Guide to Finding Cheap Cars for Sale in Your Area
Thank you for visiting our website, we are the leading source for information on buying and finding cheap cars for sale. We understand that not everyone can afford the latest and greatest cars to hit the market, but buying used cars can be risky. We have tried to take the guess work out of buying used cars by offering you loads of information, free guides and more. Check out our website and see how we can help make your car buying experience a much better one.
With so many cheap cars for sale these days, especially with the economy being down and more cars hitting the market each day, you have a lot of options to choose from. Below, you will find that we have provided you with some excellent used car buying tips as well as places to shop for the best deals. Also, don’t forget to check out our section on buying cars from Craigslist it can save you a lot of trouble down the road.
Tips for Buying Used Cars – What to Look for!
Anytime you are buying something used, especially with high dollar items like cars, you need to be cautious before shelling out your hard earned money. Before you ever buy a used car, there are some things you need to look for. Below is a basic checklist to help you inspect the vehicle and make sure that you are getting a good deal:
Used Car Buying Tips
- Walk around the car and perform an exterior inspection. Check to see if the body lines all match up, the doors are even, same with the trunk and hood. Check the tires for even wear, which will give you an insight as to whether the tires have been rotated regularly and the car has been maintained properly.
- Take a look at the interior of the car. Look for things like holes in the seat, worn out carpet, cigarette burns and stains. Make sure the radio works, check that all the lights work, the air conditioning and heating works, etc. If the car has seat covers, look under them. Many sellers try to hide upholstery problems with seat covers and are often a sign of damage below.
- Open the hood and look over the engine closely. While you may not be a mechanic, you can certainly tell if there is oil or other fluids on the engine, look for empty spaces where something may be missing. Look to make sure that the engine is somewhat clean and take a mental snapshot of how it looks.
- Take the car for a test drive. While driving, make sure the steering feels good, how does the car drive? Do the brakes seem to work well, or is the car jumpy when slowing down? Make sure the car accelerates properly and that there are no overheating issues when driving at higher speeds for any length of time. Once you get the car back, open the hood and make sure that the engine looks the same as it did before. Check for fresh leaks.
- Most importantly, take the car to your mechanic. Now that you know the car seems nice and have done your part to inspect it, it is time to have a professional look it over. There may be some underlying problem that you are unaware of, a qualified mechanic can spot these before you buy and save you a lot of money down the road in repairs. Saving money is great, but there are a lot of cheap cars for sale out there so you do not have to buy the first one you find, do your research.
Cheap Cars for Sale on Craigslist
Craigslist has quickly become the leader in low priced cars. They make finding used cars in your area super easy and you can find some really good deals as well. Since most of the cars offered will be from individual owners, please make sure to meet with the seller and inspect the car using the tips listed above before buying anything.
Don’t forget to check out our guide on finding quality craigslist cars for sale in your area.
Other Places to Find Cheap Cars for Sale
There are actually quite a few resources that you can use to find cheap cars for sale in your area. Which means, finding an affordable car that fits within your budget has never been easier! So before you head out to the local used car dealerships, consider some of these ideas:
Ebay Motors – Ebay.com is a huge source of cheap used cars for sale and you can find cars of just about any make or model, as well as anywhere in the country. While there are many people that are a little bit intimidated by purchasing a car online, consider this: by law all sellers are required to describe the car’s condition truthfully and the car must meet the the auction description perfectly. Which basically means that if you were to buy a car and later find that it was not described properly, or that there were problems with the vehicle that were not listed in the auction description, then you are protected.
Many of the sellers on Ebay are dealerships and automotive wholesalers with a few individual owners in there as well. Since this is an auction, you can often find cars for sale much cheaper than their suggested Blue Book value. However, the price will greatly depend on the type of car that you are looking for and the number of bidders interested in the auction.
Auto Trader – Auto Trader is a big name in the automotive industry. Their website, AutoTrader.com, typically has over three million cars for sale at any point in time, that is a lot of cars to choose from. You will be able to search for cars by area and for the most part, you can find some pretty good deals. However, in our experience, we find that many times the prices are set quite a bit higher on the website but can be haggled down for a much better savings to you. Also, since many of the cars listed are by dealerships and individual sellers in your area, then we highly recommend setting up an appointment to take a look at the car and give it a good test drive before talking money with the seller.
Local Classified Ads – At one time, local classifieds were the hot resource for finding cheap cars for sale but these days they have all but been forgotten about. Even so, there are some great deals to be found in the classified section of your local newspaper, especially in the Sunday paper. Most newspapers now have an online version of their classifieds section for you to look through if you do not want to buy the paper every week, so make sure to check out their website to see what kind of deals are in your city.
Used Car Auctions – Most larger cities have an occasional used car auction. Generally, you can find out about these online or through your local newspaper and plan on being to the auction early to make sure you can get close to the cars and get a good look. The biggest problem with most used car auctions is that all sales are final. Most of the time you will be allowed to look over the vehicle before the auctioneer gets to it, however, once you buy something it is yours and the condition may be less than good. So if you are unsure as to whether the car is actually what you want, then don’t place a bid.
However, you can find some very cheap cars for sale at the auction. In fact, many cars often sell for under $1000, depending on the make and model of the vehicle as well as the number of people interested in it. Those of you with limited knowledge in vehicles may want to stick with some of the other ideas above, as buying at an auction may leave you with an unreliable car.
