Guides / Buying and selling
Buying a used car without regrets
Most used-car regret comes from skipping a step: falling for a car before checking its history, or agreeing a price before an independent mechanic has looked at it. Doing things in order fixes most of that.
What to know
- Set the all-in budget first
- Decide what you can spend per month on the payment, insurance, fuel and maintenance together, not just the price of the car.
- Research reliability
- Look up reliability and common problems for the model and year you're considering before you shop.
- Run the VIN
- Check open recalls with the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup, and get a vehicle history report. The government-approved NMVTIS providers listed at vehiclehistory.gov can show title brands like salvage or flood.
- Read the Buyers Guide
- The FTC's Used Car Rule requires dealers to post a Buyers Guide on most used cars, saying whether it's sold "as is" or with a warranty. That information becomes part of your contract.
- Pay for an independent inspection
- Have a mechanic you choose inspect the car before you buy. If a seller won't allow it, walk away.
- Negotiate the price, then the rest
- Agree the out-the-door price first, then talk about financing and trade-in separately.
Questions to ask
- Can I take it to my own mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection?
- What is the out-the-door price, including all fees and taxes?
- Do you have the service records and both keys?
Where to check
- NHTSA recall lookup
- Check open safety recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
- vehiclehistory.gov
- The official NMVTIS site listing approved vehicle history report providers.
- FTC: buying a used car
- Your rights and the Buyers Guide at consumer.ftc.gov.
General information for US drivers, not financial, legal or mechanical advice for your situation. Consumer protection, title and lemon laws vary by state. The Nickel Stretcher isn't paid by any dealer, lender, insurer or brand mentioned here.