I'm an adult.. and I'm buying a car for the first time. Advice.

In My Humble Opinion
21

My adive for buying a used car:

[ol]
[li]Take your time. Shop at the end of the month (or year) if possible.[/li][li]Narrow down the list of vehicles in which you are interested using research sources like consumer reports.[/li][li]If not paying cash then pre-arrange financing with your bank, credit union, parents etc.[/li][li]Monitor prices on websites like cars.com so you can get an idea of what the vehicles you are interested in are actually going for.[/li][li]Arrange for an inspection by a trusted mechanic. If you don’t have a trusted mechanic get one - the mechanic files on cartalk.com is a good source.[/li][li]Be prepared to negotiate aggresively and to walk away from a deal that’s you don’t feel good about.[/li][/ol]

This is essentially the method I used last time I bought a used truck. After about a month of looking and test driving I found the vehicle I wanted. After getting it checked out so I knew exactly what I was getting, I able to offer a aggresive but fair price. I’ve had that truck for 3 1/2 years and never anything more than minor repairs.

22

Having a mechanic do a “used car” inspection is certainly wise. However:

~Later model engines with timing belts typically have replacement intervals of 105K miles or more. If a car’s timing belt is due, there is an option besides don’t buy it, which is buy it and have the belt replaced.

~Plenty of cars besides the Prius having timing chain engines rather than timing belt engines.

~On a car that runs well and appears to have been decently cared for, a compression test is seldom cost-effective.

23

My advice is this: Carmax

(Not to be confused with Carfax)

I know that their commercials are incredibly annoying but they are, in my opinion, an excellent company. They have an enormous selection, they are honest and upfront about everything, they offer competitive pricing, their people really know what they’re talking about, and they check and guarantee every vehicle they sell.

24

Have more than one dealer that you’re considering buying from. Unless you’re really out in the sticks, this shouldn’t be a problem. If you work with more than one dealer, you can play them against each other.

Pick dealers that it’s not a huge inconvenience for you to go back to another day. You don’t want to be in the situation of “I really don’t want to walk out of here today without a car.” Car salesmen can smell desperation.

Shop near the end of the month. Car salesmen usually have monthly sales quotas.

Ideally, you want to write a check for the car, not finance it. You get a better deal, and no car payment to deal with.

Choose the least expensive car that suits your needs. Status or a “cool car” are not needs, especially if they mean the difference between financing and writing a check.

Don’t buy for something that happens a few weeks out of the year. If you usually use the car to commute, but you want an SUV for when you go on your yearly vacation, buy a small commuter car, and rent an SUV for the vacation.

Be willing to walk out of a dealership. You can do that, as long as you haven’t signed anything. Heading toward the door is a good way to get them to come back to you with a better offer. It’s especially fun if they chase you into the parking lot.

Don’t go to a dealership where a relative or friend works, unless they offer you a really good discount.

Check kbb.com and similar sites to get a value on your trade-in. That way, you know about what you should get.

Never, ever gush over how wonderful a car is (at least not till you’ve paid for it). If you have any thoughts like that, keep them to yourself. Don’t admire the car too much during a test drive. “Poker face” is the ideal, here.

Don’t let them upsell you. If they start talking about how you could get so much more for just a little more money, don’t listen.

25

Seconded!!

Especially if you’re dealing with a credit union, your bank / CU may have better pricing, loan-wise, as well as less BS like prepayment penalties. Car dealers have an incentive to mark up loan rates and they can keep the spread between what the bank actually charges, and what they charge you. Having a firm rate in hand will definitely help. When we bought our Saturn (this was in 1993), the dealer insisted I talk to their financing department even though I had a firm rate from the credit union. The fellow in financing just rolled his eyes at the sales people, and said “there’s no way I can beat that”.

26

Also, when you go to the dealer, take your extra set of keys that only has the car keys on it. Give that to the salesperson so they can check out your trade-in. Unscrupulous salespeople will sometimes keep your keys and not give them back until you’re softened up. Happened to me at a dealership when I lived in Memphis. My cousin (who used to sell used cars) said that some jackholes do use this as a tactic.

27

Holy crap. Damned if I’d buy a car from them if they pulled that.

And speaking of trade-ins, you’re better off selling it yourself. You will get horrible trade-in offers from dealers.

28

No, I didn’t buy from them. It took threatening to call the police to get my keys back (this was back in like 1996 or so and I didn’t even have a cell phone). I’m not saying it happens often, but it did happen to me.

29

As Baracus sez, this is no longer true. And even if it was- so what? You are confusing value with price. It is true that if you trade in a car with only two years on it, you (as the seller) will take a hit. But then the dealer will not pass along that reduction to the next buyer. In between, there’s a large mark-up.

Take a on Edmunds look at the large difference between what you’d sell (to a dealer) a 2 yo car for as opposed to what that dealer would list that car for.

And as Dewey Finn sez, most buyers are driving their cars for 5+ years nowadays, not trading them in every other year. Thus any “hit” in book value after 2 years means nothing.

OP- do not, whatever you do, but a car from a Toyota dealer.

Also, read this:

Look also at Edmunds list of http://www.edmunds.com/car-incentives/

30

If you don’t get the Truecoat, you get oxidation problems, it’ll cost you a heck of a lot more than the cost of the sealant, I’ll tell you that much.

If you don’t want it, there may not be much the dealer can do — they install that Truecoat at the factory — but if you’re lucky, they might be able to knock a hundred dollars off the cost.

31

I just bought a used vehicle a few weeks ago and noticed something interesting about dealership prices and online. This may not be universal, YMMV, etc.

I went to cars.com and put in the make, model, and year that I was intersted in. I got about 60 vehicles within 50 miles of my house. I sorted them by lowest price (because cars.com frequently sorts by highest price) and only looked at the cheapest 10 or so.

I then went to the dealership to check out two in particular. The price on the sticker at the dealership was $3000 more than the cars.com price! I had to mention to them what their price for that vehicle was on cars.com.

If I had just walked on to the lot and only had the dealership sticker price to start the negotiation, I was going to get screwed. However, the dealers are not going to go down much from the cars.com price, those were esentially the dealer’s “bottom price.”

32

Yes, I don’t know how it is at every dealer, but many I’ve noticed have special salesmen for Internet sales, I assume dealing with a different set of prices.

33

Hey, what are you doing with that wood chipper?

34

Thank you everyone.

It looks like I’ll be going through my credit union and autoland.com. Still not sure of much beyond that.

35

  1. Work out what you want to pay for the car overall. A $13000 used car that you have to pay interest at 10% on is more expensive than a $15000 new car with free interest.

  2. Avoid automatic transmissions if you want to keep the car very long - they can give you a nasty, nasty bill shortly after warranty and you won’t know whether that model automatic is a grenade until similar ones start going out. Manual boxes cost less than $500 at a junkyard for almost any popular car. Junkyard prices for automatics vary heavily with how often they fail - ones that break regularly cost a fortune.

  3. Carry the Kelly Blue Book or NADA guide with you to every dealer. Keep in mind that KBB/NADA prices are corrected to a perfect car.

  4. Take a tape measure to any car, secondhand or new. The wheelbase must be the same on both sides (measure center to center on the wheels). The tire-outside track must measure what the spec sheet says. Get under it and measure cross distances from a left front suspension mount bracket to a right rear and vice versa. They, too, must be the same. ** A car with a bent chassis may never drive right again. **

  5. Write down what you need for 51 weeks of the year and buy a car that satisfies that. If you have to rent one for a vacation, it will be cheaper than going a size or two up. Bear in mind that a trailer hitch on a too-small car and a small used trailer will cost less than $500 total.

  6. If the model you want has been out for a few years, look up its resale values. It may only be $3000 more for a brand new one than one that’s three years old. It is generally uneconomical to buy a Honda, Mazda, or Toyota secondhand. It is generally a lot cheaper to buy a Ford or Chevy secondhand.

  7. Japanese front-wheel-drive cars last virtually forever. American rear-wheel-drive cars last virtually forever. You’re probably taking a good gamble to buy a Korean car, the long warranty and the upfront savings make up for any possible longevity disadvantage.

  8. Buy a car you enjoy driving! When it is ten years old and worth $3000, and you need a $2000 engine replacement, you will save a Mazda but not a Toyota. The cheapest car is one that is fully depreciated and paid for. Ten-year-old Civics are still worth real money - twenty year old Civics are still worth money. This is because they are fun to drive and everyone who used to have one remembers theirs.

  9. Drive at least ten cars before buying one. Carry around the list of models to each dealer to point out why you aren’t buying ten minutes from now.

36

Nope–financing can be the better monetary decision depending on risk tolerances and goals. Also, interest rates right now are low, which tends to make financing the more attractive choice in a broader range of situations.

37

What kind of return do you get on a $20000 investment that exceeds an interest payment? I don’t know of one right now.

38

Many accts give 1-2% and 0% interest on car loans is not uncommon.

39

Yep. Buy a Buick (they are offering 0%) or a Honda (offering 1.9% up to 36 months) and earn any return or a very small return on your $20,000 and you are ahead of the game.

Of course, the return you could earn on the $20,000 is uncertain whereas the interest you will pay (if any) is absolutely certain, which is why the issue is a matter for each individual’s risk tolerances and goals with their money.

40

Use your car cash to pay off more-expensive debt, buy the car with the 0% loan. It’ll save the difference in interest rates.