Alignments Starting at $137 Brakes and Rotors Starting at $514 per axel
[GEOTITLE] [GEOADDRESSONE] [GEOADDRESSTWO] [GEOPHONE] Directions
Store Hours [GEOHOURSMONDAY] [GEOHOURSTUESDAY] [GEOHOURSWEDNSDAY] [GEOHOURSTHURSDAY] [GEOHOURSFRIDAY] [GEOHOURSSATURDAY] [GEOHOURSSUNDAY]
Current Location
[GEOTITLE] [GEOADDRESSONE] [GEOADDRESSTWO] [GEOPHONE] | Directions
Store Hours [GEOHOURSMONDAY] [GEOHOURSTUESDAY] [GEOHOURSWEDNSDAY] [GEOHOURSTHURSDAY] [GEOHOURSFRIDAY] [GEOHOURSSATURDAY] [GEOHOURSSUNDAY]
Go

News

25

Things To Look For When Buying a Used Car

posted on 8/25/2016 8:47:25 AM
Buying a used car is somewhat less of a crapshoot than it was at one time. You can get detailed information on a vehicle's history via the CARFAX report, and a Car for saletechnician can use onboard diagnostics to get a good picture of what's going on under the hood and what problems might be coming up. 
 
It's always a good idea to get a mechanic to look over any prospective purchase, but there are things you can get a look at yourself before you spend the money for a professional inspection. These are things which will give you a pretty good idea of the kind of use and maintenance a vehicle has seen before you got it. 
 
-- Put your head against a fender and sight down the side of the vehicle with one eye. Look out for ripples or irregularities in the sheet metal which could point to a collision and body work. Look closely for mismatched paint on body panels, or paint which has an orange-peel texture. 
 
-- Closely look at the carpeting, upholstery, and pedals. The condition of these can tell you a lot about how a vehicle was cared for. 
 
-- Pop the hood and look for leaks anywhere on the engine. Start the engine, let it warm up to operating temperature and sniff carefully for unusual smells such as burning oil, burning transmission fluid or leaking antifreeze (all of which have a distinctive smell). 
 
-- With the engine running, vehicle on level ground and transmission in Park, pull the transmission dipstick and get a close look at the fluid. The fluid should be magenta colored with a slightly sweet smell. Fluid that's darker or has a burnt toast smell means that the transmission has been overheated, poorly maintained and/or run with a low fluid level. Avoid. 
 
-- Take the vehicle for a test drive. Listen for clunks or thumps while going over bumps. Get a good feel for how it handles; a pull to one side on the highway or a tendency for the steering wheel to not center itself could mean front-end problems. Accelerate sharply and listen for any unusual noises. Does the vehicle have enough power and run smoothly when driven hard? Hit the brakes hard. Does the vehicle pull to one side while braking, lock up any of the wheels or have a pulsation through the brake pedal? 
 
None of these constitute a detailed inspection, of course. They're all common-sense measures you can take, though, to pre-screen a prospective used car before calling a professional in for a thorough pre-purchase shakedown. 
Categories: Auto Repair 101 | View Count: (62) | Return

Related

Credit

Visit Our Shop

Contact Us

Email:
Phone: (502) 267-8986
Fax:
Address: 9005 Galene Drive
Louisville, KY 40299
Powered by Net Driven
Login

Tire installment package required for online only. Goodyear Credit Card offers are subject to credit approval. Get up to $100 back by mail-in or online on a qualifying purchase of a set of 4 select Goodyear tires with any form of payment method; plus get an added bonus of up to $100 more when the purchase is made on Goodyear Credit Card from 10/1/2024 to 12/31/2024.

Get a $100 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase or $200 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase on the Goodyear Credit Card of: Assurance WeatherReady® 2, Wrangler Duratrac® RT, Assurance WeatherReady® and WinterCommand® Ultra.

Get a $75 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase or $150 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase on the Goodyear Credit Card of: Wrangler® All-Terrain Adventure with Kevlar®, Wrangler Boulder MT®, Wrangler Steadfast HT® and Ultra Grip® Performance 3.

Get a $50 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase or $100 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase on the Goodyear Credit Card of: Assurance ComfortDrive®, Assurance MaxLife®, Eagle Exhilarate®, Eagle® Sport All-Season Family (includes ROF and SCT), Eagle® Touring Family (includes ROF and SCT), Winter Maxx® 2, Winter Maxx® SJ8, WinterCommand®, Ultra Grip® Series (includes Eagle® Ultra Grip® GW-2/3, + SUV, 8 Performance/ROF, 9+, Performance+/SCT/+ SUV/3/Gen-1/Gen-1 ROF/ SUV Gen-1, Ultra Grip® Winter).

Get a $25 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase or $50 Visa Prepaid Card with purchase on the Goodyear Credit Card of: Assurance® All-Season, Kelly Edge® Sport, Kelly Edge® Touring A/S and Kelly Edge® Touring Plus.

Limit one (1) rebate per qualifying tire purchase. Limit four (4) rebates per household, per promotion. Tire rebate offers are on a set of four (4) tires purchased from 10/1/2024 to 12/31/2024. If your vehicle requires six tires, rebates are available on a prorated basis for the two additional tires. The prorated rebate amount, per additional tire, is 25% of the rebate amount listed above. The minimum purchase is a set of four tires, and the maximum purchase is six tires per invoice. Complete purchase must be made on the Goodyear Credit Card to receive maximum rebate offer. Offers available only at authorized participating U.S. Goodyear retailers and websites. Offer valid only for U.S. residents who are individual consumers with mailing addresses in the U.S. and U.S. territories. Offers valid for consumer accounts in good standing. Not valid on previous purchases. Cannot be combined with other Goodyear tire rebate offers. Base portion of rebate offered by Goodyear, and bonus portion of rebate offered by Citibank, N.A. The Goodyear Credit Card is issued by Citibank, N.A.

Completed rebate forms must be postmarked or submitted online no later than 1/31/2025. Invoice must have eligible tire name and proof of purchase on Goodyear Credit Card (when applicable) clearly indicated. Online purchases must include copy of the online purchase invoice and the installation invoice from authorized Goodyear retailer. Allow 6 to 8 weeks for Visa Prepaid Card/Virtual Card delivery. Goodyear reserves the right to substitute a check of equal value in lieu of a Visa Prepaid Card at its discretion. For additional questions, or to check the status of your rebate, you may visit www.Goodyear.com/rebates or call the Goodyear Rebate Customer Service at 1-888-683-8724 Monday to Friday between the hours of 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. ET and 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET on Saturday. Fraudulent submissions will not be honored and may be prosecuted. Sponsor is not responsible for noncomplying rebate submissions or for lost, late, illegible, postage-due or undeliverable mail. Noncomplying rebate submissions will not be honored, acknowledged or returned. Void where taxed, restricted or prohibited by law. All decisions made by Goodyear (or its authorized representatives) relating to the validity of any submissions are final and binding. This promotion is subject to all federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

Rebate paid in the form of a Goodyear Visa Prepaid Card or Virtual Card. Prepaid Card/Virtual Card is issued by Pathward, N.A., Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. No cash access or recurring payments. Prepaid Card can be used everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted. Virtual Card can be used everywhere Visa debit cards are accepted online or for phone/mail orders. Prepaid Card/Virtual Card valid for up to 6 months; unused funds will forfeit after the valid thru date. Prepaid Card terms and conditions apply. Pathward does not endorse or sponsor the Goodyear Credit Card offer. Retain copies of the materials you submit. Additional terms and conditions apply. Ask participating retailer for complete details and rebate form.

DuPont™ and Kevlar® are trademarks or registered trademarks of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company used under license by The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and affiliates.

©2024 The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. All rights reserved.