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Post by LavenderLayoutLady on Jun 4, 2015 12:49:22 GMT
Have you?
Would you?
Give me all your thoughts and opinions.
If not, how do you go about finding a quality used car? How can you tell if a dealership is selling you a lemon?
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Post by elaine on Jun 4, 2015 13:02:29 GMT
Always take a used car you are thinking of buying to a mechanic and pay for an evaluation - whether it is a private listing or a dealership sale.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 19:26:03 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2015 13:13:09 GMT
My husband has bought and sold many used cars and big ticket construction equipment from Craigslist over the years. One time he had a bounced check (from someone that lived near us in a very small town) but he tracked the guy down and he was paid in cash.
I say go for it! Just use common sense and trust your gut.
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caro
Drama Llama
Refupea 1130
Posts: 5,222 
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Post by caro on Jun 4, 2015 13:14:09 GMT
I agree with Elaine. And I do not think I would buy off of Craigslist without some huge personal safety precautions when meeting the seller. There are some awful crimes being done to buyers/sellers with Craigslist here in Atlanta.
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Post by annabella on Jun 4, 2015 13:14:28 GMT
My friends have done that with good luck. They bought cheap old cars that are still running.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 19:26:03 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2015 13:23:15 GMT
We did. We were satisfied and DD drove it for 2 years.
Ann |
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blue tulip
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,005
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Post by blue tulip on Jun 4, 2015 13:34:52 GMT
we've bought every car we've owned from craigslist, or private party internet/newspaper ads before CL, except for 1 (found on craigs, but was from a dealer). when I was younger, I had the benefit of having my dad, who is a mechanic on the side, come and check them out with me. the last 2 we bought on our own, but at this point we know the big signs of what to look for. ironically the only one to have a major, terminal problem was the one we bought from the dealer- the transmission blew less than a year after we bought it, and for what the van was worth, it wasn't worth it to fix it.
even the salvage title car we bought has been fine. I googled and youtubed tons of things about what to check before buying a salvage title vehicle. we did have one issue after bringing it home- they should've replaced the an axle and didn't, so we did that. we've been driving it for 2 years now, put a little more than 25k miles on it, without any issues.
FWIW, I have never gone to look at a CL car by myself, I always bring a guy with me (DH, mechanic brother or dad).
ETA- wherever you are buying, the first things we check are:
coolant at radiator- clean, any oil residue or frothiness? oil- clean and amber, any debris, frothiness or antifreeze? (this and above are signs of bad head gasket, major $$$) trans fluid- clean, clear and no debris? no burnt smell? take oil fill cap off the valve cover while engine is running. is there a lot of air being pushed out (called "blow by")? is yes, this can mean the rings and pistons are worn and will require an engine rebuild in the future.
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Post by originalvanillabean on Jun 4, 2015 14:00:30 GMT
Always take a used car you are thinking of buying to a mechanic and pay for an evaluation - whether it is a private listing or a dealership sale. Best advice right here. |
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SweetieBsMom
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,741
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Post by SweetieBsMom on Jun 4, 2015 14:01:13 GMT
Always take a used car you are thinking of buying to a mechanic and pay for an evaluation - whether it is a private listing or a dealership sale. I always do this. |
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YooHoot
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,432
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Post by YooHoot on Jun 4, 2015 14:13:52 GMT
Yes! Have done it for my dd twice and both times were great (military and moving so they had to sell). Had my BIL run VIN numbers for me and dh checked out the cars. Worked great for us. I've been searching for my next new (used) car on Craigslist. You can save a lot of money buying private party, but definitely be smart about it.
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Peamac
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea # 418
Posts: 4,229
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Post by Peamac on Jun 4, 2015 15:04:19 GMT
We have. DH found a great car for dd on Craig's list back in January. He's knowledgeable enough about cars to know what to look at and what questions to ask. I think he also asked his bil who's a mechanic about the car. BIL was too far away to look at it.
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Post by not2peased on Jun 4, 2015 18:00:23 GMT
I;ve bought cars on CL and I can't imagine any CL seller letting someone take their car to the mechanic before buying. Perhaps that is the norm but I know having sold a car myself on CL that I would never let someone take my car for the few hours it would take to get checked out, nor has anyone ever asked
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Post by papersilly on Jun 4, 2015 18:09:02 GMT
I sold my dads car in one day on CL. Great transaction.
My sister bought a car from there. The people were nice. They mailed back and forth and met in a public place.
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Post by 2peaornot2pea on Jun 4, 2015 18:24:32 GMT
Yes. We have sold cars and bought cars off craigslist. The transactions have always been smooth and the cars we bought were reliable.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 6, 2024 19:26:03 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2015 18:39:05 GMT
Call your local police station or sheriff's office and ask if you can handle the transaction in their parking lot. If someone is out to do terrible things to you, they're probably not going to want to meet you in the parking lot of the police station.
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Post by elaine on Jun 4, 2015 18:48:58 GMT
I;ve bought cars on CL and I can't imagine any CL seller letting someone take their car to the mechanic before buying. Perhaps that is the norm but I know having sold a car myself on CL that I would never let someone take my car for the few hours it would take to get checked out, nor has anyone ever asked I have always done this when both buying and selling used cars, starting with my first car in 1981. I wouldn't touch a used car with a 10 foot pole if I couldn't bring it to a mechanic to be checked out. |
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scrapaddie
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,090
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Post by scrapaddie on Jun 4, 2015 20:22:02 GMT
I don't think it's any different than the old days when we used to look for used cars in the newspaper. And I bought a car and a boat that way!
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