Does car dealership inspect and fix problem on used cars?

[Subway]

1) Does car dealership inspect and fix problem on used cars? Or just inspect it and not going to fix problem of the car like there is some minor leaking? 

 

2) If the car dealership didn't inspect the vehicle for any problem on this used car, can I hire a local mechanic come with me to the dealer to inspect this used car? 

[Radium_Angel]

4 hours ago, Subway said:

1) Does car dealership inspect and fix problem on used cars? Or just inspect it and not going to fix problem of the car like there is some minor leaking? 

 

2) If the car dealership didn't inspect the vehicle for any problem on this used car, can I hire a local mechanic come with me to the dealer to inspect this used car? 

Depends on the dealerhip

[Drak3]

They're supposed to, but the ones I've been to don't.

My Dakota had a knock it it's original engine.

My RAM 2500's wiring for the back door locks is fucked up (and it was like that for every RAM THEY had).

My father's 3500 had LEGALLY REQUIRED emissions equipment deleted by a Canuck before making it to Idaho, and the dealer only added back the cat.

 

Three different dealerships.

[dalekphalm]

17 hours ago, Subway said:

1) Does car dealership inspect and fix problem on used cars? Or just inspect it and not going to fix problem of the car like there is some minor leaking?

It depends on the condition of the vehicle. Generally, the dealership would fix any outstanding issues (especially if a newer used car), but should list any and all problems before the sale.

17 hours ago, Subway said:

2) If the car dealership didn't inspect the vehicle for any problem on this used car, can I hire a local mechanic come with me to the dealer to inspect this used car? 

Regardless of whether the dealer inspected the car or not, you should ALWAYS 100% OF THE TIME get a used car inspected yourself by a third party mechanic.

 

Never, ever, buy a used car without having it inspected yourself. Never take the dealer at their word.

 

The only exception I'd add here is if the car is literally brand new, and you're the first owner. In such case, the warranty plus the fact that it's new usually means having a mechanic look at it is a waste of money.

[Donut417]

21 hours ago, Subway said:

1) Does car dealership inspect and fix problem on used cars? Or just inspect it and not going to fix problem of the car like there is some minor leaking? 

 

2) If the car dealership didn't inspect the vehicle for any problem on this used car, can I hire a local mechanic come with me to the dealer to inspect this used car? 

They do inspect them because thats how they figure out how much money they will provide for trade in. As far as fixing them, that would depend on the cost of repair vs how much they can sell the car for. If you spot an issue, and they really want to close a deal they might be willing to put the work in to sell you a car. As far as using a local mechanic, you could always go do a test drive and drive it to a local mechanic to have a look. 

 

Not sure what area of the world your in, but depending on the age of car your looking at and the money your looking at spending, buying from a private party might be cheaper as dealerships tend to charge a bit more. But buying from a private party you need to make sure you have the car checked out by someone knowledgeable. https://www.kbb.com/ is a good site to go to if your in the US to figure out how much the car is actually worth, generally they will give private party price as well as dealer price. 

[Subway]

On 1/25/2019 at 6:19 PM, dalekphalm said:

It depends on the condition of the vehicle. Generally, the dealership would fix any outstanding issues (especially if a newer used car), but should list any and all problems before the sale.

Regardless of whether the dealer inspected the car or not, you should ALWAYS 100% OF THE TIME get a used car inspected yourself by a third party mechanic.

  

Never, ever, buy a used car without having it inspected yourself. Never take the dealer at their word.

 

The only exception I'd add here is if the car is literally brand new, and you're the first owner. In such case, the warranty plus the fact that it's new usually means having a mechanic look at it is a waste of money.

Should I take it to another dealer to inspect the car or local mechanic near my area? Because I am interesting of buying a low mileage sports car like 12k odometer. 

 

On 1/25/2019 at 10:46 PM, Donut417 said:

They do inspect them because thats how they figure out how much money they will provide for trade in. As far as fixing them, that would depend on the cost of repair vs how much they can sell the car for. If you spot an issue, and they really want to close a deal they might be willing to put the work in to sell you a car. As far as using a local mechanic, you could always go do a test drive and drive it to a local mechanic to have a look. 

  

Not sure what area of the world your in, but depending on the age of car your looking at and the money your looking at spending, buying from a private party might be cheaper as dealerships tend to charge a bit more. But buying from a private party you need to make sure you have the car checked out by someone knowledgeable. https://www.kbb.com/ is a good site to go to if your in the US to figure out how much the car is actually worth, generally they will give private party price as well as dealer price. 

So no negotiation if they won't let me take the used car out of their parking to a local mechanic to inspect the car? 

[Donut417]

8 hours ago, Subway said:

o no negotiation if they won't let me take the used car out of their parking to a local mechanic to inspect the car? 

At the very least it they wont let you drive the car to test it, then walk the fuck away from that dealer. When I went to lease my Nissan, they basically thru me the keys and said I could take it pretty much anywhere I wanted for the test drive. Hell the sales person didnt even join us. 

[dalekphalm]

17 hours ago, Subway said:

Should I take it to another dealer to inspect the car or local mechanic near my area? Because I am interesting of buying a low mileage sports car like 12k odometer.

Your choice - literally doesn't matter. If you know a local mechanic personally that you trust, that's probably the best option.

 

If not, take the car to another dealer of the same manufacturer of said car, and pay for an inspection.

 

Expect to pay $100-$200 at least. More if you want a super comprehensive inspection where they start ripping stuff apart.

17 hours ago, Subway said:

So no negotiation if they won't let me take the used car out of their parking to a local mechanic to inspect the car? 

If the dealer won't let you take the car out for inspection, walk away. Just walk the fuck away.

 

Same thing if they won't let you do a test drive.

 

Pro-tip, you can combine the two processes if you plan ahead. Book a time for the test drive. Book a time for the inspection slightly later. Drive to the mechanic. Get inspection.

 

Bonus points if you can also get the mechanic to come along for a quick ride along too, so they can get a feel for the car in movement.

9 hours ago, Donut417 said:

At the very least it they wont let you drive the car to test it, then walk the fuck away from that dealer. When I went to lease my Nissan, they basically thru me the keys and said I could take it pretty much anywhere I wanted for the test drive. Hell the sales person didnt even join us. 

Indeed - I've actually never had a sales person join me for a test drive. Typically they've got other work to do so for them to come along is just wasting their time.

 

If they won't let you take the car (for either an inspection or a test drive), then that's a huge red flag and you should just go somewhere else (I'd also call them - after you've bought elsewhere - and explain in detail how they lost their sale).

[Subway]

15 hours ago, Donut417 said:

At the very least it they wont let you drive the car to test it, then walk the fuck away from that dealer. When I went to lease my Nissan, they basically thru me the keys and said I could take it pretty much anywhere I wanted for the test drive. Hell the sales person didnt even join us. 

 

6 hours ago, dalekphalm said:

Your choice - literally doesn't matter. If you know a local mechanic personally that you trust, that's probably the best option.

  

If not, take the car to another dealer of the same manufacturer of said car, and pay for an inspection.

 

Expect to pay $100-$200 at least. More if you want a super comprehensive inspection where they start ripping stuff apart.

If the dealer won't let you take the car out for inspection, walk away. Just walk the fuck away.

  

Same thing if they won't let you do a test drive.

 

Pro-tip, you can combine the two processes if you plan ahead. Book a time for the test drive. Book a time for the inspection slightly later. Drive to the mechanic. Get inspection.

  

Bonus points if you can also get the mechanic to come along for a quick ride along too, so they can get a feel for the car in movement.

Indeed - I've actually never had a sales person join me for a test drive. Typically they've got other work to do so for them to come along is just wasting their time.

 

If they won't let you take the car (for either an inspection or a test drive), then that's a huge red flag and you should just go somewhere else (I'd also call them - after you've bought elsewhere - and explain in detail how they lost their sale).

Thanks, and how can you tell if the car has been salvaged, stolen, or fleet rental? 

[dalekphalm]

2 minutes ago, Subway said:

Thanks, and how can you tell if the car has been salvaged, stolen, or fleet rental? 

For the first one, doing a carfax (or similar) report on the car should tell you whether it was in any major accidents.

 

It might also list if stolen - but for that, you should definitely have the police run the VIN - just go to the local police station with the VIN and ask them if they can check to make sure it wasn't stolen.

 

For the last part, unless the dealer discloses this, I don't think there's any reasonable way of checking whether it was a fleet vehicle or not.

[Subway]

1 minute ago, dalekphalm said:

For the first one, doing a carfax (or similar) report on the car should tell you whether it was in any major accidents.

  

It might also list if stolen - but for that, you should definitely have the police run the VIN - just go to the local police station with the VIN and ask them if they can check to make sure it wasn't stolen.

  

For the last part, unless the dealer discloses this, I don't think there's any reasonable way of checking whether it was a fleet vehicle or not.

I heard a lot of people say CarFax is not accurate all the time. I don't like fleet rental vehicle because I don't know how they used the vehicle and is vehicle maintained properly at the right intervals. I generally avoid stolen, accident, fleet rental, salvaged, and multiple owners vehicle.  

[dalekphalm]

11 hours ago, Subway said:

I heard a lot of people say CarFax is not accurate all the time. I don't like fleet rental vehicle because I don't know how they used the vehicle and is vehicle maintained properly at the right intervals. I generally avoid stolen, accident, fleet rental, salvaged, and multiple owners vehicle.  

1. Carfax is only going to have information that was submitted to it. Some of that information is automatic (eg: any time you file a claim with your insurance). If the previous driver totaled the car and never reported it to insurance, and then did the repair themselves? Carfax would have no idea.

2. You generally avoid stolen? You can't even register a stolen car anyway, so not really a problem - though as stated, check VIN w/ police.

3. You will likely never know if the vehicle was a fleet car, or had a ton of owners (Carfax might reports multiple owners, but I wouldn't count on it). Because of that, there's literally no reason to worry about the car being a former fleet car. If it is, it is - if it's not, it's not. You won't know either way anyway.

 

The primary thing to remember is: Get Carfax Report, run VIN past police, get independent (or different dealer) inspection.