I am a first time car buyer, what is a good mileage? The car I am looking @ is 249,000. Is that ok?

Question

I don't know much about cars... obviously.
Thank you for your help.

Answer 1

No. that is horrrrible! I would look for something under 50000 at best. The more miles it has the more likely it is to break down and die.

Answer 2

As others have said, 249k miles (assuming you are talking miles) is an excessive amount. However, that fact alone shouldn't necessarily stop you from buying the car. You didn't say how old the car is and what kind of shape it's in -- if it's still in good cosmetic shape and mechanically sound, it's worth consideration, depending on the price.

A car that runs is always worth SOMETHING, even if it's just a few hundred bucks. If you're looking at a vehicle with this many miles, chances are you're just looking for a beater that will last you a couple years, and a well maintained car that happens to have a lot of miles might be right up your alley. However, with any used car, I would recommend a very close inspection by yourself and a mechanic.

Here's a used car checklist you may find useful:
http://autos.msn.com/advice/articles/aischecklist.aspx

Answer 3

I think the guy means under 50,000 is good. I have usually bought cars that have between 80,000-100,000. The seller has gotten the new out of it and usually they are less expensive. If you can spend 50-100 dollars for a good shop to inspect the car. And ask for a warranty. Even for thirty days. Some states say you can return a car to a dealership in the first month for no reason. If the seller won't guarantee a month of no repairs then maybe they know something is wrong with the car.
Some states allow you to research the history of a vehicle to see if it was in an accident. This is a good thing to know.
Look under the mat in the trunk. Sometimes heavily used cars are cleaned up to look nice. But most seem to forget the dirt that gets under the trunk mat.
Don't rush. A good deal will still be there tomorrow. Take a level headed friend with you who can walk away from a high pressure salesperson. Give them 20 minutes to present their best offer and then you and your ally go off to the coffee house to discuss it. Or across the street to see if the competition can beat it.
Good Luck.

Answer 4

NO! The higher the mileage the less life there is left in a vehicle! You want to find a car that has an average of 8-12 thousand miles per year if you have to buy a used one. If you buy this car with the 249 thousand miles on it you will be lucky to drive it for a week before it dies or you have to put some major money into repairs. RUN, don't walk, away from that hunk of junk!

Answer 5

The rule of thumb is most average car drivers put about 1 thousand miles on a car each month. That means about 112,000 miles in 10 years.
249,000 miles is extremely high.

Answer 6

This is way to many miles its ready for the grave yard and if the engine dont go every month you will be putting a lot of money into something that fails even if the car isnt old because certain parts will fail with that milage, if you have the money for a new engine if that one blows and the body is perfect maybe but other than that dont go in debt because you will owe the money and have no car, ask if they will give you warranty and that is a LOL because they would'nt even think of it , ask also if they will let U finance one and add it to the price if the that answer is no also dont even consider buying a car with low milage because there thiefs.

Answer 7

249,000 miles in an ungodly, astronomically high number of miles. you really should never buy a used car with more than 45-50 thousand miles. with toyota and honda you can get away with 60 thousand, but not much more. Absolutely, positively, do NOT buy that car. Believe me, I used to sell used cars.

Answer 8

STRONGLY depends on the car.

I'd buy and old Mercedes Diesel with 300,000 miles on it, but I'd stay the hell away from anything Japanese with over 60k.

There are no hard and fast rules for mileage on a car. How old is the car? What company makes it? Research a little about the model of the car, and make your own judgment.

Answer 9

Good mileage depends on the year of the car, but you should aim for under 70,000 miles. 249,000 miles (even if its kilometers) is wayy too much.

Answer 10

I'd probably pass on that. You should be able to get a car with lower mileage for a pretty reasonable price. What price range are you looking for? At that mileage, major things are going to start failing.

Answer 11

That's a whole lot of miles. The car is probably on its last legs(or tires). It depends on how much you pay for it, though. If it's $100 then it may be worth it. It may get you through the rest of the summer. Cars with that many miles usually come with their headaches too i.e. may burn oil. Good luck with your car shopping.