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Research for a used car

C

chipy

Golden Member
i'm thinking of getting a used car and i'm wondering what kind of technical research i need/should do in addition to having the car inspected by a mechanic.

i'm talking about stuff like CarFax. i've never used that service... is it worth it? are there any other alternatives to CarFax?

are there any other reports that show if the car has been in an accident or a flood?

any adivce is appreciated... TIA!
 
I would definately buy a month of Carfax service, or find a friend who has access.

Also find any long term reliability studies you can for you car. I think MSN has them, and they are pretty good.

If there are any forums dedicated to the car you are looking for check them out and ask what to look for, the guys that own and work on their cars will be able to tell you how to spot a lemon.
 
I second on getting CarFax as well. Unless it's dirty cheap (Let's say below 2k), mechanic finds no problem, you will drive until it's impossible to repair, and running ok, you should get the CarFax report. Why don't you tell us what kind of car you are looking for, and what price range?
 
I was thinking about a used Mazda Miata (convertible) from 1999 or so. Price would be around $10k or so.

thanks for the iput guys!
 
Originally posted by: chipy
I was thinking about a used Mazda Miata (convertible) from 1999 or so. Price would be around $10k or so.

thanks for the iput guys!
Click to expand...

Best place to start....

http://forum.miata.net/vb/

I did a lot of research before getting my '07 MX-5. From everything I have read all three generations of Miata's are stellar cars. Most owners love and take good care of them as well, but definitely go the car fax route to aid in your search.
 
Carfax is good. One thing I do is go find a good online forum and hit the troubleshooting section. More than likely there will be stickied posts with info on common issues with the car that you can look out for when looking the car over to buy. For instance the Ford Contours with the Duratec's have a tendency to have the water pump fail in the same manner consistently at 60,000 miles and up. The newer Pontiac GTO's(2005-2006) suffer from an issue with leaky struts and what they call strut rub, where the inside of the tire rubs against the lower portion of the strut. So whatever car you decide you're leaning towards look into the common issues affecting it and you can ask the right questions or know what to look for when you go to look over a prospect.
 
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