I have been car shopping lately for my daughter, and felt we did ok on the deal.
Now I am looking at some options to fill a need for a vehicle to travel with, and do some light towing. I expect it to be comfortable, and a little flashy. Since the wife got a sports car I will be looking at large SUV's that came with a six figure price tag new.
Here are some rules to go by when shopping.
1 A car is a machine the more miles it has on it, the less you will get out of it.
2 Always buy a low mileage car that is at least five years old, so it has depreciated to actual value.
3 Maintenance records that show someone took reasonable care of the machine.
4 View the underside of the machine and look for leaks, rust, or damage, ( you don't have to be a mechanic to do this just use common sense and a flashlight).
5 Buy from an individual who is suffering from one of the three D's, death, divorce or default. The best deals will be found here.
6 When shopping for an automobile buying cars from dry climates is best, less rust and less chance of buying a flood car..
7 Banks will loan money on a car until it is ten years old. It is best pay cash if you can, avoid long term payment plans, and buy here pay here places.
8 A cheap stethoscope can tell you a lot about an engine listening to it idle.
9 Always see the vehicle cold start, so you can check the fluids before you start it and too look for smoke, or hard starting problems.
10 Fitment of body panels, and overspray are easy ways to tell if a vehicle has been repaired.
11 Never been wrecked original paint cars will always age better than one that has been fixed, and painted.
12 Do your research on the vehicle, look for several sources to verify the make model is not a lemon, and wont empty your pockets later.
I am sure I will think of a few more after I publish this, feel free to add rules in the comment section below.
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