The Auto Consumer Review

Used car Buying Tips To Save You Money:

Many people try to avoid buying a used car altogether as they think that they are just buying someone else's problems when they do. And to be sure, that can be the case if you aren't careful and do your homework. Since autos are such expensive items, you can make a mistake that can prove to be very costly if you aren't careful, but here are a few tips that will help you be able to buy a used car with confidence each and every time:

• When you buy a new car it's pretty much a known quantity, you know that it is brand new and the only wear and tear thus far has been in transporting it to the dealer lot. The hard part about used cars is that there are several unknown factors and most of them revolve around what kind of shape the vehicle is in for it's age and what, if any, repairs can you expect to come up in the near future. So you need to have a way to get answers to those fundamental questions. And unless you are a mechanic yourself, it will probably be best to enlist the help of someone that can give you solid, reliable information about any car that you are seriously considering as a purchase.
  
  It's a good idea then to visit a local car repair facility that has a good reputation and ask how much they will charge you to inspect a car for you and give you a written estimate of needed repairs that they find. Whatever the cost, this written report can save you money many times over as it will certainly allow you to stay away from buying a car that is not in good repair or has potentially hidden major repair bills, and it can also be a good bargaining tool to help lower the price on the sale to offset the cost of repairs that may be needed since it is a written estimate from an third party.



• Be sure to consult the auto buyers guide sites to get a firm idea of what the car you are looking for will cost so you cannot be swayed by the owner's opinion of what the car is worth instead.



• Have a written checklist of things to check on the car yourself. Even if the mechanic looks over the car for you he will most likely be inspecting it from the standpoint of mechanical problems and not much else. You though, should follow a list that will help you inspect all areas of the car to become thoroughly familiar with it. Try all of the power accessories, make sure the electronics work as they should, as well as the heater/AC and so on. Check for rips or holes in the interior fabric. Look for obvious paint lines or different shades of paint on the car that may indicate that the vehicle has been in an accident.



• Ask for the car's maintenance records and review them carefully. If the owner doesn't have those records, ask for repair receipts that you can look over instead. Try to get as familiar as you can with the vehicle's past as it can alert you to possible trouble spots in the future as well.
• Test drive the car under different road conditions, stop and go traffic, highway traffic, with the windows down to listen for noises, etc. Be alert for anything that doesn't feel or sound right and at least inquire about it with the owner and your mechanic. If the owner doesn't want you to take the car to your pre-arranged mechanic, it's usually best to take that as a sign that all is not well and stay away from that car altogether.

The more knowledge that you have about the true condition of the vehicle, the better. Of course, there is no need to follow this whole procedure with every vehicle that you look at, but only those that are what you could characterize as a serious candidate for purchase. A liitle advance homework here though can save you thousands of dollars later.