How to bargain when buying a car from your hands: 10 tips from experienced drivers

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Double-check the information and do not be afraid to seem boring. Life hacker and - about how to properly talk with the owner of your future car.

1. Estimate the bargaining space

Leaving the car dealership, the car loses up to 20% of the cost. And after 100 thousand kilometers, it becomes cheaper faster. It's easy to explain: manufacturers often offer a warranty either for 3-5 years of operation, or for this mileage, whichever comes first.

If the car is not under warranty, then all damage caused by wear and tear will have to be repaired at your own expense. Bargaining over this is a must.

Scratches, chips and other defects also lead to lower prices. Any repair, even cosmetic, is a reason for bargaining. By the way, if you decide to sell your car in the future, they will also bargain with you for every scratch.

There are many advantages to buying a used car - for example, a huge selection base. We have collected hundreds of thousands of ads from all over Russia. Advertisements in the service are subject to verification of documents: if next to the car you see the mark "Owner", you can be sure that the car is being sold by its real owner. In addition, the service tells customers how fair the used car is. Good Price and Great Price badges are based on big data analysis and machine parameter calculations.

2. Ask the owner about the condition of the car

Check with the owner where the car was stored before purchasing. Agree, if the car was parked in the garage at night, and in the daytime in an open parking lot or near the curb, then this is not exactly "garage storage".

Look in the service book and find out where the machine was serviced. For relatively fresh models (up to 5–7 years of production), information about arrivals to authorized services can usually be checked by the numbers of work orders.

And feel free to peer at the seals and signatures in the service book. This document is being forged more and more often, and the same marks and handwriting are suspicious.

Ask for a ride: if the owner does not drive very carefully, overgasses, brakes sharply at the last moment, breaks the rules, this could not but affect the condition of the car.

Check where the parts were bought. Low-cost counterparts instead of original parts often lead to sudden breakdowns.

Most importantly, don't hesitate to ask seemingly stupid questions and ask again. If the owner is "confused in the readings", it is better to refuse the purchase.

3. Take a look at several cars of this model

Different representatives of the same model range may have different handling, responsiveness, and acceleration. The reasons are different: for example, it's time to replace consumables or individual components.

Therefore, it is worth watching as many cars as possible. This will help you understand if the model is generally right for you, or if you need to try something different.

In addition, the equipment package affects the perception of the car. Understand which options are important to you right now, and for which you are not yet ready to overpay.

4. Look at the condition under the hood of the car

Washing the engine and cleaning the engine compartment before selling may indicate a recent major repair. Or about the need for a full-fledged maintenance - if everything has been washed under the hood to hide the traces of leaking fluids.

A car that is driven regularly will not be sterile under the hood. Of course, there are car owners who advocate regular engine washing. But since this process is fraught with risks - from a closed wiring or flooded candles to a water hammer, then no one will wash it under the hood again.

It is helpful to talk to the owner and then ask him to rearrange the car. If process fluids are leaking, you will immediately notice it from the stains.

Look at the side members as well - this is the basis of the design of any car. If they were boiled or bent, it means that the car was either in a major accident, or was stored in dampness - and the metal simply collapsed due to corrosion.

An endoscope camera that connects to a smartphone is useful when examining the engine compartment. Such a gadget costs up to a thousand rubles, and it will help to save much more. Of course, from a video from such a camera, a non-specialist is unlikely to understand whether there are scuffs on the engine cylinders, but he will be able to see fluid streaks or traces of welding.

5. Check the condition of the body

Start with the gaps: they should be symmetrical. Problems can often be seen already in the photo: if the hood is skewed, the fenders are straightened, and the struts are pulled out, the gaps will be uneven. A full report on geometry can be given by a specialized service station.

Thickness gauge - a device that will help you find traces of tint and putty. You can buy it for 2-3 thousand rubles or rent it. Normally, the thickness of the factory paint layer over the metal is 75–160 microns. This indicator may differ from model to model. But if the thickness gauge shows more than 500-600 microns, it means that the part was painted and putty.

Scratches or small dents on the bumpers and fenders are not a problem, but a reason to bargain. But if several parts are painted side by side at once, this is a potential sign of a major accident.

Check also the stickers or labels on the glass. The numbers on them must be the same (at least on the side ones - on the back and frontal letters and numbers may differ). The year of glass production must coincide with the year of car production.

6. Inspect the salon

Before selling, the mileage is often rolled up. But by indirect signs, one can understand that the car has traveled more than one hundred thousand kilometers.

First of all, pay attention to scuffs on the steering wheel, gear lever, driver's seat, pedal pads.

If the car was used in a taxi, the front passenger seat would be badly worn. Also, the door on the right side will open even easier than the driver's.

Of course, on relatively expensive cars, the salon is often altered before being sold, the steering wheel is updated, and the plastic is polished. So if you get into a brand new car without a single scratch, and the odometer reads at least 10-20 thousand kilometers, be alert.

Pay attention to the plastic gaps on the dashboard and on the steering wheel. If it looks like some parts have been replaced, there is a risk that the airbags were firing - which means the car was in a serious head-on collision.

Finally, fold back the seals around the doors and in the trunk. There it is easy to notice a different paint tone (if the car was repainted) or scratches on the bolts (if it was disassembled). Elastic bands fold back quickly, without special tools and without marks. If the owner forbids doing this, he may be hiding something.

7. Learn the history of the car

You cannot re-register a car that is listed in theft, is material evidence, including in the case of an accident, is under arrest or a ban on registration actions. Before making a deal, you should definitely check all this.

It would also be nice to find out how many owners the car had, whether it had an accident, whether it underwent routine maintenance, whether it was recognized as "total", as well as what repairs were carried out on it and how the mileage changed. The more you learn about the car, the more confident you will feel - and the more reasons you will have to lower the price.

You can get the car history with the service. You just need to know the VIN-code of the car or its license plate. The service will collect information about repairs from open sources and from partners with a detailed listing of operations and tell you whether the car has become a participant in an accident. Thanks to the Autotek, you can also get information about maintenance from authorized dealers, passed by the car. The service will warn you if the car is listed as a bond or has been subject to judicial restrictions. He also checks the use of the car as a taxi or car sharing.

8. Verify the identification numbers

Check the number of the engine and body with the data specified in the TCP. This will exclude the possibility of buying a "double": when, according to the documents of one car, another is sold, but of the same model and color. It happens that the TCP is stolen and then stolen, or a car is illegally imported under it. The buyer of such a car, of course, will have problems.

Of course, most often the body number and VIN are interrupted in this case. This can be seen by burrs on the metal, uneven numbers or weld marks around.

It is good if the owner has the original TCP in his hands. When a car is sold as a duplicate, there are several options. If a duplicate was issued instead of a recycled one, then the original was either accidentally spoiled, or there was no more space for specifying the owners: the car often changed hands or changed several salons.

If the duplicate was issued due to the loss of the original and the date on the document is fresh, be careful. Situations are not uncommon when the car is on credit or pledge, and the original PTS is kept in the bank. The borrower receives a duplicate from the traffic police and resells the car on it - along with obligations for a loan or pledge. During registration, this is not checked, and the bank can pick up the car at any time, because you, not knowing about the debt, do not repay it.

Finally, intermediaries often do not re-register the car for themselves, so as not to pay fines from automatic fixation cameras. When the owner receives a "letter of happiness" for a large amount, he can write an application to terminate registration in connection with the disposal of the car. And you will not be able to register the car.

9. Take the car for diagnostics

Even if everything seems perfect, do not skimp on a full-fledged check of the car in a service - better in an official or an authorized one. Here, specialists will be able to take data on the mileage in all blocks and compare them with those indicated in the documents. And also check the most problematic parts, tell what kind of service the car needs and how much it will cost.

An adequate owner will not object to diagnostics, especially since the future buyer traditionally pays for it. And a person who has something to hide will either offer to go exclusively to his service, or flatly refuse to check.

Finally, one more tip: take a picture of the vehicle title, VIN and body number during diagnostics. So you can be sure that you will buy exactly the car that you checked.

10. Be careful during the transaction

It happens that one person showed you the car (supposedly a relative, and most likely an intermediary), and another person is present at the transaction. Documents can also be changed - and you will give money for a completely different car that you watched.

That is why it is worth checking everything again before making a deal. A person who is not trying to deceive you will react to this with understanding.

Finally, be sure to indicate the full amount of the transaction in the sales contract. If you lower it in order to pay a lower amount of fees, then in case of problems with the car, it will be extremely difficult for you to get all the money back. Fraudsters, of course, are aware of such schemes and often use them.