- Thread starter janlindy
- Start date
recommendation suv or small pick up truck
Yes, they are reckoned to be the best, but they are priced to reflect that. I have had two Hyundais in a row and been pleased. The first was a Santa Fe, but the newer models are considerably bigger and, therefore difficult to park in places like Cabarete, so the new one is a Tucson. Also, Hyundais are probably the most popular cars in the DR these days so parts are plentiful.
You did not indicate new or used..................but without doing a deep dive, Toyota Rav4 2016, 2017,2018 and Honda CRV 2016 are some of the best used suv's out there.
Hyundai has had motor issues with the Santa Fe as one poster here found out the hard way. Avoid 2013, 2015 and 2017.
And from a prior post I made;
..........................anyone looking to purchase a car in the DR, the very first thing that should be done, well before you even turn the key on, is to run the VIN on any car you are thinking of buying via an internet search and through the NHTSA website. Some sophisticated buyers have a VIN software program to do this, but a cursory search by the average buyer should be under taken.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
I have a connection back in the States. Used car manager. I send him the VIN. I have now looked at 18 vehicles over the past 2 months. NOT ONE...has not had the odometer rolled back at least 90,000 miles. Best buy new.
After a meteoric ride post Covid, and a sharp fall the last couple of months (but not enough to get back to a normal market), used prices are again trending back up again.
The only softness I see is in higher mileage vehicles, i.e., 80k and above.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
Exactly what the dealer's buyers are looking for. It's not a coincidence there are so many vehicles for sale here with altered odometers.
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I would suggest you go new and look at the Suzuki Jimny. Small basic 4x4 made in Japan so pretty good quality.
There was also another recent thread on Changan vehicles. Chinese built but from the ones I have experience with they seem to have great build quality.
No word on parts availability down the road
There was also another recent thread on Changan vehicles. Chinese built but from the ones I have experience with they seem to have great build quality.
No word on parts availability down the road
The gorgon is the man for all things used cars. Too bad he's no longer on DR1.
That's Mike Logan
Mike Logan
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Unfortunately, odometer rollbacks here are thought of no differently than prepping the car for sale by washing and vacuuming it. But there are many dealers who will gladly show you an AutoCheck or CarFax report.
That being said, until they codify into law that odometer rollbacks are illegal and then unleash proconsumidor to go after dealers/sellers, the practice will continue.
At a minimum, buyers should ask for or purchase on their own a Autocheck/CarFax report on any car imported from the US/Canada.......right after they do a search for any open recalls on sites like the NHTSA.
And all that is right after they do their own do diligence on the year, make, model of the vehicle(s) they are interested in......because in spite of just saying Toyota, Honda, Hyundai etc., there are certain years, makes, and models to avoid across all car manufacturers.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
I think he means here. As a general rule at auction, the higher the miles, the cheaper the price. That allows a dealer to purchase a vehicle and roll the odometer and get more profit……at the eventual expense of the customer.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
There are many here who will advertise they have a CarFax report, but they almost never voluntarily show it and if they do, like in one instance when I was helping a friend buy a car, - I had the actual car fax printed and and the car had been driven for some 8 months by the dealer's cousin in Santo Domingo - because had 9,000 more miles on it than the time of its last service which was 2 months before the date it was sold for export. It seemed odd that it was 11 months from the time it was imported till it was on his lot. When I showed him my copy of the CarFax he admitted it had been used (unregistered in DR) by his cousin in SD of all but 3 months. My friend wound up buying it anyway and, other of one $320 problem, has been mostly OK for her low mileage uses.
The $320 problem was a result of a valve job that had been done in DR and during that work the head was milled, (not uncommon) but as a result the timing chain was slack and jumped. It required a new chain, guide, drive sprocket, tensioner and a +0.20" thicker head gasket to make up the difference from the material than had been milled off, in order to bring the head back to the right height above block. Fortunately the chain jumped off just as the car was shut off and no internal damage done to the interference motor.
These are typical of some of the issues you will invariably find here.
Don't be afraid of a high mileage vehicle - because maybe it wasn't set back. Almost no vehicles are bought in the US with less than 100K and then imported here unless it is a very exclusive dealer.
Many dealers and sophisticated buyers have the equipment to actually find the real mileage on the car……..even after an odometer rollback. But this equipment is expensive and not for the average person who buys a vehicle every 5-10:years.
I have been on the buying and selling end in the DR for years and have never helped bring in a vehicle for a dealer with more than 60,000 miles. That however is likely the exception to the rule. Good dealers are hard to find in the DR…..but they do exist. And let’s not necessarily equate a car that has issues later with a bad dealer. Often times it is the car itself…..not the dealer.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
Tell us the name of this equipment ?
Some very late models 'might' store this info on the control module but I have never seen anyone find mileage different than what is stored and displayed in the digital instrument cluster
It is not necessarily the equipment, but it is the software uploaded to a laptop or other handheld device. I have used it multiple times. It is invaluable if you are a buyer or have a client who buys lots of vehicles, as is my case.
I was amazed at how quickly it can scan and detect. It became invaluable, in a way you might not think of, when one of my clients was purchasing a package of 100+/- fleet cars used by sales people from a major company. What they found was a percentage of those vehicles were actually showing up with less miles in the ECU/ECM/BCM than shown on the odometer! After subsequent further investigations, it turns out the sales people, who also got a per mileage stipend, were actually increasing the mileage so as to claim a higher stipend. So mileage fraud can go both ways.
Note that dealers must buy a software package from each manufacturer in order to have the codes to access mileage stored in various other places besides the odometer. Different manufacturers store it in different places i.e., the ECU, BCM, ECM.
Purportedly, Bosch has come out with just such a tool (KTS-250), but I question its long term abilities as manufacturers change codes almost on an annual basis.......which of course keeps dealers buying the updates.
Changing the odometer mileage, a fairly simple process, does not alter it in the various other stored places on a vehicle.
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
I am not sure manufacturers care or could prevent an odometer cluster from being changed. But they can protect the integrity of the vehicle via storing it in other hard to get at places.
Note that odometer clusters are changed a lot more than one might think..............and all for legitimate purposes. Swapping after a malfunction, swapping to put a more higher end cluster with more whistles and bells, after a motor swap to reflect the new mileage on that motor, and on and on.
Manufacturers actually care little about the cluster itself......
Respectfully,
Playacaribe2