Would you buy a used car?

[konovola788]

Everyone talks me out of buying a used car. But everyone dissuades me. They say that it is a lottery. And it is possible that later I will spend a lot more on repairs. Share your experiences. Have you ever bought a used car?

[Diiiii]

That sounds like a big risk to me. Because inexperienced drivers, sometimes even experienced ones, find it difficult to notice breakdowns that the car owner "forgot" to tell you about. But if you have a good mechanic, it can work.

[Aquamentis12]

There are online resources like Carfax, at least in the US, Not sure what resources for the history of a car are available outside of the US. Buying a used car from a dealer is probably a bit "safer", albeit probably more expensive. Though one of my uncles, a missionary, would tend to buy a used car he'd find in the paper or parked on the side of a road when he would come back to the US for an extended visit. I don't know his budget or criteria, but he knows automobiles, and as far as I know, I haven't heard of him ever picking out a lemon. Whehter him or if his family was with him, he just needed a "runner". Didn't have to have much other than be in good working order, A/C for the summer or good heater for the winter. I'm assuming he'd sell the car before leaving back for Japan. Due to the pandemic I haven't talked with him in awhile so I don't really know how he knew if a car was good or not. I'm bringing up the anecdote because if you know your stuff and/or get the car checked out by a mechanic before you buy it, it can be pretty safe.

So if there's a specific car you're looking for, or one you like the looks of and are wondering. Look up the make/model online and see what you can learn about the vehicle, in general and if you have it's VIN number, you should be able to find out if it's been in any reported accidents or not. And of course, get it checked out by a mechanic and have questions ready to ask them, their thoughts on what the car would be worth. Another good resource would be the Kelley Blue Book site. You can enter the make and model of the car, it's year,. mileage, what "bells and whistles" it has and they'll give you a decent idea what the car should be worth.

I hope this helps!

[Duma]

My current car is a used car, thing is, I bought it from the garage and it came with 1 year warranty. Buying just from random people can be a risk for sure, but if you buy a used car from a garage or dealer, they will check al the important things. Depending on the age of the car and the company you're buying it from, it might have warranty. Here, in The Netherlands, they even have branch organizations, so if a company has this sign you know they need to meet certain standards. I have my second hand car for 11 months now and haven't had any problems at all. A friend of mine, who bought a second hand car from a random person she didn't know has had nothing but problems with the car which was bought later than mine.

My advice: go to a respected company that sells second hand cars, look at the age of the car and the millage, check the car yourself and ask for warranty and a test drive.

[Angeló]

Most people buy used cars nowadays

You need to test drive it with a mechanic first and have its Carfax documents

[konovola788]

I'm worried that it's a risk, too. But a lot of people buy their first car that way and are happy afterwards. It's probably a good idea to start looking for a good mechanic. But I started researching the topic, there's a lot written about it. I would even say that it is interesting. It's true that you probably can't do without the help of a professional. But now I know about the existence of the vin-code and many other things, maybe someone interested here. 

[iheartsaku]

I bought mine used and I have had it for over 10 years now. Of course, like any other car there are repairs and upkeep that needs to be done from time to time. The other thing is, if you don't know cars very well (like me) go with someone who does when you are searching around. They will be able to aid you in asking the right questions and help get the best bang for your buck,

[Aquamentis12]

23 hours ago, Duma said:

My current car is a used car, thing is, I bought it from the garage and it came with 1 year warranty. Buying just from random people can be a risk for sure, but if you buy a used car from a garage or dealer, they will check al the important things. Depending on the age of the car and the company you're buying it from, it might have warranty. Here, in The Netherlands, they even have branch organizations, so if a company has this sign you know they need to meet certain standards. I have my second hand car for 11 months now and haven't had any problems at all. A friend of mine, who bought a second hand car from a random person she didn't know has had nothing but problems with the car which was bought later than mine.

My advice: go to a respected company that sells second hand cars, look at the age of the car and the millage, check the car yourself and ask for warranty and a test drive.

My 1st and 2nd cars were used. One was REALLY old. A 1992 Toyota Corolla. No power ANYTHING. LOL Not even locks or windows. I had it for some time, I was not it's first, 2nd, or even it's 3rd owner or so. I finally had to replace it because there was some tear in the underside...Some protective thing around.. I can't remember, it's been too long. Anyway, it would've cost WAY more to fix than the car was worth. It's value according to Kelley Blue Book's site, was $400. When I traded it in at a Toyota Dealership, they actually gave me $500 trade-in off of the cost of the used Camry I got there to replace it. Now THAT one.... a 2009 Camry, turned out to be a LEMON. Even though it was Toyota "Certified". Meaning the Toyota Dealership inspected it and made any repairs it might've needed with official Toyota parts.

I mean it was fine for a few years, but then... UGH. I mean the heat-shield actually half-way came OFF while I was driving. I was NEAR the dealership where I got it, on my way to visit my mom, so with the back-end of the heat-shield literally dragging on the street, I turned into the dealership's service garage just around closing time. Fortunately, they let me in and took the shield off.  I had to make another appointment to replace it later on... Let's see, the water pump, transmission (which almost NEVER dies on Toyotas apparently).. and a few other things.

Around 2018 I got my first new car. I had to get a loan, but it was ok. It's a 2018 Hyundai Sonata, going with a Hyundai dealership my aunt and uncle recommended.

Got about $4500 off with the trade-in on my Camry that I could take off of the Sonata. So it wasn't AS bad as I was worried about before I took out the loan.

Just saying, that even a dealership car can be a Lemon. There's ALWAYS going to be SOME risk. My late grandfather, used to say that you never want to buy a car that was made on a Monday. I don't know if it's possible to find out about the DAY a specific car rolled off the line, but he said it because it was the first day of the work week and people were probably cutting loose on the weekend. So I guess the thinking was they'd come in to work on Monday with a Hangover, or something. lol Sadly, he had passed away before I got my Camry, so I never had the opportunity to ask him after I learned about that saying. lol

Anyway, my Sonata so far is pretty good after about 3 and a half years. A couple of minor things have needed repair, but thankfully nothing major, so far. *phew*!

[iloveeevee]

My dad only buys used cars and they tend to last him quite a while, i think for most of my childhood he had this old citroen that he had to get a radio for separately lol. It was ugly but functional,
so it works, especially for a first car.

like yeah ofc there's a risk with it, but as long as you know what youre getting into. it's an option