It’s the classic dilemma that faces every auto-consumer out there: Pay
cash upfront or forego the ownership and pay monthly settlements instead?
Buy or lease for a new set of wheels?

As is the case with every other common dilemma, there is no slam-dunk
answer. Each option has its own benefits and drawbacks, and it all depends
on a set of financial and personal considerations.

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When buying used vehicles, buyer beware is the motto to follow. Of course, every day people buy thousands of used vehicles that are in very good condition and run exceptionally well. However, this is not always the case. Some people sell used vehicles knowing that there are major problems and allow the buyer to be ’stuck’ with a bad deal. Here are some things to keep in mind when considering the purchase of a used vehicle.

First of all, when you are searching for a used vehicle, keep in the forefront of your mind the type of vehicle you want and the uses for the chosen vehicle. Don’t let yourself get off track and buy a pickup truck when you really need a car that will seat six people. Don’t let yourself get talked into buying a vehicle that gets terrible gas mileage when it is to be used for long-distance commuting. Decide before you begin your search exactly what you want in a used vehicle and how important each desire is to your overall goal.

As you begin to make calls in response to advertisements for used vehicles, ask plenty of questions before arranging to go see the car, truck or motorcycle. Inquire why the person that wants to sell the vehicle has decided to up to transportation up for sale. Did they buy a new vehicle and simply want to get the best price for their old one or did the vehicle begin requiring so many repairs that they found it necessary to dump the vehicle on someone else? Ask about the make and model as well as the engine size. Get all the details you can before you decided whether to make the trip to see the vehicle in person.

When you see the vehicle that is for sale, inspect it with a very critical eye. Check for oil leaks under the car as well as any evidence that oil has been recently removed or covered up. A leaking engine can become a major repair job. Look for damage to the vehicle, including rust damage that may have been poorly covered with bond-o and paint. Examine the area around the windows and chrome to see if rust is hiding in those areas, just waiting to break through after you buy the vehicle and get it home.

Open the engine compartment of the used vehicle. Look for signs of a previous electrical fire or any damaged wiring. Also pay attention to see if you see water or oil leaking onto the engine. This doesn’t mean that the engine won’t be dirty; engines become dirty and get oil on them over time. You want to look for puddles or large quantities of oil on the engine surfaces. Be aware if the engine is, however, too clean. If the engine has must been steam cleaned and de-greased, it could indicate that the engine had signs of leaking and this was hidden by a thorough cleaning.

Ask about the title to the vehicle. The person selling the vehicle should have a clear title to it. The numbers of the VIN on the title must match those on the vehicle exactly. If they do not and you want to buy the car, truck or motorcycle, tell the owner that you will be happy to close the deal once they correct the title problem. Don’t let anyone convince you that you can resolve the title issue after the sale easily. You could end up with a vehicle that can’t be titled and, therefore, that you do not legally own.

Check the NADA price guides for the type of vehicle you are considering for purchase to get an idea of the price range that is average for this make and model. Of course, condition and other factors come into play with pricing a used vehicle, but the price range will let you know if you are being asked to pay significantly more than the vehicle is worth or if the price is so low as to raise red flags.

Ask about the maintenance history of the used vehicle you are thinking about buying. The owner that is selling the vehicle may have an extensive set of maintenance and repair records to show you exactly what has been done to take care of the vehicle as well as what parts have been replaced due to wear and tear or breakings.

If you find a good used vehicle that you want to buy, begin negotiating for the best possible price. Most people that list a car, truck or motorcycle for sale advertise an asking price and are really willing to accept a price that is slightly or significantly lower. It never hurts to ask for a price reduction. Depending on the how badly you want that particular vehicle, you may want to agree to the asking price if the owner will not provide any reduction at all.

By employing the motto ‘Buyer Beware’ when shopping for a used vehicle, whether you want to purchase a car, motorcycle or pickup truck, you will remind yourself to remain on the lookout for any signs or signals that might indicate that something important about the vehicle is not being mentioned. There is no legal requirements for an owner to reveal anything they happen to know to be wrong with a vehicle they place on the used vehicle market, so it is entirely up to you to use due caution in buying used vehicles.

There are new and used car lemon laws in many states that are a form of protection for the vehicle buyers that gets stuck with a vehicle that has many things wrong with it. Not every state has the same law, so you will need to research the exact legislation in your state if you happen to get stuck with a lemon when buying a new or used car.

Most states that have lemon laws in place to protect new and used car buyers require that certain criteria be met in order for the vehicle to be covered under the law. In most states, but not all of them, that have these laws, cars, pickup trucks, vans, motorcycles and some types of other vehicles are covered under the regulation. The most common criteria that must be met is that the report of the lemon vehicle must be done within a specific amount of time from the purchase of the transportation.  Usually this is less than two years or before a certain number of miles have been recorded on the vehicle’s odometer from the reading recorded at the time of purchase.

Frequently, the only vehicles covered under the lemon laws are those purchased from a new or used car dealership. In some cases, leased vehicles are covered but few, if any, states have lemon laws that cover a car, truck or other vehicle that has been purchased in a private sale between two private individuals.

Usually the vehicles covered under the lemon laws must have a specific purchase price or lease value. This is often in the range of $1,500 to $3,000 or more. In order words, if you purchase an older, inexpensive vehicle for $500, you will not have recourse under lemon laws if the vehicle has problems. At that low price, however, you would not expect coverage under these laws.

The vehicle in question must be used primarily for personal transportation purposes in order to qualify under all the lemon laws. Commercially used vehicles such as taxi cabs, delivery trucks and other transportation used for business purposes primarily are not covered under lemon laws.

There are some states, such as New York, that include vehicles purchased at auto auctions in the lemon law coverage as long as the vehicle in question is used for personal use by the owner. Even if the vehicle is titled to a company or business, as long as it is used for personal or household use as the majority of the mileages accumulated on the new or used vehicle, it is covered under most of the state lemon laws.

The exact resource and the process for seeking recourse under each state’s lemon laws may different significantly. If you have purchased a vehicle, whether new or used, and have experienced repeated problems that have resulted in spending large amounts of time without use of the vehicle or have had to invest significant amounts of money in a used vehicle to repair it over and over again, you may be able to rectify the situation under these laws. Seek advice from a local attorney, car dealer or other person that is knowledgeable about the laws in your area to learn if there is help for you if you have bought a used car that is a lemon.

There are scams and fraud in every type of sales for any product in the world or at least it seems that way today. Here is information about a common used car fraud situation that you should be aware of if you are thinking about buying a used car, pickup truck, recreational vehicle, motorcycle or other type of vehicle. Falling for a scam like this could result in the confiscation of your used vehicle and you will not get your money back without legal actions and perhaps not even then.

People who perform scams and fraud are very savvy people. They seem to get smarter and more resourceful every day, taking millions of dollars from innocent, trusting people each and every year. Whenever you are conducting business with anyone that you do not know personally or have not know personally for a long period of time, be on guard for any possible indications that the transaction might be less than on the up and up. Dishonest people will do, it seems, anything to get money from the unsuspecting victims of fraud and scams.

Perpetrators of used car fraud have found some ways to place counterfeit vehicle identification numbers (VINs) in place of the real VINs on cars and trucks that have been stolen. People often think that this can’t be doe, and exactly how this is being accomplished will not be revealed in an effort to not encourage other dishonest people from attempting to learn how to successfully defraud and scam more people with this used car fraud scheme. But, the VINs that are placed on the stolen vehicles are very genuine in appearance.

In fact, the VINs placed in these stolen used vehicles are so realistic and genuine in appearance that even some car dealers have fallen for this scheme. As this becomes a common used car fraud scheme, dealers will be more and more aware and ask many more questions of people trading in used vehicles and attempting to sell a used vehicle to them. After all, these used car dealers must protect themselves and their businesses.

Whether you have a business of buying and selling used cars or are seeking a used vehicle for your own transportation, be very cautious and examine the VIN plate carefully. If the VIN appears to have been tampered with, you should not purchase the vehicle. Signs of tampering for which you should be on the alert include any peeling up of the metal plate that is installed on the dashboard of most cars, trucks and other four wheeled vehicles or in another secure place on a motorcycle or other two wheeled vehicle. Does it appear that any of the numbers or letters have been filed away on the plate or altered in some other way? Is the plate missing entirely?

If you have any doubt about the validity of the VIN when buying or selling used cars, do not exchange any money for the vehicle. If it is clearly a reason for suspicion, you should obtain as much information as possible and report the facts to the local law enforcement agency so this practice that hurts far too many innocent people can be stopped.

Buying and selling used vehicles is a major industry in American and around the world. People love to get great deals on previously owned cars, trucks and motorcycles and this industry fulfills their needs. Whether you are thinking of buying a used vehicle from a used car dealer or from a private individual, you want to know how to check used vehicle history by vehicle identification number (VIN). It can save you from buying a lemon!

The first step to checking a used vehicle history by vehicle identification number is to locate a used car, truck, motorcycle or other type of vehicle that you are interested in buying. Of course, many owners of used transportation that want to see the vehicles are quite honest and up front about the history of the vehicle, telling about repairs, problems and accident freely.

You may not know that when a vehicle is completely totaled in an accident in California or other nearby states, the insurance company places ’salvage’ on the title to the automobile or other vehicle. That same vehicle can be repaired, but sometimes is very poorly repaired and may even be unsafe to drive. The vehicle is taken to Nevada where salvage titles are not recognized and a new title issued to a Nevada address is applied for. Once the new title arrives, there is no longer anything on the title that marks this vehicle as having been totaled and salvaged. The vehicle can then be taken to any other state in American and yet another title is applied for, requesting it be issued to an address in whatever state in which the applied application is filed. Upon receipt of the new title, there is no easy to spot indication that the car was once wrecked seriously and the vehicle is then sold as if it were a great used vehicle that has no history of accidents and repairs.

To prevent this, or a similar situation, from happening to you when you consider purchasing a used car, truck or motorcycle, request the owner write down the VIN of the vehicle for you. If the owner is being honest about the vehicle history, they should be more than willing to do this for you.

With the VIN in hand, you can access any one of many different websites on the Internet that specialize in vehicle history research.  Facts that will included in these records are not only accidents and salvage history but flood damage, potential odometer tampering, junked titles, state emission inspection results where applicable, lien activity, vehicle use history, indications if the vehicle was reported to be a lemon and even, in some cases, the service and repair records of the vehicle. Some websites provide free reporting while others charge a fee. However, considering the cost of a used vehicle, it is a small price to pay to learn what you need to know.

If you check used vehicle history by vehicle identification number, you can purchase a vehicle that has been owned by someone else with some assurance that you are getting a fair deal. Avoid any vehicle that indicates signs that some of the factors are not right or where the VIN report indicates a history that is questionable.