Buying a second hand car........advice?

[robertwill]

Hi Friends.

Some nice fellow has recently plowed into the back of my car while i was waiting at a red light. His car was a nice big SUV. My car, while functioning perfectly, is now considered a writeoff which is quite irritating.

As a result i am starting to think about buying a new (well, second hand) car. I probably have a budget of 5g's which i know aint much, but yeah, quite poor atm. A mid 90s corolla is what comes to mind at the moment. The problem is, i am not really experienced in this area as my last car was bought off a family friend.

Any of you guys ever gone private? Used car dealerships? Other? Had any luck with private? What things have you done to ensure the car aint going to fall apart? Yeah pretty much screwed without a car so i need to get the ball rolling on this kinda soon. Any help is very much appreciated.

 

[Toms01PSD]

Insurance won't cover a new car for you?

 

[Nhaz]

If you have little or no experience with buying used cars I would stay away from private sales and stick with paying more at a dealer for a used car that comes with a warranty.

When you buy a used car from a private sale you are generally buying all the problems the used car has. with no warranty or return policy.

If you don't know how to fix whatever problems the car has you are going to get screwed. Not even on purpose. Lots of private sales are not even intentionally trying to screw you. They don't know any better.

 

[Cheaplabor]

I would say if you don’t really know what your looking at then go with the dealer and get one with a warranty. Another option is to find a private seller and have a friend that is good with cars go with you, or if no friends ask a local garage to look it over for you.