|
Take a lesson in history when buying a used car
(ARA) - Like many other Americans, if you're in the market for a car,
you have reviewed your options and decided that buying used is the best
value for your money in the current economy. Perhaps you've
already researched the make, model, style and options that best suit
you. You may have even checked with your bank and other lenders to
evaluate your financing options. You're ready to buy…or are you?
While you know in general how much you want to pay and what features
you want, it's the specific car's vehicle history that can make all the
difference. You may have heard about vehicle history reports and you
may already know that they are a good idea, but are they really worth
the money? And once you buy one, how can you be sure you understand all
the information on it?
"You should physically examine a vehicle yourself if possible and
always have a mechanic inspect it. However, this doesn't always tell
you everything there is to know about that vehicle," says Len Sims,
vice president of operations for NADA Appraisal Guides. "If you buy a
used car without a vehicle history report, you could be buying a
vehicle with safety issues or other serious issues, in which you could
end up in a spider web of declining value."
If you're still unsure of the value of a vehicle history report,
consider these facts:
* Many dealers use vehicle history reports to check their used vehicles
before they are sold to make sure they are safe and reliable. A
significant number of dealers also offer, at no cost, vehicle history
reports on the cars they sell.
* Many used vehicles in the United States are bought and sold at
wholesale auctions before arriving on dealers' lots and the dealers use
vehicle history reports as a determining factor when deciding which
autos to buy at auction.
* Many auto dealers and online marketplaces offer free reports on
listed vehicles. Some even encourage you to purchase and
review a report on the vehicle you're seriously considering, even if
they are not the ones selling it.
Once you've made a vehicle history report part of your used-car
research, the next step is to understand all the information in the
report. While much of the information in a vehicle history report is
straightforward, there may be terms and items you aren't familiar
with.
A good vehicle report will help explain all the terms and events in a
vehicle's history and give you more information on whether the events
in that history might ultimately affect the safety and reliability of
your vehicle. When reviewing a vehicle history report, look
for the following:
* A summary that gives you a brief overview of the information
contained on the report, including identifying vehicle information,
number of owners, number of reported accidents and information on the
title, odometer and vehicle events.
* A vehicle history score. To date, only Experian's AutoCheck provides
this. Known as the AutoCheck Score, this number works like a credit
score and boils down the vehicle's history into an easy-to-understand
number. The AutoCheck Score also provides a number range representing a
comparison against vehicles of a similar age and class. This allows you
to quickly and easily evaluate a vehicle's history using a more
relevant, apples-to-apples comparison. And the score was
developed by Experian, a company with a long history of expertise in
making complicated information easier to understand.
* Title check. A title check alerts you of whether the title has been
branded. States assign title brands to specific vehicles to
alert potential customers of past problems. Examples of such
problems include an accident that results in a total loss declaration
or a vehicle that qualifies as a lemon under that state's lemon laws.
This section will also help you discern if a title may have been
"washed," a process that happens when a title is branded in one state
and then declared as clean in another state. For example, a
vehicle that has a salvage title in one state can sometimes be
purchased, repaired, taken to another state, and re-titled there
without the salvage designation.
* Problem check. This section will tell you if the vehicle was reported
to have been announced as frame damaged at a wholesale auction, sold at
salvage auction or seen at a recycling facility.
* Odometer check. Reports collect odometer reading information from
many data sources, including state titles, auctions and dealerships.
This information can alert you if the vehicle has had its odometer
rolled back.
* Use and event check. If the vehicle was used as a company, rental or
fleet car, or as a taxi or police car, that information will appear
here. This section will also summarize any accidents reported on the
vehicle.
* Full history. The complete reported history of the vehicle is listed
in chronological order so you can see when accidents, maintenance
events, title transfers and other events were reported.
More than one company offers vehicle history reports, so it's important
to use a report that puts the important information you need into an
easy-to-understand format. Visit www.AutoCheck.com to learn more.
"In this economy, buying a good used vehicle can be a very wise way to
get a great car for a lot less money," says Sims. "A vehicle history
report with easy-to-understand information can help you purchase a
vehicle that will serve you well for years to come."
Courtesy of ARAcontent
To see a wide range of classic cars for sale, click on this Link
|
|
