A question about used cars

"area man" (hurrburgring) 10/09/2013 at 13:26 • Filed to: Help Me

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I have a confession that will immediately invalidate my Jalop credentials - due to where I went to college and where I live, I've never had the opportunity to buy my own car. Of course, this doesn't stop me from looking through craigslist and Ebay Motors for a low-miles Roadmaster wagon, dreaming about the day I finally leave this city behind and move to a place where I can buy 4 beaters in a day cram them all into my driveway. This will happen on day one, so I have to be prepared.

This leads me to my ignorant question(s) - how do you go about inspecting a car you want to buy? If you're in another state, I know you can call up a local shop and pay someone to look at it for you, but how do you know if they're trustworthy? On the flip side, given that it's a seller's market, how do you ask a local seller for permission to get it looked at without them deciding its not worth the hassle and waiting for a straight-up offer?

HammerheadFistpunch > area man 10/09/2013 at 13:28

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I just went for it, but I had a high degree of confidence in the seller because of connections on another forum showed he was trustworthy...but getting jalops to check it out is one way, or have them take it to a shop of your choosing and have them do a writeup is another option.

Tom McParland > area man 10/09/2013 at 13:31

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This is a really good question that in no way would invalidate your Jalop credentials, if anything you should get more Jalop points for having this mindset of being prepared.

Anyway...Steven Lang from TTAC has a few really great articles on buying used cars. Here is one about the inspection .

I also highly recommend printing out this handy used-car inspection guide from Pop Mechanics. It will keep you focused and organized and tell the seller you mean business.

In terms of inspecting a car not in your vicinity, there are outfits that will do that for a cost. A quick Google search should find you what you need there.

area man > Tom McParland 10/09/2013 at 13:35

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Thanks for the information! When the time comes, I will indeed mean business.

Tom McParland > area man 10/09/2013 at 13:36

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Anytime...that is what we are here for.

Goshen, formerly Darkcode > area man 10/09/2013 at 13:44

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Something which is often oversaid but generally overlooked: the owner. Try to check him, his clothes, his body language, his way of speaking, etc.. It'll tell you a lot about the condition the car is in.

Tom McParland > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 10/09/2013 at 13:47

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Excellent point...this would make for an interesting post, but I am afraid it would stir up too much shit about making assumptions on appearances.

Goshen, formerly Darkcode > Tom McParland 10/09/2013 at 13:49

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I get what you mean, but behaviour isn't appearance.

Tom McParland > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 10/09/2013 at 13:53

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Oh good point...I don't have enough buying from private sellers so write it but it would be a great post.

duurtlang > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 10/09/2013 at 13:56

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You're right. Some thing that might also be helpful is to let the owner drive the car, it might teach you quite a lot about how it's been treated. Another, possibly even more important, thing to do is ask for receipts. Look at what kind of maintenance has been done in the past.

Volvosaurus-Rex > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 10/09/2013 at 14:08

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I would say that these are bad metrics you mentioned, but you definitely do want to evaluate the previous owner. I would do it with a conversation though, to understand his opininon on cars, car maintenance, running the engine at redline for hours for no reason, etc...

OttoMaddox > area man 10/09/2013 at 14:14

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First, size up the owner. If you go to his home, look at his house or building and property, clothing and general appearance, listen to the words he uses to describe the car and make a value judgement. You'll probably be right.

Second, look at the car. Does it have shit hanging from the rear view mirror? Tacky add ons from Pep Boys or the car wash lobby? Stick on pinstripes or Tweety Bird floormats? Every surface slick with Armor-All? Reeks of Febreeze inside? Unclever bumper stickers? Lowball him shamelessly if you want the car. Otherwise pass, because you're looking at a beater; a word that describes both car and owner.

If you want a cream puff, look at the car that's bone stock, owned by an older person (but not TOO old); clean on the inside and out, recent oil change stickers, good tires (evenly but not excessively worn, ungouged sidewalls, and of a brand you've heard of).

Open the hood. If the car is modern it shouldn't look TOO clean; like it was pressure washed. There's too much electronic stuff inside to do that safely anymore. Check the condition of the hoses and belts. If you're lucky they'll be new. Otherwise you'll be replacing them sooner or later.

Go for a drive. The car should track straight, shouldn't clunk or groan when you hit a bump, or make ticking, buzzing or wheezing from the engine or exhaust. For front-drive cars, make a sharp turn in a parking lot and listen for the click-click-click of bad CV joints. Many front drive cars have a reputation for weak automatic transmissions-Ford Taurus and any Mopar product come immediately to mind. Do your research and avoid these.

If you buy from a dealer, buy from a new car dealer, not a used car lot. Get the CARFAX. You can do this for private sales too.
If you want a particular model, get on the enthusiast message boards and find out what kind of problems people are having. You'll also get a sense of the kind of people who own those cars. If they use words like "sick", "hella", or "stanced"; invest in a good anti-theft system.

Learn to do your own repairs. There's websites, videos on Youtube, etc that show how do do the most common ones like brakes, belts and hoses, electrical stuff etc. Even if you don't do it yourself you'll know what it entails so the shop you take it to can't bullshit you.

Good luck!

911e46z06 > area man 10/09/2013 at 15:29

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I always have a mechanic check out a car I'm thinking about buying. My trusty BMW shop saved me from buying two beaters in my recent e46 M3 hunt.

If you need to find a good shop, try a forum. There are forums dedicated to just about every make and/or model worth buying (and most of the ones that aren't worth buying too), and they can usually point you in the right direction.

area man > 911e46z06 10/09/2013 at 15:36

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I hope to someday have a trusty BMW shop.

area man > OttoMaddox 10/09/2013 at 15:37

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All of these are excellent tips. Thank you!

911e46z06 > area man 10/09/2013 at 15:44

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They're around. BMW only shops tend to be owned by BMW enthusiasts, which makes for a much better experience than with your typical mechanic.