Getting your first car in high school is really exciting because it means you can start having the freedom of driving anywhere you want. But for a lot of teenagers, it can be hard to figure out how to buy a used car from a person instead of a dealer.
I saved for 2 years working with my dad roofing and uncle’s moving company to make money. I saved $200-400 every time I got paid. After two years, I saved up $5000 and decided it was time to start looking.
I looked around for 2 months trying to find cars that were in my price range. It was pretty hard trying to find cars, either there was nothing in my price range or people wouldn’t want to negotiate.
Finally, I was able to find a couple of cars within my budget. One was a 2004 4 door Ford F-150 that was priced at $4,600 with 118,000 miles and the other was a 1998 4 door Honda Civic for $3,000 with 149,000 miles.
I went to check out the Honda on the first Sunday of May with my dad. my thoughts were that it was nice, not too beat up, but it had some small dents. The interior was ok, it had some stains on the seats and it was missing some floor mats. The deal breaker was the engine. It had a knocking that was super loud and my dad told me it had a rod knock and it had build up of oil in some parts of the engine, so we decided not to give an offer to the guy..
The following Friday, we went to check out the F-150. We liked what we saw and made him an offer and he took the offer Sunday. I had offered $4,300, which was less than what he was asking and now I have a truck to call my own..
Purchasing a secondhand car from a private party can save money, but it has some dangers. It’s important to do a lot of research on the type of car you want to make sure it is known for being reliable. Search for problems that often happen with that car and see if there have been any recalls or big fixes reported.
The steps used I checked on the posts, looked at the description of the cars, read them and then used a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) decoder and used Carfax, Kelley Blue Book, Auto Check.com to see the vehicle’s history to see if they were listing everything on the description.
The biggest step is to look at the car in person with your dad or any family member and a mechanic. Pay attention to any signs that show the item is old or damaged, like rust, dents, or strange smells. These signs may mean that the item has not been taken care of or was damaged in the past.
Drive each car to see how well it works and if it is in good condition. Ask the person selling the car about its maintenance history, if it has been in any accidents or had repairs done, and why they are selling it.
Some sellers may tell you everything, but others might hide problems with cars that have a low cost but high mileage. A car that has 120,000-200,000 miles and is going for $2,800 or more and it presents a greater risk than a car that might be twice the price, but have half the mileage..
It’s very important to get a mechanic or someone in your family that knows a lot about cars you trust to check the car before you buy it. A thorough check by a professional can find problems with the car that you might not notice when you test drive it. This can give you assurance that the car is in good condition and might help you avoid costly repairs in the future. Getting a pre-purchase inspection for a car may cost money at first, but it’s a good idea to make sure the car is in good condition and worth buying.
