Welcome to the First Edition of the Blog Page: How to Buy a Used Car
I consider myself an expert at returning cars, not buying them. Nevertheless, a few years ago, I needed to buy a car. My colleagues, all lemon law experts, advised me to buy a new car, but I didn't want to spend too much, so I found an almost new one I liked for a good price, which was double the amount I had originally planned to spend. [I first spent several weeks looking on Craigslist, only to find most of the posted information was false!]
While looking for cars, I rented a 2019 Altima from Enterprise, which I really liked, and so I started looking for one. I ruled out buying from a rental agency, such as Enterprise, because they can't give a dealer warranty and at the lot we visited, the salesman misrepresented a lot of things about how they can sell cars, so I do NOT recommend buying a former rental car.
I found the car I wanted on Kelley Blue Book at a reasonable price. I also checked nhtsa.gov to rule out outstanding safety recalls (none) and the Insurance Institute's website for crash- worthiness (excellent).
I then went to my bank and got approved for a loan for the amount I wanted to finance with a very low interest rate. (I planned to pay half cash and finance the other half.) [If you decide to let the dealer finance you, you can ask them to beat or match your bank’s interest rate. If they can, there are some advantages to letting the dealer finance you.]
I found the car on the Nissan dealer's website and contacted the "Internet Sales Manager" to confirm that they had the car at the advertised price. I printed this information out from the dealer's website. I told them I was approved for the loan and asked if they could give me a lower interest rate, asked if the price was the “out-the door” price and he said yes. He also checked and said my bank's interest rate was lower than what they could get me, so I told him I would finance with my bank.
I made an appointment to meet with the Internet Sales Manager the next day and they had the car detailed and waiting out front. I went in and met with him and other sales personnel. I showed them my printout. I asked them if they could sell me the car for that price, no extras. They agreed. I said I would not sign anything electronically. They agreed. Nor would I sign a contract with an arbitration clause. They said they couldn't do that, which I expected. I went to the finance writer's office, where he tried to “upsell” me on a paint protection program and extended warranty, which I politely declined, but held out hope for them by saying "Maybe I will consider them in the future." The finance writer called my bank and my pre-approved loan was confirmed. I handed him a check for the down payment.
The finance writer printed out the contract and other purchase documents. I read everything before signing. He gave me copies of everything. The one thing that was problematic was the “Buyer’s Guide,” which, per state and federal law, is required to be on all used vehicles: It has two boxes, one of which is supposed to say “As Is,” the other which says “Dealer Warranty.” However, there is an alternate version of the Buyer’s Guide which says “Implied Warranties Only” instead of “As Is” and “Dealer Warranty.” I wanted a dealer warranty, but the dealer convinced me that Nissan did not allow their dealers to sell any of their used cars with a dealer warranty. I walked around the lot and saw that all of the used cars had a Buyer’s Guide stating “Implied Warranties Only,” so I caved and bought the car without a Dealer warranty, but WITH the remainder of the manufacturer warranty.
After being at the dealership for about 4 hours and eating tacos cooked outside for lunch while waiting to talk with salespeople and finance people, my husband and I drove off drove off in our beautiful "new" car. So far, no problems, but knock on wood.
To summarize, four key pieces of advice:
(1) If you are going with an older used car, check out the VIN and review the history of the Vehicle on Carfax or Auto Vehicle Reports BEFORE going to the dealer. When you get there, if in doubt about the mechanical condition of the car, get it checked out by a mechanic. Most sellers will let you do this. The reason is, not every accident or repair shows up on the Carfax or Auto Check Report. (Auto Check is like Carfax.)
(2) DO NOT BUY a car that has a report of accident damage or rebuilt anything, or with a LIEN ON THE TITLE, or anything else that your gut tells you is not good.
(3) If possible, buy a newer used vehicle from a franchised dealer of the car's manufacturer. (e.g., a used Honda from a Honda dealer.) Ideally, buy a car that is still under the manufacturer’s original warranty. You can tell by looking at the Buyer’s Guide, which has a box that says “Manufacturer warranty still applies,” or something to that effect. This box will be checked. Follow the steps above. Find the car you want on the Dealer's website and contact the INTERNET SALES MANAGER. This allows you to avoid most of the usual gambits and time-wasting usually practiced by the regular sales department. Also, the dealer will suspect that you are already one step ahead of most buyers.
(4) Don’t feel pressured to buy the car the first day you look at it. If you feel pressured to do so, politely stick to your guns. If Dealer personnel are anything but respectful, leave. DO NOT BUY a car from people who do not treat you with respect.
If you follow these steps, although they take time and effort, you’ll be a lot happier with your purchase and may never need to sit in my office!
Good luck!
While looking for cars, I rented a 2019 Altima from Enterprise, which I really liked, and so I started looking for one. I ruled out buying from a rental agency, such as Enterprise, because they can't give a dealer warranty and at the lot we visited, the salesman misrepresented a lot of things about how they can sell cars, so I do NOT recommend buying a former rental car.
I found the car I wanted on Kelley Blue Book at a reasonable price. I also checked nhtsa.gov to rule out outstanding safety recalls (none) and the Insurance Institute's website for crash- worthiness (excellent).
I then went to my bank and got approved for a loan for the amount I wanted to finance with a very low interest rate. (I planned to pay half cash and finance the other half.) [If you decide to let the dealer finance you, you can ask them to beat or match your bank’s interest rate. If they can, there are some advantages to letting the dealer finance you.]
I found the car on the Nissan dealer's website and contacted the "Internet Sales Manager" to confirm that they had the car at the advertised price. I printed this information out from the dealer's website. I told them I was approved for the loan and asked if they could give me a lower interest rate, asked if the price was the “out-the door” price and he said yes. He also checked and said my bank's interest rate was lower than what they could get me, so I told him I would finance with my bank.
I made an appointment to meet with the Internet Sales Manager the next day and they had the car detailed and waiting out front. I went in and met with him and other sales personnel. I showed them my printout. I asked them if they could sell me the car for that price, no extras. They agreed. I said I would not sign anything electronically. They agreed. Nor would I sign a contract with an arbitration clause. They said they couldn't do that, which I expected. I went to the finance writer's office, where he tried to “upsell” me on a paint protection program and extended warranty, which I politely declined, but held out hope for them by saying "Maybe I will consider them in the future." The finance writer called my bank and my pre-approved loan was confirmed. I handed him a check for the down payment.
The finance writer printed out the contract and other purchase documents. I read everything before signing. He gave me copies of everything. The one thing that was problematic was the “Buyer’s Guide,” which, per state and federal law, is required to be on all used vehicles: It has two boxes, one of which is supposed to say “As Is,” the other which says “Dealer Warranty.” However, there is an alternate version of the Buyer’s Guide which says “Implied Warranties Only” instead of “As Is” and “Dealer Warranty.” I wanted a dealer warranty, but the dealer convinced me that Nissan did not allow their dealers to sell any of their used cars with a dealer warranty. I walked around the lot and saw that all of the used cars had a Buyer’s Guide stating “Implied Warranties Only,” so I caved and bought the car without a Dealer warranty, but WITH the remainder of the manufacturer warranty.
After being at the dealership for about 4 hours and eating tacos cooked outside for lunch while waiting to talk with salespeople and finance people, my husband and I drove off drove off in our beautiful "new" car. So far, no problems, but knock on wood.
To summarize, four key pieces of advice:
(1) If you are going with an older used car, check out the VIN and review the history of the Vehicle on Carfax or Auto Vehicle Reports BEFORE going to the dealer. When you get there, if in doubt about the mechanical condition of the car, get it checked out by a mechanic. Most sellers will let you do this. The reason is, not every accident or repair shows up on the Carfax or Auto Check Report. (Auto Check is like Carfax.)
(2) DO NOT BUY a car that has a report of accident damage or rebuilt anything, or with a LIEN ON THE TITLE, or anything else that your gut tells you is not good.
(3) If possible, buy a newer used vehicle from a franchised dealer of the car's manufacturer. (e.g., a used Honda from a Honda dealer.) Ideally, buy a car that is still under the manufacturer’s original warranty. You can tell by looking at the Buyer’s Guide, which has a box that says “Manufacturer warranty still applies,” or something to that effect. This box will be checked. Follow the steps above. Find the car you want on the Dealer's website and contact the INTERNET SALES MANAGER. This allows you to avoid most of the usual gambits and time-wasting usually practiced by the regular sales department. Also, the dealer will suspect that you are already one step ahead of most buyers.
(4) Don’t feel pressured to buy the car the first day you look at it. If you feel pressured to do so, politely stick to your guns. If Dealer personnel are anything but respectful, leave. DO NOT BUY a car from people who do not treat you with respect.
If you follow these steps, although they take time and effort, you’ll be a lot happier with your purchase and may never need to sit in my office!
Good luck!