Metro Ford Chicago

Car Salesman Confidential: 

How To Buy A Used Car

It's All About Who You Can Trust

By Mark McDonald | August 01, 2014  |  

In recent years, with the transaction price of the average new 

car climbing past $30,000, and the sluggish economy, more 

and more people are electing to keep their cars a little longer, 

or buy used. So the question is, how do you keep from getting 

stuck with a bad used car? Here are my suggestions, 

as a ten year veteran of car sales:

1. Establish a Relationship With a Salesperson

Any time you buy from a person you've never met, 

whether he's a salesman for a dealership or some guy on eBay, 

it's a bit of a gamble. The seller may be a straight shooter, 

and the car he's selling may be perfectly fine. Or he may 

be a con artist and the car may have serious problems with it.

 In my opinion, a good strategy is to find a salesperson 

you trust -- maybe the man or woman you bought your 

last new car from -- and work through them. 

When it comes time to buy something used, call them up 

and tell them what you're looking for. If he's smart, your 

salesman will steer you to a car you'll be happy with, 

if for no other reason than he wants to sell you more cars 

in the future.

2. Buy From a Large Dealership With a Good Reputation

I'm not knocking small "Mom & Pop" dealerships, 

because I have many friends who work at places 

like this and there's nothing wrong with the cars

they sell. But I think you have a slightly better chance 

of finding a good used car at a large, well-established 

dealership. There are two reasons. First, large dealerships 

have service departments, whereas your local "dirt lot"

 probably does not. Chances are good that any car you 

find at a large dealership has at least gone through a 

basic Safety Inspection to make sure the tires are good, 

the brakes work, and nothing is wrong with the steering. 

Most dealerships will also check the fluids and change 

the oil. With a small lot you just have to take the seller's

 word for it that the car is mechanically sound, or arrange 

to have your own mechanic inspect it. Second, a big

 dealership has a bigger reputation to protect. They 

know that if they abuse you, you'll go on line and write 

a bad review or complain to their corporate office, and 

nobody wants that. So they go to greater lengths to 

make sure their used cars are sound, and they'll be more 

responsive to your complaints after the sale. Let me give 

you a quick example. A used car manager at a large 

dealership I know went to an auction and bought five 

used BMWs for a song. On the outside, these cars

 looked fine -- but every single one of them had 

frame damage. 

I'm not sure how this guy expected to get away with 

it, but his plan was to sell these cars without disclosing 

the damage and make a killing. But when their history 

was discovered this guy was fired – instantly -- and the 

cars never even made it onto the dealer's lot. A large 

organization just cannot afford to do business like that.

 A Cautionary Word About CarFax. CarFax is great . . . 

but don't put all your faith in it. CarFax only reports 

what's reported to it. If two people have an accident, 

but choose not to report it, it won't show up on the 

CarFax. Second, just because CarFax says the car has 

been in an accident, it doesn't mean it's a "bad vehicle" 

or you shouldn't buy it. Read the fine print. Was the 

vehicle unable to move on its own power, and had to 

be towed away? Or was it able to be driven away? 

The fact is, the collision might have been a minor 

incident with only minimal damage, but because 

the Police were called and a report was taken, it 

shows up on CarFax as an "accident." Third, even

 if a vehicle is involved in a collison, 

if the damage has been repaired properly there's 

no reason to avoid buying the car. See if records 

are available, and ask how it was repaired and by whom.

 

A Word About Rental Cars.

Many times, dealerships will supplement their 

used car inventory with vehicles from rental 

car companies. The reason is simple: they need

 the inventory. A dealership can't just sit around 

and wait for customers to trade in what's popular,

 so they go out and buy desirable vehicles from 

rental companies, or at auction. A lot of people

 are put off by this, but they shouldn't be. 

If a car is in good condition it shouldn't matter 

who the previous owner was. (In fact, you may 

even have a better chance that the vehicle was 

properly maintained because most rental companies

 perform regular maintenance.) Rentals will 

typically have a little higher mileage on them

 than comparable privately owned cars, but that 

also means they're priced lower. I have sold 

many a used car that came from a rental fleet 

and had no complaints yet.

3. Buy a Certified Used Car

If you've been out cruising dealerships lately you
 may have noticed some of the cars have stickers
 on them saying things like "Certified" or 
"Certified Pre-Owned." What this means is that 
the car has gone through an inspection process, 
been serviced and, if necessary, repaired, and is 
being sold with an extended warranty. For example,
 if you come across a Certified Honda, it means that
 the regular 5 years or 60,000 mile drivetrain warranty 
has been extended to 7 years, 100,000 miles.
 This is a tremendous value. A certified car has a 
warranty on it that, in some ways, is better than 
the original factory warranty. Certification offers
 every used car buyer extra "peace of mind" that 
they haven't bought a lemon, and knowledge 
that the manufacturer stands behind it. 
Of course, a certified car will also cost a little more
 than a car that isn't certified, but in my opinion it's
 worth it. A Word About "As Is" Vehicles. 
Most of the used cars found on dealership lots 
have a sticker called the "Buyer's Guide" or 
"As Is" that tells you whether or not the car has 
any warranty left on it. Pay attention to this sticker. 
If it says "As Is," it means As Is -- you're buying the 
car just as it sits, with no warranty. There's an old 
saying in the car biz that, if you buy an "As Is" 
vehicle and you drive it off the lot and it breaks 
into two pieces, you own both pieces. The dealership
 is under no obligation whatsoever to fix that 
vehicle for you. Here's the thing. If you discover a 
problem with an "As Is" vehicle before you complete
 the paperwork or drive it off the lot, most dealerships
will probably fix it for you -- depending on what it is.
 If it's a minor cosmetic issue, like a broken cupholder 
or soiled carpet, probably not. But if it's something
 major, like a bad headlight or mechanical issue, 
they probably will. Just be sure to get any promises
 in writing on the "We Owe" (that's the document 
the dealer uses to remind us of what we owe
 the customer). Verbal representations in the
middle of a sale tend to get forgotten, or can 
be distorted by memory, so always get it in writing.

Read more: http://blogs.motortrend.com/1408_car_salesman_confidential_how_to_buy_a_used_car.html#ixzz3As5KeVjF