TIPS AND ADVICE WHEN SHOPPING FOR A USED CAR
We've been shopping around for used and pre-owned cars and found that there are several things you should
be looking for. First, there is a large inventory of cars that are coming off leases from two and three years ago, and
many of the dealerships with these cars have special resale financing to get them off their lots. Some of these financing
plans come from the automakers themselves. Look for "certified" cars which have been checked over and meet
factory standards for a pre-owned car, as these cars will be eligible for special financing rates.
You'll find the best buys on cars that have just come off of
leases. Look for financing rates around 2.9% or even lower on some cars. Many car dealers told me that low rate
financing is available. Also look for best buys on "demonstrator" models which have very low mileage and
big discounts. Ask about those demonstrators and don't be surprised to see them driven for 100 miles or less.
These days you might also see a large number of repossessed
cars. But there is no difference between a repossessed car and any other pre-owned or used car because you still want
to be assured of its condition and you still want a financing deal when you buy it. Ask about return or exchange privileges
if you buy a used car and then take it to your own mechanic who discovers a potential problem.
I've also been asked about buying cars at auction, including auctions of repo
cars. My advice is basically this: be sure you check out the car carefully before you
buy it. I've attended car auctions where it is impossible to check out a car because you are not allowed to start up
the car; I've also been to auctions where there were no keys for the car and if you
bought the car at auction you would be responsible for getting new keys and heaven knows what else. So a basic question
is this: do you know enough about buying a car to check for yourself under the hood, the drive train, the brakes, the lights,
the engine, the transmission and so forth? Can you bring along a mechanic? Or, is there a warranty and return
privilege with buying a car at auction? Well, a warranty or return privilege is not likely.
Another issue with buying a repo car is did the previous owner
take care of it? They obviously didn't make their car payments so did they do the maintenance on the car before the
repo man hauled it away? Before the repo was the oil changed regularly and did the car get tuneups? What condition
are the tires in? And do you have to pay cash or is their financing for that repo car you are getting at the car repo
auction?
For these various reasons,
you just might be better off getting a pre-owned certified used car from a dealership or from a used car dealer who will stand
behind your purchse and might also offer a low interest rate financing plan. And perhaps our best advice is this: invest
some time in your car purchase because you could be driving this car for the next several years.
