How to purchase a used car

Find out what you need to know when buying a used vehicle, from the business part to the quality. Insure yourself that you invested well.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. You may agree that its easy to get caught in the overwhelming feeling of buying a new used vehicle; so much so that you may accidentally rush into it and find out days later after you put the car into your name and drive it, that you made a mistake. I will tell you in these steps what to look for when buying a used vehicle and what you can expect as well as what you will need and how to read the seller.

2. So you found a car that your interested in, you may have noticed this car on the side of the road or in an ad online, maybe in the daily paper. First off you want to be sure the vehicle is in your price range before looking at it so you can show the seller that you mean business and your interested. A seller may do many things to trick or convense you to purchasing the vehicle. ( All they want is your money! )

3. The best places to buy a used vehicle is to find some older couple doesn't want or need their's anymore and just sits there. These types of vehicles have low mileage and are well kept. You will even find awesome classics, if that's what your into. If someone is trying to push the sell of the vehicle through ads of any kind you can expect that what there wanting is quick cash, more room, or the car may have something wrong with it and they want to make some cash off it before it gets worse. So keep in mind understanding the seller of the car your interested in is important; you can keep a close eye on his facial expressions (is he getting flustered?) he might notice something right off the back about the vehicle and might be hoping you over look it. Does he talk fast and push the fact that its perfect? If so more then likely its not. What you want to see and hear from a honest dealer is one that points out the damages if any, the things it could use, and what's good about it. Also an honest seller will show you a receipt of the engine or transmission if it had been rebuilt. Smart people who plan to sell and are honest will keep their receipts. Also a good seller will let you tinker with the car without hanging over your shoulder. Remember if the seller says it runs and drives he can't keep you from test driving it. If he doesn't want you to then obviously there is something wrong.

4. When judging a vehicle its really up to you weather or not you need certain things to the automobile. Maybe you don't mind doing some work on fixing. For example: (you might not care if the interior is bad or the lights don't work, you might just care how well it performs and the quality in the mechanics behind it, as far as driving and stay driving.) Knowing what your looking for in vehicle before you step out looking will make things go faster and give you a professional eye.

5. You want to check all the fluid levels in the automobile and make sure there where they should be and not way above or way below the marks the should be at. Also you want to look under the vehicle and check for any leaks. inspect the engine and transmission for anything unusual. If you don't know what to look for you may want to bring a friend that has some experience with cars. Bringing a friend and having that friend stay quite is a good technique to confuse the seller. The seller may have picked off of you the fact that you might not know about cars, and when you show up with a friend have him move around the car fast pace looking at lots of stuff, this will freak out the seller. The seller will think that your friend is a true pro and will be a little extra honest through the process of studying the car. You can always look at the car all you want. Check the tires, brakes, fluids, mechanics of the engine and transmission. When test driving the vehicle be sure to try out the brakes well and do many types of turns. Keep you eyes on the guages and insure that it stays operating temperature and doesn't get over heated. Also some cars have an electrical fan, you will want to be sure it engages when it needs to, to keep the engine cool. While your on the road test, check the air conditioner, if the seller says it works then it should. If anything comes out false from what the seller has said then you should move on; chances the vehicle is bad are high.

6. When you get back from the test drive be sure to look at the car again. Check for leaks, and loud clicking sounds. Maybe you will want a car with low mileage so you will want to be sure to check the odometer too. maybe the seller replaced the engine and if he did you will want proof, never take his word for it.

7. OK you like the vehicle and your ready to buy it. You will want to have stopped at a title company and retrieved a title application, incase the seller didn't. This will make things go faster and keep him from selling to someone else. Be sure to get a receipt, make sure you both filled out the title and title application correctly before leaving and all signatures are in place. The seller is also suppose to have you sign an odometer disclosure, saying you agree with the mileage of the engine and a document saying you agree that your buying the car "as is" with out warrantee. This is why you want to check the vehicle thuroughly before buying it cause once you do, there is no returning.

8. Now its time to take all your information to the title company and pay taxes on the price of the car and buy new plates and new stickers.

9. For more information on what you need to put a car in your name check out my article for just that. I hope this helped you, and feel free to comment or ask me questions.

Tips & Warnings

• Move through your purchase slowly, take your time.
• Never buy a vehicle without the title unless you want the trouble!