Used Kia hidden problems ?

[firelaser]

So i am preparing to buy a used car on craigslist and want to make sure i wont get burned later on-
the car i am buying is a 2014 kia forte 31000 miles

we made a deal for 10,000 $ a good price !

https://fortmyers.cr...5508930830.html

i am wondering are there any issues that could be not initially noticeable during a simple test drive? i.e could it suddenly be junk at 35k because he did something crazy in it .

A few caution flags are that he is the 2nd owner after after 28k and does not know much about the car before that
he also was in a hurry when i first went to look it over but that may have been just bad timing
everything seemed to run well

we will do a much more in detail test drive and even a mechanic inspection before i buy -
what i am wondering is is there any way i can get burned even after an inspection with such a new car?
i also find it strange that it has not sold already but that could be just circumstance
he is not the best communicator but that may simply be that he is mainly spanish and i speak english - but he can text and speak in english to me.

just want to be cautious !

 

[diachi]

Your link isn't working!

Sounds like you have it figured out, test drive, mechanics inspection. Usually you can tell if a vehicle hasn't been well maintained when you drive it. The mechanics inspection is always a good idea unless you're buying an old beater in which case it isn't worth it - unless your local authority/insurance requires it. I didn't bother when I bought my last vehicle for $400 but we don't require safety inspections here.

Not sure if it's available where you are but often times you can get a vehicle history/accident report: Using VIN Numbers To Check Car Accident History - The Car Connection

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

Especially with used cars, but even with new cars, there can always be hidden problems. Just no avoiding it, and a lot of it is luck.

Take a 5 minute test drive, where it's quiet, roll down the windows, accelerate HARD, and brake hard. I'm not saying burn out, but how you would if you're entering the highway with no ramp. Take note of anything unusual. In many cases people won't even be trying to scam you or anything, they just don't realize that something is off.

Best bet is to go to a mechanic, have mechanic take a test drive, and put it on a lift. Most mechanics will do it for a small fee, or free, if you agree to do repairs with them, at least tentatively. Good chance you'll find some minor issues that won't be a deal breaker, but could mean lowering the price.

Have sold cars on craiglist a few times... my take of it, from the sales side is to just be upfront about everything, but to also have a rock bottom price I'm not gonna go below.

 

[Pi R Squared]

I am not qualified to say anything as I know little about cars, but this car is known to have poorer gas mileage than its supposed to have, also make sure there is no moisture or mold in the back, this car has been known to have a problem with water leaking in to the trunk. The price is low, should be 2 or 3 thousand more, take a close look and see what the mechanic says.

Alan

 

[diachi]

Especially with used cars, but even with new cars, there can always be hidden problems. Just no avoiding it, and a lot of it is luck.

Take a 5 minute test drive, where it's quiet, roll down the windows, accelerate HARD, and brake hard. I'm not saying burn out, but how you would if you're entering the highway with no ramp. Take note of anything unusual. In many cases people won't even be trying to scam you or anything, they just don't realize that something is off.

Best bet is to go to a mechanic, have mechanic take a test drive, and put it on a lift. Most mechanics will do it for a small fee, or free, if you agree to do repairs with them, at least tentatively. Good chance you'll find some minor issues that won't be a deal breaker, but could mean lowering the price.

Have sold cars on craiglist a few times... my take of it, from the sales side is to just be upfront about everything, but to also have a rock bottom price I'm not gonna go below.

I am not qualified to say anything as I know little about cars, but this car is known to have poorer gas mileage than its supposed to have, also make sure there is no moisture or mold in the back, this car has been known to have a problem with water leaking in to the trunk. The price is low, should be 2 or 3 thousand more, take a close look and see what the mechanic says.

Alan

Both these posts are correct! Alan makes a good point, check reviews before buying any vehicle - may at least be able to avoid any future issues that way.

As for the accelerate and brake hard - also a good idea. If I suspect something is wrong with the truck I usually roll the windows down, find a spot with those concrete barriers on the drivers side and floor it - the concrete reflects the sound back towards you making things easier to hear - if it's anything major you'll hear it without the barriers... Doesn't hurt to try again with the windows up either. If the brakes need major work (warped or worn rotors, worn pads) you should be able to tell without braking too hard - like no need to slam on the brakes and brake check someone.


Pay attention when going over bumps for any rattle or squeak type noises. A mechanic should be able to check for suspensions issues (Bad ones at least) without even driving it but if there are suspension issues to worry about you'll hear them and feel them too.

Look for smoke coming out of the exhaust - do some Googling to find out what different colours of smoke mean. Obviously don't confuse water vapour with smoke if it's cold where you are.

Pay attention to smells too - most of the time you can smell quite clearly when a vehicle is burning something it shouldn't be (oil, coolant, whatever). Sometimes you can smell fluid leaks too - although they are easy to spot visually in most cases.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

For any kind of test driving, use empty roads if possible... you definitely don't want to break check anyone, or grab a ticket, or worse yet get into an accident.

Also bear in mind, even if it's not your car, and you're driving when pulled over, you'll be liable if the car is not insured, or not registered, and that's a huge issue in many states.

 

[firelaser]

https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/cto/5508930830.html
the link
---- also some other cars i noticed
----- https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/cto/5503925061.html --- 10k 2012 Elantra 55k
--- https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee/ctd/5511419890.html
-- 2015 Hyundai Accent GLS - 10.6k

thanks for all the quick replies ! ill do those on the test drive !
just me being careful! i gotta live with whatever 10,000 $ car i buy !
this is the one of best deal i have seen locally so i would like it if it works out - i am ending my lease of my 2013 honda civic and want a similar car to replace it, and i like the new cars designs . 2012+ in general with the tech and style they have.

but after a good test drive and a good mechanic inspection am i pretty safe from problems in the near future ? nothing is 100% but happy enough to clear worry?
anything specific the mechanic should do? as most do a basic look over up to a major 2 hour super check!

 

[Isaac Clarke]

Check the Air Bags!!!

 

[firelaser]

the mechanical way or the fun way? lol but ill include that with the mechanic check

 

[NightExplorer96]

Nice looking car!

As said by everyone, do make sure you take sufficient time to check it out, make sure everything works as it should and most importantly, you feel comfortable driving it!

After buying my 2000 S40 Volvo it ran fine for a couple weeks, but then had to change the alternator & catalytic converter! I haven't seen a "Check Engine" light since then, but the engine does seem(when first starting it up) to have problems getting oxygen as it appears to choke a lot for the first few minutes which I read could be a fuel pump error.

Used cars must be checked out so you don't end up with more repairs down the road. Also, do make sure you like it since $11,000 is a lot of money no matter how you look at it!

Enjoy your new car

-Alex

 

[Isaac Clarke]

May be replace the old air bags with new one?

and of course the fun way:eg:

facts:
-some air bags contain large amount of KNO3(potassium nitrates...the thing that people use for smoke bomb).
-Do not attempt to mess with the air bags with lasers.... they might contains flammable stuff..

the mechanical way or the fun way? lol but ill include that with the mechanic check

 

[Benm]

I would recommend having it looked over by the garage that you usually go to for your car maintenance - a place you have dealt with before and hopefully trust.

Have them inspect the car, and pay for the time they spend on it.

Perhaps that'll cost you $200 in labour, which is totally worth avoiding buying a $10.000 lemon. Maybe they find something minor wrong and you can just negotiate that off the sale price... or they find something major and you should not buy the car at all, costing you $100-200 but avoiding thousands worth of future costs.

Cars can obviously have issues the sellers don't even know about, especially if they are not the first owners.

Also, the absense of 'check engine' lights doesn't mean anything really. You can clear the error with a cheap odbc interface, and it will not come on again until the fault occurs again. If it's something that takes some time to develop (overheating, small fluid leak etc) you're not likely to trigger it on a short test drive either.

 

[Benm]

... and on the airbags: they usually contain sodium azide as the explosive. Sodium nitrate works when combined with a reductor such as sugar in case of smoke bombs, or carbon and sulfur in case of gunpowder. These reactions are too slow to make an airbag work well.

Airbag explosives usually contain potassium hydroxide and silicon dioxde as well. The former helps in producing a bit more nitrogen, the latter neutralizes the sodium and potassium oxides to prevent you from getting blasted in the face with, basically, a could of lye.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

I've seen OBD tools for under $10 many times. Currently still use one I bought back in 2012(?) for under $20. My reason was simple... to pass inspection. If check engine light is on, you automatically fail. Never-mind that in my case it had to do with an oxygen sensor that mostly just meant a very minor reduction in gas mileage, but would have cost $600 to $800 to fix.

Someone unscrupulous could well use one to clear out the error codes, and they really won't come up. It really does take a while for one to pop up in my experience, unless it's a major issue.

Btw, worthwhile investment overall to buy one... most places will want to charge $20 just to read the code, if you're not doing anything else at the same time.

 

[firelaser]

test drive and mechanic is on monday- we will see how it all looks

 

[DashApple]

May be replace the old air bags with new one?

and of course the fun way:eg:

facts:
-some air bags contain large amount of NaNO3(potassium nitrates...the thing that people use for smoke bomb).
-Do not attempt to mess with the air bags with lasers.... they might contains flammable stuff..

old Air Bags main chemical component was sodium azide as that's whats generates the nitrogen gas , but I think its been replaced

Do you mean sodium nitrate as that's NaNO3 ? , Potassium nitrate is KNO3 , They are used as well along with other chemicals to recast with the sodium produced


Good luck with the car purchase : D