Questions to ask

Q. Why are you selling the car?expensive, and is usually of high quality. Has the
A. This is potentially the most important question inowner claimed lots of recent service, but has no
your telephone conversation. You can learn a lotreceipts? Be suspicious.
about the car -- and a lot about the owner. If theQ. What recent work has been done to the car?
owner says he has been transferred and has to startA. This question gives you a snapshot of the car's
work in Denver the following week, there's a chancemaintenance history. If you're looking at a car that's
this is a legitimate distress sale. That's an opportunityonly one or two years old, don't be concerned if
to get a bargain. On the other hand, beware ofnothing has been done recently. It just hasn't reached
implausible answers. If the car is a Chevy Camaro,the point where things have started breaking.
and the seller said it belonged to his mother, thinkQ. Are you the original owner?
twice. You can uncover such discrepancies in youA. This question is basic and self-explanatory. It's a
Carfax history search.good opener when responding to a classified or web
Q. What condition is the car in?ad. If the owner isn't the original owner, don't forget
A. This is an obvious question. But the way thethe corollary: how long have you owned the car?
owner answer this question can tell you a lot aboutThere are two important things to be gleaned from
how well the car has been maintained. As you listen,this. One, how well does the owner know the car in
take notes of all the problems, so you can refer toquestion? Two, you can test the veracity of the
them should you go ahead with a test drive. Your listresponse by performing a [[linkurl=http:/
will also be helpful if you take the car to a mechanicwww.carfax.com/]Carfax [/link]vehicle history check.
for a professional inspection.Any discrepancies should cast a deep shadow on the
Q. What Color is the Car?value of the car. The biggest problem is weekend
A. This is a deceptively important question. Someauto dealers posing as owners. They buy cheap and
cars just have hideous colors. Ford Aspires from thesell quick, passing along undisclosed problems to the
late 1990s, for instance, were made in a variety ofnew owner.
revolting "nail polish" shades. Audi and Lincoln bothQ. Does it have any rust?
have pearly off-whites which many admire, but whichA. In Boston, where I live, all cars rust out. It's just a
some guys find too feminine. So ask first. Plus, this ismatter of time. Even well-made luxury cars like
a good car to open the conversation with the ownerMercedes will eventually succumb to the red cancer.
and get a sense of how chatty he or she is.The same goes for other areas of the country that
A word or two about colors. Black cars areget lots of snow.
extremely hard to keep good-looking. Red cars doSo the question of rust is crucial. All cars will
sometimes attract attention from the police. And ifeventually corrode. When you inspect the car, you
you really don't like the color of a used car, you maymay not see everything. Asking the owner can point
find yourself unhappy with it not matter how well ityou towards potential problems.
performs. (Ask me about my 1998 Audi A4 inBut don't overreact. If you're buying a 10-year-old
pearlescent white.)commuter, some surface rust won't make any
Q. Do you have receipts for recent service?difference. For that matter, neither will a big hole in
A. A conscientious owner who has maintained the carthe bottom of the driver's door. Your mechanic will
will will have receipts. If you inspect the car, take 15tell you if the chassis has been weakened in any
minutes to go through the receipts. See where theway.
work was done and whether it is consistent with theAs with other questions, the owner's response will
owner's description of recent work. Are theregive you a clue about how well the car has been
records of regular oil changes? Was servicemaintained.
performed at the dealership? Dealer service is most