How to buy a car and avoid the pitfalls.

mmc77

Active Member
** Disclaimer: This write up is from experience I have gained and is a guide only based on that experience, at the end of the day you need to use your head a bit so dont cry if you choose not to, as the old saying goes buyer beware and that saying could not apply more to purchasing a car.

Few notes before we start:
1 This DIY will refer to buying a car in NSW but can be applied to anywhere buy looking up the equivalent to the RTA etc in your state.
2 Iam writing this to help people on our forum , it may be a first time car buyer or someone who's made a bad purchase or two, Ive made my mistakes over the years and if I can help someone not make the same ones and not waste there hard earned that would be really good.

What gives me the right to write this DIY you ask? ( and if you didn't ask Iam telling you anyways) We'll ive just turned 34 and tbh I couldn't tell you how many cars Ive owned at a guess Id say somewhere between 40 - 50 at some stages when I was younger Ive had 3 cars at a time the most every was 4 and my current mirage is my 8th CE. Why? well because like most of us on here I just love cars.

New car time, woot woot!!!
Ok so you've got some fat cash in ya pocket and its burning a hole in it real fast ,your all excited, what do you do? First relax, probably one of the most important things your going to have to do when looking to buy a car is take your time and have some patience by waiting for just the right one you'll get the car you want for the money you want, I couldnt tell you how many times over the years Ive bought a car only to see exactly what I wanted for the money I wanted two days later. Patience is key.

Research
Its best to start researching the type of car your after for a couple of weeks before you even start looking to buy so you can get a feel for what the current prices are, availability in you area etc. Tag cars in your watch list on ebay to see what they sell for, this can also be handy latter on . Don't delete them from your watch list as you'd be surprised as to how many cars get re listed maybe from the same owner maybe from the new one but it forms part of the bigger picture. Note things like k's , how much rego and condition of cars and the price there going for as it forms a price guide as such for you to work with.

Where to look
Now you need to find a car so apart from looking round your local area whilst your out and about there's the internet machine the best sites are ebay, gumtree and carsales for the highest amount of advertisements and the most updated by far these ones are where you are most likely to find the best bargins but be warned you'll have to move very quickly to catch them in time because they go fast.
Other sites you can find with a quick Google search but some are, trading post, boost cruising, trovit, drive, forums and asorted others there endless to tbh
So youve spotted a car what now

Run the Checks
This probably the most important step and the most often over looked.There are two I always do the first one is the free RTA rego check https://myrta.com/regcheck/ all you need is the number plate and you can check the rego expiry the last 4 numbers of the vin and that the year and model match up to whats advertised.
The second check I do which I usually do after inspecting the vechile usually on my phone is the RTA vehicle history check http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/myrta/rego/ve ... check.html it cost $18 and is money well spent.
Itll tell you things like how many owners, rego and if there any concessions on it or if its suspended or cancelled, has the car been written or stolen a whole heap of stuff.
Anyone who's buying a car and not doing these two checks at least before buying a car is crazy. If you buy a repairable write of good lick resale value or possible your safety
Whilst where on repairable write offs the rules have change recently and they cant be done in NSW anymore. But a problem in the past has been a written off car could be brought from another state and will not be recorded in NSW as a repairable write off so the RTA vehicle history check can be a good tip off to that eg it was first rego's in NSW 4 years ago but is a 10 year old car, could be someone just moved but could be a little tip off for your self to keep your eyes peeled.
The history check is also good for when your looking at a car and the owner say ive had this car for 3 years but the check say no the last rego name change was 3 months ago again help you paint a picture of what your buying eg if the owner is lying about how long he's owned it what else is he trying to hide.
REVS http://www.revs.com.au/ is now the PPSR http://www.ppsr.gov.au/Pages/ppsr.aspx which is trying to achieve a national check system to avoid the previously mentioned problem of no history on a car going from one state to another.
It is the only way to tell if a car has money owing on it. Tbh I dont do this check to often as not many cars worth 2 or 3k do have money owing, but if it was a more expensive car id definitely run this check. Only problem with REVS is that it used to be pretty hit and miss with its info but if you do a check and pay for the certificate to be sent out and its latter found out to have money owing on the car you are protected and they cant touch the vehicle
Also the PPSR doesnt have much info on it at the moment the couple of times ive used it there has been no records on the cars I was checking in saying that its only a few dollars for a basic search so its still worth a look.

Inspection and test drive
In this section I'll just give the basic's you could get right into but the basic's will usually keep most people out of trouble
Ok so you've done your research and some checks and its time to arrange an inspection with the owner. Don't sms just ring and talk to the owner dont be scared, for some reason all mirage sellers for instance have no credit on there phone and cant msg or call back lol sounds silly but tbh its pretty true. There's no need to talk money or anything like that just ask some general questions about the car like , is there any problems with the car, how long have they owned it etc and arrange a time to inspect.
When you get there keep your poker face on and dont show them your to keen on the car this ill come into play in the next section.
Have a good look around the car paying close attention a good rule of thumb is dont inspect a car at night or in the rain as to many things can be missed, some areas to pay close attention to
BODY
Look at the paint does it all match up , has it been resprayed , do all the panels line up nicely or are they out of alignment . Don't be afraid to ask the seller if anything stands out. On CE's check the front bumper especially the ones with lips its pretty common for the tabs to be broken off due to scrapping on driveways etc and this is usually evident by the gap under the lights because the bumper has dropped check also to see if someone has zip tied it all back up.Take your time and have a good look because paint is by far the most expensive and time consuming thing to fix.

INTERIOR
Some things to look out for are the drivers foot well carpet and the drivers door card material , is the carpet all ripped and the door card all manky but the car only has 120,000kms on it, its a dead give away somethings up, usually these areas will still be good to 200,000k's even if there not looked after particular well there fairly hard wearing. Check to instrument cluster are the needle sitting zero'd ( apart from fuel) when the car is off or are they out of whack, is it the right cluster for the car eg no mirage should have a tacho cluster unless its a VRX, and non tacho cluster should all be 200kmh speedo's not 220km ones.
CE's are bad for getting there odometers fiddled with, there so easy to change and a lot of them do have high k's due to young people owning them, there getting on in years and there very reliable cars but some dodgy people want to try hide the fact so make sure you have a good look around that area like the cluster surround is it sitting in the dash properly? It might be indication someone has removed the cluster if something seems out of place again ask and see what the answer is.
Whilst looking around the interior check out all the other basic stuff like general condition, do the seat belts retract etc all common sense stuff.

ENGINE BAY
Soon as you open the bonnet have a look at the top of the radiator support for any signs of damage or if its a different colour this may be a result of an accident and look for the bumper tabs and bumper reo as mentioned above to check there condition.
Open the oil cap and have a look in the engine, what can you see in there if its all silver/ goldy looking its a fair chance the engine has been regularly serviced but if its all black its fair to say the oil changes have been spread out way to far, remove the dip stick and have a look at the level and colour of the oil , is it on the empty and black as or is it full and still a nice colour.
Check condition of the ac ,power steer and alt belts are they looking good or all frayed and cracked also check for oil leaks around the engine and underneath. If there is some oil leaking around the rocket cover that's no biggy and a cheap and easy fix but say if there is oil evident on the joins of the timing belt cover it could mean seals are gone and you'll be needing to get them fixed and the timing belt changed. Also with the timing belt ask the seller when it was last done ( every 90,000kms) and ask for proof of this you will also usually see a sticker somewhere on the timing belt cover with a date and km's of when that was done. It is worth finding out for a couple of reasons 1 your engine is gone if it snaps and 2 its an expensive job to get done, if you need to get the water pump done and seals at the same time ( which you should) you'll be looking at a $600 + bill easy for that.
Check the coolant to see if its nice and clean and topped up, get the engine started and give it a few revs, is it moving to much are the mounts no good? Just be observant as possiable to try and notice if anything looks out of place.
If you dont have the mechanical knowledge take some one with you that does and get them to help you as you dont want any nasty surprise latter on. You probably will find a few thing but if you know what they are and how much they cost to but right you can use it to bargin on the price and also keep within you budget.

TEST DRIVE
First turn the stereo off, doesn't matter if Joe sic kent has installed a full hectic system with a boot full of subs you can listen to that later right now you need to listen to the car. There are many things to take note of so try and test drive in all the speed zones get it up to 110km if possiable ( not in a school zone) and see how it drives are there any wobbles felt through the wheel on the way up to that speed? Hows there steering? does it feel sharp or all wooly. Hows the gears changing? are the shifting nice and easy or are they crunching and hard to select certain gears.
Test the clutch there are a few ways the quickest and easiest one and usually if the owner not in the car is do a full rev change from 1st to 2nd and do it quick without taking you foot off the gas you'll hear it slip, another way is on an uphill stop put the hand brake on let the clutch out slowly with a few revs and see if the clutch grabs nice and car trys to stall quickly or if it starts slipping. Check all the other stuff as well like brakes , do they work well and not pull to one side and dont be afraid to give them a good hard test either. Have a good drive about test everything , the air con, fan , heater etc
Again if you are not very confident or experienced take some one with you that is. Its better to ask for help then blow your cash on a bucket of rubbish.

THE HAGGLE
Note:If you are buying a car from family or friends be a gentleman about it and everyone can be happy dont haggle, but every other bastard when it comes to your cash in there pocket its war :twisted: lol might be a bit rough but you get the point
Ok so you decided you like the car and want to try cut a deal. I enjoy this part tbh its a bit of a game and you have to see who's going to win, so who's going to win? you are of course.
First up hide your excitement if you have any ( yes some people get a bit excited) and just be cool you dont want the seller knowing you really want that car, you'll know if you've given that fact away by the big smile on his face and you'll be paying very close to full price for sure.
Ive been playing poker for quite some time and just like poker you need to pay attention to all the little pick ups and things you've noticed along the way about the seller as they are going to help you here. You also know what this car is worth from doing some research so set your self a top dollar your going to pay before even opening your mouth.
Don't bag the car by saying this is *poo* and that's broken, but politely point out there's a few things that need doing and make an offer keeping in mind what you've noticed along the way as mean as it sounds does the seller appear to be hanging on getting some cash, has he been hanging around watching your every move and has his mates sitting out the front waiting looking at there watches or has he been doing some other things whilst your looking at the car and appear to not give a rats if you buy it or not.
Ill give an example, my last MR was advertised for 3850 when I arrived to inspect the very first thing that came out of the guys mouth was Iam not taking less then 3500 I thought ok, It was a fair dodgy area and he had two friends sitting in another car which appeared to be waiting for him and he was very rushed in his speaking in my opinion he needed cash and wanted it right now and was in a hurry.
I took it for a test drive etc and offered him a fairly cheeky amount of 2600 he said no and I said ok Ive got another one to look at and ill get back to you shortly and got in my car and drove off.
About a minute later he sent a txt saying 3000 and I can have it i replied 2800 is all iam paying to which he said no again. My wifes in the car saying just pay the 3000 its worth it ( i suspect she was more jack of going car hunting tbh) So I txt back no problems mate gl with your sale thank you for your time, I knew he'd buckle but I was totally ready to walk away. Straight away rely came ok come get it.
So If you pay attention you can save your self some decent dollars here, you'll get some people that just want budge and if the price is too high you just have to walk away or if the price is already pretty good and in your opinion its a great buy then do it but you can 99% of the time keep some extra money in your pocket.
I only say 99% of the time because my VRX is the only car i have ever paid full asking price for ever, but in saying that it was a good example and a very good price so IMO it was well worth it but I paid cash so the lady at the car yard put 1000 on the receipt so I at least saved some cash at the RTA, anything is better then nothing lol

YOU GOT A NEW CAR YEAH!!! if ya cool its a mirage, long as its not a honda ya still alright
So you done a deal with the seller filled out all the paperwork checked his license matched the details on the rego papers and handed over you cash and your away now what.
Go to the RTA and change the rego into your name, you can do it online but the seller has to put in the notice of disposal first. You have 14 days to do it or your going to be giving the RTA a $105 late charge so dont do that. Change over fee is $30 plus 3% of the purcahse price.
Get some insurance even if you get bomb insurance to cover the other car if you hit and maybe some fire and theft insurance for your own car or just get the full insurance either way get something
But your probably to excited for all that rubbish right now because you've just a got a new car and because you used your head a bit and had some patience its a good one.
You put the screws on the seller and you've still got some fat cash in your pocket as well, you can take your missus to maccas drive through for dinner or you and ya mates can cruise past your local westfields pumping ya hectic system for all the people waiting at the bus stop, and tmz ya can all head down super cheap and get some mad neons , 35 air fresheners and sic canon dont go to the exhaust shop just zip tie that *fudge*er right on there.
Good Luck :thumbup:
 
I'd run PPSR check regardless of what you are buying....it only costs like 3 bucks a go
 
Good write up Mark! Here's a couple more checks you can add...

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/myrta/rego/ve ... check.html

Probably not overly useful, but if you want to know any of the car's registration history then RMS will supply it for $18.


Especially seeing as there are no printed receipt numbers on the rego stickers now and soon no stickers at all you can do a free check to see what the registration status of a vehicle is:
https://myrta.com/regcheck/
 
Ryan said:
Good write up Mark! Here's a couple more checks you can add...

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/myrta/rego/ve ... check.html

Probably not overly useful, but if you want to know any of the car's registration history then RMS will supply it for $18.


Especially seeing as there are no printed receipt numbers on the rego stickers now and soon no stickers at all you can do a free check to see what the registration status of a vehicle is:
https://myrta.com/regcheck/
Thanks Ryan got them all in there
All finished now , If anyone has anything to add feel free.
 
Good job!

One thing I just thought of though that should also come under checks, insurance! The calculation of premiums can be funny so need to check to make sure the prices you are getting are within your budget before you commit to buying!

I might look at converting this to a Wiki page so as to make it easier to read.

PS Dunno what the mrs sees in you if you only buy her Maccas :p
 
Ryan said:
Good job!

One thing I just thought of though that should also come under checks, insurance! The calculation of premiums can be funny so need to check to make sure the prices you are getting are within your budget before you commit to buying!

I might look at converting this to a Wiki page so as to make it easier to read.

PS Dunno what the mrs sees in you if you only buy her Maccas :p
Thanks Ryan, Haha you wont see me at the maccas drive through, That bit at the end is the what not to do section haha.
 
Excellent info :thumbup:

I'll just add...I use car history . com . au, cost $3x, they also cover interstate

NEVER trust your bank to do a REVs check, do one yourself. Either they don't do it properly, or they don't bother telling you of any problem(s)
Took out a loan when we purchased the CH we had. Came selling time and we had a buyer all lined up. Buyer did he's REVs check, and it came back as a repairable write off - news to us :eek: :x
We lost $$$ on the sale :(
 
REVs is no more, the PPSR has replaced it and is a federal system...
 
Great write up.
How quickly does the RTA vehicle history check come in?
And can you call and get the info over the phone while looking over the car?
 
Spetz said:
Great write up.
How quickly does the RTA vehicle history check come in?
And can you call and get the info over the phone while looking over the car?
Online spetz, you can do it on your phone and view it right on the spot.
 
Good job putting all that together. One important thing that really should be on there is a google search of common problems on .... Vehicle eg common problems ef falcon 97.......... Head gasket!!!!!! Bad news if you buy one haha I've been stung with that one :( but lesson learned I always google search a car I've never owned previously
 
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