A subscription to Consumer Reports might be well worth your time- you can look up their yearly auto issue, which gives detailed ratings on cars (including information on what you can expect for used models of various years, and what would constitute a good deal on one of them).
After you’ve figured out what you’re looking for and how much you expect to pay, start looking at local dealerships (and look through your local newspaper’s auto classified section every day); test-drive different models that interest you; look at quite a few cars before making a final decision. (The salespeople will of course want you to think that there’s some sort of time pressure, but they’re usually wrong.) Then, as EY mentioned, take your car of choice to a mechanic for a check-up (tell the mechanic that you’re considering buying the car) before you sign.
It’s a fair bit of work, but having a good car for several thousand less is well worth it.
I don’t know much about buying from private individuals (on Craigslist, etc)- obviously there’s one fewer profit margin involved, so it’s probably better in terms of expected value if you’re willing to take the higher variance.
A subscription to Consumer Reports might be well worth your time- you can look up their yearly auto issue, which gives detailed ratings on cars (including information on what you can expect for used models of various years, and what would constitute a good deal on one of them).
After you’ve figured out what you’re looking for and how much you expect to pay, start looking at local dealerships (and look through your local newspaper’s auto classified section every day); test-drive different models that interest you; look at quite a few cars before making a final decision. (The salespeople will of course want you to think that there’s some sort of time pressure, but they’re usually wrong.) Then, as EY mentioned, take your car of choice to a mechanic for a check-up (tell the mechanic that you’re considering buying the car) before you sign.
It’s a fair bit of work, but having a good car for several thousand less is well worth it.
I don’t know much about buying from private individuals (on Craigslist, etc)- obviously there’s one fewer profit margin involved, so it’s probably better in terms of expected value if you’re willing to take the higher variance.