Buy or Not to buy an old car without a guarantee?

As a mechanic I bought my daughter a 6 year old Punto. But it had a full service history, 44000 miles and one lady owner. The well known problems of failed power steering and blown head gasket had recently been fixed and I just had to replace the engine sump, which rusts through after about 6 years. And of course it was the later model with the full width radiator grille and headlights. These have a galvanised body stopping the dreaded Fiat rust bug and the troublesome rear suspension of the earlier model has been redesigned. 99,000 miles is a lot for the earlier model and the older the car the more essential a service history. Fiats do not stand neglect well. If you must buy really cheap an early Punto is not the best bet. A Fiesta or Corsa is likely to be less trouble. And yes, it is not that hard to find an old car with history.