How i got hosed by a local dealer

[JTK]

Stephen, if nothing else, it's a lesson learned for you Brother!

Given you paid for the car up front in full, you should have never left the lot without having the vehicle's title in your hand!

For all you know, they could be selling you a vehicle that wasn't theirs to sell. Happened to a neighbor of mine with a ~$50K motorhome. You wanna talk about ugly..

Joel

 

[yonyon]

These el-cheapo used car dealers specialise in auction specials. Auction specials are always broken. Don't buy an auction car expecting to just drive it. It will need at least $2500 worth of repairs or it wouldn't have made it to auction without being bought by a worker. There are no exceptions. To keep the operation running the dealer usually has to charge about double the private sale price of a roughly equivalent car. If you don't want to take a chance on a private sale car that will probably be a better deal but might be completely worthless, a junkyard is a much better bet (for both quality and price) in that price range and they won't F with you on the title. Yes, some junkyards actually sell decent used cars that are already roadworthy. New car dealerships almost always have better quality used cars but the price is going to be higher. They are selling these cars to make money but don't want to risk their name by selling garbage. The garbage goes to auction.

 

[SteveSRT8]

Originally Posted By: Cujet
You cannot expect to spend nothing, do no effort and get world class reliability.


This is world class advice here. Experience teaches us well.

And I might add that saying ALL auction cars are broken is a bit off the mark. Some of us need to attend different auctions and broaden our views a bit.

 

[Rock_Hudstone]

Originally Posted By: fisher83
+1 for private owners. Not only do you usually get a better car, you also get a better deal. A $3k car from a dealer is really just a $1500 car that's marked up 50% anyway.

Most of the private owner sales I've come across the days are asking more or less top dollar.

They go on Autotader.com, see what dealers are getting for full retail, knock a few hundred $ off, and thats their price.

To make matters worse, its always a cash deal, no warranty, (implied or otherwise), financing, or CC cards accepted, and you still have to pay sales tax at the DMV when you go to title and register.