Tips on Buying a Used Car | Tips on Purchasing a Car | Car Checklist

Used car buying tips 1:

Find out what's wrong with the used car before you buy-Everyone buying a used car should get a Carfax or AutoCheck vehicle report. This helps protect you by uncovering things the seller may not have disclosed such as a wreck, previous odometer reading, if the used car had been in a flood, and so on).

Used car buying tips 2:

Ensure the used car is inspected (and you view the report) before you buy it- If there are some items that may wear out soon, know ahead of time what they will cost you to have fixed in the future so your prepared.

Used car buying tips 3:

Ask what repairs the dealership did on the used car since acquiring it. If they have done any repairs, do they have any paperwork documenting the work?

Used car buying tips 4:

Ask to see any of the service records or maintenance logs, and receipts or information on any additional work done on the used vehicle,

Used car buying tips 5:

Make sure the used vehicle has a clean title.

Used car buying tips 6:

Consider getting service contract for your used Car, especially if the manufacturer’s warranty has already expired or is about to expire. You can learn more about Warranties & Service Contracts at the FTC link on the bottom of this page.

Used car buying tips 7:

Save money financing your used car through a bank rather than using a dealer. Dealerships often mark up your interest rate (see our Used Car buy tip about Dealer Interest Rate Mark-up below) and this mark-up, can add up to be thousands of dollars. Avoid this by getting pre-approved or deal with a dealership that doesn’t markup your interest rate.

Used car buying tips 8:

Find out how much it would cost to insure the vehicle.

Used car buying tips 9:

Test drive the used car. How does it handle? Does the used car pull to the left or right? Is it easy to see out of, park, maneuver in the places your likely to go, and comfortable?

Used car buying tips 10:

Review used car pricing resources like NADA or Kelley Blue Book to get “book values” or general pricing.

Used car buying tips 11:

Check the wear on the tires. Are they almost worn out, or are some tires substantially more worn than others?

Used car buying tips 12:

Flooded used cars-You can take a quick peek under the floor board and dash looking for signs of rust, and smells of mold. If it smells like somebody broke a bottle of cologne or perfume, they may be trying to hide something.

Interest rate mark up

Why do I care about dealer interest-rate markup? In some places it is legal and possible for dealerships to mark up the interest rate they have secured for consumers to buy a vehicle and processed alone.

This is done many times with no knowledge of such an act by the buyer even cautious consumers that spend countless hours and days thinking through every detail and every step in the buying process can fall victim to this. What does this mean to you, and why should you care? This can cost you thousands of dollars over the course of a vehicle’s loan. Dealerships that use this as a daily business practice make hefty profit and all at the expense of unsuspecting consumers. So asked the dealership that is securing your loan if this is a practice the use.*L. if that is the kind of place you wish to spend your hard earned money. Save yourself a lot of money are checking into this and consider purchasing from a dealer that does not partake in this practice. Harley’s auto Park does not mark up the rate. Harleys has play near tears practice in Alaska and has fought for consumers on interest-rate markups from day one of starting their business.

Used Vehicles & Inspections –Do you need one?

When buying a used vehicle, does it matter if they inspect the used car?

Due to the cost many dealers will not inspect a used car before they sell them.
Are dealers required to have cars inspected before they sell them? No, car dealers are not required or obligated to do any inspection of a used vehicle prior to selling the car. As a used car buyer you should ask if the car dealership has any kind of inspection performed on the use vehicle. If they do inspect the use vehicle, asked to see the inspection report. Were any repairs done by the dealer or was it a third party? The bottom line here is that it can cost a considerable amount of money to have an inspection done, especially if for pairs are done as well. Since most dealers sell a used car as it is, they do not bother inspecting the use vehicle and let the consumer bear all the risks of the unknown state of the used vehicle. Harleys has a 77 point inspection done by an independent third party automotive shop on almost all of its use vehicles. On average Harley’s spends over $500 in repairs on each of their cars to help ensure car buyers at Harleys are getting the best used cars.

Why is Carfax and autocheck important to me?

The availability and use of Carfax or autocheck is extremely important to a pre-owned vehicle consumer. These are tools that should be used every time to help inform buyers of a vehicle’s history summary. They are vehicle specific, searching any known records according to the serial number or VIN number, of the vehicle. Through sources like DMV, insurance, police, and dealer records (among others), it helps to paint a picture of the overall history and use of the vehicle in question. Wouldn’t you like to know how many owners of vehicle has had Russian Mark and surely, you’d prefer to avoid cars with serious accident history records or red flag warnings like title issues or odometer discrepancies? Pre-owned vehicle dealers with honesty and integrity would always have this information at hand for consumers to view. It only takes minutes to review and can only help to have you come to the right purchase decision.

Extra fees the dealer ads on, like document fees

The dealer told me that I had to pay for doc fee and it was for the paperwork.
Do I have to pay their fees?
The short answer is, if you want to buy from that dealer you will probably have to pay their extra fees, though dealers have been known to negotiate their fees to lock-in the higher profits of a sale-even if they state their fees are not negotiable. Their fees are pure and simple 100% peeler added profit. In some states the fees are not even legal. If you don’t want to give your money away unnecessarily to a dealer then always ask up front if they have any extra fees added on the top of the price of the vehicle. If they say yes you may want to go to another dealer since they’ve not only marked up the price of your vehicle but added in additional fees as well. Strategically you are in a weaker position as the dealer can appear to give ground by lowering the price of their fees or their markup in their car when in actuality you end up paying more.

To learn more about the car buying process, call (907-375-8333) or email us with any questions you have. You may also find the FTC’s website is a useful resource as well:

Consumer Facts on Buying Used Cars.

Ready to buy a Used Car? See all of our used vehicles in Alaska.