Buying used car buying, where

Look4chrisng

hi guys,

Do you know where I can get a VIN Check for used cars?  Or any must known tips when buying a used car?

Quest

different people have different priorities/agenda, but here's mine:

(1) chassis must be straight/undamaged on used car. Any prior accidents that have "touched" the chassis (unibody) it means that everything is pretty much gone as far as alignment's concerned.

I know shops can tweak the alignment so that the repaired car can still drive straight, but no, not worth the money spent (in my case)

(2) do a carfax or similar reports and see what sort of damage it has. If it's door dings/bumper scratches and nothing more than 1800CAD claims, then it should be fairly ok.

(3) proper mechanical maintenance: oil changes 3+ times a year (dealer or not doesn't really matter), with receipt or similar.

(4) no liens imposed on the vehicle.

(5) get a roughy 3 to 4 yrs old (2nd hand) car that still has approx. 1 year of balance of factory warranty on it. Chances are: if that used vehicle has some mech-related issue, you can still get the warranty repair done. Anything past factory warranty period is, IMHO a rather risky move.

(6) decent mileage on it. I'd say give it approx. 18,000kms/yr of coverage, so that when you purchase it used: it should be within that range. Anything higher than that, you must consider the mechanical condition, maintenance, etc. before purchasing.

Q.

Look4chrisng

Thanks, Quest you are super!   We are looking at a 2011 Venza, it has extended warranty until 2016.  We have been driving a 2004 Accord, the newer used car does have more nice features.  But I still like the Accord, the driver is more connected to the road.  

The Venza feels a lot softer and pampered feel.  But we need the truck space and roomier 2nd row to shut up the damn kids.

Quest

Venza is a good buy. I'll wait till my wifey's camry break down before we get a Venza for replacement.

Make sure it's low-mileage, properly maintained and accident-free. Not worth buying a bad one if there's tons of decent ones out there.

Q.

Look4chrisng

回復 4# Quest

Good car for grandma.  Anyway, it doesn't seem to be a popular car, in between Sienna and Camry.  But it looks nicer than the Honda Crosstour.  For me, I want the Outback!

B2L2

VIN check could be done at ICBC website (redirect to Carproof), $70.

I would suggest to get a garage to do pre-purchase inspection (PPI) if you aren't mechanical/car inclined.  Even you are, the owner may not trust you to do all the inspection anyway.

Look4chrisng

回復 6# B2L2


  B2L2.  Thanks for the tip.

But the deal didn't go through, seller didn't want to reset an engine light for tires.  We have young kids, so walk away from the deal.

But this morning, I pickup the news paper, a new 2014 Santa Fe AWD is only $24,598 all in.  New cars are getting cheaper every year.

10 years or so ago, Hyundai has no brakes, now Korean cars are petty good.(I heard that from a P. Eng. !)

B2L2

Just extra info for you.  

Title check is free on the ICBC website but it only tells  you whether it has clean title, or salvage, etc (the link is quite hidden).  If it is older car, air care history is also available for free (good for checking air car history or possible roll-back odometer).

Look4chrisng

回復 8# B2L2


    Thanks, odometer roll-back is still possible today!!!

Quest

IMO while rollback odo is still "doable", fact is: other than some small indy 2nd hand car salesman (which will do anything for a song), most car dealerships won't do that anymore.

private sales need not apply (be careful).

Also: always get carfax or VIN check on the automobile before you finalise the deal. If something has been "touched" to the odo or salvage title, will be displayed on report.

Lastly: one can always go with some "cold door" toy cars such as Venza, etc. for the likeliness of odo being rolled back is very low.

Remember this: unless there's a plausable reason behind exceedingly low mileage to begin with (e.g. si-lai car doing 2km round trips locally only), otherwise: it's not uncommon to see cars averaged around 18k/yr.

Lastly: as I said before: get a 4yrs old car for you still have the balance of 1 yr of factory powertrain warranty left. Anything older than that: you bear the burden/risk of hidden mechanical repairs.

Q.