Used Car?

[senatorsmith85]

So I'm a creature of urban America and moving to the 'burbs for grad school. I've been told by multiple people that I'll enjoy my life much more if I have a car. I'm one of those ppl who really doesn't care at all about his car as long as it doesn't break down and it doesn't smell. So I should obviously get a used car.

The thing is, I don't know the first thing about where or how I buy one. I'd like it to be cheap, but obviously don't want a lemon (that becomes more expensive in the end). I wouldn't care if it lasts beyond my two years (when I escape safely to a non-car city) and wouldn't drive very far with it--mostly 15-20 minute trips to random ethnic restaurants, Costco, and the grocery store.

Anybody have suggestions of where the best place to do that is? Craigslist? Is there a website? Any sort of certificate I should look for that it's in fine shape? Any and all suggestions appreciated.

[Azrou]

Craigslist and Autotrader.com are good places to look. You can also just check out your newspaper's classifieds since you don't care what model you get.

http://www.edmunds.com/used-cars/ will give you a lot of info once you have a candidate. You can check on its blue book value to see if they are asking a fair price. For example it tells me that a 2000 Honda Accord sedan with 120k miles sells for about $3000 in DC from a private party. Edmunds is the most reliable blue book IMO (compared to NADA and Kelley). One thing to keep in mind is that the small, lesser-known used car lots are basically like private sellers. They aren't going to offer any warranty, purchase protection, etc and aren't concerned about protecting their reputation as much as a large dealer would be. A recent model year (within the last 5) may be certified by a large dealer.

Never purchase a car without getting it inspected by a mechanic. The cost for that can be anywhere from $100+ (from a dealer) to free (look up reputable mechanics in your area who specialize in that make of car and call them to ask how much they charge). Just remember than when buying any used car, especially one that is 10+ years old, it is always going to have some problems. Good luck!

[OregonGal]

Also, though I guess this won't matter as much if you're just taking short trips in it and won't need it to last 10 years, when you're thinking about costs also consider insurance and gas. There are a lot of calculators out there for insurance and taxes, and keep the expected mpg of the car in mind--a car that has 20 mpg vs 35 mpg will cost you a LOT in the long run with today's gas prices.

[Eigen]

My suggestion: Get a small pickup (Ford Ranger, etc). They're light on frills, but get decent gas milage, are pretty common in rural areas, are mechanically sound, and most of all, are usually pretty cheap.

[ktel]

Start asking friends and family. I got my used car for $2000 from a friend of a friend, a very nice father and retired police man, who went out of his way to make sure the car was safe before selling it to me. He even put on a new set of tires before I got it. The car is still going, I sold it to my brother's friend after 3 years

[yo_yo86]

Below is a good link where you can look up fuel economy of nearly all cars (including a Rolls-Royce Phantom):

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/bymakemodelNF.shtml