“You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious." ― Obi-Wan Kenobi
Though aimed at Mos Eisley Spaceport, Obi-Wan might as well have been describing the current used car market in America (yes, I am a mega Star Wars fan… originals only, though). Easily half of the used car ads I have seen this month on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist are either scams or, at a minimum, grossly dishonest. Increasing prices and dwindling supply have drawn countless crooks to the market to make an easy buck off of unsuspecting and uninformed buyers. DO NOT BECOME ANOTHER VICTIM. OnRamp is here to educate and prepare you to find and buy a reliable vehicle from an honest seller.
First, please watch our short (just five minutes) YouTube video on this topic. Share this with anyone you know looking to buy a used car. And please like and subscribe to get additional videos in the future on similar subjects.
If you prefer to get this information in written form rather than video, here it is as an article in English. And in Spanish.
Second, when you’re ready to check out a used car you might want to purchase, please print and take with you our detailed inspection checklist (HERE). It will walk you through all the steps to properly inspect a vehicle’s paperwork, interior, exterior, and underside, and will help you perform a rigorous test-drive. Following these steps can save you a LOT of pain in the future!
Finally, let me give you a few pointers about finding a RELIABLE car or SUV. In general, you’ll want to avoid any of the following:
A vehicle with a salvage or rebuilt title - it’s not even worth your time to look at!
A vehicle that was flooded - you will be fighting electrical and computer gremlins forever, and have no idea when rust or corrosion will show up
A vehicle that had an accident bad enough to deploy the airbags - that’s a serious accident, could compromise future safety and performance
A vehicle that spent any time in salt up in the Midwest or North East - salt causes rust and that can destroy a car quickly
A 4WD or AWD vehicle unless you really need it for snow, ice, or off-road conditions – these are more complex and costly to maintain than two-wheel drive vehicles
A hybrid vehicle unless you really need super-high gas mileage – hybrids have double the complexity (they contain all the parts of a gas-powered car and an electric-powered car)
A fully electric vehicle – until battery and electronics prices come down significantly, these are simply too expensive to fix
What about mileage? How many miles is too many? That totally depends on the make, model, maintenance, current condition, and type of mileage driven. For example, a Toyota Corolla that has been well maintained (oil changes and schedules maintenance done consistently) with 175,000 mostly highway miles is likely more reliable (and therefore more valuable) than a 100,000 mile Chevy Cruz that’s been poorly maintained or used mostly for city commuting (which is much harder on an engine). A Chevy Cruz is not likely to pass 150k miles in best circumstances based on our experience. Add in poor maintenance or hard use and it’s likely on it’s way to salvage. In contrast, a well-maintained Corolla can easily hit a quarter-million miles. So miles on the odometer matters LESS than make, model, maintenance history, current condition, and type of mileage driven.
And now for a bonus: if you really want a reliable vehicle, please consider Toyota and Honda. Corollas, Camrys, Civics, and Accords are generally the most reliable vehicles we’ve ever bought. Now there are ALWAYS exceptions. There are a few 07-11 Camrys and 2012 Honda Odysseys with bad motors due to manufacturing problems. So do your research and pay for a pre-purchase inspection. But in general, it is hard to go wrong with Toyota and Honda products. Want to wrap up the used-car buying process as fast as possible? Just buy a Corolla and be done with it!!
