Common Mistakes When Buying Used Cars or Keeping Your Old One in 2023

hello and welcome to the Car Care on channel and welcome to a video about used cars and the market that we live in at times we live in I see the current used car market new car market having such an effect on how people choose to make decisions with their current cars with the cars they're buying and I see a lot of mistakes a lot of folks that I have to get really bad news to at the shop so I wanted to make this video to give you all the information you need if you're having an old car that you want to decide should I keep it should I sell it or you're buying a used car what's going on what should I do and everything in between right after this so here's what's going on with the used car market so we are clear and we are on the same page used cars and new cars are very tough to find and it's kind of creating a domino effect let's talk about it briefly new cars are very hard to get supply chain whatever the case may be you have to wait months and months to get the car you want so that is causing dealerships to overcharge for the cars because supply and demand so here is what's going on usually you nice used cars are supplied to the market by people who bought these cars new or bought them certified or very low miles they took care of them do all the maintenance and then they got to a point I was like oh I just want another car whatever the case may be everybody has their own decision to make there they certainly trade these cars and get a new one in life is good but those people because of the current market like I'm not going to overpay ten thousand dollars for this car I'm not gonna wait eight months for a car when I have a perfectly fine car I'm just gonna keep it longer until we pass these times and that is starting the domino effect you sprinkle supply and demand stuff over it we have a problem there's very little used cars that are good most of them are just basically junk and new cars are hard to get dealerships are overcharging for cars and dealerships are even overpaying for used cars because they have nothing on the lot they also need to stay alive so that is really causing havoc on people's decisions when it comes to their older cars how do we fix them how much is the limit and then people buying used cars what is a good used car what's going on and I see this in the shop over and over and over from both sides people just bought a car that has come just basically junk or people that have an old car that they they need to decide should I spend a lot of money to fix it and keep it or not so in this video I'm going to give you pointers and both let's start with the first one here are the top mistakes I see people make when it comes to keeping their older car or a car that has a lot of miles wherever the case may be I see the same scenario over and over and over I have an old car I've had it for 10 years it has a lot of issues it has a lot of miles and just to sprinkle a little bit more stuff on top of it where I live in the midwest in the Chicago area we have rust on top of that Matt really is a wreaks havoc on things so here is what I'm number one mistake I see customer brings in the car to the shop I have a giant list of problems with this car basically everything is wrong with it I can't really afford to buy a used car at these prices or I don't want to overpay for a car so I want to keep this one longer just keep it until things change or whatever the case may be the first question I ask people and you should be asking your pet yourself as well when you're in that situation do you have a plan or what is the plan and what I mean by that is how long do you want to keep this car that is a very important question and if your mechanic does not ask you this question when it comes to this scenario you might want to find a new one because the typical answer of Toyota people will be oh I want to keep the car till the wheels fall off this car will Outlast me sure great that sounds great as a joke but that's not realistic nothing less forever some Toyotas are really good they really last a long time if you take care of them but still there come a point where they're done it's just a simple reality of things so when I ask you what is the plan oh I want to keep this car for a year or two I'm giving it to my kids he's going to learn how to drive in it or I want to keep this car for three years then I will get certain bonus whatever from work so I can buy another car or simply I want to keep this car until the market gets better so I can actually buy a decent car for a decent price that's valid but you need to have a concrete plan of what do you want from this car because based on your plan I will advise you accordingly if you come tell me I have an old rusty car that's falling apart and you want to keep it for five to seven years I might get to a point where I tell you this is not realistic you're not going to get this long so you that's the point where you want to stop revisit your plan because fixing this car might not be worth it but the on the opposite side somebody comes in I want to keep this car with a realistic plan I have an old car it's falling apart I want to keep it for a year or two you know I'm gonna give it to my kids it's going to learn how to drive it in I already have another car I just want them to learn how to drive in this car and we're good or hey I need two more years out of this car hopefully the market will get better that is a realistic expectation based on that I'm gonna look on one thing the number one thing you should look at when it comes to an old car that you're driving squeeze a few more years out of is this car safe and is this car relatively reliable it's not going to be as perfect as a new car otherwise it would be worth a lot more but is it safe that's the number one thing you want to think of out of the brakes trustworthy or is it suspension relatively reliable in good shape and is the mechanical aspects of the car engine transmission axle everything else gonna be relatively reliable and the biggest thing is let's say your car I see the scenario all the time let's say your car comes in needs an engine rebuilt it's knocking it's burning a lot of oil to a point where it barely runs you know where I spent most of my inspection time not on the engine it's done there's no point what's the point of keeping looking into it and oh let's it's done it's going to need a rebuild we're done but what about the rest of the car for example the transmission that's your second biggest expense in a car after the engine has it been serviced does it drive well shift well does it have problems then I move after that is the suspension original is it falling apart is it all rusty is it all broken and leaking and making all kinds of noise and then what about the rest of the body in the case of rust I see cars come in here I can't even lift on a lift safely which is just the lift goes right through the body so that's the point where okay we're done we're not doing anything else this car is not worth it because it is not safe people will say oh but my friend can lift it from that's fine but if the car can't be lifted how are you going to change the spare tire on the side of the road you can and you're going to create a very dangerous situation at that point it's over there is a point where it's over there is a point where it's not but here is the main thing you gotta have a solid plan an expectation of this car because based on that expectation me or your mechanic will be able to tell you is this a realistic expectation is it doable or not but the more most important thing is if your mechanic tells you this is not a solid plan I don't think this car will actually last this long you need to move on from it I see this over and over but why can't you just make it run for a year more no I can't mechanics don't have magic wands if the car is too far gone is too far gone can we fix it yes is it a good idea absolutely not and just know one thing mechanics survive and put food on their table of their families by fixing cars when this person that their sole source of income is fixing cars is telling you you should not fix this car you should take it and do whatever you want with it but don't fix it it's not worth it doesn't that ring a bell because I see this mistake over and over people are like no no let's just just what you can no I won't do what I can and I and if you've been in my shop before with a similar situation you'll know that I'll hand you the keys tell you may the Lord bless you and keep you we're not fixing this car even if you want to I'm not working in your car because I don't think you should keep it it's too far gone it's over and I hope what I just said here gives you the picture and then there is a different type of problem that I see also all the time people buying used cars in this market without an inspection folks that is a grave mistake it is such a bad mistake because it is one of my worst moments when I have a customer in front of me that just bought a car that is absolutely not worth keeping recently we had a 2005 4Runner a customer paid an exuberant amount for because it's a forerunner it's a Toyota Run Forever they're the greatest car ever you need nothing yet I couldn't even lift the frame because the frame was completely rotten you look at this car from the outside looks like the best thing in the planet it has wax on it it looks beautiful but you look underneath it it's all gone radiator is hanging down things are falling apart we couldn't even lift the car we put it in the drive on lift look at it it's like there's nothing it's gone the frame is gone I mean I don't know how it's still driving like this and they just paid an exuberant amount for for and they are in for a post purchase inspection one of the worst ideas in the planet folks I really get nervous when I do post-purchase inspections because you already bought it what am I going to tell you I really hope it is a good car because then we are in a really bad situation folks don't ever get yourself in this situation especially now this applies all the time but especially now use good used cars are very hard to find and the top of it is people are constantly doing this mistake they overpay for horrible car don't do that to yourself don't do that to your family this is just beyond me how how the market is going right now but be very careful you must inspect the car if you don't know what you are looking at don't start checking interior does this work does that work we're talking about structural stuff here folks is the frame Rusty is the engine healthy is the transmission healthy because the body and the interior and all that that can be fixed but again you're buying a used car so what if the interior looks a little raggedy so what if the body has a bunch of scratches on it that can be fixed and that doesn't affect the main function of the car which is driving safely and relatively reliably you gotta check underneath it 90 of the story of any car starts with it underneath inspection not up top anybody can shine up any horrible car to look beautiful Outside Inside under the hood but when you look underneath it is when you see the real story folks this is very important please don't use the current car market as an excuse to make bad decisions folks people surrender to this you can still find good cars but you have to really spend the extra effort you can still make the right decision with your old car but you really need to have all the facts on the table before you do so I see the scenario all the time you have an old car it needs a lot of work number one thing is you need to determine is this car too far gone or is still potentially savable and if it's too far gone it's over don't don't keep clinging to a car just because well it's really hard to find a used car don't do that because it's going to become counterproductive and then if your car is worth holding on to what is the limit where do you say okay this is too much people often will say well if you're going to Total the car oh this repair will total this car is it really because the value of a car is written by a market that factors in what this car is worth but what is it worth mechanically or the condition that's really what the car is worth is not how much money does it cost to sell it right now although in the current market selling a used car is like well you paid for it three four years ago is what you're going to get for it now see everybody when it comes to buying a used like a newer car or new car oh I don't want the car payment I don't want the monthly payments but some people end up making monthly payments yet they still drive drive an old car because it keeps every month or two you're spending 300 here 500 there you broke down the toe the this it just doesn't make sense so when you have a solid plan hey I want to keep this car until the market gets a little bit better so I can buy a decent car for a decent price I just want to keep this car going the number one thing is safety nothing else make sure the car is safe first relatively reliable if there's anything to help that reliability dependability of this car let's take care of it nothing else struts make a little bit of noise as long as they're not broken as long as they're not leaking we can live with that there's a few leaks here and there as long as they're not vital reliability affecting leaks like the power steering is just hemorrhaging fluid and you have to add every day to keep it but if we have a little bit of leak here a little bit of leak there a little bit of noise here exhaust is not 100 as long as it's not before the catalytic converter you might have to make compromises to keep this car within your plan and within your budget don't just think oh I got to fix everything I'm going to max out my credit card just to keep this car perfect there's no such thing that's the bottom line and this absolutely applies to our luxus anybody that tells you just buy a Toyota they're the best thing in the planet they are good cars but you buy the wrong one you will be so sorry in your bank account will reflect it folks be careful with this first thing that people always do is Rush when they're buying a used car folks it is more important than ever that you do not rush when buying a new car recently I went to help a neighbor buy a car and they have looked through the internet found located a few Highlanders that we went to look at one of them I literally told the salesman after they drove it they loved it and they were like okay well this is nice this could work for us I drove it I did not drive it on the street I literally just took off stop pulled over I'm like we're done you're not buying this car and sales was like what I told him this is a car that the auction will be ashamed of thank you very much have a nice day then we went to look at another car I didn't even allow them to test drive it and waste their time because the car looked horrible door sagging bodies all put together with Bondo what are these cars leaders should be ashamed of putting cars like that folks do not rush when you're buying a car if you don't know about cars if you're not sure even if you are a car guy and you know about cars get an opinion because you can't look underneath this car properly without putting it on a lift get a pre-purchase inspection or if you know about cars ask the dealership put it up in the air let me look at it spend the time look very carefully because I see so many people buying their own cars these days it is just the worst stays for me at the shop when somebody just bought a car and I have to tell them this car is too far gone it's not even worth fixing I would get rid of it right away this is horrible folks don't rush and the most important thing that delicate balance of should I keep my old car going or should I go just take the plunge overpay for a car and buy it that's a very delicate balance you really need to decide in calm not rushed do the math get an estimate of repair for what your car is going to need and if it's too far gone it's too far gone it's over if it's not get an estimate for a repair get a second opinion if you're not 100 trusting your mechanic then go shop for cars because you might actually just get lucky and find something that is decent checks all the marks for you your mechanic is happy with it hey why are we doing this then but you gotta have a solid plan folks I see this mistake over and over and over and a solid plan never begins with I want to keep this car till the wheels fall off that is not good we don't want Wheels falling off that's dangerous you cannot keep a car forever I see this all over the internet people buy a Toyota it is the best thing in the planet you'll never have a single issue there's no such thing folks I own a shop that only works on Toyota and Lexus if they were the most reliable thing in the planet nothing goes wrong with them then I will be living on the street that's not the case every car has its issues they are reliable but they will have their issues and you buy a neglected one you will have nothing but problems Toyotas and Lexus love their maintenance they need their maintenance to survive you need to take care of these cars in order for them to survive so when you go and buy one that has been neglected till the limit when the mechanic told them get rid of this car it's still for you neglected this thing and then they trade it in and you go buy that car we have a major problem folks there's a lot there's a very small amount number of nice cars out there it's going to take you a lot of effort to find one if you have to overpay for it what are you going to do this is the market but never overpay for a bad car please take your time do the math have a solid plan folks I hope this video is helpful informative I hope you learned something new if you like it consider giving it a thumbs up if you're not a subscriber consider subscribing to the channel check out some other videos until the next video folks may the Lord bless you and keep you and you have yourself a wonderful day

Channel: The Car Care Nut

Views: 572,741

Keywords: used car, used car market, mechanic, mechanic advice, use car prices, buying a used car, keeping your old, is your car worth it, car repair, the car care nut, scotty kilmer, doug demuro, 2024 tacoma, toyota corolla, toyota tacoma, toyota 4runner, tacoma 2024, car care nut, tccn automotive, toyota tacoma 2024, used car kerala, advice, how to, used car inspection, pre purchase inspection, car review

Id: GB7DpaMo8jI

Length: 19min 21sec (1161 seconds)

Published: Wed Apr 19 2023