Used Cars

Rocket

Rocket

New member
I went far shopping with my brother over the weekend for a car. He will be getting his license this week (hopefully). Most of the newer cars I saw (2011 or 2012) weren't much cheaper than a brand new one. I was a little surprised that it was 2k-4k less as an average. The cars I did see that we're cheaper were in bad shape as far as exterior or interior. I told him to look for something in decent shape and I'd detail it and do paint correction to fix as much of it as I could.

Does anyone have a problem buying a car that has 80k-100k miles? I wonder about reliability at that point and repair costs that might come up shortly after buying it. I usually look at cars with 40k or less. I know that doesn't guarantee anything as one car I bought had less than 20k miles and was nothing but a headache but I figure my chances might be better
 
If I was going to buy something with more than 50K miles, I would like to know how many owners, how well maintained, repair history if possible, etc.

You get a general sense of reliability from sources like Consumer Reports, but often depends on maintenance, etc.
 
Used cars are always a gamble. In the last 4-5 years there has been a significant increase in the cost of used cars for sure. I think it the best bet is to be patient and buy from owners. You will save money and it does give you a better opportunity to access the situation.
 
Ive had very bad luck buying used vehicles with that many miles. Even having it checked out by a mechanic. Even a mechanic cannot predict everything that will go wrong in the next couple of years.
 
My last truck was great and I bought it used. The dealer kept saying it was "new" since it was the current year model but it had 18k miles. I finally talked them down to what I wanted especially when I pointed out all the defects and scratches in the paint. They just smiled and made an offer for 500 more than what I had given and I said deal. I had that truck for 6 years and really racked up the miles without any real mechanical issue other than a broken fuel gauge. When I traded it in I had 120k miles and all those scratches that helped get the price down were gone ;). So nice knowing how to do paint correction

My Trans Am was used also and it wasn't as good of a buy. I rushed into it and in the end I wish I had taken my time to buy it. It's been fun and I have enjoyed it but the deal I made still makes me a little sick and I didn't really look the car over enough before I bought it.
 
Financial a used car is a much better buy. But with 80k to 100k you start getting into the car needing a tune up or timing belt change. If it was a 4cyl Honda with 80K I would not have a issue.
 
There are good one's out there and the best rule of buying cars is do not be in a rush! You have to be willing to walk away, and possibly loose a car to but it right. Look at cars, find what you want and make a ligit but lower offer. A number below where you think the seller will accept. walk away and make sure they have your contact info. If it sits, they will call to negotiate, if it sell, find another. You can adjust you offer to a higher number dependant on how much you like that exact car and how bad you need it. But if you can set up the situation so that you can wait you will do better than being on a tight time line.

Always be human in your negotiations as you want the door to be open and want the guy to call you over someone else who he dreds dealing with.

No sure what price range you are in, but somethimes the smart money is spent on a well bought new car that is less expensive than a used car of a higher priced brand. I went this route since this purchase ocurred becasue we have a new driver in the family and my main criteria was safety, next reliability, then everything else.

Safety is easilly checked by googlinig IIHS and selecting year , make and model. Please check all test including roof test. I was very surprised at what I found here.

Good luck!
 
I've bought cars with 80-90k on them before and had no problems at all. That said, for resale value and longevity I'm going to try my best to stick to cars with lower mileage from now on.
 
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