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Used Vehicles Best Values

948 messages,  Last post on Aug 11, 2009 at 11:51 AM

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What is this discussion about? Car Buying, Car Values, Certified Used (CPO)

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#940 of 948 Re: How to Buy a CPO car? [soylentgreen] by morin2 Jul 06, 2009 (3:22 pm)
Replying to: soylentgreen (Jul 05, 2009 7:59 pm) http://www.edmunds.com/incentives   According to the Edmunds incentives page, the $5000 marketing support - cash to dealer, went from 6/02/09 through 7/06/09. There should be no problem finding a dealer passing this savings on to the buyer. Check again in a few days to see if this continues after the 7/06 date.
#941 of 948 First vehicle for 16 yr old male by elburn Jul 09, 2009 (4:20 pm)
Need to purchase a vehicle for my 16 yr old son. Unfortunately do not have a lot of money to do so--about 4K. What would you suggest? Purchase from private seller and stay away from dealers? I absolutely do not care if it is sporty--if fact prefer it not to be! Priority is on saftey and reliability. (of course this is from a mom) Replies to this message: morin2 (Jul 09, 2009 5:16 pm) igozoomzoom (Jul 09, 2009 5:30 pm) imidazol97 (Jul 09, 2009 6:07 pm) tidester (Jul 09, 2009 7:10 pm)
#942 of 948 Re: First vehicle for 16 yr old male [elburn] by morin2 Jul 09, 2009 (5:16 pm)
Replying to: elburn (Jul 09, 2009 4:20 pm) Actually, paying less is the right way to go for your son's first car because you will be able to buy liability-only insurance for it. Full coverage is unaffordable for a new teenage boy, so you want a cheap, reliable and safe car. When my son was 17, 4 years ago, he got my '94 subaru legacy - which has been a great car and he is still driving it going into his last year of college. And it is still reliable enough with 153K miles on it that he just got home late last night from a 900 mile trip. I think its a mistake to give them the car - he paid me for it, and I have taught him to maintain it. The deal I made with my 16 year old daughter was that she would get a car if she got all A's her first 3 years of HS - which she did, so I gave her my 2002 Chevy Prizm. In hindsight, that may have been a mistake, because, having cost her nothing, she does not value it and treats it poorly.   Many will tell you to get a corolla or civic and i will say that those models are in too much demand to be worth the inflated used car prices. The condition is more important than the label. Have it fully checked out by a mechanic - best $50 to $100 that you will invest before getting down to negotiations. Don't fall in love with any used car for sale. I am subaru-biased, but I think a subaru impreza with the 2.2 engine only is a great used car buy. It has the AWD for safety - many kids crash in single car accidents when they lose control - so control is most important (that is why the very worst vehicle for a new driver is a small pickup truck). Look for a 99-01 Impreza with the 2.2 only. Mazda protege and Chevy Prizm (same car as the Corolla but cheaper) of same years. Even a well cared-for Chevy Lumina, saturn SL-2, Volvo 240, 740, 940 - if you have it fully checked out. If you have a regular mechanic, talk to him - some mechanics have excellent used cars for sale or can recommend one. If you don't have a regular mechanic, I have had great luck with this site (my son found a wonderful mechanic 2 miles from his college using this site:   http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/
#943 of 948 Re: First vehicle for 16 yr old male [elburn] by igozoomzoom Jul 09, 2009 (5:30 pm)
Replying to: elburn (Jul 09, 2009 4:20 pm) For $4000 or less, there are a few cars that Consumer Reports rate as Average or Above Average for Reliability-   Saturn SL1/SL2 '02- Better than average '00-'01- Average Ford Focus- '02-'05- Average   Ford Taurus '00-'03- Average '04-'05- Above average   I went on AutoTrader.com and found at least one local example of each with under 100,000 miles on it for $4k or less!   I also found several '99-'01 Nissan Altimas for under $4k, but they had from 110,000 to 135,000 miles on them. A well-maintained Altima (even with mileage in the low-mid 100's) would be a very good choice, too!   Ideally, you'll get the most for your money buying from a private seller. The best case scenario is buying from the original owner (and they have maintenance records)! Depending on the laws of your state, you may or may not pay sales tax if you buy from an individual (we don't here in Georgia).   Before buying from a dealer or indivdiual, I highly recommend having the car checked out by an independent mechanic!!! It's well worth the $50-$75 they'll charge you to avoid buying something that needs major repairs!
#944 of 948 Re: First vehicle for 16 yr old male [elburn] by imidazol97 Jul 09, 2009 (6:07 pm)
Replying to: elburn (Jul 09, 2009 4:20 pm) My value system hasn't come up here. I think a large car is ideal for the new driver.   I'd suggest a brief talk with your insurance agent, or in my case with his aide who is an agent herself training to take his spot when he retires. Get him through the first 6 months and 1 year without an accident.   I suggest a used Crown Victoria, Gran Marquis, Chryslery product that's full-size and not chic, or an older Olds 88, leSabre, etc. I'd include the older Malibu/Lumina, Taurus, and so on with some miles left. Low cost insurance--almost a throwaway if it does get wrecked.   The older car has something of a culture to it. The other kids don't encourage carelessness with it leading to the showing off in the sporty, loud-mufflered, flashy colored cars. Then he/she can get a different car after a year. I noticed a few non-chic cars seeming to be traded down to newer drivers at the school my son attended.   Before someone says my values aren't workable, my now 17 year-old had a 10 year old leSabre. Didn't hurt his ego a bit. Band practice during summer. School parking lot for rest of year. Now we picked up a newer smaller economy GM car that he can use along with the leSabre (a two car high schooler) and I can use the newer car (2008) when I have some longer drives).   I had kept the leSabre with this in mind. But I'd be shopping the for sale signs and local store post it boards for a similar 10-year old with 100K and more on it for that first car for $3000 and less. The older GM cars of that period are actually in demand at the low end of the buying price range for adults wanting cars with life left in them.
#945 of 948 Re: First vehicle for 16 yr old male [elburn] by tidester HOST Jul 09, 2009 (7:10 pm)
Replying to: elburn (Jul 09, 2009 4:20 pm) You may also be interested in Best Car for a new teenage driver.   tidester, host SUVs and Smart Shopper
#946 of 948 Buying used for the 1st time? Any luxury vehicles in the $15K range? by newtoused Aug 11, 2009 (5:06 am)
Hi!   I'm new to this forum and purchasing used cars. I've been looking at 2004 Audi A4 & TT's, 2004-5 BMW 3 series coupes and convertibles. All seem to be in the price range but only have miles around 70K-80K.   Is it worth buying a used car with that many miles whether a "luxury" car or not?   If not, I'm also thinking buying a 06-07 VW jetta that's "pre-loved" or certified. I'm worried about the lack of a warranty on the older models I mentioned. I'd rather have peace of mind with the car rather than luxury (i think - convertibles are pretty appealing).   Are Certified pre-owned worth the extra costs? Or is buying un-certified used, getting it checked out and relying on it's good condition and AAA enough?   ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED!!! THANKS!!! Replies to this message: volvomax (Aug 11, 2009 9:20 am) plekto (Aug 11, 2009 11:51 am)
#947 of 948 Re: Buying used for the 1st time? Any luxury vehicles in the $15K range? [newtoused] by volvomax Aug 11, 2009 (9:20 am)
Replying to: newtoused (Aug 11, 2009 5:06 am) CPO is definitely worth the money. However, you can't compare a car thats a couple years old with an older high mile car. Everyone will tell you that old high mile European cars are expensive to keep up and they are correct. Not only repairs but maintenance as well. If the thought of keeping up an older car is too daunting,stick with the newer CPO car.
#948 of 948 Re: Buying used for the 1st time? Any luxury vehicles in the $15K range? [newtoused] by plekto Aug 11, 2009 (11:51 am)
Replying to: newtoused (Aug 11, 2009 5:06 am) IMO, A luxury vehicle has to be nice inside, at least somewhat refined, and most of all have a good engine/drive-train combination(which means rear wheel drive and not slow as a slug).   Here is my own personal short list given the same criteria and price range(though I also want manual, which is highly recommended but YMMV of course )   - First gen CTS with the 3.6 engine. - 2004 GTO (almost 30mpg with manual and 350hp!) *added exception - not "luxury"* - previous generation G35 sedan (ie not the G37) - IS300   If you add in automatics, the list grows by quite a bit. Top of my "automatic models" list would probably be the GS300 or a Buick Lucerne CXS(eerily like driving a late 90s S420, which for GM is/was a huge step forward)   The problem with the newer BMWs and most of the other luxury European brands is that they all source from Bosch and similar mostly German electrical companies. It's why a VW/Audi has a solid engine but the switches and radio and so on self-destruct at 7-10 years age almost every time. It used to be that these premium brands were really built better, but now it's all plastic and cheap underneath with a plush covering to hide the corners that were cut.   BMW and Audi are out. Mercedes is as well - too expensive to run used. Maintaining any of these three brands will cost nearly the same as a new vehicle would in monthly payments. Things get stupefyingly expensive for the most basic stuff. It makes even Toyota's overpriced insanity look reasonable. I know - I've had Mercedes in the past and it gets insane - like $60 for a shifter knob and upwards of $5K for a transmission rebuild. You really should only own these brands, even used, if you can afford them new. Or lease them and avoid the idiocy.

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