What actually is a good deal when buying a used car? That is a multi-million dollar question anytime any day. What some people refer to, as a good deal, might actually be a bad deal for others because all us see things in different ways. Our needs and wants are different, including the level of our financial status. All of these have a way of influencing our judgment regarding what’s fair or not.

When searching for a used car, many used car shoppers lay much emphasis on price. I personally believe it’s wrong to evaluate a used vehicle on the bases of price alone, other factors like mileage, model, year, maintenance history need to be taking into considerations, as you can see, it’s important to look beyond price when looking for a great deal, the lowest price is not always a better deal when it comes to analyzing a good deal.

If the price is not only the determiner of a great deal what else consisted a great deal? The simple answer values, it’s the value that determines the price, There are also different types of values when it comes to buying used vehicles, they are as follows:

• Private party value: This is the amount you will have to shell out for a specific used car from a private seller.
• Trade-in value: This is the amount you may likely get from a dealer when you trade-in your formal car.
• Suggested retail value: This is the dealer’s asking price for a specific used car.
• Certified pre-owned (CPO value): This is the worth of cars covered by the CPO program. 

We all know everybody wants to get a good deal when they purchase a used vehicle but have you ever stopped to think about what that value really means? Like I said earlier, there are a lot of factors that determine the value of a car which ultimately determines the price.

Those factors are the brand name, the model, the year, the mileage, maintenance history, resale value, and the general condition of the car, the structural damage, that is any visible damage or any other cosmetic issue on the body of the car. I know even after reading this article a lot of people will still insist on a price that defines whether or not it’s a good deal, but when you stop and think about all those factors listed above, you will agree with me, there’s much more to a great deal than just the price.

Let Take any two vehicles from the same manufacturer with the same exact price in this scenario, one of the car has 200,000 miles and the other with just 50,000 miles, the one with a 50,000 mile having a better maintenance history, you don’t need an expert or a mechanic to tell you that though the two cars are the same they have different value based on mileage and maintenance history.

With such a big difference in value, some buyers will find one to be a better deal than the other, even though the two cars are the same brand, model and year. Apart from the brand and the mileage, other options like the color and any other feature might be considered as well, but the truth of the matter is that the one with 50,000 miles is going to deliver more value than the other with 200,000 miles, That’s a typical concept of analyzing a good deal.

What you should look for in a good deal is the value to determine the price you will pay, so, value and price are part of the equation, so is quality. Value is the connecting point where quality and price meet. All the various reasons given above for choosing the 50,000-mile car over the 200,00-miles is the quality part of the value equation. Most of the time it comes down to which vehicle meets more of your needs than wants.

When you are bargaining and comparing prices to determine a good deal, remember the cost of maintenance in the long run, you can try as much as possible to figure out which one will have a higher cost of overall maintenance and repair in the possible future. It’s better to be aware of this maintenance cost ahead of time before you make payment. Even the type of gas the vehicle need is very important if it’s not a regular gas you immediately know that will be an extra cost running the vehicle in the future.

You can see how focusing on the initial lowest price to determine a good deal is wrong, If all you look at is low price, you will end up with the cheapest car that doesn’t necessarily mean a good deal, keep the value equation in mind, as we discuss earlier, when shopping for used cars, what seemed like the cheapest car may end up being the most expensive car when you take other factors into consideration.

Another thing you need to have in mind is that a higher price doesn’t mean it’s a good deal either, you should know where to draw the lines when it comes to value and price, a higher price must carry a value that will qualify it to be considered a great deal. I have seen some Used car buyers who boast about how much they paid for their car without knowing if the car worth that amount, paying a higher amount doesn’t justify it to be a good deal or a bad deal it’s the value that determines a good deal.

If you read this article to this far, it will not be difficult for you to spot a good deal When next you shop for a used car, always remember what you are looking for, and know exactly how to spot a good deal when you see it. It’s not difficult at the same time it’s not easy, it takes a little experience to spot a good deal, but if you take all the factors in this article into consideration it won’t be long before you start landing a good deal.

Lastly, it’s very difficult to know and compare prices of all used cars available for sale, what you need to do to make it easier, is to visit major used car dealer website like KKB Kelley blue book to know the book and market value of the vehicle you intend to buy. Other similar websites are:

• Autotrader.com
• Edmunds.com.
• EnterpriseCarSales.com.
• Autotempest.com.
• CarGurus.com. 
• Hemmings.com.
• Carsdirect.com.

If you visit one or two of these websites listed above, you should have a better idea of what a good deal looks like.

Do you live across the DMV and in need of a used car? Or are you a dealer in Africa that want used cars from the USA? Don’t forget to give us a call on +1240-696-9459 or email us at john@josetoautos.com