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Thread: Auto FSA`s

  1. #1
    Coleroad's Avatar
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    Auto FSA`s

    Things in used car ads I get tired of reading.

    has all new breaks. Are you going to fix them, or is that why you`re selling it? By people who don`t know the difference between break and brake.

    New tires, only 10,000 miles on them. Just say how many miles are on them. They are not new.

    no mods/car is completely original, except wheels, cold air intake, lowering springs, etc.

    car has never seen rain/snow. Then I`m the third owner bought with 96,000 miles. All you know is since you`ve owned it. Then go on to read got a new daily driver.

    Using the the word pristine to describe the whole car. Excellent condition and pristine are two different things. Let`s face it even brand new cars aren`t always in pristine condition.

    Headgasket blown, only a $30 part.

    The engine has a tick/knock since I bought it. It`s never gotten worse.

    The car started the the last time I drove it two months ago. Well I would think it started if you drove it. Statement means nothing about the car.
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  2. #2

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Used cars are like people (or pets): beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

    Clever wordage/verbiage/descriptions are key to selling a car. There is an art to literary deception, but as the saying goes, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" or "What you say and what I see are two completely different things."

    Your humorous, but true, explanations to the car-selling phases we all see in used car for sale ad listings and postings are appreciated.

    My favorites?
    "Adult driven" ~With a lead foot? Like Mario Andretti?
    "Mostly highway miles" At 90 miles-an-hour? In stop-and-go traffic every day?? Towing a boat or heavy trailer??
    "Always maintained" What?- no service records or "I did the work myself", but the vehicle fluids look dirty or the engine compartment is "dirty".

    Side question:
    How many of you who shopped for a used car from a private party or even a used car dealer had it inspected by your trusted mechanic or knowledgeable car person or a state-certified and licensed vehicle inspector??
    OR , you yourself brought tools to remove a spark plug and a fiber optic inspection camera to look inside the engine or a lift jack to look under the car?
    GB detailer
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  3. #3
    yamabob's Avatar
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Like the motorcylce ads-Bike has never been wet. Guess they don`t wash
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  4. #4
    Dan's Avatar
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    AC works great, just needs recharge.
    XXXX broken, really simple to fix...
    runs good but rough, just needs a tuneup
    Runs great, CEL is on because of bad sensor.

    But what really makes me crazy is the people that won`t even wash the car before they take pictures. Wheels caked with brake dust and trash all inside....yeah, well taken care of....
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  5. #5
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    I love "It`s never needed anything."

    Nay nay - Just because you never did any repairs, doesn`t mean it didn`t/doesn`t need them...
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  6. #6
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Lonnie View Post

    Side question:
    How many of you who shopped for a used car from a private party or even a used car dealer had it inspected by your trusted mechanic or knowledgeable car person or a state-certified and licensed vehicle inspector??
    OR , you yourself brought tools to remove a spark plug and a fiber optic inspection camera to look inside the engine or a lift jack to look under the car?
    I used to pay for PPIs but I got very mixed results. I now have a checklist I`ve put together that works well for me. It relies heavily on service records and interview of the PO if available. Add some observations and OBD2/manufacturer specific scans will get you favorable odds. Last but not least a paint gauge to check for accident damage.

    Well taken care of cars stand out. And they are the best deals as well. People fool themselves into thinking the cheapest car is the best deal. It never is, especially if you are a perfectionist. The price difference between average condition and excellent is tiny.

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    The guy who cuts my hair is shopping..and I`ve had to talk him down from his first few ideas (including talking him out of a Crown Vic, which I kinda hated to do, would *NOT* have talked him out of it were he, say...16, just would`ve inspected his possibles for him).

    Every used car that`s for sale is for sale for a REASON. And unless you`re looking for a Project, it`s rare for that reason to not make that vehicle a "pass". (MY ex-DOJ/BOP Crown Vic really was an exception, but I spent years looking at scads of `em before I found it, and even it had/has a few little issues.. at least for a guy like me.) Although if I sell the S8 somebody`s gonna get a basically new, zero-issue car with just a few little cosmetics from the Deer Incident.

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Lonnie View Post
    .Side question:
    How many of you who shopped for a used car from a private party or even a used car dealer...[used].. a lift jack to look under the car?
    With all most postings about Undercarriages, you can imagine how I am about that The last time I bought a used vehicle without a thorough undercarriage inspection was in the early `80s, and I learned my (somewhat pricey) lesson well. I warn the seller how I`m gonna be about that, often rules that vehicle out in the first few minutes on the phone.

  9. #9
    Dan's Avatar
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Accumulator View Post
    Every used car that`s for sale is for sale for a REASON. And unless you`re looking for a Project, it`s rare for that reason to not make that vehicle a "pass". (MY ex-DOJ/BOP Crown Vic really was an exception, but I spent years looking at scads of `em before I found it, and even it had/has a few little issues.. at least for a guy like me.) Although if I sell the S8 somebody`s gonna get a basically new, zero-issue car with just a few little cosmetics from the Deer Incident.
    Accumulator, that`s what my dad always says... you`re buying someone else`s problems! But then you have guys like me that just get rid of cars beause they are bored!

  10. #10

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Dan- Heh heh, yeah...but finding those "sold purely due to owner disinterest" ones can be hard!

    Buying other people`s problems...heh heh heh, BTDT and *intentionally* too! The `93 Audi`s original owner has more money than God, but she couldn`t justify fixing that car`s issues any more so she quit about, oh..I dunno...?maybe $20K? short of the finish line.

  11. #11
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Accumulator View Post
    Dan- Heh heh, yeah...but finding those "sold purely due to owner disinterest" ones can be hard!

    Buying other people`s problems...heh heh heh, BTDT and *intentionally* too! The `93 Audi`s original owner has more money than God, but she couldn`t justify fixing that car`s issues any more so she quit about, oh..I dunno...?maybe $20K? short of the finish line.
    Agree, the search can be long, gotta be patient, a virtue that isn`t very common.

  12. #12

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Dan View Post
    ... the search can be long, gotta be patient...
    I made an admittedly expensive game out of it. After doing as much as I could long-distance, I`d fly there to check the car out in person, staying at a nice place and treating myself to an indulgent evening either before or after the inspection (sometimes both). If I found some deal-breaker issue, I`d either buy another airline ticket or rent something nice and drive home, having had a swell little vacation. I had some great times doing that, and never got [ticked] off when the car was a disappointment because I was having fun no matter how the deal went. Gave me an edge going into the inspection/bargaining too as the sellers usually seemed more interested in the deal going through than I was.

    People would say I was wasting a lot of money doing that, but IMO it was cheaper than buying the wrong car, and hey..those same people spend plenty taking *their* vacations too. And I was having a *blast*. Whether buying new or used, I always enjoyed (note past-tense, I have too many of the right vehicles now!) the get-a-car process and IMO that`s what it`s all about.

    It bums me out when people bemoan how they hate buying a car, the ownership experience really oughta be FUN right from the jump.

    EDIT: I had Fermani (where is he anyhow?) check out a vehicle for me once, and was actually glad he gave it a thumbs-down. While I trusted him completely, the remote-control car purchase wasn`t really my idea of fun. I bought the Tahoe sight-unseen, and while that turned out OK, it wasn`t really *fun* either..lesson learned, never again.
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  13. #13
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Yeah I learned my lesson with long distance purchases. Grill (and I do mean GRILL with objective questions) the seller to weed out the obvious ones and then send out SGS Auto inspection.

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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Dan View Post
    ..send out SGS Auto inspection.
    Ah, I gather they do an OK job. I`d always wondered which (if any) such service was, uhm...up to spec.

  15. #15
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    Re: Auto FSA`s

    Quote Originally Posted by Accumulator View Post
    Ah, I gather they do an OK job. I`d always wondered which (if any) such service was, uhm...up to spec.
    SGS is like Carfax, they`ll weed out the true turds (in case your seller is a good liar, and car dealers are!) They provide pictures and an objective report with what is wrong with the car. They do not report on mechanical condition though, the next step after SGS is there is to get an independent mechanical inspection or show up and look at the car yourself.

 

 
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