Buying A Vehicle
There is plenty of things to consider when buying a used car. Many people I know just decide they want this make and model. Then they look for one in their price range. A few people will have the vehicle checked out by a Trusted Mechanic, but not much else. What you really need to do is go through a used car checklist to make sure you’ve covered everything you need before you buy a new to you car.
Used Car Checklist
If you follow this simple, used car checklist you will be far less likely to regret your car purchase, than if you just go randomly buy a car.
- What do you need in a car
- Your personal Budget for a car
- What is the car’s value
- Maintenance costs
- Your Mechanics Skills
- Know the Common Problems with car
- Who previously Owned the car
- Has it been modified
- How long do you plan on keeping the car
Do You Need It
Do you really need a new vehicle? If your vehicle is a couple years old in perfect working condition, do you need a newer one? The chances are you don’t need a new vehicle you just want one. However, if you’re like many people asking the same question I have a few rules of thumb.
If your vehicle has over 200,000 miles you most likely need a new one. I’m not saying cars can’t last over 200K. At that mileage, if you aren’t already spending to much on repairs you will be.
When your monthly repair bills average more than a car payment, it’s time for a new vehicle. Vehicles can get expensive to fix and it seems that once one thing breaks more follow. This is why you need to average your repair bills over 4 or 5 months.
The most important thing in my book is when one single repair bill is over 75% of your vehicle’s value. If you have a vehicle valued at $3000 putting a $2500 transmission in it really doesn’t make financial sense. In fact, most times replacing an engine or transmission doesn’t make financial sense. Of course, there are exceptions.
One exception is if you still owe $5000 on your $3000 dollar car. When you still owe money on your vehicle you need to look at how much you owe not what it’s worth. Trading in a car when you are underwater can become a huge problem unless you pay cash for your next car and roll what’s left of your car loan into a personal loan.
Your Budget/ What can you afford
The first thing you need to consider on your used car checklist is knowing your budget for a car. It’s highly suggested you always pay cash for a vehicle. Cars are one of the biggest investments you’ll make but they always go down in value. Making payments on something that will lose value means the minute you sign the papers you owe more money than the vehicle is worth. This, of course, is before the interest you have to pay.
I understand there are times you need a car and can not afford to pay cash. Thus I suggest you buy the cheapest car that fits the rest of your checklist. Just because you can afford the payments on a BMW doesn’t mean you can afford to own it. On top of the payments, you will still have to pay for taxes, license fees, and maintenance costs. Even brand new cars need oil changes, tires, and other maintenance.
What is it Worth to You
Once you know your budget you need to look at what the vehicle you want is worth to you. This doesn’t mean what they are selling for. It’s what you consider is the price you’d want to pay for that particular vehicle. I’ve wanted a newer truck for years. My personal problem is that I don’t think a truck with 150,000 miles is worth the $10,000 they go for.
I’ll admit I want a good truck. I plan on keeping it for a long time, and I don’t want to be fixing it all the time. This is where I admittedly would have to spend over $10,000 for the kind of truck I want. To me, a $10,000 truck should have a good rust free body, have around 100,000 miles or less and be in great working order. I have yet to find one like that in my price range. This is why I don’t own a newer truck.
When you are looking at a new vehicle think about what the vehicle is worth to you. If you spend more money than you think a vehicle is worth you’ll regret your purchase. Making that dream vehicle turn into something you hate overnight. So remember just because Kelly Blue Book says your dream car is worth $10,000 if you don’t think a high mileage vehicle that’s older than your kids is worth $10,000 don’t buy it. Just because you want that make and model.
Can you Maintain it
When buying a used vehicle there will always be things that need to be fixed or maintained. If you spend all your money on the car you won’t have money to fix it. When looking to buy a car price out tires. A cheap sports car is great until you find out it costs $400 apiece for tires. Price out maintenance and the common repairs.
If you buy a car with 100k miles or less on it, you can safely assume no maintenance has been done. Which means if it’s a timing belt engine you’ll want to replace that ASAP. On many cars that is over a $1000 job. However, having a timing belt break and ruin the motor on the car you just bought is worse. This is why you have a good shop check your vehicle out before you buy it. Aks the to tell all the things that are broke and all the maintenance that it will need.
Who’s Fixing It
Before you buy a European vehicle or something oddball check with your mechanic. Just because you go to a shop that says they work on all makes of vehicles doesn’t mean they have a lot of knowledge when it comes to working on Volkswagens, BMWs, or every make and model of vehicle. There are lots of specialty tools required to work on cars nowadays and no shop can afford to have all of them. The last thing you want is to have to take your car to the dealer every time you have a problem bigger than worn-out brake pads.
If you have a trusted mechanic make sure before you buy a vehicle they have the tools and knowledge to work on the vehicle you want to buy. I’m sure you already know how hard it is to find a good mechanic. The last thing you want to do is have to find a new mechanic just because you bought a new car.
Have you Researched Common Problems?
Knowing the common problems for the vehicle you are looking for is great information to have. You really don’t want to buy a car with known transmission problems. Plus many times common problems could be for just one year. That’s the year you want to avoid buying, even if the price is right. Common Complaints is a good site to look up the year make and model of the car you’re considering buying. Not only can you look up common problems so you are blindsided when you have to fix a problem. They also list all the service bulletins for each vehicle. These can be very helpful when you have strange problems come up. This is definitely not a used car checklist item you want to overlook.
Who Had it Before You
It is always good to know who owned the car before you. I’d rather buy a car with 200000 miles that was owned by a traveling salesman than one with 50000 owned by a little old lady. Vehicles were meant to be driven not to sit around. A broke college student may not maintain a car like a businessman who just says fix it. Knowing how well a car was maintained and how hard it was driven prior to you purchasing it is a good thing. This is also something many people overlook. With Carfax many people are given a false sense of security nowadays. Remember Carfax only shows when a car was serviced at a place that registered the vehicles VIN number. As good as this can be it’s only gone so far in telling you how the vehicle was treated by past owners.
Has it Been Modified
It’s best to buy a vehicle that hasn’t been modified. Make sure you don’t forget to check modifications off your used car checklist. It’s important to know what and what was modified if anything. Modified vehicles can end up costing you a lot of money in the long run to fix.
I know it seems great when you find a truck already lifted with big tires. The problem is you don’t know who installed the lift kit. You won’t know where to get replacement parts when things break. The same can be said with any aftermarket electronics. Having a remote start is great in the winter. When you know nothing about who installed the remote start or who made it. It will cost you a lot of money to find someone who can fix it. You may even end up paying someone to uninstall it. Now days even an aftermarket radio can cause problems with your car. Of course, this assuming that the person who installed the radio did it correctly. Before you buy a vehicle that has been modified think twice what happens if it breaks.
How Long Will You Keep it
When you buy a vehicle it’s always good to know how long you’ll keep it. If you plan on selling off your car every few years thinking about a lease may make financial sense. The vehicle you only need for a car to get you through college can be a $2000 beater. When planning to keep a vehicle until it dies, you need to be very particular about the vehicle you buy. You’ll want to go over everything on the used car checklist with a fine-tooth comb and then some.
Conclusion
No matter what the reason you are looking to buy a used car, you should always follow the used car checklist to make sure you’ve covered all your bases before buying. Cars can be a very pricey investment and just randomly buying one because you like the color, or the price seemed right rarely works out well. So make sure you know if you need it, what your budget is, and what it’s worth. Then double-check what’s wrong with it currently, what’s likely to go wrong, who’s going to fix it, and who may have messed it up before you buy it. If you follow this way of thinking, it’s likely you won’t regret your used car purchase.