 5in rugby player with space issues.

“It’s a bit like a property show, but rather than finding people their perfect home we’re helping them to track down the right car to put on the driveway,” says Dawe.

On location last week in Morley, near Leeds, Dawe, aided by Penny Mallory, a former rally driver and his co-presenter, were helping to guide Richard Myatt, 33, from Doncaster, through the pros and pitfalls of buying at auction. Myatt was an auction virgin and clearly nervous.

“Auctions can be daunting at first,” admits Dawe. “It helps to give yourself plenty of time to look around and plan what you’re going to bid on, otherwise you can find yourself bidding on a £2,000 Jag when you originally came in for a £1,000 hatchback.”

Younger buyers know far less about used car buying than their parents’ or grandparents’ generations, according to new research. A survey by the RAC found that two-thirds of drivers aged 17-24 are unsure of what to look for when buying a used car, about a third don’t know how to carry out basic checks and young drivers rate the colour of the bodywork as twice as important as the state of the brakes. “These days people update their antivirus software more often than they look under the bonnet of their car,” says Dawe.

After a few hours at the auction Myatt spotted the car for him — a 1996 Renault Clio with 29,000 miles on the clock, in excellent condition and with a few months left on the MoT. With Dawe’s advice to guide him, he joined the bidding and a few tense minutes later it was his for £725.

Leaving the grey auction lot Dawe headed back to his own teenage kick: a 1986 Bentley 8 in midnight blue. “This is a car I lusted after in my teens,” he says, beaming. “Last week I finally bought one. It’s the perfect colour as well. Gorgeous.”

To apply to take part in the Used Car Roadshow, go to www.usedcarroadshow.co.uk

Jason’s top tips for buying secondhand

According to the RAC, 29% of buyers have problems with newly bought secondhand cars and spend an average of £274 repairing faults. Here are Jason’s tips on avoiding pitfalls

- If you’re buying from a private seller, never carry too much cash. You shouldn’t need more than £100-£200 for a deposit and a banker’s draft will cover the balance. Always meet the seller at his or her home address, never in a car park or at a halfway point. This is the best way to avoid buying a car that’s been stolen or one the owner knows is a dud.

- Set a budget and decide on priorities. Make sure the car will fit in your garage or parking space.

- Run the engine with the bonnet open and check for knocks that could spell trouble — this works best if the engine is cold. Be suspicious if the owner has warmed the engine before you arrive.

- Always take a test drive and don’t think you have to be satisfied with a 10-minute run round the block — take the car out for half an hour to an hour.

- If you’re not mechanically minded, take someone along who is. Alternatively, take the car to a garage and ask the mechanics to look it over. They can probably do some basic checks in an hour for £50-£100. The RAC (0800 975 5867, www.rac.co.uk ) offers vehicle inspections starting from about £125.

- Check the cost of insuring the car before you buy and make sure all the paperwork (tax, registration documents, MoT certificate if applicable) is in order. If you’re spending a lot of money check that all servicing receipts are present (originals not photocopies).

- Always negotiate — even if the advert says “no offers”. Get a valuation from a buyer’s guide. You get free valuations for cars registered 1997-2006 at www.parkers.co.uk/cars/used-prices/

- Get a vehicle provenance check. This will tell you if there is any outstanding finance on the car, if it is an insurance write off or if it has been reported stolen. A check costs about £40 from HPI (www.hpicheck.com , 01722 422 422).

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