When shopping for a used car here are 8 MyCarlady warning signs this isn’t the best used car for your money and safety. The obvious concerns you have are:
Was it in a wreck?
Is the title Clear or Fake?
Am I paying too much?Trusting CarFax. Recent reports from dealers across the country have spurred some independent car dealers and national dealers associations to consider legal action against CarFax for mis-reporting problems on vehicles and not stating issues when they were obvious upon closer inspection. SO for now, consider other corroborating evidence before purchasing a used car from a private party or used car dealer.ConsumerReports. Every April consumer Reports publishes a great guide on the new models, but the real value is in the back of the magazine. Buy the magazine it’s cheaper than paying for individual reports. The back lists all the known issues with used cars. By year, make and model it lists the things to know. If you can’t find a Consumer Reports at your library, go to www.NHTSA.com and look up service bulletins, recalls, and complaints (3 different places) and look up the car you are considering buying.
That said, let’s look at eight things you can do yourself to eliminate BAD used cars before you waste time and money on reports and mechanic physical inspections, in the final sale process.
1. Ask to see a copy ofthe title. Check the top section for words: TOTAL, TOTAL Loss, Salvage, REBUILT, EXEMPT.
OUTSIDE INDICATIONS of USED CAR TROUBLE
2. Stand away from the car and not any discernible paint variations, ripples in the body panels, hood and tailgate that would indicate paint work. Feel the paint. Run your fingers along the entire car, high and low, and note any changes in the paint surface. Roughness or shiny, texture, rough, shiny is an indication of body work. If it’s too dirty to see the true color and your hands get filthy touching the car, that’s an indication someones hiding something. Never buy a car at night.
3. Take a small magnet with you. After you have touched the car panels walk around again and place the magnet on each part of the car, especially areas where you noted paint or surface variations. If the magnet doesn’t stick, you have plastic or bondo, indicating body work. If you find some it’s time to leave.
4. Tires. The old penny test is still the simplest way to determine tire tread left, but it’s not the only indication of tire trouble. Put Lincoln’s head down in the middle of the top tire tread. If you can see his entire head, there’s no tread left to speak of. If you can see part of his head you have varying degrees of tread left in 10k mile increments. Use you judgement as you check all the tires, and BTW, make sure all the tires match. Mis-matched tires are a MAJOR safety concern. You can have a car with low miles, that needs tires. Check the sidewall surface of the tire for cracking, bubbles, or chunks missing. Look at each tire. Check each tire for even tire pressure. (the correct tire pressure is written on the inside driver’s door sticker and says XXX number PSI front and XXX number PSI rear. The tire pressure should be measured when the car hasn’t been driven). Uneven tire pressure can indicate a slow leak from under the wheel seal, another indication of older tires on low mile cars, especially. Tires should be replaced every 3-4 years or 40k miles. Go to the tire manufacturer’s website to find out the warranty and life expectancy of the tires you are buying with the car, or as replacements. Ask if the tires are filled with air or Nitrogen. Nitrogen requires yearly check-ups at a dealership or garage.
5. Under the Hood, Tailgate.
Open the car hood and take a look at the overall condition of the parts.
Are some cleaner than others?
Is the hood-liner frayed or stained? This is an indication the car was not cleaned or serviced on a regular basis.
Are the cables to the battery: corroded, loose, is the red protective cover in place? These are items that might have to be replaced in the near future. As you inspect the hood run your finger down the outside side edge of the hood and note any different in smooth to rough or shows paint drip unevenness. Look at the sides of the body edge that fits under the hood, is the paint color different, un-even or is there over-spray on the cables, lights closest to the edge?
Are the bolts a different color/shade?
As you close the hood, look at the gap between the hood and fender, is it the same on each side?
When you run your finger down the gap is it uneven?
These are all indications the hood and possibly part of the fender has been replaced and or re-painted. The gap may be fixed with an adjustment to the hinges, but you must ask yourself did this car has had some serious body work is the frame straight?
While bad cables can be an indication of neglect or accident damage causing electrical failure at the wrong time. All these items I’ve mentioned could be a sign that the frame needs to be checked out. There are many types of car frames, and some can be fixed back to manufacturers specs without consternation, however, only an honest body shop technician can tell you the story of a car’s accident history from underneath the car.
Follow these same steps with the trunk and trunk lid, and doors. Car accidents are the number one reason to rule out a used car purchase, and one third of accidents happen in the front. The other 66% are divided evenly between side and rear impacts.
INTERIOR REVIEW
6. Pedals. Are the brake or gas pedal covers worn, missing their plastic covers or rubber grip spots? Is the carpet under the gas pedal threadbare? A worn pedal could be an indication of an aggressive driver who rides the brake or gas pedal. Check the brakes next… Do the miles (too low) to match the condition of the pedals or carpet, you may have a bad odometer. In the lesser case, the worn fabric could be a safety hazard if the heel of your shoe gets stuck.
7. Unusual odors. Does this car smell like a wet dog? Heavily perfumed? Cigarette smells can only come out when the entire interior including the head liner is steam cleaned. However,Wet odors,especially when you turn on the air conditioner or heat, could indicate the vehicle was submerged in water, flooded in a rain storm and mildew is inside the plastic parts and the interior door padding. Excessive perfume could be someone trying to mask and odor. If you are suspicious, lift up the carpet in the trunk,away from the front under the passenger side glove box or pull the rear seat out and inspect for water stains.
8. Test drives. Watch the odometer to be sure it registers a mile change and the speedometer is clocking the right speed. Over-sized tires can affect the actual speedo/odometer giving you an indication you are going faster than you are while clocking lower miles on the odometer.
Listen for belt whining, squeals when turning the wheel tightly or excessive bouncing when you have driven over a speed bump. These are indications these parts are ready for replacement.
Do all the lights work? Signal lights? horn? Check all the power windows, do they go up and down Do the power locks work from inside and from the remote? Does the Cd work? Put one in and make sure the speakers and CD play and eject properly.Does the power seat make a noise when moving? power components like these are expensive ($250.00 and up) to replace.
In conclusion, These are a few key things you can use to catch a bad car before it gets too far into the process of wasting your time and money. I always say, if you have a question ASK MYCARLADY… I”ll help you any way I can to keep you from getting “burned” in a bad car deal.
If you need any other car buying, selling, trading or financing assistance on any new or used vehicle, please do not hesitate to email me at sarahlee@mycarlady.com,mvides422@gmail.com,carlady@cox.net or giveme a call; 702-521-7546 I’m here to help you with any of your automotive needs and advice is free.
Sarah Lee is an automotive executive with 20+ years of experience. She writes about Cars, and is a staunch consumer advocate on car related subjects. Her company: MY CARLADY is a car buyer’s service committed to getting you the best deal on your next new or pre-owned vehicle. You can reach her at CAR DEALS
