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Probably the best transition into a pitch by a TH-cam "personality" I have ever seen with your PDSDebt infomercial. I almost didn't skip past the ad. Well done, Car Wizard,
All companies like this do generally is not pay the debit, trashing your credit, they collect money from you every month and put it in a pile, and then when your credit is even more trashed they try to use that money to settle the debt in lump sum payments for less than you originally owed. Not a good solution.
@@Ryan_DeWitt its how america operates my friend! debt upon debt!
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@@Ryan_DeWitt The buy now pay later companies are all going bankrupt so if your credit is already ruined just wait til they are almost bankrupt. Then settle for 30 cents on the dollar and make sure they report that the debt is settled to the credit reporting agencies,
If it's like recent hurricanes, a majority of the cars that are flooded, are branded as junk titles by insurance, never to be driven again. Of course a lot of them will not be branded that way. Buyer beware!
@@timw8228just connect it to a different warning like ABS and problem solved. Or just find a “guy” near you that will delete that exact faultcode in the ECU. And I mean not erase but delete, just erase that entire section out of the core of the ECU and it will never ever show up again no matter what you do. They have been doing this for years with DPF deletes and such, but you can do it to almost every code
Yep, I took out the light bulb (O2 sensor) and I am still driving the vehicle 8+ years later. I don't like lights lit up on the dash. He he he. Since the vehicle (2002) refuses to die, I am driving it. You can get codes via the interconnect if you have such a connection. I could pay a large sum for a used car and know little about it---no thanks. I know mine thoroughly now since 12/2013. It should fall apart!! 🤔
Typical Corvette owner, was so annoying trying to find one in my price range that I could take for a drive. I gave up and bought something else from a dealer instead.
It can be an insurance liability to let a stranger test drive your car you are selling because they are not a listed driver on your insurance policy. Taking the buyer on a test ride where you can demonstrate the car isn't out of alignment, the brakes don't pull to one side and the brakes work good and the transmission shifts smooth and the car doesn't overheat should be adequate.
My first car was 20 years old at the time, 265,000 miles, had been sitting for a year or so, needed brakes a battery and tires. I paid $300 for it. 37 years later it's still my daily. First gen 1968 Corolla.
I went to a big three dealership and asked to drive a used car on their lot. The salesman got the keys and pulled the car out and up to where I was standing. My daughter and I got in and started out of the lot. When I slowed to turn out onto the highway, the brake pedal went to the floor. I pulled on the e-brake and then got out of the car. I gave the keys back to the salesman and told him the brakes did not work. Remember he had driven it to where I was standing. He said if I wanted to buy the car, they would fix the brakes. I told him he was stupid for putting me in a car that he had to know was not safe to drive, and left to never return to that place to this day.
@@LegendFromWoWit is illegal if a dealer has a car for sale that is known not to be safe or has not been inspected you are not allowed to take it for a test drive and is considered tow off the lot. You could report this and the dealer could be hit with a fine
@@LCdic09funny how you say that. From a brand dealer you can buy with factory warranty. And if the car is not as advertised (i.e. it had repaired damages that weren’t mentioned) you can just give the car back. I rather pay the premium to buy a hassle free car, then going to a private person not knowing if he/she is fucking me over.
I've been following the Wizard since the beginning. At first I wasn't used to his cadence, now he's like a comforting father figure laying down the truth.
I have heard the “oh the AC just needs a little Freon” line so many times. That’s the biggest load of BS because (at a minimum) it means the AC has a leak! I always tell people that AC’s don’t use Freon the way an engine uses gas, because the Freon circulates in a closed loop. Many people don’t understand that.
For 30 years I have been telling people that the automotive air conditioning systems should be like that freezer in your garage that has been running for 50 years without a leak! Put an electric compressor on the body with all metal lines and just run it with an extra high-voltage alternator! The only thing that has to flex are the wires...
@@celo8019It means they don't have a title, which is a legally binding document that proves you own the vehicle. "We don't have it, but we're waiting for it from the DMV." Mhm. Right.
1. **Multiple parts replaced (01:15)**: If the seller lists many replaced parts, it’s a sign they were chasing a bigger unresolved problem, and you should walk away. 2. **Minor parts not fixed (03:42)**: Sellers claim a small, cheap fix (e.g., O2 sensor) will resolve an issue but haven’t done it. This often signals there’s a bigger problem they’re hiding. 3. **No clear title (05:18)**: Always demand a clear title. If the seller claims it’s “in the mail,” it’s likely a lie, and you’ll face legal complications. 4. **Selling for someone else (08:17)**: If the seller isn’t the title holder, it's a sign of curbstoning-an illegal practice to avoid title registration due to potential hidden issues. 5. **Extended warranty scam (09:26)**: Dealerships may push extended warranties instead of fixing existing issues. Often, the warranty won’t cover the actual problem. 6. **Check engine light (10:36)**: Sellers may downplay check engine lights as minor sensor issues, but they can signal much more expensive repairs. 7. **Won’t start (12:16)**: If the car won’t start or the seller claims minor issues like a bad starter or lost keys, assume bigger underlying problems. 8. **AC doesn’t work (13:55)**: If the AC doesn’t blow cold and the seller says it “just needs refrigerant,” this likely signals more serious issues with the AC system.
You the real MVP. Also, #2 actually did apply to my current car. Bought it off a wholesale lot for cash knowing it needed a new purge valve. Didn't bother for 4 years because it still passed state inspection, but then I moved. $350, easy fix.
@@spazzypengin and my car actually has a CEL... for an O2 sensor... the front Wideband AFR one that is EASY TO CHANGE, but not effing cheap.. 275.. plus tax and shipping lol.. Just replaced one on my neighbors Dodge pickup.. $65... for the Front (more expensive) one. These days it is wise to have a scanner if you deal in used cars.. Even if you may not be a mechanic but you can get an "Elm327" or the like, a bluetooth OBD scanner plug that will sync to your cellphone.. will pull up any codes any standard scanner would. Small enough to fit in your pocket. Then you can google common issues related to that code. Sometimes that O2 sensor code doesn't mean you need the sensor... but that your exhaust is leaking.. Or even possible that your catalytic convertor is acting up. Cars//Trucks with common Problematic issues like this will throw these problems up in a search on google in a hurry. Even if you are not a skilled mechanic this can give you an idea, is it indeed the o2? or is it that the exhaust is all welded pieces and jerry rigged together? You have probably seen Hoovie advertise for a car scanner thing on a subscription.. thats a fancier version of the scanner i suggested.. The Elm you can BUY outright for $15-$20 and own it... no subscription needed lol..
Also another important thing and I cannot stress this enough as someone who does his own A/C stuff A/C GAS DOESN'T JUST DISAPPEAR IT SHOULD NEVER NEED TO JUST BE REFUELED and in the event it does that means the car has a leak in the system likely from the condenser, A/C lines or the evaporator
you're describing 90% of the facebook junk ads. sad that those same car dealers never get in trouble for scamming people. I'm glad you have been blessed with Mrs. Wizard. Thanks for the new video !
recap: 0:01 #1 Too many parts replaced 3:40 #2 "it just needs a new _____" 4:58 #3 "I'll get you the part/title/etc. next week" 8:00 #4 curbstoning aka "I'm selling it on behalf of my friend" 9:14 #5 (false) promise of warranty work if you purchase the car 10:24 #6 check engine light is on (without verified diagnosis) 11:55 #7 keys are missing 12:42 #7A "it just needs a starter" (can't start car) 13:50 #8 A/C doesn't work, but it "just needs refrigerant" Good luck out there.
Years ago a kid had me inspect an Eclipse turbo that sat in a muddy horse stable for over 10 years. Seller genuinely got mad when I told him, just because it ran then, dont mean we can just turn the key and go. Explained how letting the car sit literally ruined it, molded the interior, rusted the under-carriage. And the motor could have locked up from moisture buildup over the years. Seller just didnt want to hear any of it and acted like he had a pile of gold bricks sitting there.
Bought a Merc like that seller gave me it for $150 and made it very clear it probably won't run anymore got it running but all depends on the conditions it sat in
Even if you live in Alaska (or Canada) working AC does more than cooling the interior it also dehumidifiers the air as well which is important in the winter months to defog the windows quicker.
Yeah the windows of my old car love to fog up in the rain, it's a 1966 and doesn't have A/C. I can get away with defogging the windshield I have the heat cranked up full blast and the defroster on. If you've been in any old car with a fully functional and well maintained cooling system as well as a good blower motor and ducts, you'll know how unpleasant that would be during the summer.
A/C is such a legit safety item - it keeps the windshield clear, especially in rain and cold - that they have A/C in WRC cars, so you definitely should insist on it.
@@JeredtheShy if it's winter in Alaska (or far north) and -16 -30f out I don't even know if the AC will run. At that temperature it's so dry all you need to know is to keep recirc off and keep air flowing. Don't leave the fan on minimum speed if you have a car full of people. AC won't change that if it's absolutely freezing out because the evaporator is before the heater core, it can't do anything at very cold temps. Fresh air matters more if you have a humid cabin.
I looked at a pickup truck once, and it didn't have a Check Engine Light On... but as I got to the end of the test drive, the sunlight hit the dash just right...and saw there was black electrical tape over the Instrument Cluster. I pulled it off and saw the Check Engine Light was on! Now I ask to pull codes with my code checker. If they say "no", it's a red flag. If they won't let me get a pre-buyer's inspection, it's also a red flag.
Truer words were never spoken. My favorite saying for car buying is this "WHO you buy from is almost more important than what car you buy!" I only buy from people who are mature and have the finances to maintain their cars, they have perfect maintenance records, and have owned the car for awhile as the first or second owner. Never buy from college kids, etc. Thanks for the great video!
Actually it is best to buy from elderly people who drive little and garage-store their vehicles and also from spoiled, clueless college girls who sell their dependable but boring Lexuses to buy some money pit Euro sports cars.
I'm a mechanic, and don't have records. I keep receipts and logs. But that's why you take the car to a mechanic and get a preinspection. They will tell you if everything looks good or not and perform a compression test. They'll know!
Hoovie buys maseratis that have no oil in them with 300k miles .then redlines the cold engine and bashes the brand lol...I would support a channel where he learns how to work on the cars himself. And as a engine rebuilder myself.learns more before commenting
A car purchased by Hoovie without an issue is worthless to him. Hoovie requires a car with lots of issues and related 'drama' to maximise the amount of TH-cam (YT) views, and hence earnings, all courtesy of the mysterious YT algorithim.
Especially after storms in the south, be aware of any sign of flood damage. A common scam is to take flooded cars after a Florida hurricane to unaffected states and try to sell them off. A lot of times they find ways to move the title to the new state without flood branding on it.
That's right. Still, you can check if the Carfax shows the car was mostly driven in, let's say, North Carolina and then magically appears for sale in a dealer far away in New York or something like that. That's a red flag too.
As a seller, do not leave your license plate on the car you are selling. If you don't keep it, the buyer can just keep driving the car without registering the car in their name. Ask how I know... got contacted by state toll road department for $$$ of unpaid tolls!
In California signing over the title is a "release of liability form", also I just went to a business where they transfered the car title on the spot for a fee.
States like Virginia will fine you $500 unless you turn your plates in. And they will notify other states preventing you from renewing your license in other states until the fine is paid.
One thing I've come upon several times is that I always take my own scanner with me and the owner won't let me hook it up because they don't trust those things and I'm going to say somethings wrong that isn't. Always walk away if they don't want you to scan it or don't want you to let a mechanic look at it.
I’m a seller, if the customer pays for it, they can have it checked out at a dealership with a scanner there. Also, I have two scanners a BlueDriver and a name brand regular scanner… my car, my rules. Just like somebody wanting to hook up my vehicle to give their car battery a charge ,, nope.
@@jrpadgett726 I always put in the adv. ( and it’s usually long with too many details) meet up at sheriff office first time . , my expectations of cash at mine or their bank ( cashier counts it on their machine) we go into one of their offices and sign the paperwork. ( plus the scanner thing.) Plus a few other details… this way there is no surprises and no issues… yes for folks that don’t want to use the dealership or my scanners. They don’t have to come and check out my vehicle. It saves time on both parties…every person that have bought my vehicles especially the vehicles I’ve had owned over 10 years,, can tell real fast on how well the vehicles been maintained.. quite often they’re surprise that the paint isn’t fresh paint because it has such a good gloss of being waxed routinely … also garaged and using sunshades helps keeping and interior pristine. Usually when I have a free evening. I’m in the garage maintaining my vehicle un like most watching tv. I don’t do it for reselling 17 years later…. I do it for personal pride . Along with the book: the gift of fear. I often give an old classic : Zen and the Art of motorcycle maintenance. I’m one of ‘those guys that likes to travel with the radio off ( even if it’s cross country) just to be in tune with the vehicle. I have sold one owner vehicles that my children have owned and that I have owned… some of them were unique. They were all garaged southern well kept cars.. one currently that I have up for sale is a 2003 30,000 mile Silverado V8 Shortbed… a used truck that I bought four years ago but just never sees use ….( wife and I have other full-size Chevys that fit the grandkids better and every day use better) all details are up including the scanner… I never had an issue with someone questioning that.. and I never had anybody asking to use the scanner.. basically these vehicles are crazy maintained great paperwork( I encourage my daughters to have all computer printouts on all maintenance that they have done and usually it’s by one dealership. They never had trouble with getting the maintenance department to print it up. Yeah I’m an older ( 67 ) guy that don’t trust strangers . Especially those who say I know what I’m doing. But I will take a leap of faith with a dealership. There is always two sides of the coin on buying and selling issues . Especially with private sales .
As experienced as I am about buying vehicles I've still been hoodwinked a couple times. Sometimes you just love the story and the vehicle a little too much and you ignore those red flags that pop up.
I consider myself a fairly knowledgeable DIYer. That being said, I got scammed by the old Craigslist rebuild spray paint over rust trick. I did not do my due diligence, and it cost me a lot more time and effort to get the vehicle right.
Last year, I was with my daughter when she looked at her first car. She looked at this Honda Civic and the seller said she had the safety certificate, but when asked, could not provide it. She also said the air didn't work, which was not in the ad (we would've been stuck with the repair bill, since they didn't want to pay for it). I told them that should've been fixed before the vehicle went for sale and the safety certificate should've been presented. So, we left. A big red flag.
I looked at a work van that was supposed to have AC. It did, when it was new. The compressor and condenser were missing. It wasn't a scam, though, it was a company truck, which the owner never drove. He reduced the price accordingly
In Canada (province of Ontario where I live), when you sell a vehicle, by law, it has to be saftied (have it looked over by a reputable mechanic to see if it's fit for the road. If you sell the vehicle "as is", you don't need that.). When you get the certificate, you show it to the buyer, meaning it passed fine (you could present this to the seller when selling as proof, but it's good for only 30 days. When I sell a vehicle, I always say in the ad, "safety upon completion of sale".). So in their case, when they couldn't present it, something was fishy about it.
@@Bigsky1991 If you sell a car certified you have to have a safety certificate in Canada. If you buy it uncertified you still have to get a safety certificate to drive the car.
Well done. The scammers try the same thing with lawn tractors. "Just needs a battery" So I brought a battery to one sellers garage and it turns out the motor was toatally blown. Riiight.
Absolutely! Famous last words are, "It ran last season". Yeah, and the owner left old gas in the fuel system which clogged the carburetor. Now it won't start, so you can't check if the engine is good, or if the drive system works, or if the deck will cut grass. Tell them, "You get it running, then call me." They won't repair it, and you won't get a call, either. All of the equipment I sold started, ran, cut, and mostly looked good. All of my customers were happy, too.
Few more items: 1. Climb under the car (with a good flashlight) and look for rust. It might be okay to have some superficial rust but look for rust at body joints and welds. Might not apply in non-snow states. 2. Ask if body has been in an accident and check online. People will even weld two halves of a car together from two crashed cars. Yikes! 3. Look for a complete set of receipts for oil changes, and regular maintenance. I keep all records, including receipts for air filters, wiper blades, etc. showing a complete history. 4. I keep my car looking nice in and out and wax it (Is this done anymore?). When someone sees it they can tell the car has received loving care all along.
Also look at the body lines if they don't line up then that means its crashed and fixed lets use one of my personal experiences as an example some guy with no insurance rear ended me and offered to pay to fix my car at this mechanic when I got my car back the body lines were ok but weren't completely straight and you wouldn't know because insurance never heard about it
Also that last point you made can be canceled out by something known as flash painting which is where you paint your car quickly without caring about quality for example go to the paint guys tell them "match me the colour of this car and give me 4 cans" then they spray it on no sanding no primer just paint and after that they might MAYBE JUST MAYBE get a can of cheap clear coat and spray a coat or two on but they probably won't then they sell it for $5000 more cause it looks cared for
Thank you. This was helpful. Last week went to buy a car and took it for a PPI. Mechanic uncovered $8K worth of repairs needed on a $5500 minivan. I thought to offer $1500, but dealer got insulted.
The problem with AC is that seller can fill the leaky system shortly before sale, it will work fine on the test drive, but about 2 weeks later, AC is gone. And then starts the fun...
You should pay attention if the check engine light comes on during startup. If it does not light up the bulb may have been removed or masked with tape. A sneaky way to “fix” an illuminated check engine light is to disable or hide it.
See if it is milky or sludgy also. Years ago my friend bought a used car from a small used car lot. We drove away and a while later the motor quit and would not start again. We could not figure out what was wrong. I just happened to check the oil and there was none on the dipstick. We put oil in it and it started right up. It had shut down due to lack of oil pressure. I forget how much it took but it was quite a bit. We figured they had changed the oil but did not put new oil in. It did not seem to hurt the engine but I don't remember if my friend complained to the dealer.
I generally never even trust that the oil and filter have been serviced. The last car I bought a few years ago was from a dealer who had the sticker indicating the oil was just changed. Cutting open the oil filter six months later when I changed it, it was *caked* with carbon and some metal debris. That filter had been on there for at least, mmm, 20,000 miles. The car still runs fine, all subsequent filters have been clear on opening them since, but that was irksome.
Here's another one to watch for: When I was younger and not as wise to the world, I went to look at/buy a car parked in front of a farm house. The guy met me there and said "I don't live here, and the people don't want any business transactions taking place on their property, etc". This should have been a red flag, and to some extent it was, but I agreed to let him drive the car down the road to a mini mart while I followed. When we got there, he left it running as I looked things over. So, during transit and inspection, the engine was warming up. When I test drove it, everything was fine, and I bought it and we drove it home. The next morning, on start up, the engine was clattering quite a bit. The car had "piston slap" which goes away as the engine warms up and they pistons expand. He allowed just enough warm up time to hide this from me. I drove the car for years like that, and it still did what it was supposed to do, but I reminded of his dishonesty every morning when I started it. Live and learn. At 61 years old, I've experienced every scam the Wizard mentioned, plus a few others. Title jumping is the most prevalent, and I had a guy go completely postal on me about 4 years ago when I drove two hours to buy a Suburban. He of course didn't disclose this until I got there, and I declined to buy it, but he turned absolutely savage and I really thought I was going to have to fight my way back to my car. My fault for not having a CC permit I guess, because it got ugly enough that it could have quickly gone in that direction. Always ask a lot of questions before wasting the time to see the car. If they aren't willing to spend the time over the phone, this is the biggest red flag there is and you need to move on immediately!
I too am 61 years old and have had numerous vehicles. I can’t believe the amount of crazy stories here. Common sense people!! Don’t buy from second hand car lots. I usually buy from people I know well or friends of family members. This has worked very well for me. My worst experience was when I deviated from my advice and drove 3.5 hours to buy a truck posted on Craigs List. The owner was at work and wife was showing the piece of junk. One slow walk around the truck and I said no thanks to the test drive offer. We drove back home.leaving said truck behind. I learned to really zoom in those photos! I also believe God saved me from that one and several other “missed opportunities.”
@@jhask64 yep, american culture has been sliding downhill increasingly since the mid '80's, but in later years, 2000's, it started rapidly going downhill re personal values. Now we're seeing the end results of that
I bought a barn find 1967 Honda 305 Scrambler that had been in that barn for twenty years. No title, I applied for the title as soon as I got it home. It took me three years to get it road worthy and four years to get a title. Never ever buy a vehicle without a title.
My brother was a car salesman and he has tried to sell me junk multiple times, if the person is telling you “it just has X problem and it need simple and inexpensive Y fix” there’s a big problem with it and it’s probably a piece of junk, if the dealer/person selling it can’t fix the “small issue” it’s probably not easily fixable, only exception would be maybe a window not going up AND that’s if you check for flood damage. The salesman will 100% fix the issue and ask for more money if it’s fixable.
Good tips! Another one I would add is if the seller will not let you get the car inspected prior to purchase. I've had this happen at dealerships of all places. I told them if I couldn't do that, no sale.
One more thing: in the state of California the seller is required to smog check the vehicle prior to selling it. Never buy a vehicle that hasn't passed a smog test recently.
That's the irony. Vehicles driving around with bald tires, missing headlights, smashed glass, shot suspension, missing panels etc...but make sure you get it smogged!
@@JoshJones-37334 Its not a bad place to go to buy cars, since they don't rot out there. And one advantage to the vehicle emissions inspections is that the vehicle PROBABLY runs good and doesn't have any pending CHECK ENGINE stuff which could be caused by pretty much anything.
Thank you for this information. I’ve gotten scammed once from a seller, “selling for their family member”. Mann I felt so stupid. Def a learning lesson for me. A mistake I will never make again along with this great information from this video. Thanks again Car Wizard!
The most common reason I see for curb stoneing is people buy cars to flip them and they leave it in the previous owners name with no date of the purchaseing. Nor the buyers name made out on the title to leave it open to sell to the next buyer. This is to avoid registration and the paying of the personal property tax (if applicable) on it.
Reading people is such a skill with buying used cars. The guy I bought my truck from did this, he told me straight up that was his plan though and he also admitted to building a ramp down to his house so he doesn’t have to reverse his boat in when he’s drunk. 😂 I figured if he’s that honest with me he’s probably not lying about any stuff on the truck.
Not even man go to a public place or police station to do a transaction. And don’t buy from suspicious sellers check their profile. If they can’t type a simple sentence walk away. Use your brain and judgement you don’t need a gun.
Thanks David. I'd add: avoid any/all "Extended Warranties" and/or coverages on tires/wheels, paint that the F&I guys will try to force on you at purchase. I fell for "EWs" twice when I was young and dumb. Neither ever paid a dime. Don't be dumb like I was.
Mr Wizard is completely correct on all points. I will just add that if you are very confident in your skills, you can bend the rules sometimes on the mechanical stuff...I will occasionally still consider a car/truck even if I know the seller is bullshitting me about issues other than title. But the price will be adjusted accordingly.
@@stoundingresults I agree with that. But I also do 98% of my own work, so I'll just lie back to them about how much it's going to cost me to have a mechanic do all of the repairs and low-ball the hell out of them. Sometimes this works.
Also Walk away from very rusted under the cars with crumbling rusted frames inwhich looks good up top and sides but most people don't check underneath the car,
I LOOKED at 104 vehicles before I pulled the trigger car wizard. All you said was tried on my fella. You saved me thousands of dollars Sir. Thanks a bunch too.
Wizard, I am the guy who fixes up neglected cars and sells them. So they do have a list of new parts and a list of what still needs done. Not many of us left who aren't scamming.
I always agree with the wizard but this time I'd have say it's not a bad thing if parts have been replaced especially if it's different parts all over the car. Now if it was a ton of sensors related to the engine then maybe that would raise a red flag. But if someone does maintenance nothing wrong with that. Some people take their vehicles in to be inspected before selling and change what might fail for the new buyer so they can sell a honest good car. Really depends on the seller and why they replaced those parts. Now if someone has replaced the engine on a very low milage car that is suspicious in two ways. Maybe it was neglected or it has rolled back miles. Really all depends on the situation. So he's sorta right but also wrong too.
@@PureNathan96 Depends on the receipt dates of parts replacements. Because if a car in lets say the last 6 months has a large list of parts replaced in that given six months then the owner was trying to get a car right but just couldnt do it. If parts replacement was over a amount of time such as my 05 lincoln I purchased 3 months ago in where brake rotors were replaced in 2019 and transmission rebuilt in 2021 and receipts for oil changes and tires from a year ago, THEN thats okay and that was the actual story on the 05 lincoln town car I bought 3 months ago. Its when its a rapid list of recent parts replacement is where the problem is. Also beware of repainted cars, because bad wrecks and lots of hidden rust are an issue there.
If done in the context of routine maintenance I dont see any issue with a lengthy parts list. Doing a timing belt and replacing other things while youre in there generates a pretty good list for a Honda or Toyota.
This. I like buying old and interesting cars. Just catching up on deferred maintenance generates a good list. If you have a bad ball joint - do you just replace it and move on? No, you replace ball joints, tire rods, sway bar links and corresponding bushings on both sides. Your struts are probably due at that point as well.
I just sold my 2004 Chevy Silverado Z71 with 108K miles for $8K. Asked more but the guy who bought it brought it to a mechanic who gave it an inspection and told him the few items wrong and told him that the price was fair - the guy runs a lawn service and gives us and the neighborhood a good deal on cost of service. We got a fair deal and he did too. The truck was always maintained to haul a 2 horse trailer so we kept up on all of the maintenance.
Make sure the title gets signed before you leave and that the name matches EXACTLY as the print on the front, check the vin and make sure it matches.....make sure the vin plate ON THE DASH is there...do NOT rely on a door decal. Also: Cars that use timing belts.......ask for proof if it has ever been changed...if its snaps...youre in a world of hurt.
I learned that with my used 2005 Ford P74 Crown Victoria. 4.6L V8. Owner said the AC needed a few parts. The P74 sedan Intake manifold began to break apart after 18-20 months.
Also can be an evaporator, part itself is relatively cheap but the process to replace it depending on where it is can be horrible for example my 2007 Lancer wagon has it in the engine bay 40 minutes its fixed but my 2004 Toyota Corolla Altis has it behind the dash 4 hours many broken clips needing to buy another car later its still not even out yet
Not really. Not if you know how to do the labor and know where to look for parts. I found a good used compressor for 40 bucks, refilled with 60 bucks of Freon and fixed
I've got a good story for you Wizard, went to go buy an Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme from a guy who wanted $500 so I drove over to his house and checked it out. I said "do you have the title" he says "yes but its locked in the glovebox along with the keys". Alrighty then...well I wanted the car so I said "I'll buy it under the condition you let me break into the car and open the glove box to get the title" I was 100% going to buy it so long as the title was in the car as he claimed and had the money and tow dolly ready to go so he agrees and I slim-jim the door open without damage, literally the second I'm about to open the glove box he comes running out of the house screaming at me to get off his property that I'm trying to steal the car (the same guy) and he starts going nuts. His wife comes out and tells me (nicely I'll add) to just leave, he started getting up in my face and becoming violent so I pulled out a 9mm and told everyone to back up and I left. I have no idea what was going on but it wasn't on the up and up that's for sure
I hope you remembered to lock the door before you left! I was with 2 buddies in my younger days and we went to look at a Chevy Cavalier on a used car lot. We get there. Its broad daylight. It's during normal posted business hours. My car is sitting in the wide open in what I would consider their customer lot. The Cavalier was in the open about 20 feet from a busy street where I saw at least one squad car drive by, and there's nobody at the dealership to be found anywhere. So, WTF? Well, we're here, so we may as well take a look at the car. Of course, its locked up, and of course, I know that the door locks in those Cavaliers sucked, so I got the key from my Chrysler Lebaron out (same key profile, just shorter) and jiggled it in the door lock and it came right open. We popped the hood and started looking around and then the owner (I think he is the owner) showed up and had the "punk kids stealing a car" attitude. He threatened to call the cops and I said, "Please do. Your sign says that you're open, and its broad daylight, and if you prefer, we can come back at about 3:00am. Or, maybe you could sell a car today. We called and talked to you earlier today and perhaps a sign that says 'will be back in 30 minutes' would be helpful." We just stood there listening to him and he eventually calmed down. We bought the car and everything was fine. If my buddy didn't need a car to the degree that he did at the time, we would have gladly left. Yeah, I am no model citizen, but I am not that dumb. I would have ridden a crappy bicycle there at night and then start dicking with the cars if I was up to something.
Sounds like the guy wanted a locksmith but was too cheap, egotistical, and crazy to call and pay for one! Also wanted to look good for the misses fending off a "thief". I'll give him points for creativity.
Seller wouldn't let me OBD the 66 Chevy I was looking at. What a scammer. On a serious note, I have offered to pay for a new state inspection on a vehicle I wanted to buy. Where else can you get a third party opinion in the form of a state-issued document, same day service, for 35 bucks?
" Ibeen in the car business for over 40years. " THÈRE ARE NO FRIENDS IN THE CAR BUSINESS " ! WHAT HE SAID IS SO TRUE. BEEN THERE DONE THAT, ESPECIALLY NON DEALERSHIP SALES
LoL- on some vehicles, when you "Deep dive" under the hood and it is a PITA to get in there? I replace all the consumables buried in there, because repeats are even less fun.
Fb marketplace is full of people selling cars without the title. Ran into this last year looking for a cheap 4wd truck. It was surreal how many people are selling it for someone else in the dallas fort worth area.
Yeah I ran into this also. I wanted a Cadillac for a nice velour interior was all then get rid of it to a salvage yard. Nope the salvage yard wouldn't take it without a title.
In most places it’s not too high of a price to replace a title you lost. Question is why don’t they? If they can’t go through the effort to get a replacement title for the one they lost. what other stuff about the car in question is the person neglecting.
One sales tactic that has made me walk away from deals that I really wanted is during negotiations on a vehicle that I have followed in the classifieds for several days or more the seller will claim someone else says they want it and they are on their way. I have lost a couple of deals because they were right, but most of the time its still posted weeks later, or they call back in a day or two. If they call, I low ball the heck out of them when they would have made more just being honest in negotiations. If they say someone supposed to be here tomorrow and they claim they will buy it sight unseen, tell the seller that is what they all say while you are walking to your vehicle to leave.
Agree, best to go first thing in the morning for a cold start. Look real close at all panels for any changes in paint color texture or runs. Can't do that when it's wet. Actually an overcast day is best
I sold a car at night because the guy actually wanted to look at it at night. It was weird to say the least. It was a classic Trans Am that needed a lot of work, and I was very insistent that he look during the day, but nope. Got a deposit that night and a check / title exchange the next day.
After doing a thorough check and ensuring no bad lights are on, if that thing does not run perfectly, just walk away. Theres always another one that will be fine.
Awesome advice as usual. Thank you. Everyone pls direct these videos to your family and friends. How to buy a car and basic mechanics should be taught by parents and schools. And, it’s never too late to learn. Your vehicle is such a crucial part of life. And this sort of analytical thinking applies to many other things. Cheers.
One thing which got me was when I arrived the engine was running. I asked the seller why, and he said “it started a little hard when cold and he wanted to warm it up.” Biggest mistake I made on a car that looked great but hidden issues inside (I was young, this was before TH-cam, and I didn’t have any one helping me out). If a friend is trying to buy a car, I always make time to go with them as I don’t want them to get scammed and want to teach them about issues like you have mentioned.
if its running when I get there; this why on the test drive, I always bring a friend and pretend I gotta poop, pull off and just go muck about on my phone in the stall for 15 to 20 mins and make sure my friend keeps the car off [if I cant get away with taking the keys with me]
In Illinois we have Small Claims court, no lawyers involved, you pay a small fee, and present your case to a judge. I've done it and won, so I recommend it. There is a cap on the amount, maybe a grand or two back in the day.
I won a small claims case here in Colorado however the courts did nothing to enforce the defendant to pay me . He and his wife ran back to California and California doesnt recognize Colorado small claims courts deces sions. Sometimes youre just screwed and the legal system wont help you.
But even that is all for nothing if the moron has not a nickel to his name. As an example, at my workplace, we had a guy crash through a gate on our property with his truck. We got license number, vehicle description, and a pretty good visual description of the driver. The cops looked at the video and said something along the lines of, "yeah, we know who that is. He's the town drunk. He doesn't have insurance. Let us know if you want to litigate." That's it. The amount of hoops that would have needed to be jumped through in order to get anything out of him would have far exceeded the $2,500 repair to the gate.
@@tomwells7124 Most folks aren't going to leave the state for a grand. I won against a landlord that tried to keep my deposit. If he didn't pay, his wages/accounts would have been garnished. He was established in Illinois so he paid. It was hilarious when he described how I had made unauthorized changes to the decorating (which was ghastly) he provided phitis of the place with its fresh tasteful decorating and smiling new tenants, and the judge looked at him and said "this is what you have? Pay up."
@fubartotale3389 just curious what was the landlord trying to keep your deposit for? Just curious because I'm involved in something like that at this moment
This happened to me a few days ago when I found a Toyota that I am interested in on FB. The seller told me the car is in excellent condition, all it needs is a battery. He told me that he can tow the car to my house and even get me a new battery. I turned down his offer immediately.
ALWAYS do the transaction at your bank or the PD's parking lot. Public with cameras. A good bank will have someone sit in often. Play it safe till the end.. LFOD !
I have 2000 Toyota Celica gt the only thing I have had to replace was starter. Also a 2007 Tacoma...nothing so far except regular maintenance Will keep my two forever.
oddly enough, rain has saved my bacon a few times. i'm willing to crawl under a car in the rain. i've never really cared about how the paint looks. I usually buy beater trucks anyways. the rain has helped me find exhaust leaks and hidden electrical issues cause I wanted to buy a 93 chevy 2500 once, and decided to run her thru a nice mud puddle, that dash lit up like a christmas tree.
Another thing to watch for is being catfished. Where the ad has either stock pictures of a similar vehicle, pictures of the car from 10 years ago, they just hosed it down with water, or WD40 to make the paint look shiny, and you end up finding out that the vehicle is roached out.
I remember looking at a foxbody mustang convertible from ‘84 Not too long ago. It had something similar to what you’re describing only the pictures didn’t look like they were taken 10 years ago. They looked like they were taken in the early 2000s with a camera from that time frame. They may have been put for nostalgic sake. Or if those pictures were taken 2 decades later the car would be in radically different condition then it was then and so they could not take pictures of it now or it wouldn’t sale. Yes definitely be wary of that. The pictures should look like they are recent. You can include old pictures maybe to show what this car looked like it’s in prime. But after you should show the pictures of the thing that are more recent.
Also, especially when buying Jeeps and trucks, always, always, always inspect the frame and underside for RUST! So many rusted out vehicles for sale out there! Look for fresh undercoating, paint, patches, etc. Never buy a vehicle with a rusted out frame!! But I see it happen SO much!!
its why always bring a screw driver and a small hammer i can hide in my pocket. I crawl under there and find several spots on the frame to give a good wack if I notice fairly recent under coating. if they get upset I just blame the sound on me hitting my head on the frame XD.
Hey Wizard, I had a similar situation with a car I bought which has no title because he owed money to a used car lot. I did know that he owed $1200 to the dealer. I bought the car, went to the dealer and they confirmed $1200 was owed. I told the dealer that I now owned the car, and told them I would give them $500 for the title, and that if they said no, I'd just part the car out and they would get nothing. They agreed to give me the title for the $500. So, it all worked out. Just remember if this happens to anyone, negotiate!
adding : If the heater doesn't work, don't buy it... ensure the motor temperature is cold and look at the coolant... if you see sparkly flakes, they added a head-gasket seal (or something). If it drives and pulls (left or right) when the road is flat (tires properly inflated, road is flat) or, if it pulls hard when you hard brake, it's frame damage or something else too costly to fix.
I got scammed by a guy several years ago who sold me a Rav4 with the check engine light on. The car had 55,000 miles, was immaculate otherwise, and was a manual transmission. He wanted an almost stupidly low price for it. Lo and behold, when the timing chain jumped the sprocket 2 months later, the mechanic who did the postmortem said, "yeah, I've never seen an engine coated with so much caked on oil and gunk."
Check engine lights can be easily turned off with a cheap scanner. Did you ask for maintenance records? I’ve seen people buy a car and don’t even bother to take it to get the oil changed. I would’ve least had a mechanic look at it before you handed over cash
I wouldn't consider this being scammed. You knew if was very cheap and under valued. If you didn't get the check engine light checked out or had a machanic look over it that's on you not the seller. If the engine oil was just replaced and it's already turning dark you could have taken it in to have the engine flushed to remove the sludge therefore prevented the timing chain from failing. Always check the maintenance and if it's too good of a deal we'll you better have the car looked over. You can't really call it scammed when you knew the low price was very low and suspicious.
when in college I bought a cycle from a buddy, no problem until a week later he told me the title was in his deceased fathers name, a month goes by and it turns out I have to take his mother to a notary with D.C. so I can finally get the title in my name
Glad I found you! Thanks for the info. Got scammed & burnt already, & now stuck w a problem & still don’t have a car. Not putting my whole sob story here, but in a terrible situation & really the last thing I needed or could “afford”
8:28 also called a 'skipped title', 'title jumping' or floating the title. Guys that flip cars will also do this to avoid paying taxes. They'll buy it from someone but when they buy it, they never sign it themselves. Then they have you sign it as if you're the buyer... 'skipping' them so they can avoid paying the registration and taxes.
My absolute favorite all time are the people who say “currently doesn’t run, just needs a battery.” Do people not realize the difference of value between a running car vs a not running car, and how much a $100 battery affects that? I literally laugh out loud when I see those posts. Another good one is when people say “AC doesn’t works just needs a recharge.” A good rule of thumb is if the AC doesn’t work when you buy it, just assume it never will. My dad drove used cars my whole life despite us actually being a kind of upper middle class family and he always had 3 top rules of when to not buy a car. He told us “never buy a car at night, never buy a car in the rain, and never buy a car that you can’t cold start” and basically told us to touch the exhaust and if it was even slightly warm at all, to tell the person you’d come back tomorrow or whenever you could could start it.
Scenario #3. Something to add to that. Make sure the title is in the name of the person selling the car. I bought a Chevy Cobalt from a lady who said the title was in her name but what it actually was is that her brother sold her the car and signed it over to her but she never went to the DMV. So technically it was still in his name. Complete nightmare to get straightened out.
This. As someone who has bought and sold many motorcycles... I agree. It is usually possible to get around skipped titles but its going to take a lot of leg work, time, and sometimes money. NOT worth it for an average run-of-the-mill car. I cant stress enough that if you buy a car... spend the $50 and get a title in your name even if you dont register it. Dont let it sit in your garage for 10 years, then decide to sell it, and say the title is technically in this other persons name but that should not be a problem. It can be problem..... and so many dont know this.
These are my immediate red flags: If the radiator looks newer than the rest of the car, it could indicate that the car has been in a front collision and the engine may have overheated. If so, the engine's life may be very close to being over, which could be why the seller is trying to sell it. All used pickup trucks come with a red flag. Why is the seller selling it? The seller may have hauled something that was far beyond the truck's weight limit, potentially damaging the transmission. If that's the case, the transmission may be close to failing, which could explain why the seller is trying to sell it.
Here I will make this easy for everyone. I have not yet watched the video nut I have an easy summery. Do NOT buy a car in ANY condition that Tyler Hoovie has and you should be ok. lol.
A car purchased by Hoovie without an issue is worthless to him. Hoovie requires a car with lots of issues and related 'drama' to maximise the amount of TH-cam (YT) views, and hence earnings, all courtesy of the mysterious YT algorithim. Consequently using Hoovie as a 'guide' for what NOT TO DO when buying a car is surely logical - unless your objective is to launch a similar type of YT channel.
Pro tip. Pay up and buy a one owner garage kept car with all the service records. Buy a rust free example. Make sure it’s a mid 2000s Toyota or Lexus. Preferably an LX470 or LS430. Look for one with about 50,000 original miles. One that was exceptionally well kept. All original paint. You’ll have to pay up, but it will be worth it.
I paid $4500 for a 2009 Camry, 2.4, doesn't burn any oil, 122k miles. Damn near pristine interior and a few small scrapes on the exterior, and no camry dent to boot. The old lady who owned it had nearly 7 years of service records (mostly oil changes, tires, and a few other wear items) stuffed into the owner's manual. The 2.4s burned oil because people abused them, and this one wasn't abused. Sure, low tension oil rings and the switch to thinner oil than they were originally designed for back in 2002 might've had a hand to play, but lack of maintenance is the real killer with the 2AZ.
@@davidb7180 Red, surprisingly enough. I agree though, that body style Camry is synonymous with the elderly who just want a fuel efficient and reliable vehicle. Tan ones equipped with the inline 4 seem to be a dime a dozen, one of my friends has one of the same body style that's tan and has the 2.4. I do somewhat wish mine had the V6, a bit less fuel economy but a good bit more power. Still, the 2.4 isn't anemic, it's good enough on power (though most of the power is towards redline, I do very much notice that) and 30 mpg is the highest fuel economy of any vehicle I've ever had (versus my two other vehicles, a 2004 Suburban which gets 13-14 combined and a 1966 Oldsmobile, which gets a staggering 9 mpg combined) and probably ever will have, unless I somehow find a first gen prius with a battery that's not completely cooked. Call me gay all you like but I actually liked the first gen prius, they looked weird but weren't outright ugly and offered (for the time) insane fuel economy. Same with the Honda Insight, they looked weird but weren't ugly. I'd take a manual first gen Insight, too. Yeah, you heard me right, the first gen Honda Insight, a hybrid like the Prius and actually pre-dated it by around 7 months, was offered with a 5 speed manual transmission. Most had CVTs, which makes total sense for a hybrid, but I have a feeling the manual would be a lot more interesting to drive without compromising on fuel economy very much.
Except for having over 200,000 miles, and being a GM, I did just that. The little 1ZZ-FE never went even 4k between oil changes, and the car got long-term services done at the dealership it was bought from. The Toyota dealers are kind of a PITA, but they are the cheapest place for filters and fluids, and always have them in stock, which is nice.
Another good one I have seen many times, is during the test drive you hear some beeps. A repeating, rhythmic beep coming from somewhere. I have seen a few...many, times where they have taken the check engine light (or ABS light) out. Many cars have a backup warning using the beep to indicate something is wrong, like the missing CEL. Usually someone taking the light out, or worse scratching an LED light out on the dash rendering it destroyed, and the hidden fault.
Half of the Mini Coopers for sale in my area are missing the key or doesn't have a battery, but the seller says it runs great. My guess is the timing chain skipped and bent valves, so the owner took the keys and threw them into a pond, woods, brush, black hole, abyss, etc.
Great video. I never thought about the amount of random repairs chasing down the problems!! All the sales tactics you mentioned are all over marketplace.
Great content. First timer subscribed. All can apply to reputable dealerships as well. Call and ask the questions first. If they give you attitude end the call. Always soft start and check that the indicator lights work. Don’t test drive with the radio playing. Title washing is a fast growing issue.
While I agree with you Wizard, on all these points, I did take a chance on a no-title car once. Bought a 40-year old Toyota in Texas for only $300. Minor repair and drove it back to Michigan (where rust-free Toyota Cressidas do not exist). Did take a bit of hassle at the DMV to secure a title but ended up being totally worth it.
Another thing with the new parts cannon is that the quality of worksmanship on all that work is typically very poor and the new parts were probably of inferior quality.
PDS Debt is offering a free debt analysis. It only takes thirty seconds. Get yours at
PDSDebt.com/carwizard
Probably the best transition into a pitch by a TH-cam "personality" I have ever seen with your PDSDebt infomercial. I almost didn't skip past the ad. Well done, Car Wizard,
All companies like this do generally is not pay the debit, trashing your credit, they collect money from you every month and put it in a pile, and then when your credit is even more trashed they try to use that money to settle the debt in lump sum payments for less than you originally owed. Not a good solution.
@@Ryan_DeWitt its how america operates my friend! debt upon debt!
@@Ryan_DeWitt The buy now pay later companies are all going bankrupt so if your credit is already ruined just wait til they are almost bankrupt. Then settle for 30 cents on the dollar and make sure they report that the debt is settled to the credit reporting agencies,
Taking someone to small claims courts is cheap and fairly easy without need for lawyers.
Look out for all of the flood damaged cars and trucks, courtesy of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, coming to a dealer near you.
Good point thx
If it's like recent hurricanes, a majority of the cars that are flooded, are branded as junk titles by insurance, never to be driven again. Of course a lot of them will not be branded that way. Buyer beware!
Not just in Florida. Helene affected the Carolinas too.
Needs to be away to ensure all flooded cars are never resold except as scrap. Not sure how it would work.
Good point!
Speaking of check engine lights, don't forget to ensure it comes ON for at least a few seconds when the key is turned to the on position!!
Yeah the seller could have taken out the light bulb.
@@timw8228 Or black tape.
@@timw8228just connect it to a different warning like ABS and problem solved. Or just find a “guy” near you that will delete that exact faultcode in the ECU. And I mean not erase but delete, just erase that entire section out of the core of the ECU and it will never ever show up again no matter what you do. They have been doing this for years with DPF deletes and such, but you can do it to almost every code
@@timw8228 Or just black out the light from behind the dash.
Yep, I took out the light bulb (O2 sensor) and I am still driving the vehicle 8+ years later. I don't like lights lit up on the dash. He he he. Since the vehicle (2002) refuses to die, I am driving it. You can get codes via the interconnect if you have such a connection. I could pay a large sum for a used car and know little about it---no thanks. I know mine thoroughly now since 12/2013. It should fall apart!! 🤔
Congratulations, Wizard. You just described 90% of the cars on FB Marketplace.
"No lowballs, I know what I got"
Sad, but true
Don’t ever buy a car from FB marketplace without a carfax and a pre purchase inspection, odometer fraud and “clean” titles are so common.
On FB, I have found most people dont have a title thats in their name
Somehow a little too true. I went through 7 prius's until I found one that wasn't in immediate need of $5k+ in repairs.
Was looking at a car once and the seller refused to let me test drive it. "You can drive it when you buy it". I noped right out of there.
I would put "will allow older responsible adult to drive or can ride along on a test drive ride" when I posted an ad to sell
@@stoundingresults I would have had no problem with the person coming along but he was just "no buy no drive".
Typical Corvette owner, was so annoying trying to find one in my price range that I could take for a drive. I gave up and bought something else from a dealer instead.
It can be an insurance liability to let a stranger test drive your car you are selling because they are not a listed driver on your insurance policy. Taking the buyer on a test ride where you can demonstrate the car isn't out of alignment, the brakes don't pull to one side and the brakes work good and the transmission shifts smooth and the car doesn't overheat should be adequate.
@@Prepare2Survive As long as they have insurance they are covered.
My first car was 20 years old at the time, 265,000 miles, had been sitting for a year or so, needed brakes a battery and tires. I paid $300 for it. 37 years later it's still my daily.
First gen 1968 Corolla.
How many miles does it have now?
Is your 1st name Scotty by any chance ?
@@dontrend5956 About 1.1M but I've done engine stuff and other things so it really doesn't count.
@@triedandtrue1820 Well....I asked.
Now a 20 year old car with 265k goes for a cool 2500… 😢
I went to a big three dealership and asked to drive a used car on their lot. The salesman got the keys and pulled the car out and up to where I was standing. My daughter and I got in and started out of the lot. When I slowed to turn out onto the highway, the brake pedal went to the floor. I pulled on the e-brake and then got out of the car. I gave the keys back to the salesman and told him the brakes did not work. Remember he had driven it to where I was standing. He said if I wanted to buy the car, they would fix the brakes. I told him he was stupid for putting me in a car that he had to know was not safe to drive, and left to never return to that place to this day.
they don't care
That's why they're called Stealerships.
Something like that aught to be illegal.
@@LegendFromWoWit is illegal if a dealer has a car for sale that is known not to be safe or has not been inspected you are not allowed to take it for a test drive and is considered tow off the lot. You could report this and the dealer could be hit with a fine
Dude that was a free lawsuit on the dealer, you would of had a free car for that one. He put both you and your daughter in immediate harms way.
Buying a used car there's a 50% chance someone will try to scam you. But buying new means there's a 100% chance the dealers or banks WILL scam you
Nonsense!!!
@chimborazo328
That's all you are saying? I guess you are the owner of a car dealership or a bank...
@@chimborazo328yeah you definitely work at a dealership or a bank lol. Everything he said is correct, financing and dealerships are a SCAM
@deluge6479 But to say 100% is not accurate and that's my only point
@@LCdic09funny how you say that. From a brand dealer you can buy with factory warranty. And if the car is not as advertised (i.e. it had repaired damages that weren’t mentioned) you can just give the car back.
I rather pay the premium to buy a hassle free car, then going to a private person not knowing if he/she is fucking me over.
I've been following the Wizard since the beginning. At first I wasn't used to his cadence, now he's like a comforting father figure laying down the truth.
There are too many insensitive, uncaring bullies in the world.
Morals, ethics, compassion and empathy are needed for society to function.
And one of them is trying to be elected for president for a second term.
@@jaydibernardo4320 Ja’Biden reentered the race??😂
@@jaydibernardo4320 And a worse one is the VP candidate for the Democrats. Had people shot with paintballs for sitting on their porches during Covid
Correct.This country is near the end
Australia is full of them.
I have heard the “oh the AC just needs a little Freon” line so many times. That’s the biggest load of BS because (at a minimum) it means the AC has a leak! I always tell people that AC’s don’t use Freon the way an engine uses gas, because the Freon circulates in a closed loop. Many people don’t understand that.
A good scammer fills up the freon every morning they trying to sell it lol
@@jasonleatherwood2172 indeed!
For 30 years I have been telling people that the automotive air conditioning systems should be like that freezer in your garage that has been running for 50 years without a leak! Put an electric compressor on the body with all metal lines and just run it with an extra high-voltage alternator! The only thing that has to flex are the wires...
If it was a simple fix they would have done it.
Yup, that is a sealed system. If it needs gas added, there is a problem. Freon is a brand name.
First rule at a "Classic/Antique" car auction, if they say "Title is in transit" DO NOT BID!!!
When I was young I was never that dumb, I saved my dumb decisions for other things throughout my life.
Could you explain why? I’m not sure what you mean by this.
@@celo8019It means they don't have a title, which is a legally binding document that proves you own the vehicle. "We don't have it, but we're waiting for it from the DMV." Mhm. Right.
@@Dwigt_Rortugal oh I see! Thanks for clarifying.
In other words; Hell only knows WHERE the stupid title is. You could get stopped by a cop and suddenly find yourself arrested for grand theft auto!
Dealers and sellers do not like me when I pull out my full scanner for the money light, not a code scanner. If they tell me I can`t scan....walk away.
God scanners are expensive tho
@@Nate-bd8fgthere are affordable ones out there.
If only,OST of my crap is obd1. No such thing as easy in that era
Scanners only tell you if there's any sensors detecting faults
Not if it's mechanically or structurally fkd
@@NickTaylorRickPowers This is somehow so overlooked.
1. **Multiple parts replaced (01:15)**: If the seller lists many replaced parts, it’s a sign they were chasing a bigger unresolved problem, and you should walk away.
2. **Minor parts not fixed (03:42)**: Sellers claim a small, cheap fix (e.g., O2 sensor) will resolve an issue but haven’t done it. This often signals there’s a bigger problem they’re hiding.
3. **No clear title (05:18)**: Always demand a clear title. If the seller claims it’s “in the mail,” it’s likely a lie, and you’ll face legal complications.
4. **Selling for someone else (08:17)**: If the seller isn’t the title holder, it's a sign of curbstoning-an illegal practice to avoid title registration due to potential hidden issues.
5. **Extended warranty scam (09:26)**: Dealerships may push extended warranties instead of fixing existing issues. Often, the warranty won’t cover the actual problem.
6. **Check engine light (10:36)**: Sellers may downplay check engine lights as minor sensor issues, but they can signal much more expensive repairs.
7. **Won’t start (12:16)**: If the car won’t start or the seller claims minor issues like a bad starter or lost keys, assume bigger underlying problems.
8. **AC doesn’t work (13:55)**: If the AC doesn’t blow cold and the seller says it “just needs refrigerant,” this likely signals more serious issues with the AC system.
only if I saw your comment before watching the whole vid .. 😅😅
thanks alot
You the real MVP.
Also, #2 actually did apply to my current car. Bought it off a wholesale lot for cash knowing it needed a new purge valve. Didn't bother for 4 years because it still passed state inspection, but then I moved. $350, easy fix.
@@spazzypengin and my car actually has a CEL... for an O2 sensor... the front Wideband AFR one that is EASY TO CHANGE, but not effing cheap.. 275.. plus tax and shipping lol.. Just replaced one on my neighbors Dodge pickup.. $65... for the Front (more expensive) one. These days it is wise to have a scanner if you deal in used cars.. Even if you may not be a mechanic but you can get an "Elm327" or the like, a bluetooth OBD scanner plug that will sync to your cellphone.. will pull up any codes any standard scanner would. Small enough to fit in your pocket. Then you can google common issues related to that code. Sometimes that O2 sensor code doesn't mean you need the sensor... but that your exhaust is leaking.. Or even possible that your catalytic convertor is acting up. Cars//Trucks with common Problematic issues like this will throw these problems up in a search on google in a hurry. Even if you are not a skilled mechanic this can give you an idea, is it indeed the o2? or is it that the exhaust is all welded pieces and jerry rigged together?
You have probably seen Hoovie advertise for a car scanner thing on a subscription.. thats a fancier version of the scanner i suggested.. The Elm you can BUY outright for $15-$20 and own it... no subscription needed lol..
Thank you for the list!
Also another important thing and I cannot stress this enough as someone who does his own A/C stuff A/C GAS DOESN'T JUST DISAPPEAR IT SHOULD NEVER NEED TO JUST BE REFUELED and in the event it does that means the car has a leak in the system likely from the condenser, A/C lines or the evaporator
you're describing 90% of the facebook junk ads. sad that those same car dealers never get in trouble for scamming people. I'm glad you have been blessed with Mrs. Wizard. Thanks for the new video !
recap:
0:01 #1 Too many parts replaced
3:40 #2 "it just needs a new _____"
4:58 #3 "I'll get you the part/title/etc. next week"
8:00 #4 curbstoning aka "I'm selling it on behalf of my friend"
9:14 #5 (false) promise of warranty work if you purchase the car
10:24 #6 check engine light is on (without verified diagnosis)
11:55 #7 keys are missing
12:42 #7A "it just needs a starter" (can't start car)
13:50 #8 A/C doesn't work, but it "just needs refrigerant"
Good luck out there.
"Doesn't run but ran fine when parked last year." Very common ad these days
Yeah, but my wife was a good f**k 20 years ago, the last time we did it. She's great! LMFAO
Years ago a kid had me inspect an Eclipse turbo that sat in a muddy horse stable for over 10 years. Seller genuinely got mad when I told him, just because it ran then, dont mean we can just turn the key and go. Explained how letting the car sit literally ruined it, molded the interior, rusted the under-carriage. And the motor could have locked up from moisture buildup over the years. Seller just didnt want to hear any of it and acted like he had a pile of gold bricks sitting there.
@@AcuraLvR82 your problem was you were talking to someone selling an Eclipse, so absolutely they thought they had gold bricks 😂😂
A lot of shady farmers put that on there 😂😂 they are genuinely that dumb 😆 scammers do the same sort.
Bought a Merc like that seller gave me it for $150 and made it very clear it probably won't run anymore got it running but all depends on the conditions it sat in
Even if you live in Alaska (or Canada) working AC does more than cooling the interior it also dehumidifiers the air as well which is important in the winter months to defog the windows quicker.
Yeah the windows of my old car love to fog up in the rain, it's a 1966 and doesn't have A/C. I can get away with defogging the windshield I have the heat cranked up full blast and the defroster on. If you've been in any old car with a fully functional and well maintained cooling system as well as a good blower motor and ducts, you'll know how unpleasant that would be during the summer.
If it's set to recirculate that'll fog up the windows in winter
A/C is such a legit safety item - it keeps the windshield clear, especially in rain and cold - that they have A/C in WRC cars, so you definitely should insist on it.
@@JeredtheShyAgreed. Well said.
@@JeredtheShy if it's winter in Alaska (or far north) and -16 -30f out I don't even know if the AC will run.
At that temperature it's so dry all you need to know is to keep recirc off and keep air flowing.
Don't leave the fan on minimum speed if you have a car full of people. AC won't change that if it's absolutely freezing out because the evaporator is before the heater core, it can't do anything at very cold temps.
Fresh air matters more if you have a humid cabin.
I looked at a pickup truck once, and it didn't have a Check Engine Light On... but as I got to the end of the test drive, the sunlight hit the dash just right...and saw there was black electrical tape over the Instrument Cluster. I pulled it off and saw the Check Engine Light was on!
Now I ask to pull codes with my code checker. If they say "no", it's a red flag. If they won't let me get a pre-buyer's inspection, it's also a red flag.
This video should help a ton of people 🙏 love to see more of this series
That would be roughly 12 people.
@@azmike3572 nah 12.5
Truer words were never spoken. My favorite saying for car buying is this "WHO you buy from is almost more important than what car you buy!" I only buy from people who are mature and have the finances to maintain their cars, they have perfect maintenance records, and have owned the car for awhile as the first or second owner. Never buy from college kids, etc. Thanks for the great video!
Actually it is best to buy from elderly people who drive little and garage-store their vehicles and also from spoiled, clueless college girls who sell their dependable but boring Lexuses to buy some money pit Euro sports cars.
I'm a mechanic, and don't have records. I keep receipts and logs. But that's why you take the car to a mechanic and get a preinspection. They will tell you if everything looks good or not and perform a compression test. They'll know!
It appears Hoovie doesn't adhere to your checklist.....ha ha
That's because he's buying cars for views not for reliable transportation.
If he did then he wouldn't have a channel 🙃
Hoovie buys maseratis that have no oil in them with 300k miles .then redlines the cold engine and bashes the brand lol...I would support a channel where he learns how to work on the cars himself. And as a engine rebuilder myself.learns more before commenting
@@hamsterbrigade The worse the purchase the more he makes from TH-cam!
A car purchased by Hoovie without an issue is worthless to him. Hoovie requires a car with lots of issues and related 'drama' to maximise the amount of TH-cam (YT) views, and hence earnings, all courtesy of the mysterious YT algorithim.
Especially after storms in the south, be aware of any sign of flood damage. A common scam is to take flooded cars after a Florida hurricane to unaffected states and try to sell them off. A lot of times they find ways to move the title to the new state without flood branding on it.
That's right. Still, you can check if the Carfax shows the car was mostly driven in, let's say, North Carolina and then magically appears for sale in a dealer far away in New York or something like that. That's a red flag too.
@@LCdic09yes. Carfax can be your best friend...
As a seller, do not leave your license plate on the car you are selling. If you don't keep it, the buyer can just keep driving the car without registering the car in their name. Ask how I know... got contacted by state toll road department for $$$ of unpaid tolls!
yeh, that happened to my friend - got out of them by mailing a copy of the dated/signed bill of sale
Exactly! That’s why they sell Temporary Tags!!!
@@boogitybear2283Not all states do “paper tags”. The answer is a bill of sale with the date and time on it.
In California signing over the title is a "release of liability form", also I just went to a business where they transfered the car title on the spot for a fee.
States like Virginia will fine you $500 unless you turn your plates in. And they will notify other states preventing you from renewing your license in other states until the fine is paid.
One thing I've come upon several times is that I always take my own scanner with me and the owner won't let me hook it up because they don't trust those things and I'm going to say somethings wrong that isn't. Always walk away if they don't want you to scan it or don't want you to let a mechanic look at it.
I’m a seller, if the customer pays for it, they can have it checked out at a dealership with a scanner there. Also, I have two scanners a BlueDriver and a name brand regular scanner… my car, my rules.
Just like somebody wanting to hook up my vehicle to give their car battery a charge ,, nope.
@@JimthechevywheelmanWell, you can keep your POS. 🚶🏿🚶🏿
@@Jimthechevywheelman your car your rules. My money my choice to buy or not.
@@jrpadgett726
I always put in the adv. ( and it’s usually long with too many details) meet up at sheriff office first time . , my expectations of cash at mine or their bank ( cashier counts it on their machine) we go into one of their offices and sign the paperwork. ( plus the scanner thing.)
Plus a few other details… this way there is no surprises and no issues… yes for folks that don’t want to use the dealership or my scanners. They don’t have to come and check out my vehicle. It saves time on both parties…every person that have bought my vehicles especially the vehicles I’ve had owned over 10 years,, can tell real fast on how well the vehicles been maintained.. quite often they’re surprise that the paint isn’t fresh paint because it has such a good gloss of being waxed routinely … also garaged and using sunshades helps keeping and interior pristine. Usually when I have a free evening. I’m in the garage maintaining my vehicle un like most watching tv. I don’t do it for reselling 17 years later…. I do it for personal pride . Along with the book: the gift of fear. I often give an old classic : Zen and the Art of motorcycle maintenance. I’m one of ‘those guys that likes to travel with the radio off ( even if it’s cross country) just to be in tune with the vehicle.
I have sold one owner vehicles that my children have owned and that I have owned… some of them were unique. They were all garaged southern well kept cars.. one currently that I have up for sale is a 2003 30,000 mile Silverado V8 Shortbed… a used truck that I bought four years ago but just never sees use ….( wife and I have other full-size Chevys that fit the grandkids better and every day use better) all details are up including the scanner… I never had an issue with someone questioning that.. and I never had anybody asking to use the scanner.. basically these vehicles are crazy maintained great paperwork( I encourage my daughters to have all computer printouts on all maintenance that they have done and usually it’s by one dealership.
They never had trouble with getting the maintenance department to print it up.
Yeah I’m an older ( 67 ) guy that don’t trust strangers . Especially those who say I know what I’m doing.
But I will take a leap of faith with a dealership.
There is always two sides of the coin on buying and selling issues . Especially with private sales .
A good scanner can also read the correct mileage off of the abs module !!!
I just love the "Trust me Bro" sales tactic.
Trust me; I'm an amateur used car salesman.
the old 1970s used car salesmen LOL
"Trust me": the slogan of a psychopath.
Mismatched Tires = doing the bare minimum to keep it going.
Not true at all. Unless you mean tire size. If you’re referring to brand it means nothing.
I have mismatched tires because my front suspension is on its way out rolling on cheapos until I get alat fixed lol
They may have a nail in the sidewall or didn’t rotate. Not really a big deal.
As experienced as I am about buying vehicles I've still been hoodwinked a couple times. Sometimes you just love the story and the vehicle a little too much and you ignore those red flags that pop up.
I consider myself a fairly knowledgeable DIYer. That being said, I got scammed by the old Craigslist rebuild spray paint over rust trick. I did not do my due diligence, and it cost me a lot more time and effort to get the vehicle right.
You forgot one important thing,don’t buy a car when you are desperate.thats when you get a lemon.take your time like when your a looking for a job.
Last year, I was with my daughter when she looked at her first car. She looked at this Honda Civic and the seller said she had the safety certificate, but when asked, could not provide it. She also said the air didn't work, which was not in the ad (we would've been stuck with the repair bill, since they didn't want to pay for it).
I told them that should've been fixed before the vehicle went for sale and the safety certificate should've been presented. So, we left.
A big red flag.
I looked at a work van that was supposed to have AC. It did, when it was new. The compressor and condenser were missing. It wasn't a scam, though, it was a company truck, which the owner never drove. He reduced the price accordingly
What is a " safety certificate "? 😂 I've Bern driving 40+ years and have owned well o r 300 cars....never heard of one...
In Canada (province of Ontario where I live), when you sell a vehicle, by law, it has to be saftied (have it looked over by a reputable mechanic to see if it's fit for the road. If you sell the vehicle "as is", you don't need that.).
When you get the certificate, you show it to the buyer, meaning it passed fine (you could present this to the seller when selling as proof, but it's good for only 30 days. When I sell a vehicle, I always say in the ad, "safety upon completion of sale".).
So in their case, when they couldn't present it, something was fishy about it.
@@Bigsky1991 In our part of Canada that is required to have for registration of a used vehicle purchase. A road worthy certificate per say.
@@Bigsky1991 If you sell a car certified you have to have a safety certificate in Canada. If you buy it uncertified you still have to get a safety certificate to drive the car.
Well done. The scammers try the same thing with lawn tractors. "Just needs a battery" So I brought a battery to one sellers garage and it turns out the motor was toatally blown. Riiight.
Absolutely! Famous last words are, "It ran last season". Yeah, and the owner left old gas in the fuel system which clogged the carburetor. Now it won't start, so you can't check if the engine is good, or if the drive system works, or if the deck will cut grass. Tell them, "You get it running, then call me." They won't repair it, and you won't get a call, either.
All of the equipment I sold started, ran, cut, and mostly looked good. All of my customers were happy, too.
Few more items:
1. Climb under the car (with a good flashlight) and look for rust. It might be okay to have some superficial rust but look for rust at body joints and welds. Might not apply in non-snow states.
2. Ask if body has been in an accident and check online. People will even weld two halves of a car together from two crashed cars. Yikes!
3. Look for a complete set of receipts for oil changes, and regular maintenance. I keep all records, including receipts for air filters, wiper blades, etc. showing a complete history.
4. I keep my car looking nice in and out and wax it (Is this done anymore?). When someone sees it they can tell the car has received loving care all along.
It's unfortunate how few people keep a log of maintenance records anymore.
Yeah especially uni body cars with rust. You hit a bump and the engine undercarriage cradle falls out from the rust. Not good!
Also look at the body lines if they don't line up then that means its crashed and fixed lets use one of my personal experiences as an example some guy with no insurance rear ended me and offered to pay to fix my car at this mechanic when I got my car back the body lines were ok but weren't completely straight and you wouldn't know because insurance never heard about it
Also that last point you made can be canceled out by something known as flash painting which is where you paint your car quickly without caring about quality for example go to the paint guys tell them "match me the colour of this car and give me 4 cans" then they spray it on no sanding no primer just paint and after that they might MAYBE JUST MAYBE get a can of cheap clear coat and spray a coat or two on but they probably won't then they sell it for $5000 more cause it looks cared for
@@toyotacorollaaltis8613 The paint part is why you should push against parts of the car so you can find where rust was painted over
Thank you. This was helpful.
Last week went to buy a car and took it for a PPI. Mechanic uncovered $8K worth of repairs needed on a $5500 minivan.
I thought to offer $1500, but dealer got insulted.
That dealer was worth every ounce/gram of insults you dealt.
You could also make a conditional offer, pending the repairs.
What exactly was the issue if you don't mind me asking was it suspension engine or so rusted out its unsafe to drive?
You would have had $9,500 into a $5,500 minivan if you had purchased it.
The problem with AC is that seller can fill the leaky system shortly before sale, it will work fine on the test drive, but about 2 weeks later, AC is gone. And then starts the fun...
You should pay attention if the check engine light comes on during startup. If it does not light up the bulb may have been removed or masked with tape. A sneaky way to “fix” an illuminated check engine light is to disable or hide it.
Always check the oil first. If its low walk away. Ive had to do that several times.
Smell the transmission fluid too
See if it is milky or sludgy also.
Years ago my friend bought a used car from a small used car lot. We drove away and a while later the motor quit and would not start again. We could not figure out what was wrong. I just happened to check the oil and there was none on the dipstick. We put oil in it and it started right up. It had shut down due to lack of oil pressure. I forget how much it took but it was quite a bit. We figured they had changed the oil but did not put new oil in. It did not seem to hurt the engine but I don't remember if my friend complained to the dealer.
I generally never even trust that the oil and filter have been serviced. The last car I bought a few years ago was from a dealer who had the sticker indicating the oil was just changed. Cutting open the oil filter six months later when I changed it, it was *caked* with carbon and some metal debris. That filter had been on there for at least, mmm, 20,000 miles. The car still runs fine, all subsequent filters have been clear on opening them since, but that was irksome.
Yeah a simple fluid check can tell you so much about a car. Also tires
Check the underside of the oil cap too. Sludge in there is time to run.
Here's another one to watch for: When I was younger and not as wise to the world, I went to look at/buy a car parked in front of a farm house. The guy met me there and said "I don't live here, and the people don't want any business transactions taking place on their property, etc". This should have been a red flag, and to some extent it was, but I agreed to let him drive the car down the road to a mini mart while I followed. When we got there, he left it running as I looked things over. So, during transit and inspection, the engine was warming up. When I test drove it, everything was fine, and I bought it and we drove it home. The next morning, on start up, the engine was clattering quite a bit. The car had "piston slap" which goes away as the engine warms up and they pistons expand. He allowed just enough warm up time to hide this from me. I drove the car for years like that, and it still did what it was supposed to do, but I reminded of his dishonesty every morning when I started it. Live and learn. At 61 years old, I've experienced every scam the Wizard mentioned, plus a few others. Title jumping is the most prevalent, and I had a guy go completely postal on me about 4 years ago when I drove two hours to buy a Suburban. He of course didn't disclose this until I got there, and I declined to buy it, but he turned absolutely savage and I really thought I was going to have to fight my way back to my car. My fault for not having a CC permit I guess, because it got ugly enough that it could have quickly gone in that direction. Always ask a lot of questions before wasting the time to see the car. If they aren't willing to spend the time over the phone, this is the biggest red flag there is and you need to move on immediately!
Great stories!!
You should have contacted the police. The nerve of him landing that on you and getting mad at you when he wasn't the one who had to make that trip.
I too am 61 years old and have had numerous vehicles. I can’t believe the amount of crazy stories here. Common sense people!! Don’t buy from second hand car lots. I usually buy from people I know well or friends of family members. This has worked very well for me. My worst experience was when I deviated from my advice and drove 3.5 hours to buy a truck posted on Craigs List. The owner was at work and wife was showing the piece of junk. One slow walk around the truck and I said no thanks to the test drive offer. We drove back home.leaving said truck behind. I learned to really zoom in those photos! I also believe God saved me from that one and several other “missed opportunities.”
@@jhask64 what if you need a car and don't have a friend or family member with a car for sale?
@@jhask64 yep, american culture has been sliding downhill increasingly since the mid '80's, but in later years, 2000's, it started rapidly going downhill re personal values. Now we're seeing the end results of that
I bought a barn find 1967 Honda 305 Scrambler that had been in that barn for twenty years. No title, I applied for the title as soon as I got it home. It took me three years to get it road worthy and four years to get a title. Never ever buy a vehicle without a title.
My brother was a car salesman and he has tried to sell me junk multiple times, if the person is telling you “it just has X problem and it need simple and inexpensive Y fix” there’s a big problem with it and it’s probably a piece of junk, if the dealer/person selling it can’t fix the “small issue” it’s probably not easily fixable, only exception would be maybe a window not going up AND that’s if you check for flood damage.
The salesman will 100% fix the issue and ask for more money if it’s fixable.
Good tips! Another one I would add is if the seller will not let you get the car inspected prior to purchase. I've had this happen at dealerships of all places. I told them if I couldn't do that, no sale.
I like the “just needs a fuel pump” special. Kind of like the no keys scam.
One more thing: in the state of California the seller is required to smog check the vehicle prior to selling it. Never buy a vehicle that hasn't passed a smog test recently.
That's the irony. Vehicles driving around with bald tires, missing headlights, smashed glass, shot suspension, missing panels etc...but make sure you get it smogged!
@@benjaminlibertarianscorpio Who would ever even go to California? What a dump.
@@JoshJones-37334 Its not a bad place to go to buy cars, since they don't rot out there.
And one advantage to the vehicle emissions inspections is that the vehicle PROBABLY runs good and doesn't have any pending CHECK ENGINE stuff which could be caused by pretty much anything.
California is for buying cars, not driving cars. Smog checks are for suckers.
It’s a bad place to go. The end.
Thank you for this information. I’ve gotten scammed once from a seller, “selling for their family member”. Mann I felt so stupid. Def a learning lesson for me. A mistake I will never make again along with this great information from this video. Thanks again Car Wizard!
The most common reason I see for curb stoneing is people buy cars to flip them and they leave it in the previous owners name with no date of the purchaseing. Nor the buyers name made out on the title to leave it open to sell to the next buyer. This is to avoid registration and the paying of the personal property tax (if applicable) on it.
If they are trying to scam the tax man, they won't hesitate to scam you.
I bought an open title car from an out of state auction like that. Showed my bill of sale, and the clerks office gave me a new title in my name.
Right, that’s what I do. (Jk😉)
Reading people is such a skill with buying used cars. The guy I bought my truck from did this, he told me straight up that was his plan though and he also admitted to building a ramp down to his house so he doesn’t have to reverse his boat in when he’s drunk. 😂 I figured if he’s that honest with me he’s probably not lying about any stuff on the truck.
Added advice. Never go car shopping alone and always carry a strap. In rare occasions, the pretend seller may be trying to rob you literally.
💯 Also, be aware of your surroundings. If it looks like a thug, walks like a thug, it’s a MUG. 😂
Amen!
That's good advice, glad i only buy from dealerships, and not the craigslist/Facebook marketplace crap.
Not even man go to a public place or police station to do a transaction. And don’t buy from suspicious sellers check their profile. If they can’t type a simple sentence walk away. Use your brain and judgement you don’t need a gun.
Strap lol I thought you were going with if the car needed a tow
Thanks David. I'd add: avoid any/all "Extended Warranties" and/or coverages on tires/wheels, paint that the F&I guys will try to force on you at purchase. I fell for "EWs" twice when I was young and dumb. Neither ever paid a dime. Don't be dumb like I was.
Mr Wizard is completely correct on all points. I will just add that if you are very confident in your skills, you can bend the rules sometimes on the mechanical stuff...I will occasionally still consider a car/truck even if I know the seller is bullshitting me about issues other than title. But the price will be adjusted accordingly.
It takes 1 lie for me to totally not trust a person anymore
@@stoundingresults I agree with that. But I also do 98% of my own work, so I'll just lie back to them about how much it's going to cost me to have a mechanic do all of the repairs and low-ball the hell out of them. Sometimes this works.
Also Walk away from very rusted under the cars with crumbling rusted frames inwhich looks good up top and sides but most people don't check underneath the car,
I LOOKED at 104 vehicles before I pulled the trigger car wizard. All you said was tried on my fella. You saved me thousands of dollars Sir. Thanks a bunch too.
Wizard, I am the guy who fixes up neglected cars and sells them. So they do have a list of new parts and a list of what still needs done. Not many of us left who aren't scamming.
I always agree with the wizard but this time I'd have say it's not a bad thing if parts have been replaced especially if it's different parts all over the car. Now if it was a ton of sensors related to the engine then maybe that would raise a red flag. But if someone does maintenance nothing wrong with that. Some people take their vehicles in to be inspected before selling and change what might fail for the new buyer so they can sell a honest good car. Really depends on the seller and why they replaced those parts. Now if someone has replaced the engine on a very low milage car that is suspicious in two ways. Maybe it was neglected or it has rolled back miles. Really all depends on the situation. So he's sorta right but also wrong too.
same here..I make sure to keep the car running..
@@PureNathan96 Depends on the receipt dates of parts replacements. Because if a car in lets say the last 6 months has a large list of parts replaced in that given six months then the owner was trying to get a car right but just couldnt do it. If parts replacement was over a amount of time such as my 05 lincoln I purchased 3 months ago in where brake rotors were replaced in 2019 and transmission rebuilt in 2021 and receipts for oil changes and tires from a year ago, THEN thats okay and that was the actual story on the 05 lincoln town car I bought 3 months ago. Its when its a rapid list of recent parts replacement is where the problem is. Also beware of repainted cars, because bad wrecks and lots of hidden rust are an issue there.
If done in the context of routine maintenance I dont see any issue with a lengthy parts list. Doing a timing belt and replacing other things while youre in there generates a pretty good list for a Honda or Toyota.
This. I like buying old and interesting cars. Just catching up on deferred maintenance generates a good list. If you have a bad ball joint - do you just replace it and move on? No, you replace ball joints, tire rods, sway bar links and corresponding bushings on both sides. Your struts are probably due at that point as well.
I just sold my 2004 Chevy Silverado Z71 with 108K miles for $8K. Asked more but the guy who bought it brought it to a mechanic who gave it an inspection and told him the few items wrong and told him that the price was fair - the guy runs a lawn service and gives us and the neighborhood a good deal on cost of service. We got a fair deal and he did too. The truck was always maintained to haul a 2 horse trailer so we kept up on all of the maintenance.
Make sure the title gets signed before you leave and that the name matches EXACTLY as the print on the front, check the vin and make sure it matches.....make sure the vin plate ON THE DASH is there...do NOT rely on a door decal.
Also:
Cars that use timing belts.......ask for proof if it has ever been changed...if its snaps...youre in a world of hurt.
Usually, if the AC does not work, it needs a compressor and a refill. Compressors are VERY expensive today.
I learned that with my used 2005 Ford P74 Crown Victoria. 4.6L V8. Owner said the AC needed a few parts. The P74 sedan Intake manifold began to break apart after 18-20 months.
Also can be an evaporator, part itself is relatively cheap but the process to replace it depending on where it is can be horrible for example my 2007 Lancer wagon has it in the engine bay 40 minutes its fixed but my 2004 Toyota Corolla Altis has it behind the dash 4 hours many broken clips needing to buy another car later its still not even out yet
Not really. Not if you know how to do the labor and know where to look for parts. I found a good used compressor for 40 bucks, refilled with 60 bucks of Freon and fixed
If an ac needs gas, you can bet the seals are now stuffed at the very least. Needs gassing that's a grand off the price
I've got a good story for you Wizard, went to go buy an Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme from a guy who wanted $500 so I drove over to his house and checked it out. I said "do you have the title" he says "yes but its locked in the glovebox along with the keys". Alrighty then...well I wanted the car so I said "I'll buy it under the condition you let me break into the car and open the glove box to get the title" I was 100% going to buy it so long as the title was in the car as he claimed and had the money and tow dolly ready to go so he agrees and I slim-jim the door open without damage, literally the second I'm about to open the glove box he comes running out of the house screaming at me to get off his property that I'm trying to steal the car (the same guy) and he starts going nuts. His wife comes out and tells me (nicely I'll add) to just leave, he started getting up in my face and becoming violent so I pulled out a 9mm and told everyone to back up and I left. I have no idea what was going on but it wasn't on the up and up that's for sure
Hollow point subsonic?
@@IdtelosBlack Talons
I hope you remembered to lock the door before you left!
I was with 2 buddies in my younger days and we went to look at a Chevy Cavalier on a used car lot. We get there. Its broad daylight. It's during normal posted business hours. My car is sitting in the wide open in what I would consider their customer lot. The Cavalier was in the open about 20 feet from a busy street where I saw at least one squad car drive by, and there's nobody at the dealership to be found anywhere. So, WTF? Well, we're here, so we may as well take a look at the car. Of course, its locked up, and of course, I know that the door locks in those Cavaliers sucked, so I got the key from my Chrysler Lebaron out (same key profile, just shorter) and jiggled it in the door lock and it came right open. We popped the hood and started looking around and then the owner (I think he is the owner) showed up and had the "punk kids stealing a car" attitude. He threatened to call the cops and I said, "Please do. Your sign says that you're open, and its broad daylight, and if you prefer, we can come back at about 3:00am. Or, maybe you could sell a car today. We called and talked to you earlier today and perhaps a sign that says 'will be back in 30 minutes' would be helpful." We just stood there listening to him and he eventually calmed down. We bought the car and everything was fine. If my buddy didn't need a car to the degree that he did at the time, we would have gladly left.
Yeah, I am no model citizen, but I am not that dumb. I would have ridden a crappy bicycle there at night and then start dicking with the cars if I was up to something.
That's fucked up!!! Glad you got out of the situation in one piece!!!
Sounds like the guy wanted a locksmith but was too cheap, egotistical, and crazy to call and pay for one! Also wanted to look good for the misses fending off a "thief". I'll give him points for creativity.
Don't buy a car from someone if they will not let you use an OBD reader to scan the car for codes.
Seller wouldn't let me OBD the 66 Chevy I was looking at. What a scammer. On a serious note, I have offered to pay for a new state inspection on a vehicle I wanted to buy. Where else can you get a third party opinion in the form of a state-issued document, same day service, for 35 bucks?
People here in the UK would do well to follow your advice Wizard, see this stuff way too often here.
" Ibeen in the car business for over 40years.
" THÈRE ARE NO FRIENDS IN THE CAR BUSINESS " !
WHAT HE SAID IS SO TRUE. BEEN THERE DONE THAT, ESPECIALLY NON DEALERSHIP SALES
LoL- on some vehicles, when you "Deep dive" under the hood and it is a PITA to get in there? I replace all the consumables buried in there, because repeats are even less fun.
Fb marketplace is full of people selling cars without the title. Ran into this last year looking for a cheap 4wd truck. It was surreal how many people are selling it for someone else in the dallas fort worth area.
Yeah I ran into this also. I wanted a Cadillac for a nice velour interior was all then get rid of it to a salvage yard. Nope the salvage yard wouldn't take it without a title.
In most places it’s not too high of a price to replace a title you lost. Question is why don’t they? If they can’t go through the effort to get a replacement title for the one they lost. what other stuff about the car in question is the person neglecting.
One sales tactic that has made me walk away from deals that I really wanted is during negotiations on a vehicle that I have followed in the classifieds for several days or more the seller will claim someone else says they want it and they are on their way. I have lost a couple of deals because they were right, but most of the time its still posted weeks later, or they call back in a day or two. If they call, I low ball the heck out of them when they would have made more just being honest in negotiations.
If they say someone supposed to be here tomorrow and they claim they will buy it sight unseen, tell the seller that is what they all say while you are walking to your vehicle to leave.
I ran into this situation 10 days ago. I drove off.....Still for sale.
The no title in hand is a no brainer for me ! No title NO SALE!!! Yes make the dealership fix any and all problems or no sale
From personal experience: Never buy a car in the dark. Car looked great in the dark of night, the light of day revealed one whole side was Bondo'd.
Never in rain either
Agree, best to go first thing in the morning for a cold start. Look real close at all panels for any changes in paint color texture or runs. Can't do that when it's wet. Actually an overcast day is best
I sold a car at night because the guy actually wanted to look at it at night. It was weird to say the least. It was a classic Trans Am that needed a lot of work, and I was very insistent that he look during the day, but nope. Got a deposit that night and a check / title exchange the next day.
@@shemphoward5867 bro was determined to get him a new project car that night lol
Ya think?
After doing a thorough check and ensuring no bad lights are on, if that thing does not run perfectly, just walk away. Theres always another one that will be fine.
Always!
Awesome advice as usual. Thank you. Everyone pls direct these videos to your family and friends. How to buy a car and basic mechanics should be taught by parents and schools. And, it’s never too late to learn. Your vehicle is such a crucial part of life. And this sort of analytical thinking applies to many other things. Cheers.
One thing which got me was when I arrived the engine was running. I asked the seller why, and he said “it started a little hard when cold and he wanted to warm it up.” Biggest mistake I made on a car that looked great but hidden issues inside (I was young, this was before TH-cam, and I didn’t have any one helping me out). If a friend is trying to buy a car, I always make time to go with them as I don’t want them to get scammed and want to teach them about issues like you have mentioned.
if its running when I get there; this why on the test drive, I always bring a friend and pretend I gotta poop, pull off and just go muck about on my phone in the stall for 15 to 20 mins and make sure my friend keeps the car off [if I cant get away with taking the keys with me]
In Illinois we have Small Claims court, no lawyers involved, you pay a small fee, and present your case to a judge.
I've done it and won, so I recommend it.
There is a cap on the amount, maybe a grand or two back in the day.
I won a small claims case here in Colorado however the courts did nothing to enforce the defendant to pay me . He and his wife ran back to California and California doesnt recognize Colorado small claims courts deces
sions. Sometimes youre just screwed and the legal system wont help you.
But even that is all for nothing if the moron has not a nickel to his name.
As an example, at my workplace, we had a guy crash through a gate on our property with his truck. We got license number, vehicle description, and a pretty good visual description of the driver. The cops looked at the video and said something along the lines of, "yeah, we know who that is. He's the town drunk. He doesn't have insurance. Let us know if you want to litigate." That's it. The amount of hoops that would have needed to be jumped through in order to get anything out of him would have far exceeded the $2,500 repair to the gate.
@@tomwells7124
Most folks aren't going to leave the state for a grand.
I won against a landlord that tried to keep my deposit. If he didn't pay, his wages/accounts would have been garnished.
He was established in Illinois so he paid.
It was hilarious when he described how I had made unauthorized changes to the decorating (which was ghastly) he provided phitis of the place with its fresh tasteful decorating and smiling new tenants, and the judge looked at him and said "this is what you have? Pay up."
If only Soros didn't own the rest of our scumbag judges along with our evil governor.
@fubartotale3389 just curious what was the landlord trying to keep your deposit for? Just curious because I'm involved in something like that at this moment
This happened to me a few days ago when I found a Toyota that I am interested in on FB. The seller told me the car is in excellent condition, all it needs is a battery. He told me that he can tow the car to my house and even get me a new battery. I turned down his offer immediately.
I'd be like go buy a battery at Walmart
ALWAYS do the transaction at your bank or the PD's parking lot. Public with cameras.
A good bank will have someone sit in often. Play it safe till the end..
LFOD !
A lot of people bank online now!
All I will say is THANKS for the advice, this is very helpful information for many people.
Gotta love parts cannon for rodent damage that someone forgot to look for.
Or corroded grounds
in the land of computer / electronics, never buy anything with a 'lost' power cord / brick, 'the battery is just dead!.'
I have 2000 Toyota Celica gt the only thing I have had to replace was starter. Also a 2007 Tacoma...nothing so far except regular maintenance Will keep my two forever.
I think you’re looking for the Scotty Kilmer channel
Timing belt and all accessories/pulleys related to it. Swap that out and they will run for easily a million miles if unmolested.
I have a 2000 Celica Gt with 217k love this car! 5 spd....black.... only thing Need's fixing now is the leaking exaust manifold .
Never 1) buy at night 2) raining 3) most importantly... NEVER fall in love with any car that's sketchy in any way. There's a better one.
oddly enough, rain has saved my bacon a few times. i'm willing to crawl under a car in the rain. i've never really cared about how the paint looks. I usually buy beater trucks anyways. the rain has helped me find exhaust leaks and hidden electrical issues cause I wanted to buy a 93 chevy 2500 once, and decided to run her thru a nice mud puddle, that dash lit up like a christmas tree.
Another thing to watch for is being catfished. Where the ad has either stock pictures of a similar vehicle, pictures of the car from 10 years ago, they just hosed it down with water, or WD40 to make the paint look shiny, and you end up finding out that the vehicle is roached out.
I remember looking at a foxbody mustang convertible from ‘84 Not too long ago. It had something similar to what you’re describing only the pictures didn’t look like they were taken 10 years ago. They looked like they were taken in the early 2000s with a camera from that time frame. They may have been put for nostalgic sake. Or if those pictures were taken 2 decades later the car would be in radically different condition then it was then and so they could not take pictures of it now or it wouldn’t sale. Yes definitely be wary of that. The pictures should look like they are recent. You can include old pictures maybe to show what this car looked like it’s in prime. But after you should show the pictures of the thing that are more recent.
Very very informative and a great eye opener....Thank You Car Wizard.
Also, especially when buying Jeeps and trucks, always, always, always inspect the frame and underside for RUST! So many rusted out vehicles for sale out there! Look for fresh undercoating, paint, patches, etc. Never buy a vehicle with a rusted out frame!! But I see it happen SO much!!
its why always bring a screw driver and a small hammer i can hide in my pocket. I crawl under there and find several spots on the frame to give a good wack if I notice fairly recent under coating. if they get upset I just blame the sound on me hitting my head on the frame XD.
Hey Wizard,
I had a similar situation with a car I bought which has no title because he owed money to a used car lot.
I did know that he owed $1200 to the dealer. I bought the car, went to the dealer and they confirmed $1200 was owed. I told the dealer that I now owned the car, and told them I would give them $500 for the title, and that if they said no, I'd just part the car out and they would get nothing. They agreed to give me the title for the $500. So, it all worked out. Just remember if this happens to anyone, negotiate!
Looking in from bolton North England good video keep em comin
adding : If the heater doesn't work, don't buy it...
ensure the motor temperature is cold and look at the coolant... if you see sparkly flakes, they added a head-gasket seal (or something).
If it drives and pulls (left or right) when the road is flat (tires properly inflated, road is flat) or, if it pulls hard when you hard brake, it's frame damage or something else too costly to fix.
I got scammed by a guy several years ago who sold me a Rav4 with the check engine light on. The car had 55,000 miles, was immaculate otherwise, and was a manual transmission. He wanted an almost stupidly low price for it. Lo and behold, when the timing chain jumped the sprocket 2 months later, the mechanic who did the postmortem said, "yeah, I've never seen an engine coated with so much caked on oil and gunk."
did you not get it inspected whatsoever?
Check engine lights can be easily turned off with a cheap scanner. Did you ask for maintenance records? I’ve seen people buy a car and don’t even bother to take it to get the oil changed. I would’ve least had a mechanic look at it before you handed over cash
I wouldn't consider this being scammed. You knew if was very cheap and under valued. If you didn't get the check engine light checked out or had a machanic look over it that's on you not the seller. If the engine oil was just replaced and it's already turning dark you could have taken it in to have the engine flushed to remove the sludge therefore prevented the timing chain from failing. Always check the maintenance and if it's too good of a deal we'll you better have the car looked over. You can't really call it scammed when you knew the low price was very low and suspicious.
@@tylerlogsdon8623 I did, but does your PPI include pulling a valve cover off?
@@calvinwalker4654 We checked the carfax because this was a used car dealer.
Rare honesty, purchased a Mazdaspeed Miata...seller was genuinely awesome & car exactly as described, best ever!
Just picked up a 07 miata, salvaged title and some new body parts and totally pristine. Love it.
when in college I bought a cycle from a buddy, no problem until a week later he told me the title was in his deceased fathers name, a month goes by and it turns out I have to take his mother to a notary with D.C. so I can finally get the title in my name
Glad I found you! Thanks for the info. Got scammed & burnt already, & now stuck w a problem & still don’t have a car. Not putting my whole sob story here, but in a terrible situation & really the last thing I needed or could “afford”
Most of these scenarios can be asked, "Then why wasn't it already taken care of?" And if you gotta ask that, then it's time to walk 😎
8:28 also called a 'skipped title', 'title jumping' or floating the title. Guys that flip cars will also do this to avoid paying taxes. They'll buy it from someone but when they buy it, they never sign it themselves. Then they have you sign it as if you're the buyer... 'skipping' them so they can avoid paying the registration and taxes.
My absolute favorite all time are the people who say “currently doesn’t run, just needs a battery.” Do people not realize the difference of value between a running car vs a not running car, and how much a $100 battery affects that? I literally laugh out loud when I see those posts.
Another good one is when people say “AC doesn’t works just needs a recharge.” A good rule of thumb is if the AC doesn’t work when you buy it, just assume it never will.
My dad drove used cars my whole life despite us actually being a kind of upper middle class family and he always had 3 top rules of when to not buy a car. He told us “never buy a car at night, never buy a car in the rain, and never buy a car that you can’t cold start” and basically told us to touch the exhaust and if it was even slightly warm at all, to tell the person you’d come back tomorrow or whenever you could could start it.
You're a good guy. Enjoy your channel. Wishing you continued success in the future.
Scenario #3. Something to add to that. Make sure the title is in the name of the person selling the car. I bought a Chevy Cobalt from a lady who said the title was in her name but what it actually was is that her brother sold her the car and signed it over to her but she never went to the DMV. So technically it was still in his name. Complete nightmare to get straightened out.
This. As someone who has bought and sold many motorcycles... I agree. It is usually possible to get around skipped titles but its going to take a lot of leg work, time, and sometimes money. NOT worth it for an average run-of-the-mill car. I cant stress enough that if you buy a car... spend the $50 and get a title in your name even if you dont register it. Dont let it sit in your garage for 10 years, then decide to sell it, and say the title is technically in this other persons name but that should not be a problem. It can be problem..... and so many dont know this.
These are my immediate red flags:
If the radiator looks newer than the rest of the car, it could indicate that the car has been in a front collision and the engine may have overheated. If so, the engine's life may be very close to being over, which could be why the seller is trying to sell it.
All used pickup trucks come with a red flag. Why is the seller selling it? The seller may have hauled something that was far beyond the truck's weight limit, potentially damaging the transmission. If that's the case, the transmission may be close to failing, which could explain why the seller is trying to sell it.
I’ve seen two types of owners in Texas. One never hauls or tows anything. The other goes way beyond its capabilities.
Here I will make this easy for everyone. I have not yet watched the video nut I have an easy summery. Do NOT buy a car in ANY condition that Tyler Hoovie has and you should be ok. lol.
He makes his living making TH-cam videos about all the crap cars he buys. It is his brand.
@@MostlyBuicks Not shit NUMB NUTS.
A car purchased by Hoovie without an issue is worthless to him. Hoovie requires a car with lots of issues and related 'drama' to maximise the amount of TH-cam (YT) views, and hence earnings, all courtesy of the mysterious YT algorithim. Consequently using Hoovie as a 'guide' for what NOT TO DO when buying a car is surely logical - unless your objective is to launch a similar type of YT channel.
Great video for someone just starting out. I like listening to these to verify that I’m doing things. There are so many thieves out there these days.
Pro tip. Pay up and buy a one owner garage kept car with all the service records. Buy a rust free example. Make sure it’s a mid 2000s Toyota or Lexus. Preferably an LX470 or LS430. Look for one with about 50,000 original miles. One that was exceptionally well kept. All original paint. You’ll have to pay up, but it will be worth it.
Good luck finding one of those. Wouldn't want one anyway
I paid $4500 for a 2009 Camry, 2.4, doesn't burn any oil, 122k miles. Damn near pristine interior and a few small scrapes on the exterior, and no camry dent to boot. The old lady who owned it had nearly 7 years of service records (mostly oil changes, tires, and a few other wear items) stuffed into the owner's manual. The 2.4s burned oil because people abused them, and this one wasn't abused. Sure, low tension oil rings and the switch to thinner oil than they were originally designed for back in 2002 might've had a hand to play, but lack of maintenance is the real killer with the 2AZ.
@@lsswappedcessna 10 to 1 that Camry is brown. The Camry has become the new brown Buick for old people.
@@davidb7180 Red, surprisingly enough. I agree though, that body style Camry is synonymous with the elderly who just want a fuel efficient and reliable vehicle. Tan ones equipped with the inline 4 seem to be a dime a dozen, one of my friends has one of the same body style that's tan and has the 2.4. I do somewhat wish mine had the V6, a bit less fuel economy but a good bit more power.
Still, the 2.4 isn't anemic, it's good enough on power (though most of the power is towards redline, I do very much notice that) and 30 mpg is the highest fuel economy of any vehicle I've ever had (versus my two other vehicles, a 2004 Suburban which gets 13-14 combined and a 1966 Oldsmobile, which gets a staggering 9 mpg combined) and probably ever will have, unless I somehow find a first gen prius with a battery that's not completely cooked. Call me gay all you like but I actually liked the first gen prius, they looked weird but weren't outright ugly and offered (for the time) insane fuel economy. Same with the Honda Insight, they looked weird but weren't ugly. I'd take a manual first gen Insight, too. Yeah, you heard me right, the first gen Honda Insight, a hybrid like the Prius and actually pre-dated it by around 7 months, was offered with a 5 speed manual transmission. Most had CVTs, which makes total sense for a hybrid, but I have a feeling the manual would be a lot more interesting to drive without compromising on fuel economy very much.
Except for having over 200,000 miles, and being a GM, I did just that. The little 1ZZ-FE never went even 4k between oil changes, and the car got long-term services done at the dealership it was bought from. The Toyota dealers are kind of a PITA, but they are the cheapest place for filters and fluids, and always have them in stock, which is nice.
Another good one I have seen many times, is during the test drive you hear some beeps. A repeating, rhythmic beep coming from somewhere. I have seen a few...many, times where they have taken the check engine light (or ABS light) out. Many cars have a backup warning using the beep to indicate something is wrong, like the missing CEL. Usually someone taking the light out, or worse scratching an LED light out on the dash rendering it destroyed, and the hidden fault.
Half of the Mini Coopers for sale in my area are missing the key or doesn't have a battery, but the seller says it runs great. My guess is the timing chain skipped and bent valves, so the owner took the keys and threw them into a pond, woods, brush, black hole, abyss, etc.
Great video. I never thought about the amount of random repairs chasing down the problems!! All the sales tactics you mentioned are all over marketplace.
Well even if a car only needs some refrigerant to work that means you have a leak. That should be fixed and can be a royal pain to get to some seals.
And its a fair chance that leak is behind the dash, which is exactly why it still exists.
I've been lucky and the leaks have been from the valves where you fill up refrigerant
Great content. First timer subscribed. All can apply to reputable dealerships as well. Call and ask the questions first. If they give you attitude end the call. Always soft start and check that the indicator lights work. Don’t test drive with the radio playing. Title washing is a fast growing issue.
If you go look at a car there's another potential buyer allegedly on the way or on stand by just Walk away from it.
While I agree with you Wizard, on all these points, I did take a chance on a no-title car once. Bought a 40-year old Toyota in Texas for only $300. Minor repair and drove it back to Michigan (where rust-free Toyota Cressidas do not exist). Did take a bit of hassle at the DMV to secure a title but ended up being totally worth it.
Another thing with the new parts cannon is that the quality of worksmanship on all that work is typically very poor and the new parts were probably of inferior quality.