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On Buying Used Cars [Solved]
sain
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I've never technically bought my own car. I previously drove a Pontiac Grand Am, my step dad kept it under his name with money from my various jobs in high school. It survived high school and most of college, then it needed too many repairs to be worth keeping. I joined the Navy two years ago, but I wasn't allowed to own a car while I was in tech school.
I finally have a real duty station and I live on base, so I figured now would be the time to buy a used car. I'm not too keen on bumming rides off of people. That, and I don't have a whole lot in common with most Navy folk, so finding someone who's even willing to go where I need to is a hassle.
I'd prefer to pay in cash, I have student loans to pay off and I'd like to avoid debt. So, could I reasonably find something for 3-5 grand? What can I do to avoid being ripped off?
For anyone who lives in the Everett/Seattle area, are there any notoriously bad car dealerships that should be avoided?
Any help would be appreciated!
I finally have a real duty station and I live on base, so I figured now would be the time to buy a used car. I'm not too keen on bumming rides off of people. That, and I don't have a whole lot in common with most Navy folk, so finding someone who's even willing to go where I need to is a hassle.
I'd prefer to pay in cash, I have student loans to pay off and I'd like to avoid debt. So, could I reasonably find something for 3-5 grand? What can I do to avoid being ripped off?
For anyone who lives in the Everett/Seattle area, are there any notoriously bad car dealerships that should be avoided?
Any help would be appreciated!
sain on
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With a car of any kind of age you are also going to need to budget something for repairs because things will break on you. It doesn't sound like you need the car for employment so you might have more flexibility there to just let it sit if you need to save up the cash.
Also be aware that right now the used car market is running a premium. With the after effects of cars for clunkers (lots of old cars scrapped instead of on the market) and the generally down economy (not as many people swapping into a new car) both pushing up the price of used cars.
If you've got an android phone, there's a kelly blue book app that lets you look up the value of cars. Kinda nice to be able to see right away if a lot's asking prices are way out of line.
If you were look at like toyota corollas/mazda 3s/nissan sentras/etc., your insurance premiums for those cars will be about as reasonable as they're going to get.
Are you familiar with cars? Your training seems to indicate you could be but your thread says otherwise... The key to buying a good used car is to pick a reliable brand to start with (any Toyota, Honda, Nissan econobox works for this) and then bring along someone "who knows about cars" and can tell you whether you're looking at something solid or a barely running death trap. Alternately, you can pay a mechanic $1-200 to do a pre purchase inspection, but that's typically done for more expensive cars.
Another avenue to try is to buy an ex cop car. You can get a 5 yr old crown Victoria with high miles, but a good maintenance record for very cheap. It'll be a boat, and drink gas like its going out of style, but should last you quite a while if - again - you or someone else is able to pick one with no major problems.
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What?
Fuel costs, tyres, higher servicing and maintenance, higher insurance costs will make it end up costing much more then the other two cars over the course of a few years.
If you need more space than a sedan, get a wagon.
At the higher end of my price limit I found these, the low mileage on the Jetta is pretty appealing.
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My cousin also owned a Jetta that cost more in repairs then it was worth, and I owned a Golf that was lemon law'd after 2 years. My whole family avoids German cars like the plague after our experiences with them. A few of my friends owned various Korean cars from various years and they all died just after hitting 100,000 miles... don't get me wrong, for the price they paid for them they lasted quite awhile and where pretty reliable but they lost almost all value after only 3 or 4 years of brand new and once the engine died they scrapped them.
I currently own a 2007 Chevy Cobalt, which I bought new and depreciated like hell... bought it new for $20k or so and now it's not even worth $7,000 and it only has 36,000 miles on it. But, it's been a pretty reliable. I had a Honda, it was my first car, bought it used with 136,000 miles on it. I drove it up to 210,000 miles, sold it and that guy drove it up to 300,000 miles before crashing it into a tree. I just bought a brand new honda, and I gotta say I'm pretty sure I'm sticking with Japanese cars from here on out.
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And the cheapest thing I found, but it's fairly old.
On Hondas, civics have a pretty low repair cost and operating cost. I've owned a 2000 civic EX 4 door, and was getting 35+mpg with some mild modifications (exhaust/intake) and now own a 96 hatchback. Both are easy to fix, and any big problems have been taken care of relatively inexpensive, but I do all my own work. Car 3 is a good looker and the price is reasonable. I sold my 2000ex manual transmission for 3.5k on craigslist, but it had a bad catalytic converter and replacing those is ~800 and I didn't wanna put up with having to go to a shop to do it (CARB). Also the suspension was modified and a pain in the ass... like it hurt your butt.
Also, 2000 and below are just down right easier to work on. Distributors over coil packs, behind header catalytics instead of on header catalytics, and the enginebay layouts dreams are made of.
Also, Jettas/Passats/Golfs are nightmares. My sister owns a 2006 Passat and It is super expensive to repair, and a pain to work on.
A 2 year loan with 2000 down on that car would run you like $150 a month for payments. That's doable.
If you avoid private sellers and go to a used car dealership you can probably get a military discount too, fyi.
This basically. Also, you're in the Navy. IIRC the interest rate on an auto loan is between 0 to 1.LOL%.
While it's never a good idea to over extend your finances, you're really rolling the dice with a car built in the 90s. There's a good chance it won't be reliable if the previous owner(s) didn't maintain it properly.
- Check the oil after the car has been run and cooled down - it should be clear, not dark
- Check the coolant - it also should be translucent
- Get a carfax report to see if the car has ever been in a collision (front end being the worst and a sign of a car you should not buy)
- There should be a sticker with the VIN all over the car, in the trunk, under the hood and in the doors. If they aren't there, it's possible part of the body of the car has been replaced and depending on the part (near the engine) you probably don't want to buy the car
- Take a good look at the tires to see if they are worn (if so, you will have to replace them and can negotiate more) - a good rule of thumb is to use a penny upside down - the tread on the tires should be higher than the top of Lincoln's head
- If buying from a private owner, find a mechanic you trust and get the car checked out before agreeing to buy. Most people understand the need to do so and while it may cost more upfront, it will save you in the long run.
The coolant should be green or red. Usually green, but some coolant companies make red as well. It is a bright red, not a rusty colour (if the coolant is brown or a rusty colour, run (don't walk) away from the car). If the coolant is clear, that is also a bad sign (they've filled it with water - no antifreeze/antirust)
On older cars, also check the brake fluid - it will probably be a similar colour to a pale beer. It should not be murky, as this indicates breakdown of the rubber seals and hoses in the brake system, indicating expensive repairs will soon be needed.
I had a volvo, 1989 740 to be exact, that never needed much in the way of parts but the heater coil I needed was more expensive then the Honda's heater coil I got a few years earlier. Not sure if it was because the volvo was older or because it was a volvo.
That was an older Volvo. The 740s were famous for going to 3-400K without blinking.
Newer volvos should only be purchased if they're under warranty... Just look through Volvo forums at the various electrical, ECU, brake, and other issues they have.
I can give some pretty extensive information regarding Volvos.
My family currently owns 3, a 2003 S60, 2003 V70, 2004ish XC70, and has owned a 740 and a similar era sedan the name of which currently escapes me (and I am too lazy to look up).
Your girlfriend was getting ripped off. Yes, Volvos are expensive to maintain. No, they don't need specialized oil changes, and I'm honestly not sure what a "tune up" is. Anything you have to take the car to the dealer for will cause your wallet to hemorrhage Benjamins. For example, Volvo doesn't sell tools which are required to remove their gas tanks to anyone except dealers. So if you need something behind the gas tank replaced, expect to go to the dealer and drob a few thousand dollars. That said, going to a non-dealer mechanic (and there are many specialized Volvo mechanics out there) can save you tons and tons of money.
Also, Volvo isn't so great about the details. Electrical issues abound, and while most of the time they are just annoyances rather than problems, for the cost of a Volvo I personally would expect everything to work all the time. Newer Volvos are somewhat better, but you'll have things like the check engine light staying on because the gas cap monitor thinks it's off, even though it is most definitely on (this is a recurring problem on our V70).
Now, the reason people buy Volvos is that they are very, very safe. They've been receiving the highest crash-test ratings around the world for at least three decades. If you're about to have children, or already have children a Volvo might be a really great car. However, if you want a car that is actually a good deal, I would head somewhere else. I drive a V70 to work every day, and put up with it because it means I don't have to pay for a car, but even if you get a Volvo that's not horrendously underpowered like my car, the issues are probably not worth it.
Also, you can buy the special Volvo tools from the parts department, I know it because I've both bought them myself and sold them to customers.
When it was working though, it was a fantastic car to drive.