As for buying a used car, I find one I like, do a quick diagnostics check on it with my own basic scanner and then bring it to my mechanic to evaluate it with his far more expensive and thorough diagnostic device as well as his visual inspection and we check the CarFax.
- Thread starter johne
- Start date
Thinking of buying a car. Need solid advise .
Scanners are good for codes, but you should always pull the bottom splash guard, look for leaks and shine a light around. 10 minutes on a lift can tell a mechanic a lot that codes won't. Look at ball joints and struts and tie rods and wiggle some things.
Always change belts and hoses and rod the radiator on anything older than 8 years.
Change all fluids on any used car (because Dominicans don't). New spark plugs on gas vehicles and timing belt on any car above 90K.
Think about new injectors - they can really affect mileage and performance
..I was not even driving my car, one of mi girl frens was when it was hit by a woman in the countryside...the police that arrived at the accident said we had the fault and should have got out of her way, as she doesnt know how to drive... the police were also her friends .... I have never had a accident while I was driving, on this one remember SEAT BELTS are a good thing.......
...a inspection by a qualified person is the best.. one that also knows the real price..sounds like Mike is your guy....
Batting .500 would be good in baseball. Not so good in car recommendations.
Who is the member of the forum to which you refer? Lol
Please do not attribute remarks to me you know to be false, even if you think it's funny. Got it?
This may be aside from the point, but two years is a bit of time during which many things can happen... There are quite a few things that can go wrong with vehicles, so without further details, IMO, the above does not really say that much...
A mechanic that you trust can steer you in the right direction and in the end tell you if it's a good deal or not. Their are of things you can check for wear and tear, a turned back odometer can not be checked but you can try to calculate the mileage based on how old it is. It's not hard to spot a car that's been abused, check online the particular vehicle your interested in and whether or not that is a dependable vehicle and what problems they have had in the past. These are all things you can do yourself.
Anything Toyota.
Best new and used parts.
Most any Dominican mechanic has experience working in them.
When you go to sell it the popularity of the Toyota name will pay off.
First car I bought here and drove it very inexpensively to near death then gave it to my sis in law who fixed it
up like new and has driven it trouble free for a longtime.
I should have kept it.
... right you are about Toyota, I worked for them for years.. only problem with them here is the price$$$..I have bought 2 cars after moving here ,a Camry and a Sonata y20.. both great if you do the upkeep...best price is from a private party.
First I use Consumer Reports, and US NEWS and world report car ratings for what vehicle type I am looking for . They rate the cars .. and one thing I look for is crash safety , as when you drive here , it is not if ... it's when you get in some type of accident . After I am happy with ratings then Super Carros .. , then make a list of 6 or so of them and off .. to look at . Lots of great advise so far posted .. , and yes the CarFax for recently imported vehicles and you can get the correct actual miles .. A couple of years ago , I had a maximum budget of $ 25,000 USD for a used Lexus RX 350 .. Wow some great ones perfect condition , detailed .. to the max in Santiago . But ! the car fax showed 150,000 miles on most of them and they had them turned back to 60,000 , 70,000 etc. After several of these .. where is the " new car dealer " Bought a 2017 new Mazda CX =5 for $32,000 .. ( year old model but new ) . So why pay $ 24,000 for 6 year old used with double the miles ?
I can see Johne in a pearl white GT-R!
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Nope. I went against the tide and bought a very sporting looking car that was not as heavy as I wanted but i loved the deal after looking for 2 1/2 days. I bought the Nissan Kick. I know it won't stand up to...bla bla . Did one trip so far to Nagua and it ran smooth as a top. Will I like the weight of it? IDK.. If not in 6-8 month I'll sell it and go to a Jeep. Right now I go to golf twice a week, fish store, Jumbo and SD. I don't do the Outback trips. lol
Wow, I've never even seen one. Nice looking ride. Is it auto or standard? That should be just fine for what you're doing. And they're a lot more rugged than you think.
auto. I wasn't looking for a gas saver but apparently iIgot it anyway.