believe it or not, 6-8k is a lot of money... u can get a lot of different cars in that range... it really is amazing haha... don't be afraid to look up cars that u thought were out of ur range... Preludes are decent... i personally am not all that fond of the H22... my friend swears by it... he picked it over a GSR swap... to each his own I guess... Bimmers, in terms of maint... really depends on which model and year... research is key... yes they're more expensive to maintain, but u get what u pay for... they just beg to be driven... dunno how it works in Canada, so I'm not gonna even try -tongue2 and usually u call up the guy that has the car for sale... u ask whatever questions u think are necessary b4 u look at the car... i mean i wouldn't want to waste a day looking at a pos... so ask questions about the car, then if it sounds good, ask to set up a date for test drive and to take a look over the car... best is to set up a meeting at a gas station, or somewhere very well lit with people around, you can never be too careful and it works in favor for both parties... if you decide to buy it... have the owner go with you to the DMV(or the canadian equiv) to deal with the paper work... I would always go with the owner together just to cover urself from fraud or something like that.. o and fearless, E36 3 series' get to be about $3k around here -tongue2
hahaha well canadians get boned on most vehicle purchases. im paying 39 thousand for my lexus, wheras in the states the equivalent model would be about 31 OTD if u bargained. its a good thing im baller
m3s... 2006 is about 130k 2002 its about 80k 1994 is 30k >.< i feel so rorted... s2k 2000 model is still about 35k =( fearless u should buy a couple and send them to me!!
lol get AOES to do it, 16 thousand for an S2K is a fuken steal, i would have one as my summer car for sure
haha what cars would u recommend? im just lookin for something reliable and looks decent.. dont really have much use for power around here anyways. o yea and it wouldnt hurt if it drives good in snow =)
get the car checked by a professional and check to make sure it ain't stolen or no money is owed on it. if you get a Honda, try and get one with a VTEC engine as they can be fun. @fearless...... is it hard to get hold of VTEC solenoids?
honda is pretty good.. but if your getting a cheapie honda civic get a ex model talking about 92-05 civics.. only ex model has vtec.. acura integra.. only gsr has vtec? or something like that rs and ls models dont have vtec engine...
Personal experience, whenever I buy or friend buy a used car, we test it ourselves first, then if we think it's okay, we call a professional mechanic to do a check of the car. We then get sent a detailed 5 page report on the condition of the car. Worth the money to get it checked. As for a new car, only real thing you need to be aware of is if the price is good and you like the car. Since it's new, it has warranty, so nothing to fear... Buying the car is only the first step, there's also maintenance cost and insurance. Different cars cost different to keep....
u take it to the shop and they'll run the basic compression, cylinder leak, etc tests to make sure the car is running well.. since u mentioned you are a first year(assuming college/uni) and the dreaded "snow"... anything that's a hatchback and front wheel drive(YES I SAID FWD plz don't shoot me! =P)... i personally like the Yaris hatches in Canada, although i have no idea how much they are... and all the Vtec guys... Vtec Just kicked in YO!
an easy way to check out if the car was in a serious accident is to check the space between the plates. like the hood and the sidebumper. if the space between it isnt parallel (check the other side too) then you should know whats up. some windows are poorly reset into the car after a accident. look at the narrows for inconsistent work. in rare cases you can hear glass still inside a door if you open and close it hard. deals that are too good to be true cant be good. buy at a RECOGNIZED dealership if possible. personal buys can be tricky. i dont know what the deal is in the states but here if they set back milage here then afterwards you can see the numbers not going synchronally with other numbers. XXXXX and one number is lower then the other. check the steeringcase and surroundings if you can see if it was messed with. but then again usually experts can see traces of opening and scratches. go check out a car in daylight . seems like common sense but hey... always test drive and push it to the limit. dont get caught though. it cant be too good if it shakes like crazy at fairly average speed. listen to the engine if its going fluent and go steadily faster. if you hear disruptencies, dont buy. i know you american bustas usually drive automatic but if you are going to buy stick then you should use all accelerations during test drive. if it doesnt go smooth or without cracking then you should not buy or let them fix, replace or add some oil to it. then again i hope you can drive stick. drive at average city speed on a straight road and let your car loose. see if its goes straight or heels to one side . if it doesnt go straight you probably hit something, so you dont have to buy that car. if you are driving stick put it in second gear drive normal and then let the rpm go low, then hit the gas and see how the fumes look like. or let your friends check it out by sticking their head out of the car -dead. if its black dont buy. if its a different color dont buy either. it has to be somehow clear in a way. but i dont know what kind of gas you are using in the states. more or less lead. so if it aint normal then try another car. there are prob a lot more tips but this is the not casual shiznit for you to use. just buy a new 6 series BMW. no hassle.
In Australia, the mechanic goes to the car that's for sale. You do not have to buy it yet. Probably similar to the "Red Report" here: http://www.automobileinspections.com/ So yeah, I suggest most people that buy a used car to get a mechanic to inspect the car and give you a report. Usually people that sell their cars would get a report done too, but that would be for their own records. What car are you thinking of getting?
