Oh for sure. I went and drove it for a little while. I like it. It rides nice, has cool features, good safety rating. Super clean. One owner that traded it in for a new Odyssey. Nothing on the carfax. And it's a Honda certified used car. Nice warranty on it. It's not the most exciting car ever, but I'm looking for reliable and practical. I looked around at some smaller lots, but they all seem so shady. Even if I have to finance just a little bit, I want it to be a nice reputable place.
Bill Legit's Used Cars just wasn't cutting it. I drove a Trailblazer from that place, when I got back I popped the hood and was checking the fluids and things like that there was oil mixed with the coolant. The dude tried to explain it away as the dex-cool breaking down, and it was perfectly normal. Which I've actually seen happen. Only thing was, it was regular coolant which doesn't do that, as far as I know. That experience completely made me dismiss GM cars all together. Unless I get one for free, there is no way in hell I'm getting another GM car.
Yeah, if you're going to buy a used car, the safest place to do it is from a new car dealership. They tend to only keep the better used cars around as it's a bit risk for them to sell a shit box that will break down in two weeks because the transmission was on the way out when they bought it. The most important thing for a new car dealership in a city is their reputation as you usually have at least one other option in town with exactly the same product and pricing. Selling shitty used cars is a good way to tarnish your rep through word of mouth.
The lower quality used cars they get as trade ins either get sold to smaller used dealerships directly or sold to wholesalers in bulk lots and then passed off to the smaller used cars. Anything they keep around is usually pretty good and has USUALLY been checked out by their mechanics and had any problems solved. Who knows though, there are shady motherfuckers out there everywhere. At the very least I'd do a search with the BBB and just basically online (or if there's a business complaint database for the region you're in)...you know, just to be careful. Also, thoroughly research the car you are buying. You probably have already, but 20K is a lot of coin....make sure you avoid any weird surprises like having to switch the timing belt every 20,000 miles instead of 50,000 (example).
A lot of people will tell you never to buy used from a dealership, as there is a premium involved. Those people are idiots. The opportunity cost involved in going through classifieds, checking out cars, finally getting one which is in the advertised condition, negotiating, and getting it checked out is extraordinary. There is an opportunity cost involved in all the research and searching and a direct monetary cost involved in running multiple carfax reports and getting multiple cars checked out. Buying used from a new car dealership is the safest way to buy used hands down.
Buying from a used dealership is risky. I did it once and it worked out very very well for me, but only because I went in there informed and pushed as hard as I could for massive discounts on a car they wanted to get rid of. I could negotiate very aggressively because I could get the car anywhere....they were just pumped they were selling a car with a gas tank that was rusting off. I ended up paying something like $2k for a mid-90s tercel with less than 100,000 KM on it that they wanted something like $3500-$3700 for. A thousand of that was because I found out it was insured in Ontario for a year....which drops the price of a car in BC substantially (salt). Checked under the car, saw the rust, hard balled on that and got I guy I knew to install a tank we got for basically free at a wrecker for nothing. Maybe had two oil changes over 5 years, drove the shit out of it, and only ended up getting rid of it because there was faulty wiring somewhere in the car and it kept shorting out, stalling the car. None of the usual suspects were to blame so it apparently came down to testing all the wiring in the firewalls and shit...which I was not going to do. Ended up getting $500 for it, but could have easily sold it for $1,500-$2000 if I was a dick and lied about the electrical short to some schmoe off of craigslist.
That said, they did fucking take me on the sunroof. It was aftermarket and it fucking leaked, no way to fix it without getting a new seal from the original manufacturer. Thank god for duct tape.
I've had my '95 Mustang since early '96, and I still haven't spent that much in repairs. New radiator and some throttle-bypass piece that froze shut. (That was a fun couple of days. Take your foot off the gas at all, engine dies.) My biggest maintenance expense on that car was tires. Damn, they're expensive. $1000 worth of Michelin Pilots to replace the Goodyear Eagle GS-Cs that were there originally. Those lasted all of 30K miles. The Michelins are a harder compound, but they won't last much longer. I know I've been lucky so far, since there is no money for repairs right now, let alone a new car.
That is awesome. I think the stigma with American vehicles is specifically referring to the entry level and mid-level models. They seem to do well with the higher end (fuck, better than the Europeans at least) and trucks (although Toyota trucks still are pretty much the most bullet proof vehicles you can buy). Also, I know here it usually ends up being a fair bit cheaper to buy tires off of the internet (Even with shipping) if you are looking for anything other than standard rated radials. You should check out sites like tirerack.com (I think....I will check my bookmarks when I get home).
