Is this a good to buy an used car from Japan?
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
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8 years agoRelated Discussions
Selling car by owner, then buying a car by owner
Comments (13)Funny stories about different transactions. Bill_h, I'm glad to read that in the Motor City, it's somewhat of a free-for-all. It just seems appropriate, being the home of the U.S. auto industry. One thing that can work well for selling a car -- if you're replacing it with a new or used car from a dealer -- is what dealers around here call a "courtesy trade." You and the buyer of your car agree on a price as usual, then you and your buyer go together to the dealer where you're buying your new car. The dealer shows your old car on the sales documents as a trade, with the value being the price the buyer is going to pay for it. This saves you on sales tax in many states. The buyer then purchases the car from the dealer for that price. I know of many dealers who will do this for free, as a service to the person buying the car from them. A few charge the buyer a standard "paperwork" fee. They're willing to do it even though they make no money on the sale of the trade because it can help you buy the new car, since the buyer is presumably giving you more for it than the dealer would have....See MoreBuying a Used Car and getting it checked out
Comments (10)The thing to remember is that buying any car is a gamble. New ones have a warranty, with an accompanying big price tag. A used car is more of a gamble unless you know who's selling it and how it's been cared for. Even if all's well, things still break. You can reduce your chances of unpleasant surprises by deciding on a year, make, model ahead of time and look only for that car. The year can vary a little as long as the design hasn't changed much. Then educate yourself on that particular car before you go shoping. When you get an idea of what you might want to buy, do some research as to what the maintainence costs for that vehicle are. IMO, forums like this are a good place to look. There are forums for honda, toyota, chevy, most anything you can think of. After doing the research, you might conclude your first choice wasn't a good one and explore something different. Keep in mind all cars need things. Belts, hoses, coolant changes, spark plugs, wires and such every 30k. Transmission service at 30k to 100k. Some have a timing belt that needs to be replaced at 100k. Brake life varies, for me they last about 70k at a time. ect. Read through the forums to see if the particular model you're considering has any common problems. Some engines seem to develope sludge easier than others. All will if neglected. If the previous owner hasn't changed the oil as often as he should, or used dino oil when synthetic was required, there could be a serious problem on the horizon. Is it a car that needs a timing belt every 100k, it's a $1000 service, and the vehicle has 110k on it now and never been changed? Something to consider. Don't forget to check the tires. If the tread is about gone, that's another $200+ you may end up adding to the original price tag before you know it. Easy to overlook that kind of thing while admiring the shiney paint. Keeping all that in mind and tenatively making a choice, it'd be nice if the owner would let you take it to someone for a look see. They can check for brake wear, tire wear, condition of the exhaust system, ect. Often times an experienced person can tell if a vehicle as been pretty well maintained or totally ignored with a visual inspection. If you buy off a car lot, keep in mind those guys don't know a thing about the vehicle and don't want to know a thing about it. They'll also clean the hec out of it. Though it's very nice to be looking at an ultra clean used car, all that cleaning may have hidden it's true condition. If you want to be even safer, keep $1600 or more available for things the car may need that you and everyone else may have overlooked. If you find out after the fact that it needs a water pump or something, that's ok. You predicted it might need a thing or two and got the money to cover it. jmo...See MoreEnterprise Car Rental...buying used
Comments (22)not having a trade you in a very desirable position. I HATE buying cars and all the bs that goes along with it. You really should try to use Edmunds to find your desired car then use the internet to try to get the car for that price. Once they agree to the price, just go drive it. If you like it they just have to write it up. Alternatively you can find the car at the price you want over the net. Pop into the dealership to drive it...don't tell them you've been in contact on the net. If you like it, go home ask them to write every thing up. You may need to email some info back and forth if you want a loan. Then just go in, sign the papers, pay and drive off---should be pretty quick if all the paperwork is much done. I do not know what you are looking for but 2010 Corolla LEs are selling under $300 invoice and had a $750 rebate last month. I am not sure what the rebate will for for Feb. We are talking out the door for about $16.7K or less. That seams like a great deal and I took advantage of it this week. If not pickly about colors, send for some quotes from local dealers. Then on or around Feb 25 say you want to purchase on 2/28 and tell them to send there drop dead best price. It should be pretty painless. Good luck. PS As far as Enterprise, I'd be weary. A low milegae car reccomended by consumer reports I might take a chance on...a car with a bed rep from Enterprise...forget it....See MoreBest used car and where to buy it?
Comments (22)I'm a Honda zealot also so I'd vote for that. I've had four of them and none have ever had any type of problem and required nothing more than regular maintenance, new tires, etc. I've heard Volvo maintenance and repairs are very expensive. Not sure if that is true or not but I noticed when I had a Lexus all the maintenance was 2x the price of the same maintenance for essentially the same vehicle - Toyota Highlander. I also heard similar reports from someone I work with about another luxury/high end brand - I think Volvo fits in that category. I also haven't gotten the impression Volvo reliability is as good as Honda but that's based on my experience with Honda only and anecdotal reports from a few Volvo owners. I'm not sure what new cars are going for these days but I bought a new 2003 top of the line, everything but naviagation Accord for well under $30K. It's the best value I've ever gotten in a car (we always buy new). In fact, I guess that's the model you are looking at 2003 EX-L - if that's the 6 cylinder model. This is a fabulous car in my opinion....See More- 8 years ago
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