Used Car Buying Tips- Never Buy a Lemon

How to Buy a Used Car… and Still Sleep Well at Night

Automobile dealerships obtain vehicles from three sources:

1. All new vehicles are purchased by the dealer directly from the manufacturer.

2. All used vehicles for resell are obtained from the dealers sold customer database or their current
service clients.

3. Auctions. 1) Factory Sponsored. or…..2.) Tier Two Auction Houses.

All new cars are purchased directly from the manufacturer. The dealer is the distributor. There is no direct purchase available to the public. You have to go through a dealer.

There are only two sources for pre-owned vehicles in today’s market.

Your First choice is your # 1 best source to purchase a used or preowned vehicle.

Dealer direct. This means the vehicle was obtained via a trade-in from a current client/ customer of the dealer. This is you best source for obtaining a worry free used car, truck or SUV. This is not 100% true all of the time as a few lemons over the course of the year will slip through. But 99% of the time this is your best bet.

Why Go With Dealer Direct?

A.) You know who drove the car before you did. The dealer can supply you the name, address and contact information of the previous owner. Call them and talk to them first hand.
B.) A lot of the time the car was serviced at the same dealership and all of the service and maintenance records are available. You will have a service history on the vehicle. (Did they change the oil every 3,000 miles?) Now that is peace of mind..isn’t it ?
C.) Who was the primary driver? How was the car driven. Was it a soccer mom or the little old lady from Pasadena?
D.) How many actual miles are on the vehicle.

The second and least desirable source of used vehicles are those purchased at auctions.

Remember there are two types of automobile auctions.

1.) Factory Sponsored Auctions
2.) Tier Two Auction Houses

First Factory Sponsored Auctions:
Pros: Sometimes the dealer can pick up an occasional “program or executive car”
loaded with all the “goodies” that you can purchase at a steep discount.
Cons: Factory sponsored auctions are dumping grounds for rental fleet vehicles.
The problem with rental cars is how many people have driven this vehicle who perhaps drove it for a hundred miles before they released the parking brake…or drove it for two days in low gear almost burning up the transmission!!??…There are actually too many “rental car horror stories” to mention here. You know what I mean?

Tier Two Auction Houses:

Pro: There are none.
Cons: Where do you think all of the flood damaged, fire damaged, or wrecked vehicles are disposed of? There are markets for these vehicles, but most are overseas.Vehicles that are sold and purchased at these auctions have failed to attract buyers from retail dealerships for the aforementioned reasons.

A few, well managed automobile dealers rely on new car trade-ins as their sole source of good, clean pre-owned cars. These are the dealers you want to do business with.

Other dealers are forced to buy their pre-owned vehicles at some type of auction. These dealers have no idea who drove the car, or how many different people have set behind the wheel. Also they are clueless as to the maintenance, care and service history, if it has been in an accident or has been in a flood.

To get the best used vehicles available on the market visit a dealer who does not depend on vehicle auctions houses for their used car inventory inventory. This dealer will specialize in purchasing or taking vehicles in on trade from their current customers. You will receive the following benefits
with every purchase: The complete service truth of the pre-owned vehicle, the name and address of the previous owners, the actual miles it has been driven, who was the primary driver, service records and a complete maintenance review.

Ask yourself who would you rather buy a car from?

You deserve a good night’s sleep.

For more information please contact Brad Doenges of Doenges Ford Lincoln Mercury Toyota in Bartlesville Oklahoma at (918) 333-0900.

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