How to Purchase a Used Car

When shopping for a used car, special precautions need to be taken. No one wants to be stuck with a car that doesn't operate properly. Doing research and choosing carefully can make buying a used car a pleasant experience.

My husband and I recently purchased a used van. I searched my local paper and found a van that sounded perfect for us. After doing some research on the internet, I went to the car lot and test drove the van. It turned out to be the perfect vehicle for us. We got a great deal. I've had friends and family ask me what was our secret to finding such a great vehicle. Here are some tips to help you pick a great used car.

First, locate some used cars that will interest you. To do this, you can check your local newspaper, your local Auto Trader magazine, and internet sites for local car lots. Carefully read the description of the used cars. Look for vague descriptions that may indicate problems with the used car. Are there pictures? How many miles are on this car.

Once you have put together a list of used cars you are interested in, you will want to see if the used cars have had any major problems. To do this, you will need to view the Carfax report for each vehicle. Carfax is a website that can tell you the basic history of a car. This is very important. If a car has been totaled and a salvage title issued for it, Carfax will have that in their report. Carfax can also tell you if a car has been in a flood, has had major work done to it, and how many owners it has had.

Some car lots will furnish a Carfax report to you free of charge. If the used car lot will not provide a Carfax report for you, you will need to purchase the report. The Carfax report costs $24.95. This is not a bad price to pay because you get unlimited reports for one month. That means that you can put every used car on your list into Carfax's system and get a report for each.

After you have narrowed down your list using Carfax, you want to make sure that you get a fair price on your used car. To find out what the used car you are looking is worth, you can find the Kelly Blue Book value. Kelly Blue Book has a list of all makes and models of cars. You can get a Kelly Blue Book value for free online.

When you go to the Kelly Blue Book website, you will be asked a series of questions. Answering these questions can help determine what the used cars you are looking at are worth. Kelly Blue Book will give you the value for a car in excellent, good, fair, and poor condition. It will also give you the difference in price for trade-in value, the value if buying the car from an individual, and the value if buying the car from a car lot.

Once you have read the Carfax report for the used cars you are looking at and determined the Kelly Blue Book value, you will want to look at recalls for the vehicles. While Carfax does tell you if the used car you are looking at has had a recall, there is still valuable information to be found by looking up the recalls for the used cars.

On the van we just purchased, there weren't any manufacture recalls on the vehicle. However, when I viewed the list of recalls, I noticed that there was a recall on an after-market fuel filter for the van we bought. Knowing this before I visited the car lot gave me an advantage. I was able to ask that the van we were buying be checked to make sure that the recalled fuel filter was not on it. The salesman agreed to have it checked and if a faulty fuel filter was found, to replace it with the proper one free of charge.

There are many websites that can help you with finding out about recalls. One of the best ones is the office of defects investigation. This website is operated by the government. It allows you to search for used cars by make, model, and year.

After you have done all of your online investigation, it is time to visit the car lot. You can usually set up an appointment to test drive the used car of your choice either by calling the car lot or through e-mail. This will insure that the car lot knows you are interested in the used car and that there will be a sales person waiting to assist you.
When you arrive at the car lot, you do not want to appear too excited about the used car. If the salesman sees that you are overly enthusiastic they will not be as willing to work with you. Always make sure to maintain walk away power. If they are not willing to give you the price you are looking for, you have to be prepared to walk away. The salesmen are trained to read your body language. They know if you have mentally already bought the used car you are looking at.

While test driving the used car you are considering for purchase, pay very close attention. How does it accelerate? Do the brakes work well? Do all the features (radio, power locks/windows, sunroof, etc) function properly? Is the car lot willing to check out and fix any problems perceived during the test drive?

Also, consider having a mechanic meet you at the car lot. This can be an individual you hire or a friend/family member. When you bring your own mechanic, they have your best interest at heart. A seasoned mechanic can often look at the engine in the vehicle or hear it run and determine possible problems. They can usually spot major problems that may not have shown up in your online paperwork.

When you have found the vehicle you want, it is time to negotiate what to pay. This is where your internet paperwork will come in handy. You can take this time to go over any problems on the Carfax report. Most importantly, your Kelly Blue Book value can insure you are receiving the best possible price for the used car.

All of these tips can lead to a great car buying experience. You may end up with the vehicle of your dreams instead of the lemon around the corner.