How to Tell If A Used Car Has Been In an Accident
The used auto market can be a very tricky market to maneuver through. Whether you are buying or selling there are challenges to both sides. I think that the more difficult side is obviously the buying side. You don't know the history of the car and this can make buying a used car quite a guessing game! Keep reading to learn how you can avoid buying a lemon!
We have probably all seen those cars on the road where the back tires are not in line with the front tires. You know, it looks like the car should be veering to the left but is going perfectly straight. This happens when the frame is bent due to a serious accident that the car has been in.
Unfortunately the seller is not always honest about the history of the car. How can we tell if the car has been totaled in the past? How can we be sure that the seller is telling the truth? This can be a little tricky! But it is not impossible to outsmart the seller and get a good deal in the process.
The first place to look to check if the car has been totaled is the title. If a car has been totaled by an insurance agent then state law normally requires for them to stamp the title. If there is no evidence in the title, then you will have to do some more investigating! This can be quite easy and anyone can do it.
The one thing that I see all of the time is over spray on the taillights. This is a sure sign that the car has been repaired and repainted. I don't know why the seller doesn't scrape it off, or buy a new one. I have looked at several cars that the seller swears has never had any damage done to them, yet there is paint on the taillight cover. Do you think that it came out of the factory like that? No way! If the buyer isn't open about a small fender bender to explain the paint then they are hiding a much more serious problem and I wouldn't buy that car.
Another trick you can use is to check out the gaps between two pieces of the cars body. Check the gaps where the door closes and meets with the frame work. If the gap is consistent then the car is sitting pretty straight! If one end is much wider then the other, then you more then likely have a repair that isn't fitting right. Beware!
Of course we don't want to overlook the obvious, ask the owner! Many times people are honest people trying to sell their car and will be completely honest about the cars history. Remember that not everybody out there is trying to steal and cheat you. In fact a minor fender bender is quite common and if the owner tells me this straight away I trust them and would probably proceed further to consider buying the car. If they aren't straight forward and their answers are questionable I would maybe keep looking!
I was in the market for an SUV last year. I had looked at a few and had started to get tired of the process. As I began looking at another one I noticed that this particular vehicle had a lot of scratches, and it didn't seem to have been taken good care of. I walked around the car and noticed paint on the taillight. I didn't tell the seller that I saw it, but I asked if there had been any fender benders that they had to repair. He replied that nothing out of the ordinary accident that we all experience. I didn't pressure him any further. I didn't like the car anyway. But if I did, he would have had to have given me a more detailed answer to his occasional accidents.
Buying a used car can be a fun experience. Even though it is not new, it is still a new car to you! But you do need to take some precautions and make sure that you get a good deal on your car. There is nothing worse then owning a car for a few months and then finding out there are serious problems. Do you homework and have fun!
We have probably all seen those cars on the road where the back tires are not in line with the front tires. You know, it looks like the car should be veering to the left but is going perfectly straight. This happens when the frame is bent due to a serious accident that the car has been in.
Unfortunately the seller is not always honest about the history of the car. How can we tell if the car has been totaled in the past? How can we be sure that the seller is telling the truth? This can be a little tricky! But it is not impossible to outsmart the seller and get a good deal in the process.
The first place to look to check if the car has been totaled is the title. If a car has been totaled by an insurance agent then state law normally requires for them to stamp the title. If there is no evidence in the title, then you will have to do some more investigating! This can be quite easy and anyone can do it.
The one thing that I see all of the time is over spray on the taillights. This is a sure sign that the car has been repaired and repainted. I don't know why the seller doesn't scrape it off, or buy a new one. I have looked at several cars that the seller swears has never had any damage done to them, yet there is paint on the taillight cover. Do you think that it came out of the factory like that? No way! If the buyer isn't open about a small fender bender to explain the paint then they are hiding a much more serious problem and I wouldn't buy that car.
Another trick you can use is to check out the gaps between two pieces of the cars body. Check the gaps where the door closes and meets with the frame work. If the gap is consistent then the car is sitting pretty straight! If one end is much wider then the other, then you more then likely have a repair that isn't fitting right. Beware!
Of course we don't want to overlook the obvious, ask the owner! Many times people are honest people trying to sell their car and will be completely honest about the cars history. Remember that not everybody out there is trying to steal and cheat you. In fact a minor fender bender is quite common and if the owner tells me this straight away I trust them and would probably proceed further to consider buying the car. If they aren't straight forward and their answers are questionable I would maybe keep looking!
I was in the market for an SUV last year. I had looked at a few and had started to get tired of the process. As I began looking at another one I noticed that this particular vehicle had a lot of scratches, and it didn't seem to have been taken good care of. I walked around the car and noticed paint on the taillight. I didn't tell the seller that I saw it, but I asked if there had been any fender benders that they had to repair. He replied that nothing out of the ordinary accident that we all experience. I didn't pressure him any further. I didn't like the car anyway. But if I did, he would have had to have given me a more detailed answer to his occasional accidents.
Buying a used car can be a fun experience. Even though it is not new, it is still a new car to you! But you do need to take some precautions and make sure that you get a good deal on your car. There is nothing worse then owning a car for a few months and then finding out there are serious problems. Do you homework and have fun!
About the Author:
If you are in the previously owned car market then check out http://findhotcars.com where you will find a huge selection of previously owned cars, they also have many hard to find in a Used Luxury Car at good prices.
posted by Frank Potter at 10:04 PM
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