OT - Advice on Purchasing a Used Car (Chicago)

[The Force.]

I'm not planning on driving anyone but myself and possibly one other person. I want room for 5 because I'll likely be using the car to haul equipment and such once I'm in Oregon. Nothing major but I definitely need something more than a two-seater.

I've searched for you everything is 10K and under from carmax using a NWI zip code, not much to pick from but if i was you i'd go for the lincoln and talk them down with 7K cash in hand.
http://www.carmax.com/search?AsP=0-10000&D=90&zip=46307&ASTc=car&Q=822ae54e-633f-4a63-a42c-86550d339280&Ep=search:results:results%20page

Nice! Thanks a lot for looking this up.

[League Circles]

try sellin one of your cars for the hell of it on CL then. i bet you your car for my cts4 people will ask you if it's stolen or claim you stole the car your selling.

I have sold a car on Craigslist. I think I may have bought one too though I can't remember. Neither party accused the other of anything or asked them if they stole it (the dumbest question I can imagine). We followed proper sales procedure, doing our due dilligence. It's actually really easy to cover yourself against fraud if you follow a few simple procedures. What does someone hope to accomplish by asking someone if they stole a car or accuse them of stealing it? Are they satisfied if the seller replies "no, I didn't steal it"?

That said, there are so many cars everywhere for sale that in order to start somewhere I'd suggest autotrader.com for sure instead of craigslist or a used dealer.

i'll show you one of my emails if you want. i can prove it.

Prove what? There's nothing you've said that I don't believe. You just said that the OP would get screwed on CL. Your reasoning is that your friend did. My claim is that it's easy to not get screwed if you do your due dilligence. Though I still wouldn't recommend he start on CL because it's too easy to find a solid car in autotrader.com. I also agree with you that the Chicago market is a bad place to buy a car. But buying in Indiana (NWI?) still means he has to title or at least register the car here before just paying to do it all over again in Oregon. I think it's probably best to compare Uhaul and PODS type options and buying a car in Oregon. Keep in mind he wants something fuel efficient, not a Town Car/Charger type car.

[TheStig]

guys will take advantage of women when buying a car in many places, because women don't know what they're gettin themselves into sometimes. That was her first time buying a used car and she ended up with a stolen Impala.

Sounds like it did not really have anything to do with buying off of Craigslist.

try sellin one of your cars for the hell of it on CL then. i bet you your car for my cts4 people will ask you if it's stolen or claim you stole the car your selling.

I've bought and sold my vehicles on CL in the past. No one has asked me if it was stolen. You will get a lot of spam. You will get a lot of low ballers. You'll see a lot of trash. But you just have to pick through it.

I bought my current vehicle off of CL and it was a one owner vehicle and it came with a complete vehicle maintenance record. So I knew exactly what has been kept up. I bought my vehicle for 33% less than a dealer had the identical car for sale. So for me it was worth it to save several thousand and get a complete records on a one owner car.

[jamesdiego]

My advice is to forget about most of the advice you have received so far here...

Toyota's and Honda's are your best bet. Scion (Toyota) might be your best buy in my opinion. A scion xb has tons of extra space and room. When the back seat is down it has as much space as a small suv. It is bulletproof reliable, which is most important.

Honda had some reliable issues after the 2000's but still good of course. Nissan were bulletproof in the 90's but fell off after 2000. Subaru had notorious head gasket issues for years and years. After 2005 they started finally fixing the problem by replacing a defective part in their "turbo" models from plastic to metal.......I believe. They didn't change it over in all their models until 2007/ 08. I love their awd cars though.

I would stay away from car dealerships. The small shady places get their cars from auctions with general f up'd cars. And they lie their butts off. I would buy froma private owner on craigslist. But there are tricks to it. Number 1: Only buy a 1 owner vehicle. Maybe a 2 owner vehicle if that second owner has has the vehicle for a while. If anyone has bought the vehicle in the last year and is trying to sell it immediately.....that is a red red flag. They are trying to dump it for a reason. Check the carfax to see how many owners. Look for a 1 car owner, the older the better. Older people are more than likely to take care of their cars.

You could buy a truck with a cab in the back, not a lot of room for people in the back. But trucks are knock to be more reliable than cars in general. Toyota's, 90's nissans's, 90's mazda's. Maxda was bought by Fordso I wouldn't completely trust their cars. Although Ford Fusion has been a reliable car and the Ford Ranger has always been known to be reliable.

It really all depends on the certain model more than a certain manufacturer. And it depends on the models years. As in Nissan Sentra before 2000 is way more reliable than after 2000. I go to carsurvey.org to get users opinions on certain models and years.

I did a lot of research on used cars. I was looking at older models though, so any info I gave is probably more for before 2005 - 2007. Which falls in line with your price range.

[jamesdiego]

And also....

Ys, you can very much buy a car from craigslist. I found a super reliable toyota 92 celica for 600 a couple years ago. I'm still driving a very reliable 2000 honda crv from a year and a half ago. It's about the car and the person you buy it from, not where you buy it from. I advise to stay away from dealers. Unless you want to shell out cash for a "certified" car from a japanese dealer.

There are tips to look for when checking out used cars. Check to se if all the tires are the same, if they are and in good condition then it is more likely that they tok care of the rest of the car. On some carfax reports they give details on how often the oil was changed. There are tricks to tell if there is any problems with the head gasket: one is start the car and let it run.....pop the hood and if you see bubbles coming up from the coolant from what I read there is a head gasket issue.....stay away. Another sign of head gasket warning signs is if water drips from the muffler and if a white puff of smoke comes out from the muffler after a hard brake(must have someone looking while following behind)

Of course a mechanic taking a look at a car beforehand helps. But it doesn't always. I had a mechanic take a look at a cheap Jeep and he couldn't tell that the block had a leak and the head gasket was going to blow on me any time the car over heated. Which happened. It was an older car, but you must be wary.

[The Force.]

And also....

Ys, you can very much buy a car from craigslist. I found a super reliable toyota 92 celica for 600 a couple years ago. I'm still driving a very reliable 2000 honda crv from a year and a half ago. It's about the car and the person you buy it from, not where you buy it from. I advise to stay away from dealers. Unless you want to shell out cash for a "certified" car from a japanese dealer.

There are tips to look for when checking out used cars. Check to se if all the tires are the same, if they are and in good condition then it is more likely that they tok care of the rest of the car. On some carfax reports they give details on how often the oil was changed. There are tricks to tell if there is any problems with the head gasket: one is start the car and let it run.....pop the hood and if you see bubbles coming up from the coolant from what I read there is a head gasket issue.....stay away. Another sign of head gasket warning signs is if water drips from the muffler and if a white puff of smoke comes out from the muffler after a hard brake(must have someone looking while following behind)

Of course a mechanic taking a look at a car beforehand helps. But it doesn't always. I had a mechanic take a look at a cheap Jeep and he couldn't tell that the block had a leak and the head gasket was going to blow on me any time the car over heated. Which happened. It was an older car, but you must be wary.

Man this is all really helpful, thanks so much. I'm definitely going to follow your advise in terms of single owner and using CL. Also, some really good tips regarding possible red flags.

I keep hearing that old people are the best owners to buy from so I will be discriminating as much as possible lol.

[jamesdiego]

Just don't get stuck with an old person's buick. (unless you like those things) It's definitely true though about older people. Better to buy from someone in their 40's and up than some dude in his 20's. If you search "1/ one owner" on cl you will find lots of cars.

There are a bunch of other tips you can find in google when you look over a car to find faults. I found a bunch for head gasket because I got burned once.

More faults you find, the more bargaining power you can get. I took a car from cl to a mechanic (seller was cool about it) and mechanic printed out a list of issues that was wrong with it. I was able to bargain down a thousand off his asking price.

[BleedCHI]

I might have an 02 V6 Accord that just had all its maintenance done. Let me know.

[khufure]

Just like to reiterate Subarus are really solid used vehicles.

[SilentAce07]

Hey guys,

So I have an opportunity to move to Oregon and need to start preparing ASAP. I've lived in Chicago my whole life and sold my car years ago (I live and work downtown) but will need to purchase a car before moving.

I would prefer to purchase a used car. I do not want to lease.

My budget is around $5-7,000.

I don't really have a preference on model, just something efficient and big enough for 5 people.

I am completely ignorant of the process so if anyone has personal experience, or knows a good mechanic who does pre-inspections feel free to share.

Any advice on where to look? Craigslist? Any advice on models? What to look for? What not to look for? Has anyone gone to a police auction?

Ideally I'd like to have this done by early-mid November, and no later than November 30th.

Any suggestions, feedback, advice, or input would be greatly appreciated!

College cars Chicago. Great people there, only quality cars, and no haggle needed. It's the best car buying experience out there.

Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

[JordansBulls]

I just bought a 2015 Accord Sat night. Still runs.

Well a one year old car should still run.

[ATRAIN53]

I might have an 02 V6 Accord that just had all its maintenance done. Let me know.

Now that's a solid ride and looks well kept. How many mi?
That's gotta be holding @ 5K I bet dep on mileage....
I've got an '04 with 45K mi, I hardly drive since I commute and hope it lasts me another 10+ years. Love it, it's my grocery getter.

and love Fletcher Jones and their courteosy drop off. Did that a few months back and the guy insisted on stopping for coffee and sprung. He'd been out all night and was telling me stories about his womenz.

[Spimothy Leary]

I'm a fan of CL, IMO you get the best deals, but i'd first find a mechanic that will let you bring it in, put it on a lift and poke around a little bit for you for $50 ish,, somebody you know should have a good honest guy that you can trust.

I bought and sold my last 6 vehicles off of CL, and my experience has been 100% positive.

I am a toyota(lexus)/honda guy for almost 20 years now, had accords/preludes and more accords, then graduated into lexus and experienced the same comfort and reliability, so for me those are the two brands i'd stick to, (don't know anything about acura)

If I was getting back into a sedan, i'd find a lexus es300 or es330 used, and have a local mechanic charge your $50 or so to give it a once over. I also 2nd the suggestion that your better off getting a southern car vs one from a northern state, rust is real, and its a PITA. Maybe a snowbirds car that spent its winters south ?

this is a good example of what would attract me when we decide to replace the wife's 98 es300.
https://jacksonville.craigslist.org/cto/5254706355.html

RE: the es300's I've owned 4 of them of them, 04,05,08,08 and you can't kill them, my 04 had 308K miles, the 05 had 260, the first 08 was 178, and the other 08 has 160 and we still own it, and cost wise they are not that much more than a camry, its basically the same car just better, (same v6 engine thats super reliable) and since the camry's hold their value so well you'll find the difference to be negligible.

Honestly I can't figure out why people spend 5K on a camry when 6.5k will get them the same car with all the lexus add-ons, premium stero, sound deadening, leather, etc... Sometimes I think its just because they never looked into it...

my wife still drives her 98 es300 and we've looked at replacing it just because we're bored with it, but it runs absolutely perfect, brakes and tires and a couple of $80 O2 sensors, we bought it 4 years ago with 80K miles for 6500, it has 165 now and run's strong.

you can fit 5 comfortably but its a bit of a squeeze if your not small people.

now, here's my plan B suggestion.... Buy a dodge durango, yes that sounds but hear me out.

2 years ago I would have bet you $500 that i'd never own a dodge, but here I am, about to praise it.

So I drove my 05 lexus into the ground, then I got stupid and bought a boat which means I need a real tow vehicle.

I started shopping for RX300's and perhaps a tacoma, had a budget of about 8K, for me its cash only, I refuse to make payments, well, the lexus/toyota's hold their value too well actually so I stumbled across a dodge durango driving down the road for a whopping $2500, never thought i'd buy a dodge EVER, and I never thought i'd buy a $2500 truck, but I have to admit, I really like it, it's loaded, cruises well, holds 8 and it tows a boat like butter with a 5.2. You'd be shocked at what kind of value you can get on these, its worth looking at one.

I figured that since I saved $5500 on the purchase price I could afford any maintenance issues a dodge might bring, and AAA was only $56 the first year so far the result is about $650 in repairs and 5 days of down time over 2 years, a fine trade off IMO. By my math I got paid $1000 a day to drive a rental and the repairs were free.

I know its crazy but when I get tired of this dodge I might buy another one, the price point is so insanely cheap that its making it harder to upgrade to toyota when the difference is 6K for basically the same ride. Downside of the durango, first its a dodge, bad rap for reliability, 2nd the fuel economy sux, like 14 mph downhill with a tail wind. 3rd the AC system is behind the dash so if/when your ac goes out, its a ridiculously expensive repair. 4th downside is paint/gelcoat issues, it seems like every other durango I see has at least one 'splotch" on it where the clear is coming off.

[ChicagoChris]

get a carfax report for anything you consider.

It is worth paying for a subscription to consumer reports online . they have a pretty good section explaining which used cars are good . . I think they even break it down by price. as everybody already said, hondas and toyotas score the best generally, but there are some others that do well too.

this book is informative too https://openlibrary.org/books/OL662502M/Don't_get_taken_every_time

good luck

[cpfsf]

hi, i buy from govdeals.com

i'm not some spammer. this is literally the only link i've ever posted before. it's a government run auction, and you just buy cars (or other shart) from state and local governments. my brother and i bought 4 crown victorias from them for about $2750 each. nothing special, but i think they were pretty well maintained myself considering the price. we also bought one lemonesque mini van (we got cocky and didn't even check the car out before buying it). and i feel we "won" overall. i think it's at least worth a peak.

and if you score a lemon, don't blame me! just giving you options.

[The Force.]

I might have an 02 V6 Accord that just had all its maintenance done. Let me know.

I'll pm you, thanks.

[The Force.]

I'm a fan of CL, IMO you get the best deals, but i'd first find a mechanic that will let you bring it in, put it on a lift and poke around a little bit for you for $50 ish,, somebody you know should have a good honest guy that you can trust.

I bought and sold my last 6 vehicles off of CL, and my experience has been 100% positive.

I am a toyota(lexus)/honda guy for almost 20 years now, had accords/preludes and more accords, then graduated into lexus and experienced the same comfort and reliability, so for me those are the two brands i'd stick to, (don't know anything about acura)

If I was getting back into a sedan, i'd find a lexus es300 or es330 used, and have a local mechanic charge your $50 or so to give it a once over. I also 2nd the suggestion that your better off getting a southern car vs one from a northern state, rust is real, and its a PITA. Maybe a snowbirds car that spent its winters south ?

this is a good example of what would attract me when we decide to replace the wife's 98 es300.
https://jacksonville.craigslist.org/cto/5254706355.html

RE: the es300's I've owned 4 of them of them, 04,05,08,08 and you can't kill them, my 04 had 308K miles, the 05 had 260, the first 08 was 178, and the other 08 has 160 and we still own it, and cost wise they are not that much more than a camry, its basically the same car just better, (same v6 engine thats super reliable) and since the camry's hold their value so well you'll find the difference to be negligible.

Honestly I can't figure out why people spend 5K on a camry when 6.5k will get them the same car with all the lexus add-ons, premium stero, sound deadening, leather, etc... Sometimes I think its just because they never looked into it...

my wife still drives her 98 es300 and we've looked at replacing it just because we're bored with it, but it runs absolutely perfect, brakes and tires and a couple of $80 O2 sensors, we bought it 4 years ago with 80K miles for 6500, it has 165 now and run's strong.

you can fit 5 comfortably but its a bit of a squeeze if your not small people.

now, here's my plan B suggestion.... Buy a dodge durango, yes that sounds but hear me out.

2 years ago I would have bet you $500 that i'd never own a dodge, but here I am, about to praise it.

So I drove my 05 lexus into the ground, then I got stupid and bought a boat which means I need a real tow vehicle.

I started shopping for RX300's and perhaps a tacoma, had a budget of about 8K, for me its cash only, I refuse to make payments, well, the lexus/toyota's hold their value too well actually so I stumbled across a dodge durango driving down the road for a whopping $2500, never thought i'd buy a dodge EVER, and I never thought i'd buy a $2500 truck, but I have to admit, I really like it, it's loaded, cruises well, holds 8 and it tows a boat like butter with a 5.2. You'd be shocked at what kind of value you can get on these, its worth looking at one.

I figured that since I saved $5500 on the purchase price I could afford any maintenance issues a dodge might bring, and AAA was only $56 the first year so far the result is about $650 in repairs and 5 days of down time over 2 years, a fine trade off IMO. By my math I got paid $1000 a day to drive a rental and the repairs were free.

I know its crazy but when I get tired of this dodge I might buy another one, the price point is so insanely cheap that its making it harder to upgrade to toyota when the difference is 6K for basically the same ride. Downside of the durango, first its a dodge, bad rap for reliability, 2nd the fuel economy sux, like 14 mph downhill with a tail wind. 3rd the AC system is behind the dash so if/when your ac goes out, its a ridiculously expensive repair. 4th downside is paint/gelcoat issues, it seems like every other durango I see has at least one 'splotch" on it where the clear is coming off.

Really nice info here, thanks for sharing. I agree with buying a Lexus over a Camry if the difference is only $1000 or so. Seems like a no-brainer. It's funny you mention Fords because I've actually been looking at maybe buying a Ford Focus if it isn't a Honda or Toyota. The Durango may be overkill for my needs and I also want the car to have relatively decent gas mileage. For my needs, a two-door hatchback would probably be fine.

Thanks again.

[The Force.]

get a carfax report for anything you consider.

It is worth paying for a subscription to consumer reports online . they have a pretty good section explaining which used cars are good . . I think they even break it down by price. as everybody already said, hondas and toyotas score the best generally, but there are some others that do well too.

this book is informative too https://openlibrary.org/books/OL662502M/Don't_get_taken_every_time

good luck

Will definitely be getting a history report and inspection before buying.

That book is exactly what I need. Thanks!

[Spimothy Leary]

hi, i buy from govdeals.com

i'm not some spammer. this is literally the only link i've ever posted before. it's a government run auction, and you just buy cars (or other shart) from state and local governments. my brother and i bought 4 crown victorias from them for about $2750 each. nothing special, but i think they were pretty well maintained myself considering the price. we also bought one lemonesque mini van (we got cocky and didn't even check the car out before buying it). and i feel we "won" overall. i think it's at least worth a peak.

and if you score a lemon, don't blame me! just giving you options.

+1 on gov deals, i don't check there all the time, but there have been some really well priced, and decent items on there....

shhh, don't tell anyone, they might out bid us !!!

[WIN]

+1 on Japanese cars and also CL (as long as you do your homework and are good at bargaining).

This thread had me thinking on a potential site or app that I think would be helpful to create. Maybe if it makes sense, I'll toy around with the idea of seeing if this is feasible for me to work on.

What do you guys think if someone offered a service where for any used cars available at a dealer, they have a detailed report from the person who most recently drove the vehicle (i.e. the person who sold the car to the dealer)? You'd have commentary and ratings given by that person and a reason as to why they sold the vehicle. Given that the car isn't theirs anymore, they would have little to no reason to lie about anything, and of course they'd get an incentive to fill out this report accurately (i.e. be given a % of the revenue of the report generated given that certain criteria are met).

Combine that with a carfax report and you kind of have all that you need (you can get an opinion from a mechanic as well at your own cost).

I feel like this is something I'd buy given a reasonable price, what do you guys think, smart, dumb, or meh?