by Sherry Obenauer

Created on: March 30, 2007   Last Updated: November 07, 2008

Car Buying Tips

Buying a vehicle can be fun or frustrating. Most people will purchase several vehicles in their lifetimes. Some vehicle shoppers know little about what to look for or what they want, and are at greater risk of being "had." This article is intended to assist less-experienced buyers.

There are literally hundreds of vehicles to choose from. Perhaps one of the first things you need to decide is what size of vehicle you want and how much you can afford. Vehicles range from small (Firefly), to compact (Accord), to luxury (Mercedes). They include, sport (Integra), full size (Intrepid), trucks, sport-utility vehicles (CRV), and vans (Caravan).

Once vehicle size is chosen, door number may be next. Two-door vehicles are typically cheaper to buy new and have higher resale value than four doors, depending on the vehicle. For SUVs, four doors are always a better buy. In terms of color, silver, black, blue, white, and green vehicles have the highest resale value. Typically, SUVs have excellent resale value, but are dangerous for rollovers. Most other vehicles typically decrease in value as soon as they are driven off the lot.

Avoid cars with dent-resistant doors as they are often made of cheap materials and mounted with glue. Foreign vehicles traditionally are of higher quality, longer duration, and higher resale value, but cost more. Avoid getting a new model in the first few years until the flaws have been worked out. Buy cars made in the last six months of the year (Dec.-June) for the same reason. Avoid vehicles made on Mondays or Fridays as more employee mistakes are made on these days.

The bigger the engine, the bigger the fuel consumption. Engine size is determined by the number of liters and the number of cylinders. Hence, trucks and larger SUVs have poorer gas mileage than cars. The heavier the vehicle, the more fuel it will use. Listed gas mileage is based on indoor factory testing, not on actual road conditions.

If buying a used vehicle, avoid quad fours (bad head gaskets) and ouch engines (engines where the timing belt requires careful monitoring and changing to avoid complete engine failure). Avoid vehicles with rust showing on the inside bottom of the doors as this indicates the safety of the vehicle has been compromised. Rust starts on the inside and works its way out. Test for equal gaps between body parts with a pen (should be 5mm). If gap sizes vary, the vehicle may have been in an accident.

Check for paint differences by looking on the

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