1st time buying a used car.... Tips and/or Reccomendations?

[aphex]

Goin with my girlfriend to look at used cars in a few days.... My (and subsequently her) first time shopping used cars...

What are good questions to ask? What are bad signs? Do we hire someone to check it out first?

Sorry, newbie here... 😀

 

[DanJ]

http://www.carfax.com

worth it.

 

[BatmanNate]

Never buy from dealer. If you're really interested, run carfax and have a mechanic check it out. Walk away from obvious signs of neglect or abuse or poor condition (ie metal shavings visible on dipstick in oil, uneven wear of tires, vibrating brakes, grinding gears, creamy colored oil, visible leakage, blue smoke, etc etc etc). Don't hesitate to walk away, and always haggle.

 

[NickelTitanium]

have your girlfriend dress hot and have her pick stuff up by bending over.

 

[aphex]

Well, my girlfriends best friends' husband is the used car manager at a local lot... Were gonna be dealing with him...

 

[MystikMango]

Be wary of a used car that has new tires... chances are they are hiding an alignment problem.

Get on your belly and check parts of the car you can't see. If you see fresh undercoating, chances are they are hinding some form of damage or neglect.

Double check what warranty comes with the car. Depending on age, it really is a good idea to purchase a form of extended warranty.

By all means, CarFax.

 

[DaWhim]

something to read about
go to fatwallet - finance, there have been threads about it

 

[iamwiz82]

look for:

rust
oil color
if it's an auto - smell the fluid, if ismells burnt, leave.
warped/pitted rotors
Spongy brakes
odd smells
look for wet spots on the undercarriage of the car
any strange sounds(ticking, grinding, rubbing) - It is best to put the windows down and drive near a wall so the sounds echo

There are thousands of things to look at 😀

 

[beatle]

BatmanNate gives some good advice. Leaks are a no-no (unless the car is priced accordingly). Maintenance records are a big plus. Consider getting a month-to-month subscription to Consumer Reports' website. There you'll find reliability ratings and recommendations for used cars. It's really valuable, even if you think you know your stuff. 🙂

Make sure everything works, take the car through its paces for at least 10-20 minutes to allow it to warm up and come to operating temperature. Listen without the stereo to any noises in the car. Sometimes taking a gearhead friend with you can help immensely if you're trying to figure out what a squeak, whirr, grind, or rattle is.

If someone says "oh, that's a quick fix, you can just buy the part and put it in," make sure your running shoes are tied. This is a sign they're too lazy to fix SMALL problems with the car... it'll make you wonder what it takes to get them to do something about a problem that could really ruin the car. :Q

Once you find out which car you want, check the value of the car against others for sale in your area (try autotrader.com). If you find ANYTHING remotely wrong with the car, use that as a bargaining chip to bring the price down. Having a check for a deposit is a good idea, so a good find doesn't get snatched up from under your nose. If you're almost sure you want to buy it, but don't have or don't want to give a deposit, ask if the person selling it will give you the right of first refusal. That means you get first shot at the car if someone else comes in and asks to buy it.

Good luck. 🙂

 

[Wuffsunie]

Something else to look for; sections that have been freshly painted. Odds are this was done to cover some kind of damage. It's almost garunteed to have been done for that if the seller tries to brush off the repainting.

 

[kenshorin]

Originally posted by: beatle

If someone says "oh, that's a quick fix, you can just buy the part and put it in," make sure your running shoes are tied. This is a sign they're too lazy to fix SMALL problems with the car... it'll make you wonder what it takes to get them to do something about a problem that could really ruin the car. :Q

Agreed. One trap you have to be careful of, and its really easy to fall into, is letting the dealer con you with this type of talk. A lot of times they will try to make you feel like an a-hole if you walk, saying "this is a nice car a great deal, you don't know what you are doing." DO NOT let them convince you of something your gut tells you otherwise. And I also know from experience... be careful of family member and friends who are dealers. They often pawn their problems off on people they know because they know they can fix up the mess later and not have their name get dragged through mud, because they know you! Seriously.