What are the pointers to buy used cars ?

You are in Gandhi Nagar (I mean Bay Area)!!! You shouldn't have a problem finding a reliable used car from within the Indian Community itself. Look on Sulekha.com.

5-10k should get you a decent Corolla/Civic with about 70k miles on them. Before contacting sellers, get estimates from Edmunds/Kelly Blue Book. When you talk to a seller, get the VIN number and run a CARFAX report on them.

One friendly advise: When you meet a seller in person, don't do what some Indians do----that is to ask them why they are selling their car. I had this experience while selling my car. I told them 'It is my car and I will do as I please'. Needless to say I ended up selling my car to a person who didn't ask me the question.

 

Rosegirl, Never ever forget to run a Carfax report on the car you like. After that if you are convinced have your mechanic check out the car. Its always good to get the car checked out once from our own mechanic.Also see if the papers are right about the car. Good Luck.Honda Civic or a Corolla will be good for this budget. Mind you the upkeep of these cars is also reasonable so it will be work out well for a long duration.Good Luck.

 

Reliable small Car Honda Civic, check with your local Honda dealer they will have pre-owned certified cars and as chocolate mentioned run a carfax check, even if its from the dealer. When you are ready to buy post the year, make and model we can give you more input.

 

Hello friends,
We are planning to buy an used car soon. We checked online and we are quite interested in 2008 civic honda hybrid. The dealer quotes about $17,500(mileage is close to 20K)and the car color is blue. Do you think it's a good deal? Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you!

best
Sindhu

 

Sindhuja, Haggle. You can do it in dealerships too. Haggle and look around. What they quote is not the price you need to pay for the car.The prices of cars are supposed to go down a lot . Look around and see news whether its worth waiting. Besides that 17,500 is a bit higher for a 2 yr old car.Dont forget to run the Carfax.Even from dealerships if its used its always good to have your mechanic check it out.Good Luck.

 

"Show me, the CARFAX"

 

Hey Nandhu,
How are you?
Here is the carfax report:
CARFAX Vehicle History Report on JHMFA36258S026111

 

Hi Chocolate,
Thank you for your inputs. Also, take a look at the carfax report in my reply to Nandhu. Will definitely look around for other deals and also check for any decline in car prices in the near future. Thanks again!:thumbsup