SummaryWhat type of car to choose? How to find the car you are looking for? Vehicles interest you: how do you know if they meet your criteria?
When you buy a used car from a private individual, the risks deception, hidden defect or fraud can be avoided by knowing what to check. There are professional services that allow you to be sure that the car you are going to buy meets your expectations.
What type of car to choose?
The first step when buying a car is to choose a few models that suit you.
To find a used car that meets your needs (city or sedan, 5 seater or 7 seater, trips short or long, in town or on the motorway…), find out more about specialized sites or consult the CapCar blog to make your choice. Around you, your loved ones can also help you find some models that correlate with your requirements.
You can also go to dedicated forums that allow you to have access to advice from enthusiasts and / or professionals.
How to find the car you're looking for?
After having selected the type of car and a few models that you like, it's time to look for a car within your budget and the criteria (options, engine, number of doors, fuel, etc.) that you established previously.
From particular to particular
Several options are available to you, you can skim the used car ad sites, some sites being more ergonomic than others. For example, the Central Individuals offers a host of filters allowing you to refine your search. Leboncoin is less qualitative and only offers a few filters, but you can try to refine your search by adding keywords.
Garages and dealerships
You can also go to a garage or a dealership to get you provide information and ask questions to a professional. He will be able to advise you and offer you the cars he has for sale. However, he will not be impartial in the choice of vehicle he will offer you since his goal is to sell his cars in order to sell his stock.
Agents
Another possibility is to mandate a third party who is responsible for finding a car for you that meets your expectations. You can use garages or intermediaries, who will help you in your search. You just need to give the agent the information about the car you want and your budget. The agent is a third party, so they will be more objective and transparent than a dealer since the cars they find for you do not belong to them. There is therefore no reason to urge you to buy one car over another.
Trusted intermediaries
When looking for your future vehicle you can also go to intermediary sites. At CapCar we have around 200 used cars on sale every month, which gives you a wide choice. The inspection report that you will find for each vehicle allows you to know the car from all angles, and the faults are not hidden: for example if there is a scratch on the body it will be mentioned in the report. If it turns out that you do not find the perfect fit among the cars we have for sale, you can create an alert: you will be notified as soon as a car matching your criteria is on sale with us .
Buy a quality second-hand!
Cars at CapCar are inspected and guaranteed
Vehicles interest you: how do you know if they meet your criteria?
The first telephone contact
Once you have found an advertisement that interests you, you can contact the seller for further information. You can ask if there are any body defects and if the maintenance is up to date. Take a good look at the car information before calling; if you observe the absence of essential information (number of horses, finish, mileage etc.) in the ad, go your way to avoid the classic traps.
In the event that the car that interests you is with an intermediary, call the company to find out if the car is still available and to find out a little more about its general condition. If you go through an agent, he will take care of this first contact with the owner and ask all the questions allowing you to check the condition of the car remotely.
The visit
As soon as you have found interesting vehicles and filtered these vehicles with your questions, a visit is required. There are many choices available to you. The first is to use a neutral trusted third party who has no interest in selling the vehicle: a relative or a mechanic friend, for example. This person can help you during the visit to check the condition of the car.
When you decide to buy person-to-person, trust is paramount for both parties. Indeed, the seller may be suspicious because of cases of theft or racketeering. On your side, you are not sure of the intrinsic quality of the car. Paying a visit reassures both parties: the seller feels that you are serious and motivated and you can inspect the car.
Going through a professional gives you more confidence, because the law obliges professionals to guarantee the sold car. In the event of a problem, you will have more recourse than if you went through a private individual.
At CapCar, during a visit, we come to visit: one of our experts is present to answer all your questions. questions and help you, and like any professional, we provide a guarantee, of 6 months moreover.
The transaction
Source of mistrust as much on the side buyer as on the side buying a vehicle is tricky to manage.
The seller will fear fraud or theft, and you will be afraid to pay the money until you are sure everything is in order. In order to avoid unpleasant surprises as much as possible, going through a professional allows you to be reassured.
For example, at CapCar, we check that buyers have the necessary financing and we check bank checks beforehand. We also ensure the condition of the car by inspecting each vehicle before putting it for sale on our site.
