Buying a used car - any advice?

[MaggieMae]

register at littledebbie.com you could win this YouTube - Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes commercial: Coast to Coast

Spam in a can.

Can't be any worse than a Yugo. I had one of those, too. Your basic box with wheels, but it got me from Point A to Point B just fine for about a year and a half, except for the time I tried to drive to Lake Tahoe on I-80 from Sacramento on a grade the whole way. I practically had to drive on the shoulder because I couldn't get momentum.

 

[alan1]

register at littledebbie.com you could win this YouTube - Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes commercial: Coast to Coast

Spam in a can.

Can't be any worse than a Yugo. I had one of those, too. Your basic box with wheels, but it got me from Point A to Point B just fine for about a year and a half, except for the time I tried to drive to Lake Tahoe on I-80 from Sacramento on a grade the whole way. I practically had to drive on the shoulder because I couldn't get momentum.

That was you in the way?
You cut into my gambling time, damn you.

 

[Ringel05]

register at littledebbie.com you could win this YouTube - Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes commercial: Coast to Coast

Spam in a can.

Can't be any worse than a Yugo. I had one of those, too. Your basic box with wheels, but it got me from Point A to Point B just fine for about a year and a half, except for the time I tried to drive to Lake Tahoe on I-80 from Sacramento on a grade the whole way. I practically had to drive on the shoulder because I couldn't get momentum.

I just thought it was funny. We used to have a CRX that a friend of mine called spam in a can and he drove a tiny Mazda, I don't remember which one. I'm like you in terms of fatalism, when it's you time there's no escaping it. By the way how's the hunt coming along? Any luck yet?

 

[MaggieMae]

Instead of going to other dealers have you tried craigslist? My 19 year old just bought a car after spending 1/2 the summer looking for one. We found a guy who buys only reliable brands . . . Hondas, Toyotas, etc. from trade ins at the local auto auction. Any car we looked at from him we took to a separate mechanic. The car she bought had just been inspected, one owner, Corolla, '99 w/90K miles or so. My brother also just went through this process. He lost his job, his car ('03 Jetta POS that started falling apart at 30K) was on it's last legs. He spent months combing the ads and looking at cars (he only wanted a stick though so he had less to choose from) and he finally found exactly what he was looking for. You'll save money by buying from an individual vs. a dealer but you have to go over it very well. Usually you can negotiate a lower price w/an individual too. Try craigslist. You can sort by specific make/model/price too. Might be worth a look.

I'm going to look at an '02 Jetta GL (wagon) tomorrow. Auto with 88K miles, asking $5,800. What should I be looking for, or did the 03 Jettas have unique problems? I had an '86 Jetta sedan 5-speed, and I loved it.

Go to Edmunds.com and read the reveiws of owners and previous owners of any car.

For example, in your case, google: 2002 jetta gl edmunds review

That site is awsome!! I just found out that the Jetta I'm going to look at tomorrow (private party) is priced $1,000 above the FMV. So now I have some leverage. I don't expect the guy to make NO money off it, but if he wants to sell it, he won't make $1,000 off me.

 

[MaggieMae]

Spam in a can.

Can't be any worse than a Yugo. I had one of those, too. Your basic box with wheels, but it got me from Point A to Point B just fine for about a year and a half, except for the time I tried to drive to Lake Tahoe on I-80 from Sacramento on a grade the whole way. I practically had to drive on the shoulder because I couldn't get momentum.

That was you in the way?
You cut into my gambling time, damn you.

Probably SAVED you a bundle. Actually, that trip I actually came home $200 richer because of a last-minute Keno play at breakfast.

 

[MaggieMae]

Spam in a can.

Can't be any worse than a Yugo. I had one of those, too. Your basic box with wheels, but it got me from Point A to Point B just fine for about a year and a half, except for the time I tried to drive to Lake Tahoe on I-80 from Sacramento on a grade the whole way. I practically had to drive on the shoulder because I couldn't get momentum.

I just thought it was funny. We used to have a CRX that a friend of mine called spam in a can and he drove a tiny Mazda, I don't remember which one. I'm like you in terms of fatalism, when it's you time there's no escaping it. By the way how's the hunt coming along? Any luck yet?

Yes and no. I'm definitely looking at a 2002 Jetta tomorrow and possibly a 2003 Honda Accord on Sunday (but it has high mileage--115K). That one is just up the road, so it's at least worth a quick trip.

I think the smallest car I was ever in was a looooooooong time ago (circa 1968) when a girlfriend from Canada owned a Morris Minor. We would cram five kids in it, though, treking back and forth to Canada where we could drink at 18.

 

[MaggieMae]

As for my BIL, he's always been "difficult," but I did always trust his honesty, as I've said. But this time around, he's just acting like a child over this. Fortunately, I don't have to deal with him on a regular basis.

I wouldn't deal with the BIL at all at this point. He sounds like a jerk.

AutoTrader.com
craigslist
ebay

All great places to look for used cars. You can search by distance from your zip code on ebay.

Autotrader.com is another awesome site. Within my parameters, I only found dealers, but that's okay. They gotta eat too. Now I'm off to Ebay. Need...more...Cheetos... I wonder when I'll have time to actually go shopping for real?

 

[midcan5]

Try here.

Find used vehicles near Dallas-Fort Worth

Used Cars Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, New Jersey - CARSENSE - Used BMW, Honda, Nissan, Ford & More

 

[Ringel05]

As for my BIL, he's always been "difficult," but I did always trust his honesty, as I've said. But this time around, he's just acting like a child over this. Fortunately, I don't have to deal with him on a regular basis.

I wouldn't deal with the BIL at all at this point. He sounds like a jerk.

AutoTrader.com
craigslist
ebay

All great places to look for used cars. You can search by distance from your zip code on ebay.

Autotrader.com is another awesome site. Within my parameters, I only found dealers, but that's okay. They gotta eat too. Now I'm off to Ebay. Need...more...Cheetos... I wonder when I'll have time to actually go shopping for real?

You do know real cheese products provide the calcium your body is demanding right now.

 

[MaggieMae]

Try here.

Find used vehicles near Dallas-Fort Worth

Used Cars Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, New Jersey - CARSENSE - Used BMW, Honda, Nissan, Ford & More

I'm nowhere near Texas and a good distance from southern NE, but thanks anyway. I'm starting to feel overwhelmed already.

 

[MaggieMae]

I wouldn't deal with the BIL at all at this point. He sounds like a jerk.

AutoTrader.com
craigslist
ebay

All great places to look for used cars. You can search by distance from your zip code on ebay.

Autotrader.com is another awesome site. Within my parameters, I only found dealers, but that's okay. They gotta eat too. Now I'm off to Ebay. Need...more...Cheetos... I wonder when I'll have time to actually go shopping for real?

You do know real cheese products provide the calcium your body is demanding right now.

I eat that too. A regular lunch diet of one 16-oz cottage cheese w/melon. For snacks, I actually hate Cheetos, preferring Bachman's Jax. Cheetos brand taste like soap.

 

[Cold Fusion38]

V dubs are awsome cars and can run for a very long time with proper maitnence but they are also VERY expensive to work on unless you have a mechanic you trust who know vdubs. They have some rather unique qwerks and often require specialized tools to get the job done. My wife has a 98 Passat with 140K and we haven't really had any probs other than replacing the timing belt(you would want to do that if you are not SURE it has been done cause if it goes out your pistons will come up and DESTROY your valves. Most V dubs are very complex. they do a lot of turbos and if not properly cared for can cost a fortune to replace. My wife's Passat is a 1.8 20 Valve Turbo........Thats's FIVE VALVES per cylinder. YIKES!

 

[MaggieMae]

V dubs are awsome cars and can run for a very long time with proper maitnence but they are also VERY expensive to work on unless you have a mechanic you trust who know vdubs. They have some rather unique qwerks and often require specialized tools to get the job done. My wife has a 98 Passat with 140K and we haven't really had any probs other than replacing the timing belt(you would want to do that if you are not SURE it has been done cause if it goes out your pistons will come up and DESTROY your valves. Most V dubs are very complex. they do a lot of turbos and if not properly cared for can cost a fortune to replace. My wife's Passat is a 1.8 20 Valve Turbo........Thats's FIVE VALVES per cylinder. YIKES!

Cold -- you should check out some of the sites posted in this thread. You might just find a decent replacement for the one gone to Autoheaven.

 

[MaggieMae]

Well, good people, I've collected all the hints you gave me, my notebook is locked and loaded and I'm ready hit the road tomorrow (south in the AM; north in the PM) to check out some cars.

BUT WAIT!!

Chapter 5: My dear ol' brother-in-law just called and said he is getting in a 2002 Chevy Prism with 90K miles, and can I come down to see it tomorrow? Hmmm, imagine that. I think he just needed a little competition to get his ass in motion. So, he's been added to my southern route in the morning. Says it needs a timing belt which he'll put in. (Didn't Zoom-boing or Jeny warn me about those?) So that might be a good thing.

 

[Cold Fusion38]

Maggie you have NO IDEA how much I have looked for a 99 Grand Am GT TWO DOOR. 500 mile radius and NOTHING and I mean NOTHING is out there. Now if i put NO limit on how far away then yeah I can find plenty but I just don't see driving back 2,000 miles.

 

[MaggieMae]

Maggie you have NO IDEA how much I have looked for a 99 Grand Am GT TWO DOOR. 500 mile radius and NOTHING and I mean NOTHING is out there. Now if i put NO limit on how far away then yeah I can find plenty but I just don't see driving back 2,000 miles.

You can also advertise what you're looking for on Craigslist.com. Maybe you'll get lucky. But gee, if they're that rare, you wouldn't want some rustbucket that's been sitting on someone's front lawn, would you?

 

[MaggieMae]

Update: I looked at a 2002 Jetta this morning; very clean, 88K miles, one owner who came down $1000 on his asking price to $4,800. He's also willing to let me drive it 30 miles South for my dear brother-in-law to check out, if I wish. Told him I'd let him know by Tuesday.

Before all that went down, though, funny story: When I got to this guy's house and business (a custom sports uniform place), there was no place to park except in the circular driveway. So I backed up, thinking I would park off to the side, and immediately crashed into a cement abutment that appeared out of nowhere (lol). The crash was SO LOUD that it brought people out of their homes to see if anyone had been injured. But incredibly there wasn't even a dent in my bumper. Oh how I wish I could keep my little Mazda until it finally croaks. I hit that abutment so hard that it pushed two spare tires lying on top of one another in the trunk up toward the front, carried the rug with it and everything else, like antifreeze, window washing fluid, dry gas.

 

[Sunni Man]

What did people's reviews say about the 2002 jetta at Edmunds.com ?

btw Buying any low milage one ower car from the original owner is the very best situation when buying a used car.

 

[MaggieMae]

What did people's reviews say about the 2002 jetta at Edmunds.com ?

btw Buying any low milage one ower car from the original owner is the very best situation when buying a used car.

Some good/some bad reviews. What's concerning me now is potential repairs, even minor ones costing an arm and a leg. I would check with my own mechanic first to see if he's current on working on VWs, or I could use the seller's private mechanic who has its maintenance record.

2002 Volkswagen Jetta Review and Specs

Sigh...I think it's a crap shoot no matter what you buy, even a new one could have glitches unique only to that vehicle and no others.

 

[Sunni Man]

The best bargains I know of, are 1995 to 2003 Buicks (LeSabre, Park Ave, Regal, Century)

Many of these have low, low miles and can be bought in the 2 to 3 thousand dollar range.

They have great engines and cheap to repair.

Check craigs list. There are alwats several.

Also look at Pontiacs of the same years I mentioned, (Gran Prix's are especially good cars)