Tips of Buying Used Car

How To Buy A Used Car & Avoid Scams
2.5 million cars are wrecked annually and 1 million end up back on the road.

* Our 6 step road map to buying your used car, haggling with tough sellers and avoiding scams. Best used car advice on the net
* Used car classifieds sites such as UsedCars.com, Cars.com, CarsDirect.com and Car.com.
* How to finance used cars through dealers or person-to-person.
* Review of Up2Drive (a division of BMW Bank of North America)
* How to use AutoCheck Vehicle History Reports to negotiate a lower price, check for wrecked, salvaged, odometer fraud cars
* Print out questions for you to ask the seller, our cool used car bill of sale form
* If you get a discount from new car sites like Cars.com, InvoiceDealers, Edmunds.com you won't need a used car
* Buying a used car when the seller still owes money on it
* Extended warranty for high mileage used cars (Warranty Direct PowerShield)

If you are buying a used car, you absolutely must get an AutoCheck Vehicle History Report on the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) AND have a mechanic inspect the car on a lift.

Never heard of AutoCheck?
AutoCheck is a premium vehicle history report product from Experian Automotive. Experian Automotive is a business unit of Experian Group Ltd., a company with annual sales in excess of $3.8 billion (you probably know them best as the credit report people). Experian Automotive is able to use all of Experian's data collection expertise to give you a comprehensive vehicle history report including the exclusive Autocheck Score (its like a credit score for your car).

CARFAX ® vs. AutoCheck - Why CarBuyingTips.com recommends AutoCheck.

* Single Vehicle History Report cost: CARFAX ® $29.99 vs. AutoCheck only $14.99
* Unlimited Vehicle History Reports cost: CARFAX ® $39.99 vs. AutoCheck only $24.99
* Unlimited Vehicle History Reports duration: CARFAX ® 30 days vs. AutoCheck 90 days (when purchased thru CarBuyingTips.com)
* All AutoCheck reports include the informative AutoCheck Score

Consumer Alert: Tens of thousands of flooded and totaled used cars from Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita
When Hurricane Katrina struck Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama and Hurricane Rita hit Florida, Louisiana and Texas, it was one of the worst natural disasters to hit the United States. Aside from death and destruction, few people know what happened to the hundreds of thousands of cars that were totaled, most of them flooded by Katrina's storm surge and the flooding of New Orleans. Many car dealer lots had hundreds of cars completely submerged under water. After insurance claims, these cars will have their titles branded as totaled or flooded, then they'll be shipped to other states so their titles can be laundered back to normal status, while latent water damage corrodes the electronics. It is more important than ever for you to run an Experian AutoCheck Vehicle History Report on every used car you look at, because you can't afford to be stuck with a previously flooded or totaled vehicle.

Most Popular Used Cars
Usedcars.com has compiled a list of the most popular used cars. Click on a model to find one in your area.
1) Ford Mustang
2) Honda Accord
3) Toyota Camry
4) Ford F-Series 5) BMW 3-Series
6) Honda Civic
7) Nissan Altima
8) Toyota Corolla

Used Car Pricing Does Not Use Invoice Price
We often get asked if "Invoice Price" and "MSRP" apply to used cars, or if you should try to calculate an offer for used cars based on invoice price. No, the Invoice Price and MSRP only apply to new cars, not used cars. For used cars, there is no invoice price because car dealers acquire used cars from people at a "trade in" price, then mark it up on the lot. The best way to determine used car prices is to check how your car has sold on eBay the last few weeks, and bring printouts with you to the dealer to support your offers on used cars.

Finding out what's wrong with that used car before you buy
Everyone buying a used car should get an Experian AutoCheck Vehicle History Report, they get data from a substantial number of dealers and aftermarket repair shops, nearly 5,000 sources. A mechanic can put the car on a lift and instantly spot previous crash damage, hidden frame damage, corrosion, and fluid leaks. But your mechanic can't tell you if your car title has been branded as a flooded vehicle, salvaged, junked, rebuilt, stolen, or passed through a salvage auction. Most mechanics overlook airbags. You can only tell how many owners that car had or where it's been with a history report, not just by looking at the car. This is not the time to 2nd guess. Unfortunately there are no clear laws if you sign an "As Is" paper. Any used car can have a bad past, Mercedes, Lexus, Honda or Toyota. Some municipalities don't supply accident report info, that's why you still need to have a mechanic look at it. If the police never made a report, it won't show up in the AutoCheck Vehicle History Report.