Someone is willing to sell me a 1996 Chevy Cavelier with 150K for $2000. Kelley Blue Book says in excellent condition it is only worth up to $1605. But the guy says he has put $1800 in the car since he bought the vehicle from his son. He says he's repaired the struts and alternator and so on. Should I consider how much he has put into the car instead of what Kelley blue book says?
2007-02-25 15:05:00 · 14 answers · asked by emilyl51501 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Buying & Selling
Never pay over blue book value. Cars are valued for a reason. No matter how much money you put into a vehicle, you will never get it back out of it unless you have a rare, very well restored classic. Their are a ton of cars out their within their value that are good cars. If you still want to get that one, I would make sure its real nice, and get proof of what they said they put into it. Also have a mechanic look at it. People will lie no matter how honest you think they are to get the most money out of their car, and when they do that their is usually some major problem with it that they are trying to hide. Their also is a big red flag that comes up when it came from the guys son, because ive been their and have seen almost every young kid has ran the crap out of their car.
2007-02-25 15:16:58 · answer #1 · answered by ALLAMERICAN 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No! He could sink $4000 into that car and it still wouldn't be worth $2000. It would still be an eleven year old car with 150K miles on it. He got it from his son? Young men are typically rough on cars so I don't see it measuring up to the Blue Book's excellent condition (of course I'm being presumptuous here). I wouldn't buy it for many reasons. He dosen't sound like a reasonable person to deal with, mid-1990's chevys aren't that dependable, it was owned by a younger man, he's asking way too much as a starting point..... Just my opinion.
Good luck!
2007-02-25 15:22:09 · answer #2 · answered by James M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, you shouldn't. No, you should not EVER consider what someone has put into the car. Repairs are a cost of running the car; beyond making everything work/look right, they do not add any value to the car.
If anything, I'd say the blue book on that car is too high. (Notice how car ads almost always say "BELOW BLUE BOOK!" Blue book is usually WRONG.)
So:
NO, you should not consider how much he's put into the car. It's the cost of owning a car.
and NO, you should not consider buying this car. The Cavalier is a piece of crap.
http://carsurvey.org/model_Chevrolet_Cavalier.html
At best, reliability is iffy. It's also a mediocre car regardless.
2007-02-25 15:14:50 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Repairs are a part of owning a car, just like maintenance. The fact that he has done these repairs simply means that the vehicle has been brought up to KBB's specifications. I would not pay a penny more than book value. Actually, I would likely not buy a Cavalier with 150K in the first place. It is very near the end of it's life.
2007-02-25 16:01:46 · answer #4 · answered by J.R. 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No.. $1605 is the correct price. When they say "excellent" condition, that means it's including the things that this owner has done to it.. as in keeping it running and repairing everything that needs to be done. If he has spent more money on repairs than on the car itself, then maybe this should be a sign that its not the best car to buy.. just a thought
2007-02-25 15:36:50 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
For used car the best web site is www.autotrader.com
I bought my wife her car with this page. At the beginning the dealers wanted a lot of money for the Protege I was looking for, but finally I found one with a good price.
When somebody tell me that they have put this and than money in the used car I want to buy, I tell them that this is not my problem.Or when somebody tell me that the car is valued a lot because is this or that car, the same. It is an old car, so I know that any dealer would give almost nothing for it.
Keep on searching.
2007-02-25 17:13:35 · answer #6 · answered by wazup1971 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would probably not consider this car because if he put 1800 dollars into it then it probably has problems, and we have owned a 1996 Chevy and it had many problems.
2007-02-25 15:22:05 · answer #7 · answered by Smart One 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How much you put in has NOTHING to do with how much you can sell it. unless if its a Toyota or Honda, else wise would be a bad buy. For a 11 yrs old GM??? it doesnt matter what did he jsut fixed, problems gonna come back and haunt you. Not worth it. Besides, with 2k, you find something like a Civic or Corolla, even Camry or Accord if you really trying to look, thats around 100K odometer.
Gm's used 11 yrs old car hardly worth more than one thousand... honestly....
2007-02-25 15:21:51 · answer #8 · answered by steak5959 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The Blue Book will have taken into account that such repairs had been needed. If I were you I wouldn't pay a cent more than the Blue Book specifies.
2007-02-25 15:14:37 · answer #9 · answered by Mr Ed 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's hard to say without seeing the car. It doesn't sound like a TERRIBLE price but it seems a bit steep. First I would take it and have it checked out by a trusted mechanic.
2007-02-25 15:10:50 · answer #10 · answered by Motivated 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋