Topic: Consumer Advice: Used Car Checks You Shouldn't Miss

[tooscoops]

hate to give away any secrets or make you feel bad, but i'm sure in that case, they didn't put "true value" as your trade value.

our list price is generally about 4500 over what we paid (all changes with crazy car values of course). figure, we allow for roughly 1000-1500 re-conditioning/safety/e-test, 1000 room to move on the price, 1500-2000 profit.

varies of course, but that's not too far from the truth... and makes sense...

say we offer 8k for your trade... we'll ask 12500... at the end of your driveway, you could try to get maybe 11 and not move much on price... so to compare, the trade was easy, didn't have to do anything to the car or deal with "buyers" and you got the equivalent of 9040... to safety and e-test and crap, take your 11 asking down to 10500 what you are netting.

so a 1460 difference in your pocket for the effort put in to sell it privately. sounds about right to me. some will see the value in selling it, others, its not worth that.

to each their own.

[tooscoops]

Makes sense in that situation, but it's more of a case by case basis.  The dealer would have marked my car up by 50%, which wasn't fair.  It only takes 1-2 hours to take the car to get certified and e-tested, less than $100.  Put it sign on the car, and kijiji, go for a few test drives and get the money for yourself rather than loose it to the dealer. 

Maybe the dealer give you a good deal on the trade in, but less wiggle room on the new car purchase.  I don't even discuss my current car until I have the purchase price I want, plenty of dealers I am willing to go to, and patience helps save you money too!

100 bucks for a safety and e-test! i want to find your tech!... seriously.... i do. can use a guy for my own cars when i just need the paper to license them.

totally agree... case by case, and in your's an easy sale is always worth the little bit of time.

[Northernridge]

hate to give away any secrets or make you feel bad, but i'm sure in that case, they didn't put "true value" as your trade value.

our list price is generally about 4500 over what we paid (all changes with crazy car values of course). figure, we allow for roughly 1000-1500 re-conditioning/safety/e-test, 1000 room to move on the price, 1500-2000 profit.

varies of course, but that's not too far from the truth... and makes sense...

say we offer 8k for your trade... we'll ask 12500... at the end of your driveway, you could try to get maybe 11 and not move much on price... so to compare, the trade was easy, didn't have to do anything to the car or deal with "buyers" and you got the equivalent of 9040... to safety and e-test and crap, take your 11 asking down to 10500 what you are netting.

so a 1460 difference in your pocket for the effort put in to sell it privately. sounds about right to me. some will see the value in selling it, others, its not worth that.

to each their own.

That's a good explanation. I sort of view the whole thing as a wholesale/retail question and not one of good/bad. If you trade in your car then you're effectively wholesaling it to the dealer because they have to resell it. As tooscoops explains, the math has to work for the dealer...they do this all day long and know exactly where they need to be. I don't think it's a contest that the consumer can 'win' – you either get an acceptable deal or you don't. Also, I bet most customers really wouldn't want to see the real math on their trade deal after it's done.

[Solstice2006]

For e-test and certify, took it to Canadian Tire...

[tenpenny]

i sell about 15% to cash buyers... the rest need financing. private can't do that.

Banks don't lend money?


Sent from my Vic20 using Java Moose

[tooscoops]

yep. standard car loan though the bank is 7.9% no matter how gold your credit is. (and yeah, i know you can do line of credit, but that's different altogether) and it involves one more step for today's buyers who seem to want things as streamlined as possible. we can do 4.99% and the credit stuff is all taken in house...

not saying it can't be done, just not done the way it is from a dealer.

[PJ]

yep. standard car loan though the bank is 7.9% no matter how gold your credit is. (and yeah, i know you can do line of credit, but that's different altogether) and it involves one more step for today's buyers who seem to want things as streamlined as possible. we can do 4.99% and the credit stuff is all taken in house...

not saying it can't be done, just not done the way it is from a dealer.

I bought a 2003 Expedition as our new tow vehicle/ second car last month.  Just put it on the line of credit at just over 3 %.

Don't know why anyone would take 5%.

[tooscoops]

yeah, as i said, line of credit is something different. i like to keep mine open for other things. plus, it's a secured line of credit at that rate i'm sure, so your house/whatever is collateral. most people buying used cars privately on kijiji don't have equitable positions and aren't eligible for those kinds of line of credit. by no means 100%, but just what i've found.

i'm sure there are people on here who were paying 15+% back in the 80's on mortgages... must be odd hearing people complain about unsecured loans for 5%...

[PJ]

yeah, as i said, line of credit is something different. i like to keep mine open for other things. plus, it's a secured line of credit at that rate i'm sure, so your house/whatever is collateral. most people buying used cars privately on kijiji don't have equitable positions and aren't eligible for those kinds of line of credit. by no means 100%, but just what i've found.

i'm sure there are people on here who were paying 15+% back in the 80's on mortgages... must be odd hearing people complain about unsecured loans for 5%...

No kidding.  I remember when my sister bought her house at 11.5% and thought it was a great rate.  Of course she only paid $80K for it and my house is worth $700K.  Everyone is so used to cheap interest I can't imagine what would happen if rates shot up.

[PJ]

i have yet to meet a customer who would be happy accepting the clean up as the car sits. the licensing needs to take an hour where we are minimum. the safety re-check can be pushed through the shop, but it has to go up on a hoist. and we do a lube oil filter when sold.... (no point doing it when the car gets on the lot and leave it sitting for 3 months).

so yep. if you came in at 9am, bought a car, we could have it ready by that evening if everything goes well.

i'm just saying that to make that a deal breaker is throwing the baby out with the bath water.

I find it takes about an hour to buy a used car from a used car dealer.  In BC we don't have safety checks and aircare should already be current or I wouldn't consider the car anyhow.  ICBC reps are a quick phone call away and do all the insurance and licencing.  Larger lots have someone on site that does it.

A new car might need dealer prep but used cars should always be kept clean and ready to go.  If not then I'd move on to someone else.

[Solstice2006]

yep. standard car loan though the bank is 7.9% no matter how gold your credit is. (and yeah, i know you can do line of credit, but that's different altogether) and it involves one more step for today's buyers who seem to want things as streamlined as possible. we can do 4.99% and the credit stuff is all taken in house...

not saying it can't be done, just not done the way it is from a dealer.

Maybe at your dealership, but if I remember correctly there are quite a few dealerships out there, (Mazda for example) that don't have in house financing, they tell you what the rate at the bank is.  I just did 1/2 line of credit, 1/2 down payment. 

[jamie1]

Just blows me away how many times a salesman comes into shop saying he needs this car shopped as it's been sold. I go out to and it could be buried in the lot. I'm thinking how did someone test drive it. Or it has flat tire. Again, how did they test drive it. Last week a 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee was a rush because it was sold. It had 12,000km on it. 1st thing I always do is take it for a test drive. Right off, I could tell it had something wrong the way it steered. Get it back the shop. Guess what I find in the hatchback.  A bent inner tie rod and some other damaged parts. Put it up in the air and see the RF strut, lower control arm, inner and outer tie rods, and wheel have all been replaced. Clearly it had hit a curb or something hard. Should have had the rack replaced as well. Again, did this person not drive this unit 1st, or at least look through it.

[tooscoops]

yep. standard car loan though the bank is 7.9% no matter how gold your credit is. (and yeah, i know you can do line of credit, but that's different altogether) and it involves one more step for today's buyers who seem to want things as streamlined as possible. we can do 4.99% and the credit stuff is all taken in house...

not saying it can't be done, just not done the way it is from a dealer.

Maybe at your dealership, but if I remember correctly there are quite a few dealerships out there, (Mazda for example) that don't have in house financing, they tell you what the rate at the bank is.  I just did 1/2 line of credit, 1/2 down payment.

i wasn't saying the financing was in-house... just that we can handle it. as in, we do the credit app, we shop the banks, get the best rate (that still give us something for using them)... since we are sending 25-50 deals a month to banks, they give a dealer rate that is better than any person (no matter how good their credit is) will get on an unsecured loan. usually about 2% better.  but it IS still through a bank. right now, we mix it up through TD, royal, and BMO... used to use scotia a lot, but they've been slipping on approvals i've found lately.

scary stuff jamie... and with 12km, was it a rental?  so nothing showing on insurance or accident reports.... people assume too much. low kms? must be a peach! rather than, low kms? why are they getting rid of it?

[johngenx]

I've found selling newer, more expensive cars myself a little more difficult as people usually require financing.  The most expensive used car I've sold was probably the easiest though, as I had a list of people wanting it.  One phone call and the next day the car was sold.  (Porsche...)

[blur911]

i have yet to meet a customer who would be happy accepting the clean up as the car sits. the licensing needs to take an hour where we are minimum. the safety re-check can be pushed through the shop, but it has to go up on a hoist. and we do a lube oil filter when sold.... (no point doing it when the car gets on the lot and leave it sitting for 3 months).

so yep. if you came in at 9am, bought a car, we could have it ready by that evening if everything goes well.

i'm just saying that to make that a deal breaker is throwing the baby out with the bath water.

If I have to drive 3+ hours to see a car and 3+ hours back I sure don't want to do it again the next day.  If I buy privately it's usually e-tested and safetied, or that isn't part of the deal and I get it done myself.  It might not be a deal breaker to wait and go back later, but like I said, I was going to buy a vehicle a few weeks ago but they wouldn't play ball, so they didn't sell a car that day.

A few years ago I bought our Subaru,  I took a train to Toronto in the morning and drove it back that afternoon I wouldn't have if I had to wait until the next day as we needed a car right now and I didn't have the next day off.  Perhaps car dealers don't know how many customers they lose by not being able to do this.