Ever consider buying....... used?
12-29-2007, 12:01 AM
#61
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Greenville, SC
Posts: 267
RE: Ever consider buying....... used?
ORIGINAL: Sprzout
ALL of the above is good info...
SOME cars that are "salvage" titles aren't exactly bad. I own a 1967 Jaguar E-Type that's got a salvage title on it. It was in an accident at 5 mph where the previous owner smacked it into a pole. The damage to the car was more to repair than it was for the insurance company to total it (the replacement hood, front bumper, paint job, etc. was more than the car's insured worth of $6k, since he didn't have it on a collector car insurance or anything) so the insurance company totaled it out, the guy who owned the car repaired it under a salvage title and then sold it. There's no frame damage; the only way that you can tell is that there's points on the door sill of the car that show it was originally yellow and the replacement hood was originally red.
Again, Salvage doesn't always mean BAD (i.e. low speed crashes on classics, or flood damaged cars where the car was underwater) but generally the rule of thumb is that salvage means the car had been totaled and has structural damage somewhere that may make it unsafe for normal driving, let alone "spirited" driving.
ORIGINAL: Derf00
I think to sum up this thread,
1) Weigh your options on new vs used ( i.e. interest rate is higher on used vs new but a new car is going to take a huge hit its first year in depreciation) (IMO if you have to buy the car with a with more than a 60 month loan, you can't afford the car to begin with).
2) Consider that not all used GT's are abused. My wife brought up a good point with the newer used GT's you see on the lots. People don't consider the cost of insurance when impulse buying. Chances are that 05-07 used GT with low miles was probably an impulse buy and when they got the first or second insurance bill, it was way more than they were planning/could afford so they had to trade it in and get a more sensible car. In those cases the cars probably weren't beat to hell. Owner just couldn't afford the car. Tires are good indicator of abuse. A car with under 15K miles should not have tires that are nearly bald.
3) Take the car to a reputable shop to have them give it the once over. Don't rely on the vendor to tell you it's good.
4) Run a carfax - can help you find any issues the car has had as well as if it has a washed title (Salvage title in one state, registered in another state, then brought back to clean the title and make it look 'clean' to a potential buyer)
5) There are aftermarket warranties that in some cases are better than the Ford warranties (Although Ford ESP is hard to beat)
6) DO NOT BUY Salvage title...insurance may not give you coverage and you won't know if the car has a fatal defect that could end up killing you in an otherwise survivable accident.
I think to sum up this thread,
1) Weigh your options on new vs used ( i.e. interest rate is higher on used vs new but a new car is going to take a huge hit its first year in depreciation) (IMO if you have to buy the car with a with more than a 60 month loan, you can't afford the car to begin with).
2) Consider that not all used GT's are abused. My wife brought up a good point with the newer used GT's you see on the lots. People don't consider the cost of insurance when impulse buying. Chances are that 05-07 used GT with low miles was probably an impulse buy and when they got the first or second insurance bill, it was way more than they were planning/could afford so they had to trade it in and get a more sensible car. In those cases the cars probably weren't beat to hell. Owner just couldn't afford the car. Tires are good indicator of abuse. A car with under 15K miles should not have tires that are nearly bald.
3) Take the car to a reputable shop to have them give it the once over. Don't rely on the vendor to tell you it's good.
4) Run a carfax - can help you find any issues the car has had as well as if it has a washed title (Salvage title in one state, registered in another state, then brought back to clean the title and make it look 'clean' to a potential buyer)
5) There are aftermarket warranties that in some cases are better than the Ford warranties (Although Ford ESP is hard to beat)
6) DO NOT BUY Salvage title...insurance may not give you coverage and you won't know if the car has a fatal defect that could end up killing you in an otherwise survivable accident.
SOME cars that are "salvage" titles aren't exactly bad. I own a 1967 Jaguar E-Type that's got a salvage title on it. It was in an accident at 5 mph where the previous owner smacked it into a pole. The damage to the car was more to repair than it was for the insurance company to total it (the replacement hood, front bumper, paint job, etc. was more than the car's insured worth of $6k, since he didn't have it on a collector car insurance or anything) so the insurance company totaled it out, the guy who owned the car repaired it under a salvage title and then sold it. There's no frame damage; the only way that you can tell is that there's points on the door sill of the car that show it was originally yellow and the replacement hood was originally red.
Again, Salvage doesn't always mean BAD (i.e. low speed crashes on classics, or flood damaged cars where the car was underwater) but generally the rule of thumb is that salvage means the car had been totaled and has structural damage somewhere that may make it unsafe for normal driving, let alone "spirited" driving.
12-29-2007, 12:02 PM
#63
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 312
RE: Ever consider buying....... used?
There is no reason why ANYONE should be buying a new stang (except so you can buy a used one from them of course). Not knowing where the car has been is not an acceptable answer to shelling out 10k more for a new car. If the car has a clean title, the owner has documented oil changes and there are no major dents and dings then the car has been properly maintained. There are no break-in periods on new cars these days. You also don't even have to warm them up in the morning. The cars pretty much take care of themselves and run fine even if you dog the **** out of it (as long as you get that oil changed!).
And if the car has low miles and is still under warranty you have peace of mind anyway if something breaks.
You can easily save 10k buying a used one. Yeah that's right, 10k. If you only saved 5k, then you didn't look properly. I paid 14klast July for my 06 pony package with 20k miles. Brand new the car was $24k.
And if the car has low miles and is still under warranty you have peace of mind anyway if something breaks.
You can easily save 10k buying a used one. Yeah that's right, 10k. If you only saved 5k, then you didn't look properly. I paid 14klast July for my 06 pony package with 20k miles. Brand new the car was $24k.
12-29-2007, 12:07 PM
#64
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 312
RE: Ever consider buying....... used?
ORIGINAL: Orion_240
if you buy a new, fully loaded Gt right now, with everything you want, you might get it around invoice. There are tons of deals, especially on the 2007's.
If you buy used you can get a 2005 for around 20-20K but the amount you save means more nicks and scratches, unknown abuse on the car, possible mods, and no new-car-smell!
if you buy a new, fully loaded Gt right now, with everything you want, you might get it around invoice. There are tons of deals, especially on the 2007's.
If you buy used you can get a 2005 for around 20-20K but the amount you save means more nicks and scratches, unknown abuse on the car, possible mods, and no new-car-smell!