https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Thu, 30 Apr 2026 20:41:07 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2587027 Fri, 15 Jul 2016 15:59:08 +0000 NCSUchick27 2587027@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MUI831: We used the Costco Auto Program to buy our new Hyundai Elantra, and we were pretty happy with it. We got a decent deal with almost zero negotiating. We were in and out in just a few hours, which is pretty good. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2587019 Fri, 15 Jul 2016 15:49:18 +0000 808love 2587019@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We bought our last two cars off of Craigslist and got great deals, 3-4 thousand below blue book. We use Edmunds, Kelley Blue Book and carfax to check the title and such.<br /> We have got some negotiation skills or it is all timing and God. After we meet, DH goes right under the car with no eye contact and checks out the car silently for a few minutes. Then we test drive. I ask random questions and list the positives (as I am just like that) and DH is still doing the silent thing. At the end when we get out, I give the non verbal nod and then point at DH. DH states everything that is wrong with the car and gets the seller see the.condition is poorer than listed. The seller brings the car down a notch and we counter. They usually go for it. We lost one car with hesitation but other than that I think we will try again when we get another car. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2586899 Fri, 15 Jul 2016 12:02:01 +0000 Mommy Finger 2586899@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@codeitall: Good point on the taxes and registration fees. I was just thinking this morning about how we need to take that into consideration when coming up with our max budget. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2586895 Fri, 15 Jul 2016 11:49:31 +0000 codeitall 2586895@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'd suggest going in with a written down out-the-door price you want. We found a great deal on a rental car liquidation place (they had 20+ mazda3s right around 60,000 miles, which is our sweet spot), but we got a little blindsided by the sales tax getting added on top of the great price.</p> <p>Something else to consider is checking out cars sold by owner in your local classifieds. They are typically lower in price, and if you know a good mechanic, they can look it over and let you know if there are any red flags.</p> <p>Lastly, don't rely on carfax, we thought our car was perfectly clear, but when we took it into a body shop to get the wheel well fender thing fixed, they showed us a panel that had been replaced along the bottom. It had a slightly different fit and the paint was just a tiny bit different (due to wear differences). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2586234 Thu, 14 Jul 2016 11:05:58 +0000 PeaceLily 2586234@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MUI831: It actually wasn't too difficult. I just told him flat out what we wanted to pay and he told me I was crazy and then he pulled his whole "let me see what I can do for you" thing and came back with $2k under the asking price. I told him I felt like it was still too high, so he came down another $2k and said that was the absolute lowest he could do, so we took it. It was pretty quick and painless.</p> <p>And I totally understand, you definitely don't want a car that reminds you of your horrible ex boss! I don't like watching movies with Jason Bateman in them since my horrible ex boss looks kind of similar to him, so he's ruined forever. :happy: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2586221 Thu, 14 Jul 2016 10:53:10 +0000 Mommy Finger 2586221@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@PeaceLily: Out of curiosity, how did you get him down $4k? I plan on doing my research but when people always say that they were able to get XX off the price, I always wonder how they go about it. And i know it's weird but my ex boss had a Prius and he was a horrible, horrible human being so Prius's are tainted. Makes total sense, right??? :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2586202 Thu, 14 Jul 2016 10:34:37 +0000 PeaceLily 2586202@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I drive a certified pre-owned prius that we bought from the Toyota dealership. I would definitely recommend going to the dealership and make sure it's certified pre-owned.</p> <p>We aren't great at negotiating either, but I got the guy down about $4k, which I suppose isn't bad. </p> <p>I love my prius and it has great gas mileage, but it would probably be a little tight with 2 car seats in the back. There is a larger version of the prius that may work, but not sure it would be under $20k.</p> <p>Good luck! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585653 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 14:04:08 +0000 DesertDreams88 2585653@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We ended up buying a used car from a rental company (Enterprise, I think???). It was 1 year old and had something like 30K-40K miles on it, but was half the price of the same car new. It was a really easy process but my husband handled it so I don't have much more detail. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585641 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:53:49 +0000 skipra 2585641@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We just bought a used car and first step was figuring out a list of possible options and then comparing the specs/ratings. We had a Consumer Reports magazine that was a car issue. Someone gave it to us so I don't know what the issue date is but probably in the last few months. We found that very helpful. US News also seemed to have decent information for researching.<br /> We replaced my SUV but also did a bit of research on replacing DH's commuter car. We liked the idea of a Prius V because it gets great mileage but we could also use it as our car to take longer trips and do things as a family. It may be slightly over your price range though. We currently have a 2007 Corolla and it still is in great condition. It's a tight squeeze with rear facing car seats but should be fine once they are forward facing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585637 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:48:07 +0000 Littlebit7 2585637@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We bought a certified pre owned volkswagen. It had 8K miles on it. Practically new. And got about 40% off what we would have paid for new. And nearly 3 years left on warranty. CPO warranties are great. I have to say though, my husband is a HARD negotiator. He essentially does it at work. He came prepared with a binder full of graphs and charts comparing the other 5 cars in the region with similar specs and tore the poor young sales guy apart. I was sitting in the parking lot alone; haggling make me want to throw up. If I had to do it myself, I would have done CPO and maybe asked for a 15% discount off sticker. I think a good way to go about it is picking a car first, then look for a used one in your region via a dealer. That way you know what the competition is offering in terms of pricing and you can go in fully prepared and armed with that knowledge. If you aren't prepared, I wouldn't expect a *great* deal.</p> <p>ETA: take look at a VW golf (or its sportier cousin, the GTI). You can def hit your goal of under $20K, they are SO fun to drive, get great gas mileage, and the trunk is deceiving. They have some of the largest cargo capacities of small to midsize cars. The back seat is really a nice size. We have a chic next fit in there and you can easily fit two. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585632 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:44:21 +0000 Mommy Finger 2585632@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@yoursilverlining: Great tips on financing! Thanks! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585628 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:42:51 +0000 Mommy Finger 2585628@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Has anyone used the Costco auto program? I know that you can get pre-owned cars through them too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585626 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:42:15 +0000 yoursilverlining 2585626@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Edmunds.com is a good place to do some research, and is an especially good site for pricing research (I’ve found it to be more accurate and easier to use than Kelly Blue Book, but that site is another option). </p> <p>You don’t *have* to negotiate much if you don't want to. What you need to do is determine what your maximum price is, or terms that are deal breakers and just hold firm. Some dealerships have online departments too so you can do everything via email, which is a nice option if you don’t like pressure or confrontation. But really, if you do enough research to know what a fair/good price is and simply stick to that, you shouldn’t have to negotiate a lot – you just need to be able to hold firm and be ready to walk if they won’t meet you. Definitely check the car fax, which a decent dealership should provide you for free on any car they have for sale.</p> <p>A few warnings if you are financing: don’t discuss what monthly payment you would ultimately like. Some dealers will turn the conversation that way because it takes away from both the interest rate charged, the total term of the loan and even the total price you’re paying. Shop around for financing deals. I was preapproved by my credit union but didn’t tell the dealer this. They quoted me 1% above what the credit union offered, so then I told them I was going to finance thru my bank. They suddenly “found” a financing promotion that was less % than what the credit union had offered, and much less than their initial offer. If you have decent credit, leverage that.</p> <p>Many branded dealerships offer “certified used” programs. Some are better than others, so that’s another thing to research. You can also stack additional warranties onto a certified used warranty (at least both with Toyota and Lexus, so I suspect others as well), and I can tell you that for both those car companies the certified warranty is quite good and extensive. You can negotiate the price of the extended warranties, and I would suggest doing so. </p> <p>I’m a big fan of buying certified pre-owned because you get nearly new cars and factory warranties for decent prices. I much prefer doing that to buying new, honestly. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585623 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:38:37 +0000 Mrsbells 2585623@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MUI831: we buy certified pre-owned directly from the dealership. This way you get the best quality, price, mileage and warranty package.<br /> We look for low mileage cars under 30,000 miles. these are usually cars that were leased for a short period and then turned in. They look as good as new but are half the price </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585611 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:29:26 +0000 avivoca 2585611@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I am also shopping for a used car. Our current (only) vehicle was purchased used in 2012. It's a 2011 Nissan Versa. We are searching for vehicles on cars.com to see what's available in our area, checking the safety ratings, and then visiting dealers. We obtained our financing through our bank so we can go in with a set amount that we want to spend and hopefully be in a better place to haggle. </p> <p>I hear good things about the Hyundai Sonata. I tend to stay away from US cars just because in my lifetime we've had a fair amount of lemons from US cars. My Versa is okay as a commuter and in our four years of ownership, we have only had to do two major repairs (brakes and exhaust). Other than that, we replaced the tires once, the battery once, and have done routine maintenance. The Versa Note is not as good and is much smaller.</p> <p>ETA: We rent cars a fair amount due to my husband's job, so when we purchased our Versa, we knew we liked it because we'd taken them on various long trips before. Right now we are looking at Hyundai Santa Fe sports because my husband really likes it and he's driving one for the next two weeks to see how it feels/drives. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585609 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:26:36 +0000 LulaBee 2585609@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We bought a used Subaru Legacy last weekend from a dealer. The last dealer we went to (out of 5) ended up being who we used- they just put bottom dollar price on windshield and leave all cars unlocked. No one followed us around and it was great. Fits 2 rear facing carseats and great gas mileage. It's my third Subaru, and we both love it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/help-me-buy-a-used-car#post-2585605 Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:22:31 +0000 Mommy Finger 2585605@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We have been talking about getting rid of DH's horrible, horrible car and instead getting a nice commuter car with good gas mileage for me as I drive to work and DH takes the train. We already have an SUV. We want to buy a used car for many reasons. The issue is that neither of us have ever purchased a used car and have no idea what the best way is to go about this. We're both horrible at negotiating so I fear we're going to spend way too much on a lemon!</p> <p>Any tips for buying a used car? Go to a dealer or someplace like Carmax?</p> <p>Anyone have any suggestions on a good commuter car that is big enough for 2 car seats and gets good gas mileage? We want to stay under $20k. We're thinking of a Nissan Altima or a Ford Fusion currently. </p>