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Written by sandy
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Sunday, 27 July 2008 |
 The Indian automotive industry is on the verge of a revolution as Tata Nano going to be launched in the market. Soon after that, there will be a new price dynamics in the second hand car market. But saying that, buying a second car is a tricky thing and luck factor as well. In simple one sentence, easy solution is go to some authorized shop like Maruti True-Value, and buy one, as one has to rely on their pricing policy, and the certainty of the papers of the car with all past records checked.
But apart from that if you wish to know more about the technical part of it then we would like to discuss some factors which can be taken into consideration while buying a second hand car.
Firstly, try to buy the car from the owner who currently owns the car, rather from a broker. Most of the time it appears to be a broker when you find a advertisement saying no broker turned out to be broker himself. Even in some cases wife of the broker who pretends to be the wife of the owner. Although, this doesn't suggest that all brokers are not trust-worthy where at times they also help know the cars present condition and gives tips to maintain it best.
Some more non-technical facotrs that are important are,
Regarding the actual technicalities of the car, firstly condition of the body of the car is very important. Dents, undulations, faking paintwork on the body are common. If the paintwork is fine and body is indented then chances are car has been well maintained.
Rust in every corners of the car is another key area to keep in mind. The most important area is floor which normally remains covered with the carpet.
Next, driver side wiper spindle box, which can be, checked opening the bonnet. Debris falling on the spindle absorbs moisture, which leads to corrosion of the wiper spindle. To check the spindle corroded or not lift the spindle up and check if you can lift it more then few millimeters then the box holding the spindle appear to be corroded which means a major expenses to get corrected. This normally been found cars more then 5 years old at the driver's side.
Next comes cross-member that runs the engine and carries the engine mounting points. The cross-member is fixed to the chassis with four bolts which can be rusted. If the entire cross-member is welded, that means wide spread corrosion.
The corrosion under the door can be another area to check for. Stagnant water under the door can corrode the lower portion of the door.
Next thing to be checked is window screen pillar which is the A-pillar and the rear door pillar, which is the C-pillar for evidence of warping or "waviness" - since that is a dead giveaway that the car has been in an accident.
Opening the rear hatch(if its a car with hatch back) and checking by lifting the carpets for the longitudinal cross-member inside each wheel-arch can reveal sign of rear-end collision, if its found to be crinkled.
For carburetted models, checking the carburetor and finding it in a good condition with all its butterflies, chokes and jets spraying the correct amount of fuel is important. A worn out carburetor can make its presence felt by an uneven idling refusing to accelerate smoothly, smelling strongly of fuel or by simply refusing to start.
Next, broken engine mountings are common. So its another important area to check which is result of engine vibration. Checking the condition of clutches is also important. Due to worn out bushes gear lever results difficulty engaging, disengaging through its gate. So checking this also worth a lot.
Another area is, clicking noise when turning the wheels in motion suggests worning-out of front drive shafts. Twisting or damaging of lower suspension arms is to be tested by checking the mounting point of the same. This effects the wheel geometry of the car, fixing the same is a very skillful job.
Another thing is brake pads / shoes and contaminated brake fluids causes jamming of brake calipers. These are some of the points may help buying a second hand car somewhat.
Now comes the calculation of the pricing of a old car. Though the above conditions are very important which might come under consideration for pricing, but the age of the car is another area to ascertain the current value. Finding out the current on-road price of the car and then deducting 30 percent for the first year and 10 percent for every subsequent year from the reducing balance may help calculate the same. But anything below this calculated price could be considered as good deal.
Finally, I will say getting a good deal also matter of courage, luck and guts to go ahead with the deal keeping these factors in consideration.
Useful links :-
i) http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/driving/buying_guide/
ii) http://www.marutitruevalue.com/Buyers_guide.asp
iii) http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/mar/09car.htm
iv) http://cars.uk.msn.com/usedcarguide/
v) http://www.cybersteering.com/usedcars/tips.html
vi) http://www.autox.in/tips.html
vii)http://www.indiacar.com/
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 19 March 2011 )
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ne recommendations as to what i shud buy ??
maruti 800 !!??noooooooooo 
sexy car 
wot a striking improvement... 
But is it worthy to spend money on a second/third hand car instead of going for brand new Nano??becoz a new car is always in better condition than a second/third hand car.My purpose is not to give focus whether to buy a new car or an old one but to hightlight the author's amazing skill in presenting every nook and corner of a car which needs to be noticed while purchasing a new car or an old one..It seems the author himself possess atleast 2-3cars... 
becoz until & unless one doesnt possess his own,he/she cant present such minute details of a car by just going through some mere research..Anyways if someone wishes to buy a new or an old car,he/she needs to either sell it or scrap it after few yrs as law declared by Govt. to reduce pollution...Just wanna ask the author whats these EuroII or Bharat II applicable for vehicles??
Sexy bole to Lamborghini ba Ford er Firebird ei shob sexy sleek cars hoye. I remember the movie "Gone In 60 Seconds" Slee and sexy cars with Cameron Diaz