Some Help On What To Do Before You Sign For A used Car

[fmdog44]

First, do not rely on a Carfax to be fool proof. They are not as I learned today. A radio show caller from the Dallas are bought a used truck in Houston (flooded in 2017). He got a Carfax and it should all good on it and inspected it as best he could for flood damage before he bought it. He drove it home and all went to crap at that point. He started taking parts off and found water damage. The dealer refused to help in any way. The radio host Jerry Reynolds told him Carfax is not a guarantee and said autocheck.com was better. Also I will throw in some sites that can help run down the vehicle via the VIN. Go to nicb.org- national insurance crime bureau and naag.org the national association of attorney generals. Jerry Reynolds said the case cold go to court and in most cases the owner overrules the dealer. But then there are attorney fees. It is not unusual for flooded vehicles to wind up on reputable dealerships used car lots.

 

[Old Dummy]

My mechanic buddy told me that not all repairs are necessarily entered into CarFax or similar services. Non-insurance jobs, cash jobs, etc. may not be reported for whatever reason, aside from not being required to.

 

[oldman]

Before I bought my Corvette from a dealer in Florida, I was really skeptical about doing so. Unlike here, they do not have state inspections, so it kind of worried me. I went to a Chevrolet dealer about a mile away and asked if they would do a third party inspection of the vehicle before I bought it. They agreed to do it for $175.00. The seller also agreed to allow the Chevy dealer to do the inspection at my cost. The dealer found numerous issues, including; three sensors that were bad (the dealer had turned off the "Have Engine Serviced Soon" Light), the front and rear brake pads were worn almost down to the rivets, so it would have required new pads and rotors, the front sway bar was cracked and the convertible top had such bad seams (rotted) that it leaked like a sieve.

The dealer apologized and said he was embarrassed and so on. I said OK and good-bye.

I went to another dealer, this time a Chevrolet dealer, and bought my Corvette. No need to have it inspected because the car was GM certified, which means it was guaranteed just like a new vehicle for 12 months or 12,000 miles. The car hasn't taken a thing since I bought it 5 years ago.

I highly recommend third party inspections if you do not buy from a dealer and without them giving you a bumper to bumper warranty.

 

[Keesha]

Before I bought my Corvette from a dealer in Florida, I was really skeptical about doing so. Unlike here, they do not have state inspections, so it kind of worried me. I went to a Chevrolet dealer about a mile away and asked if they would do a third party inspection of the vehicle before I bought it. They agreed to do it for $175.00. The seller also agreed to allow the Chevy dealer to do the inspection at my cost. The dealer found numerous issues, including; three sensors that were bad (the dealer had turned off the "Have Engine Serviced Soon" Light), the front and rear brake pads were worn almost down to the rivets, so it would have required new pads and rotors, the front sway bar was cracked and the convertible top had such bad seams (rotted) that it leaked like a sieve.

The dealer apologized and said he was embarrassed and so on. I said OK and good-bye.

I went to another dealer, this time a Chevrolet dealer, and bought my Corvette. No need to have it inspected because the car was GM certified, which means it was guaranteed just like a new vehicle for 12 months or 12,000 miles. The car hasn't taken a thing since I bought it 5 years ago.

I highly recommend third party inspections if you do not buy from a dealer and without them giving you a bumper to bumper warranty.

Very smart idea.

 

[fmdog44]

My mechanic buddy told me that not all repairs are necessarily entered into CarFax or similar services. Non-insurance jobs, cash jobs, etc. may not be reported for whatever reason, aside from not being required to.

Very true. Myself a few years ago needed a trunk panel painted on my 2013 Mustang. Rather than taking it to a regular business I took it to a place that does only cash business with no receipts and no records of the work. There are publications on how to check for water damage available everywhere.

 

[Old Dummy]

Before I bought my Corvette from a dealer in Florida, I was really skeptical about doing so. Unlike here, they do not have state inspections, so it kind of worried me. I went to a Chevrolet dealer about a mile away and asked if they would do a third party inspection of the vehicle before I bought it. They agreed to do it for $175.00. The seller also agreed to allow the Chevy dealer to do the inspection at my cost. The dealer found numerous issues, including; three sensors that were bad (the dealer had turned off the "Have Engine Serviced Soon" Light), the front and rear brake pads were worn almost down to the rivets, so it would have required new pads and rotors, the front sway bar was cracked and the convertible top had such bad seams (rotted) that it leaked like a sieve.

The dealer apologized and said he was embarrassed and so on. I said OK and good-bye.

I went to another dealer, this time a Chevrolet dealer, and bought my Corvette. No need to have it inspected because the car was GM certified, which means it was guaranteed just like a new vehicle for 12 months or 12,000 miles. The car hasn't taken a thing since I bought it 5 years ago.

I highly recommend third party inspections if you do not buy from a dealer and without them giving you a bumper to bumper warranty.

Hey Vette guy!

I bought an '07 five years ago, has 35k on it now, still pretty pristine. It has the 3LT option package and all the electronic doo-hickeys and accessories still work.

 

[Don M.]

It seems that every time there is a major flood in a populated area, hundreds/thousands of cars are flood damaged. Many of them get a superficial cleaning, and wind up on used car lots...often several states away. About the Only way to be sure that you won't get "taken" is to buy from a reputable dealer who supplies a good warranty...AND if in doubt, take the vehicle to an independent garage for a complete inspection Before buying. It's a tossup between used car salesmen and politicians as to who is the most "misleading".