How does one go about buying a used car?

7/2/24 | Me, Myself, and I

[EinNYC]

My friend's truck sustained a lot of damage from an exploding tire. She can't afford to fix it. I thought she should look for a hatchback car instead of a truck, as it would be cheaper. What would be some decent hatchbacks which would carry plenty of cargo and give her several years, at least, of service? How should she further research cars?

I was lucky, inheriting all my father's used cars until I finally bought my present car, which I bought new. So I don't have much experience in buying used cars or where to find a good one.

[hecticskeptic]

In addition to the other vehicles suggested here, I normally wouldn’t consider a Nissan but I happened to rent a Rogue recently and was quite impressed with it... nice handling, good gas mileage, lots of room for what I wanted inside. This raises a point.... if she is serious about a particular make/model, shell out some money and rent one for a few days. Do it on an unlimited mileage deal at a time when you know you have a bunch of miles to put on it. It’s a cheap way to see if something will work for you and whether you like it.

I bought a 2 year old truck a while ago that was about 500 miles away and I did it sight unseen. I asked the guy what dealer he bought it from and then I called up a different dealer who was a bit further away and asked what it would cost to to put the vehicle through their complete inspection program... he promptly said “well, it’s $149 to go through our 197 point inspection program and that is the same one that all used vehicles go through that we end up putting on our lot for sale.” I asked what kind of report I get with the inspection and once I was satisfied with that, I then called up the guy who had the truck for sale and told him to drop it at this particular dealer so that it could be inspected there. The deal I struck was basically this...I will pay the $149 myself since I want the dealer reporting to me. If I choose not to buy the truck, I may be out the $149... if on the other hand I buy the truck, I want the $149 deducted off the price that we had negotiated. A few days later, the dealer where the truck was dropped of called me up and said it was perfect, there was nothing that didn’t work or raised a red flag... and he emailed the inspection report to me. I then called up the seller and said... I’m flying there this Saturday morning, pick me up at the airport at 8:30 am, I’ll pay you for the truck when we jointly go and get the registration changed. We did that and by 9:30 I had dropped the seller off at his house and then I was already making the 8 hour drive home. It all worked out as slick as that.

I put about 70,000 on the truck and never had a bit of trouble with it.... ended up passing it along to our son.

[LilFarmer]

I’ve used carmax several times and have been very happy.

[Freest Republican]

I’ve driven just about everything and that car is absolutely one of the funnest cars on the road to drive and has been for decades.

I should’ve added to my post-

you will get a better deal from dealers during the last week of the month esp the last week of any quarter.

[The Great RJ]

Mazda 3

[Macho MAGA Man]

A good used Ford Pinto hatchback should do the trick.

[Flying Circus]

The problem with not affording to fix something like a tire is you put yourself in the position of now having to figure out how afford a car. Do you think your friend will actually learn that they need to spend money to care for a car? If not, they will keep finding themselves in the same position.

[Freest Republican]

In fact we owned one at one point-

we used to take 4-6 week roadtrips just driving around the nation whichever way the wind blew us.

Folks thought that we were nuts doing it in that car vs an RV or something.

Yellowstone, Yosemite Niagara Falls(we got wet in it) etc.... just all over and it was just a an awesome time in part because that car is just flat out fun.

[woodbutcher1963]

The issue with a Salvage Title is that it lowers the resale value of the vehicle forever. In my friends case with the flooded Saab it could have also ruined the computer. Which would have been and expensive repair, even though the car only had about 40 miles on it.
He took a chance because he bought it AS IS NO warranty.

I have another buddy who buys and sells used cars. He has a license to attend the Dealer Auctions. He does not have a lot. He just buys them one or two at a time. Cleans them up and advertises them on Facebook marketplace. He is semi retired and does this as a way to make CASH money.

I asked him to find me a Lexus IS350C 2010-2015. This is a hard top convertible with a naturally aspirated V6 engine. They made it to compete with the BMW hard top convertibles.
However, they did not make many of them in the five years.

Here is what I want to buy on Car Gurus:

https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/t-Used-Lexus-IS-350C-Convertible-RWD-t93008

[cyclotic]

My daughter found the best way. A friend from my job was selling his car. He just wanted the trade in value. Even though my daughter hated the car,!she bought it. I told her she could sell it in a year or two for what she paid. Two years later she sold it for exactly what she paid.

If you know someone selling their car, offer trade in value plus $500.

For any used car it’s worth paying a mechanic for an inspection.

Don’t be afraid to haggle and lowball the price. Be willing to walk away.

I recently sold a car on Facebook marketplace. People asked the VIN then went to Carmax for a value. Dozens of people offered me the Carmax price plus $200.

Then they added to the insult by telling me they would pay cash.

It’s immaterial to me how you come up with the money.

[Dr. Sivana]

As for buying one from a stranger, I have no comment.

I usually buy cars from strangers. When I do, I have three rules that I like to (but don't always) stick to. I always allow $1,000 for immediate repairs/maintanance, sometimes more. My cars are generally 10+ years old. I avoid the '80s for U.S. made.

1. It has to be someone who presently owns the car, and preferably has had it for a while. Make them look you in the eye and list all issues. If they say there are no issues, they are lying of oblivious.

2. I look for a car with a drive train with a good (or not horrible) track record. I prefer six cylinders as fewer RPMs means less wear on drive train. NO CVT. Good drivetrains: GM 350 ci, GM 3.8 Liter. Mopar Slant-six, Mopar 3.5 liter. Toyota V-6 across the board (i4 okay for Corolla). Ford 4.0 liter, 289ci. BAD drivetrains: GM Quad-4 and 3.1 (head gasket), Dodge/Mitsubishi 2.6, Whatever Ford put in the Windstar. Also, avoid drivetrains that weren't popular; parts may be hard to obtain.

3. Find out why the owner is getting rid of the car. Good: Owner too old, owner needs different kind of car, owner is being given a newer car. Middle of the road: Moving. Bad: I can't afford needed repairs (which means the car wasn't maintained, either).

3. Profile the owner. I like Buicks, as they are lightly driven by old people who maintain the vehicles. Don't sweat cosmetic damage.

4. If the price sounds really good, find out why. Purely cosmetic damage is a good reason. A needed but hard to perform repair is a bad one.

[Fireone]

Toyotas go 300,000 miles w/good maintenance.
Find the model you want with 70-100k on it, do the normal checks, know the price you should pay going in, drive a long time.

[cyclotic]

My daughter’s best friend asked my advice on a car. She was looking at a Ford sedan with a manual transmission.

When she found one I suggested a lowball price. The dealer was so anxious to get rid of a manual sedan they sold it below my lowball.

[BradyLS]

Oh. If looking for a hatchback, I recommend a Toyota RAV4 that you can afford. There’s a lot of used ones out there and they seem to get snapped up quickly as they are popular. In my experience, Toyota’s are very reliable vehicles. I’ve enjoyed every one I’ve owned and still do.m

My hangup is all the gadgets and computer screens that so many cars have now. I prefer bare-bones simplicity. I will NOT subscribe to a service. Life leeches me enough. Therefore, I also recommend the “simplest” car you can find. (Tall order these days. Maybe some advice on that will be offered here, too.)

[Flying Circus]

Advice for actually buying a car:
Figure out what you need and what you can afford. Your car must land in the intersection between those. Do you r research on pricing and reliability.

Toyota and Honda make long lived, reliable cars, but you are going to pay a premium on the used market for them. Hyundais, Kias, Nissans, Minis, Fiats, Dodges, Chryslers, and some others can look really appealing based on price, but you will probably regret it in the long run because they have poor reliability. I am a little bit of a Ford guy so I lean towards old Rangers and Crown Victoria/Grand Marquis/Town Cars. Mazda also makes some excellent cars.

TAKE IT TO A MECHANIC FOR AN PREPURCHASE INSPECTION! If you don’t know a lot about cars, you will overlook big problems to end up with and expensive lemon.

You will pay more at a dealer. I have bought all my used cars from private parties and never been scammed, but I have seen dealers scamming. They are professionals at selling cars and they know the ins and outs of titling and financing, but that is where their utility ends. Buying private means you need to do a little more work yourself to make sure the paperwork is in order, but you will probably get a better deal. It helps if you have some skill reading people.

[Vendome]

Just ensure your dealership uses KBB for pricing your vehicle. They track all the negotiations nationwide.

Your fellow citizens have already determined what the market value is for a particular vehicle.

[perfect_rovian_storm]

Toyotas and Mazdas are the ones worth looking at.

One secret for a hatchback though is the Scion Xb. Scion is discontinued as a brand, but the car is a Toyota through and though. Same engine and drivetrain as the Corolla. It’s just as reliable as a Toyota and can be quite a bit cheaper. I suggest checking those out if you’re looking to save some money. Other than that, go Mazda. Better features, more fun to drive than the Toyota and completely reliable if you take care of it.

[cableguymn]

I suggest the 3 because the ford version has that awful dual clutch transmission. Mazda went with a regular 5 speed automatic.

I’ve had several 3/5/6s all good cars.

[Lazamataz]

Good insight, thanks!

[JesusIsLord]

I finally bought my present car, which I bought new. So I don't have much experience in buying used cars or where to find a good one.

Check with KBB.com for what a vehicle should cost. An essential question when buying from a dealer: "What fees, costs and expenses above sale price and tax will you add to the price?"

You'd be amazed at how much some dealers add to cost of a vehicle with outrageous fees.

I recently was looking at used motorcycles sold by a regional franchise/dealer. Their "fees" amounted to almost $2K. I told them they were crooks and laughed. What's sad is some people are willing to pay those exorbitant fees.

[dennisw]

Get a Honda CR-V or it slightly smaller cousin, the HR-V. I favor the HR-V.
To get a feel for used car prices, go to the Auto-Nation website

You can sort through various Honda dealers websites for used CR-V and HR-V

AUTONATION CR-V SEARCH /// UNDER 30000 MILES
https://www.autonation.com/cars-for-sale?md=honda%5E%5E%5Ecr-v&mk=honda&zip=02135&pagesize=72&mmn=0&mmx=30000&sortby=autonationprice&sortdirection=0

SAME SEARCH BUT FOR HONDA HR-V
https://www.autonation.com/cars-for-sale?md=honda%5E%5E%5Ehr-v&mk=honda&zip=02135&pagesize=72&mmn=0&mmx=30000&sortby=autonationprice&sortdirection=0