Buying a new car is the second most expensive purchase most people will make. Every year manufacturers churn out better looking cars with the latest and greatest gadgets. It's very tempting to buy a new car, especially in the fall when dealers slash their prices to make room for next year's inventory. A new car is good for your soul but bad on your wallet.
Since new car prices keeps increasing year after year while our salaries seem to remain ever stagnant, it's wise for most of us to buy used. The good news is that it's a buyers market in the used car universe. Dealers are always anxious to free up their inventory and buying from a private party will save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars compared to buying from a dealer.
What kind of cheap cars can you buy for a few grand? There are tons of cars out there that can be bought for cheap Autoankauf Osnabrück. My favorite car is the Nissan Maxima. A fully loaded 1998 Maxima with leather and Bose stereo can be bought for three grand. The good thing about the Maxima is that the car uses a timing chain rather than a timing belt. This means that you never have to replace it. Most cars need a timing belt replacement every 80K miles or so.
My second favorite car in the 3K range is the 1996 Honda Civic four door with manual transmission. It's a Honda, need I say more? It delivers impressive fuel economy and is a blast to drive. But the problem with old Hondas is that it's hard to find one that hasn't been souped up by teenagers. Try to find one that is completely stock.
I recommend eBay when buying used cars but only if the seller is local to you. I can't believe many people are willing to pay thousands of dollars for a car they haven't looked at in person. Local newspaper ads are also a good way to find cheap cars. I recommend not going to auctions. Most cars can't be test driven in an auction so it is truly buyer beware.
Once you've located a car it's time to do a little history digging. Get a carfax report and make sure the car doesn't have any history of accidents or water damage. This will save you a lot of headaches down the road. No matter how nice and clean a car may look, one will truly never know about the history of a car unless you get a carfax report.
If everything comes back clear, contact the seller and arrange for a test drive. Meet early in the morning when the weather is cool. Make sure you tell the owner not to start the car before you arrive. A car with problems will be harder to start when the engine is cold.