Buying a car is no simple task. You’re not going out to buy a nice new shirt or a quality bottle of wine. You’re potentially going to be putting down thousands of dollars to buy yourself a new vehicle. They aren’t cheap, and when they are, they’re often riddled with issues that’ll accrue repair costs.
Some of the easiest ways you can look for cars is by searching for “used cars for sale near me” online, but be sure you know what types of cars you’re looking for before you seek anything out. Here are a few tips for any new car buyers so they find the right vehicle for themselves.
List and rank your priorities
The first thing you want to do before going to a car lot is listing and ranking your priorities for a vehicle. There are often common priorities that people have in regards to a car (like if it’s all-wheel or only two-wheel drive) but many people have their own specific needs depending on where they live and what they do for work.
Listing all of your priorities for what you want in a new or used car and then ranking them in order from most important to least will help you determine which cars will best fit your needs.
Do your research
After ranking your priorities, start doing some online research on for-sale cars in your area. If you’re looking to buy new, you’ll want to consult the dealership’s website. And if you’re thinking about getting a used car, there are countless websites devoted to posting information about used cars being sold independently and by dealers.
Review both of these avenues and bookmark these pages online. Then make a plan to visit each car you deem worthy of test driving.
Get the car inspected
After you’ve found a car or two that you really like, ask the dealer or owner to take the car to be inspected. Though the car may look and feel great when you test drive it, there may be internal issues that you just can’t see or comprehend with your level of car knowledge. Getting a car inspected ensures that you aren’t accidentally buying a flood car or one with mold in the cabin air filter.
The information the inspection gives you can help you to decide whether or not you want the vehicle or if you can ultimately talk down the price with the seller. Not to mention, the average cost of an inspection is about $100, so you’d be saving yourself hundreds in later repairs.
Weigh your pros and cons
After checking out each of your finalists, weigh the pros and cons that come with each potential purchase. Make a pros and cons list for each vehicle and then compare them. If one car you like is cheaper but only requires some extra industrial carbide wear parts made in Michigan, you might be saving money compared to buying a newer vehicle.
But if the cheaper purchase needs an entirely new engine, you’re better off buying the newer and more expensive car. Weigh these pluses and negatives to see which buy will ultimately benefit you the most.
Make an offer
And, of course, the last step would be for you to make an offer. If you’re working with a dealership, don’t go with the price they’re trying to sell you on. Oftentimes, car dealers add unnecessary fees to the purchase that seem important but really equate to nothing. Sometimes it’ll come in the form of a warranty, but most cars under 100,000 miles are still under warranty with the maker of the vehicle.
Don’t be afraid to call out some of these fees, question the dealer, or threaten to walk out. If you go near the end of the month, when Dodge Truck dealers are trying to meet monthly quotas, you can really work the dealer into accepting a price that fits your financial needs.
