need tips for how to find a good used car

notagame

I just turned 25 and had only recently passed the driving test to get my license. The reason being I might be moving to California soon and I'm going to need a car to commute if I live in LA. I'm pretty broke and can only muster about 4 grand for the car budget, what kind of cars should I be looking at? And how do I avoid getting ripped off at the dealership? It's going to be my first car and I have no idea about cars or car buying.

JWFokker

You should be looking at four cylinder Japanese cars. The fewer features it has, the less there is to go wrong. Cars that don't have ABS, climate controls, power windows and seats, etc, are generally more reliable and cheaper to repair if they do break. A V6 might be nicer to drive, but inline engines are much more reliable. Unfortunately, there aren't too many inline 6-cylinder engines these days, so stick to 4-cylinder cars. They get better mileage anyway. A small 2.0 liter 4-cylinder car will have a decent amount of juice.

If you've only got $4000, don't go to a dealership. Buy from a private owner and pick up a copy of Kelly's Blue Book. Find someone who actually knows about cars (ie, they work on their own vehicles), not just someone who reads about them in magazines or internet forums, to go with you to more accurately determine the condition of the car and listen and feel for anything that might be wrong during the test drive.