Every purchase of the used item brings certain risk. This is also the case with used cars, unless you are buying a car from confidential person you know, and you know the history of the car. We highly recommend you to bring along with you a person who understands cars, and reading the tips below can also help you greatly.
Give it a thought and inform yourself
Prior to purchasing a used car, think about what do you need for a car and how much is your car purchasing budget. When the thinking about this, you have to take into consideration additional costs like various financial expenses, fees for the use of roads, insurance, the maintenance costs, which are not a small matter, and that, as a rule increase with the age of the vehicle.
Be prepared – browse through advertisement, look for genuine guidance when it comes to prices of the same model and age. Check out whether the new model is coming out soon. Make sure to meet the desired model most frequently mentioned faults on various forums. You want to get as much information as possible in order to get the whole picture.
Examine the vehicle in detail. The best way to do this is in the company of car expert you trust. Take your time, or you’ll have to take later when you drive the car in for service and paying high repair costs. Examine the vehicle for a whole day if necessary. Take at least one person with you and make sure you do not forget your driving license for the test drive of the vehicle.
Test drive
Test drive will help you to evaluate the condition of a particular car. Once you drive, ask yourself whether you feel cozy and comfortable. Do you have enough leg room, head? Do you have all the details on the control panel easily accessible?
Try to schedule a test drive at a time when the engine is completely cold. Some used cars face certain difficulties to start when the engine is cold. Turn off the radio while driving and pay attention to the sounds that could be a potential problem.
Focus on the issues like acceleration, sound of the engine, visibility, transmission, uphill climbing, breaking, sharp turns…
The smart thing would be to test the drive in the conditions you will be using it mainly. Take your car to a mechanic you trust, to get a professional impression.
Make sure to pay attention to basic indicators
Mileage
The average driver annually makes about 15,000 km. Make sure are the wear parts such as the steering wheel, gear lever, the accelerator and brake corresponding the distance covered. Check the upholstery on the seats, lift carpets and see the bottom of the car body, and so on. These are all indicators that show the condition of the vehicle and whether the data on the number of kilometers traveled is correct or not.
Check the outside
It is important to do it in bright daylight. Look for traces of rust, scratches and eventual dents or even traces of slight color differentiation. Check also what are the distances between the individual parts of the body: if, for example, the engine hood or doors do not close well, due to bad repair after damage.
Check the engine
Check whether the engine is greased or are there eventual oil traces under the engine. Also you would want to check if there are any eventual oil leakages from the engine. On the other side, perfectly clean and shiny engine is also not a good sign. Freshly washed the engine is suspicious because it is difficult to determine whether releases the oil or not.
The coolant
Bear in mind that the coolant should be the same color as antifreeze. The rust color is not the color you want to see on the coolant.
Don’t judge the book by its covers
Do not trust first impressions of interesting car: polished interior and exterior of the car and show relatively few kilometers are not a proof of the car excellence.
Lights
Check all the lights, turn signal lights, reversing lights, wipers, heating, instruments, and warming.
Negotiations
Enter into negotiations with someone who seems to be pleasant. Always start with a low price, which is not much lower than the one offered by the seller and also not far away from the price you are willing to pay. Determine in advance how much money you will give the maximum and go up and prices. Make sure to give up the negotiations on time, not to face the counter effect.
Purchase
Once you have examined the car, and have agreed upon the price, the next step is signing the contract. The sales contract can prepare one of the two sides, in the most commonly used examination form. We recommend you to carefully read the contract before signing.
Bear in mind that the contract must contain the following provisions:
object of the contract with detailed information on the type of vehicle, year of production, color, identification numbers, listed standard and optional equipment, the car price and payment terms and eventual notes that the buyer requests from sellers on the condition of the vehicle.
When picking up the vehicle, be careful, check all the details of the contract, make sure all the equipment and make sure you collect all the keys, including the spare key. After the conclusion of the contract, the old owner must sign off the vehicle, and you must register the car on your name.