What are the must haves when buying a car?

Question

like four wheel drive i know is good, but what else makes a car safe?

Answer 1

The must haves when buying are whatever you need the car to do! In my case I want style, the ability to easily customize it and HAULIN A$S HORSEPOWER!!!! WHOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Answer 2

I see you're getting a lot of answers regarding SUVs because you said four wheel drive. But you also said car, so that makes me wonder if you're actually talking about traction control (also know under several other names), which would allocate power to the proper tire(s) in slip situations. If you go with a car vs SUV, you will probably be looking at 2-wheel drive vs 4-wheel drive (aka 4x4 or all-wheel drive). A front-wheel 2-wheel drive will handle better on slick or snowy roads than a rear-wheel drive.

Air bags, anti-lock breaks, good tires, crumple-zones, and a number of features make cars safer. But somethings you won't know until your behind the wheel of the car because it has more to do with how the car "feels" to you. How easily can you reach the controls. Are there a lot of blind spots from where you position the drivers seat. If you're someone who changes radio stations a lot, having the radio in close reach, or steering wheel mounted controls could help you. Take a look around inside the car, are the things you need within reach or will you be reaching, leaning and taking your eyes off the road a lot. Most accidents happen because drivers are distracted.

How the car handles also plays a big part. If you know you'll be parallel parking a lot, be sure to do that on your test drive. You don't want to buy a car that's hard to park if you have to do it every day, and that could cause you to end up backing into someone. I park in a narrow parking garage and insisted on a test drive that we go to a nearby parking garage so I could turn, back in, park next to columns and other obsticles so I would know if I could use the car the way I need to. Emphasis on "the way I need to."

The governments National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration can provide you with lots of good info. This is where the "five-star safety rating" comes from. http://www.safercar.gov/

Answer 3

Good handling is what makes a car safe.
4WD is mostly unnecessary unless you plan on off-roading or heavy snow driving, and even then most front wheel drives are more than adequate if you know what you're doing.
Your "must haves" depend on how you plan to use the car.
You want something that has a rep. for reliability.
You want a car that is comfortable for you.
Do you need more than 4 seats?
If you like to haul a lot of stuff around a hatchback might be your choice.
It would also pay to consider getting the best mileage.
Gas is only going up in cost.
Don't buy on 'flash", you are going to have this thing a long time and spend a lot of time and money in and on it.
Look ahead.

Answer 4

Four wheel drive is OK , if you have a ton of snow or you go off road a good bit like I do , Never buy new , it's a terrible investment , the day after you buy , you can not sell for what is owed , I agree with the person who said Detroit Iron is better than plastic , air bags do not matter , I have seen them do more harm than good in some cases , What makes a car safer is the driver ...

Answer 5

First, The ability to pay for the damned thing, plus the registration, plus the insurance, plus the maintenance, AND the gas it will use.

After that, you can start worrying about the features.

If you are new to driving, I 'd recommend idiot-proofing the car: automatic everything, starting with the transmission. That will keep you from wearing out a good clutch and gearbox.

ABS -- automatic braking systems -- is a good thing for amateurs. Just stomp on the brake pedal and let the car be the brains. (of course, this means making sure the brains are up to snuff.)

Full-time All-wheel drive, (or full-time four-wheel drive, or whatever term you manufacturer uses) is touted as a good safety measure. It is, up to a point: Once you exceed the limits of the system, things get VERY squirrely. The system is constantly attempting to regain control, and the driver is desperately trying to get the thing to go in one direction. (Best bet is to let go of the wheel, jam on the brakes, and BRACE for the impact....)

But, don't worry; if you are a new driver, you wouldn't dare be at the speeds necessary to exceed the system. (Unless you are on ice, but then, it's basically a slow-motion affair).

Overall, the system is good, IMHO. I do worry that drivers will never learn to handle the older-model cars (without such systems), but that's a small worry. Leave that to us ' old folks' -- who learned how the hard way.

Seat belts and air bags are mandatory in the USA and Canada. The 3-point belts are garbage; that's why the rush to install air bags. Air bags have their limits, too; that's why belt requirements have not gone by the boards. Two nasty little secrets, there. By themselves, neither system is good. Even together, both have limits/weaknesses.

You are going to pay for them; there is no way out of it. Use the belts. (Try NOT to ' use' the airbags!

As my old (pre-seat belt) Driver's Ed Instructor used to say, " The general idea ... is not to hit NOTHIN'!"


There are other things coming down the road -- collision-avoidance radars, night-vision systems to augment the headlights, and a whole host of ideas yet to be thought about.

Most will be designed to compensate (somewhat for driver/human stupidity. What can you do in the meantime? slow down. Speed kills more folks than one would imagine, particularly at night, when they drive so fast that they will never see the hazard until it's too late.

Ultimately, there is only one thing that makes a car ' safe' -- a thinking operator.

wsulliva

Oh, one last word on 4-wheel drive, whether full-time or manual: it only allows a driver to get into deeper trouble. It does NOT allow one to get out of that trouble, once stuck.

This is especially true in winter, in ice and snow. Four-wheelers jump at the chance to get into winter conditions. that's when they find out the 4wd will get them moving -- but doesn't do a damned thing for stopping, or negotiating a turn, etc. The loss of traction will cause the wreck.

Best bet? Avoid it, if you can. If you must go, find a straight stretch and ' test' your stopping ability. Don't drive any faster than that, even if the road looks good.

Answer 6

SO many people get this wrong and end up paying big time for it. The first thing anyone who is seriously considering buying a car or truck should do is check for VALUE. All else is secondary. If you chose a vehicle with outstanding value, its guaranteed to hold its value for the long run, and thats an advantage at trade in time, and makes for a wise investment of your hard earned dollars. All other considerations are personal preferences.

Answer 7

When searching for a car, the most important aspect in a car is a fuel efficent car. First off the reason why this is the most important element, it helps both situations: enviornment and money. A fuel efficet car helps the enviornment and helps slow down the depletion of the ozone layer. And an obvious fact, more money in the pocket. Finally the last important aspect is a air conditioned car that can atleast function during the summer heat wave:)

Answer 8

Buy at the last day of the month, car salesmen will cut a deal lower, to improve their monthly sales- sales volumes determine allocation of sought after cares, like convertibles and allocation of high-demand cars.

Don't get your financing from the car dealer; they mark up the interest rate and don't tell you.

DECLINE all additional warranties- especially things like undercoating, interior and paint protenctants and warranties and guarranties. The dealer will try to hide optional warranties which are OBSCENELY over-priced; like charing you for $700 for $5 of chemicals (paint coating protectant)

Never disclose how much you can afford in monthly payments.

Never buy from an emotional state; never act excited or passionate about the car- keep your poker face on.

Care dealers are sharks that prey on inexperience- they do their craft every day of the week while you buy a car one day, every 5 years.

If the salesman says he has to get approval for a deal, then tell him if he can't make a final decision, you will no longer deal with him; be prepared to walk.

Never let them become your friend; they see you like a topless dancer see their victims- their sole goal is to overcharge you as much as possible.

Answer 9

If you get any kind of bad weather then a 4x4 is a safe bet, some 4x4 systems even help if you go into a large puddle, it will send power to the wheels slipping.

Jeep has mastred this with it's Grand Cherokees, I have or have had a 93,98 5.9,2002 and have not looked back, they have room, they can tow, they look good, and some come with side airbags.

The grand cherokee has won alot of 4x4 of the year awards as well in 98 has the fastest SUV on Earth!

The engines range from the 4.0 I6 to a 4.7 and a 4.7HO in a V8.

The new jeeps also have alot to offer, some even slow you down so you dont skid out!

If you want to be safe Jeep is a safe bet.

Good Luck,

Answer 10

What makes a car safe is a safe driver. All the "safety" items in vehicles actually makes drivers stupid because they feel safe so they don't pay attention, don't use their signals or lights, and cut people off.

However, what are must haves when buying a car - sun/moon roof, A/C, and power windows.

Answer 11

Since when is 4wd a must-have for safety? Most people think they are safer, and that is why the first vehicles in the ditch every single winter are 4wd, and they have the traction to get stuck deeper. I drove 2 days in an ice storm in my front drive car, and saw more 4wd drive vehicles slide off the road than anything else. Far more valuable may be traction control. But in reality, the biggest safety feature is the driver. I have driven auto, standard, manual and power steering, regular and power brakes, front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, no problems with any of them. If safety is you concern, check ratings with sites like NHTSA and see what the injury statistics are. You may be quite surprised by what you find. For instance, SUVs and pick-ups may seem safer because of their size, but the driver of a Mini is far more likely to walk away from a collision with a brick wall than the driver of an F-150 or an Explorer.