1. 1Have the cylinders borescoped at pre-purchase. Bore scoring is uncommon on the 981's MA1 flat-six but not zero, and when it happens it has been linked to leaking direct injectors and to chronic cold, low-rpm running; a clean scope largely settles the question.
2. 2Budget for known wear items on these flat-sixes: water pump, air-oil separator (AOS), and coolant pipe/connection leaks are the commonly reported failures.
3. 3Check the NHTSA recall history for the VIN and confirm the safety recalls were completed: the rear-axle carrier side sections that can fracture (NHTSA 21V679000, 2014–2015 cars), the front hood lock that may fail to latch (14V698000, 2014–2015), the passenger-seat wiring that can deactivate the airbags (13V502000, 2013–2014), and the airbag control-unit capacitor recall on 2016 cars (19V533000).

• 21V6790002014–2015
  Rear-axle carrier side sections can fracture, risking loss of control.
• 14V6980002014–2015
  Front hood lock may fail to latch, so the hood can open while driving.
• 13V5020002013–2014
  Passenger-seat wiring can develop intermittent contact and deactivate the airbags.
• 19V5330002016
  Airbag control-unit capacitor can deactivate the airbags or deploy them inadvertently.

US NHTSA campaigns for this model. A listed campaign may not apply to a particular car, and may already have been remedied — check a specific car by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.