So... I still don't have a car. Still looking though!!
I've gone and seen a few cars over the past month or so, some bad, some sold before I even got there. One such car was a 2001 Nissan Sentra SE 2.0L off Finch at some place that doesn't exist because their name on Autotrader (something like Atlantis Auto Group, fitting name) is different from their name on the building (something like dynasty motors). This in itself made me want to go home, but since I had spent 2 hours riding the bus to get there, and had to goto work later, I went in anyway. The car was covered in scratches, as if the previous owner had driven through a forest. The man selling the car said "those can be buffed out" while I agreed that, that particular scratch I was looking at, probably could, the rest of the car, roof, spoiler, I doubted him severely. As they were rather deep and large. There was of course, a few things he was honest about, the slight dent that could not be seen until the car was outside, that could not be buffed out he said. And... wait no he only had one thing he was honest about. Also, the broken ground effects on the front, that would be fixed because he "knew a guy". I took the car out for a drive anyway, it felt like the mounts were gone in the transmission or something, if I accellerated fairly hard, I could feel the transmission move. Oh yeah, and the guy trying to sell the car, I thought he was a customer there. he was dressed really bad, when he said "can I help you?" I was startled because I figured he should be decently dressed. I guess I was wrong.
All in all, a bad experience, though an interesting story to tell at times.
How do I avoid 'dealers' like this? dealers who seem horribly shadey and are selling cars out of a warehouse off finch or steeles (there seem to be a lot of them I've found out).
They may well have decent cars some of them, but i'm becoming weary of visiting places like this. Real Dealers tend not to have the car(s) I'm looking for so I don't get to see them in perhaps, decent condition. And when they DO have the car they're charging twice that of anyone else. (401 dixie Automall).
As for private sales, they're either sold when I call, or sell the car inbetween the time it takes me to get in the car and drive there (lost an excellent looking 2000 Subaru Impreza Outback that way).
Why does buying a used car suck?
... sorry turned into a rant...
you really have to do your home work. not to mention having contacts helps you out too.
I have a few with chrysler and ford, it's how I got my Focus for a steal at the dealership. If you don't mind the trip up hwy 7 into guelph there is a few good dealerships there that sell quite a few used cars in that area, my auto mechanic knows every car there as he has the contract to all the small dealerships in that area, and can give you good advice, if you want too I could help you out, in taking you out there.
Buying a used car only sucks if you're stupid about it? Dealing with little brokers isn't the solution. They have high milage cars that are drastically over priced and are certified by paying a mechanic to falsify a certification report.. If I were you I'd be looking at used car lots at dealerships, and private listings for cars with balance of factory warranty remaining. If you are still inclined to deal with a broker, at least talk to Mo_Focus' dad...
Thanks Al, yeah if you want you can call my dad and ask him about some of his cars, I believe he does have some Nissan Sentra's.
Couple of things to consider:
1- Not all the guys that work off of units are bad, there are some honest ones as well. My dad has been in the business for a very long time and most of his customers these days are returning customers.
2- Just because the guy is dresses in a certain way doesnât mean he is a crook or he is out to get you. Most of these small dealerships are just run by single individuals that work hard. Only a few I should say, the rest are crooks :)
3- Do your homework and if it does sound too good to be true, then it is. You should know the real value of a car and also know how much it is worth. Don't expect a car to be 4000 for a 2001 Sentra, In that case obviously something is wrong with the car.
I feel bad for most ppl because they donât have the connections and I totally agree with you guys, there are lots of crappy dealers out there that are selling crap marked as GOLD. So please do your homework and good luck
My dadâs name is Mano, MTM auto sales.
http://www.trader.ca/powerpagestings.as...&trader=1&CAT=1
Tell him I sent you and Iâm sure he will give you a good price.
Regards Mo
lol ^ double post with in a post
Thanks guys.
I didn't mean to say that because he was dressed bad he was a crook, I just meant to say that he was dressed like he lived out of his car (which was an Infiniti G35).
Another one of the warehouses I went to, had about 5 guys surrounding me constantly, i felt as if I made one wrong move they'd kill me.
I'm not looking strictly for a Sentra, but if I DO get a sentra, it's gotta be teh SE 2.0L, AFAIK I don't want the 1.8, and the 2.5 of the SE-Rs isn't worth it.
2001+ Mazda Protegé ES
2000+ Nissan Sentra SE w/ 2.0L (I think in like 2003 or 2004 they switched it, and they only have 1.8 in the SE and 2.5 in the SE-Rs, no 2.0s anymore)
2000+ Subaru Impreza (2.5L)/Outback (2.2 as I don't think you could get the 2.5 in earlier models)
2000+ Ford Focus ZX3/ZX5 (yeah I know '02s for the 5s)
Colours, Silver, Blue, Black, Grey, Dark green or reds maybe. No Yellow heh.
All Standard transmission only, no autos.
I have an auction guy who's a friend? of my step Dads, but he's been looking for my car for like what, 2 months now? still don't have one obviously. He's only looking for a Protegé or Sentra though.
I think that's my list...
Also, Re: Raine, the cars I looked at looked fine in the autotrader picture (yeah, nothing to go on, just means it resembles a car), had low km, and weren't the cheapest cars on trader. But they were crap.
I haven't been avoiding dealers, I've been to a few asked questions and what not. But haven't found anything that I wanted or could appear to afford so far. I have no 'good stories' from dealers so they didn't really fit into the rant. Other than the Dixie Automall, I think he was quoting like $7000 more than anyone else for I think it was a 2001 Mazda Protegé LX in this ugly green/blue.
Anyway, I'm looking as 'everywhere' as I can, just incase I find something. But I'm having no luck so far...
hehe, yeah, i dont know how i did that. Anyways i dont think my dad has any 5spd's. His buyers are usally the old kind that like the Auto :)
as for your freind not finding the right car???? what auction does he go to?
here are a couple that was sold last week,
NISSAN SENTRA GXE 2002 BEIGE 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD C 84738
NISSAN SENTRA GXE 2002 GREY 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD C 100848
NISSAN SENTRA SE 2001 BLACK 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD C 71858
NISSAN SENTRA XE 2001 PEWTER 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD 121851
NISSAN SENTRA XE 2002 BLUE 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD C 69130
NISSAN SENTRA XE 2002 BEIGE 4 4 Gas 5 Y CD C 97703
NISSAN SENTRA SE-R BASE 2003 SILVER 4 4 Gas 5 Y X 56355
this is a list from the Toronto Auto Aution. sorry i can not post the prices.
Total of 54 Sentra's were sold last tuesday and out of that 7 were Stick shift.
if you want to know about the prices just look me up in MSN, i cant post any prices here.
Not sure why really. He's all over the place with auctions, everytime I call him he's somewhere different. Though once i called him and he was in South Carolina on vacation for like 2 weeks.
I think it's because I'm looking for a rather specific model, and I want it loaded, as far under 100,000 km as I can, and only in certain colours.
so the SE you posted is... Black, 4 door, 4-cyl, 5-speed, Y?, CD Player, C?, 71,858 km.
Also, is the "toronto auto auction" the one in Milton?
As for MSN, I should wait till I'm home. Or.... maybe I'll just remote into my home PC...
Y= electric windows, and bunch more stuff i guess.
C= Interior is cloth L = leather
TAA yes it is in Milton. that is the biggest one, there is also one is Gorway, but its mostly ford products
I thought Y was electric windows, but I kept trying to think of something beginning with it instead. Thanks.
sorry to hijack, mo any wrx's going at the auctions? 5 speed?
more then likely, I've seen a few IS300's with low kms going for just over 10g.... then making it's way to the dealership and selling for 25g...... it's not uncommon.
holy crap, I'd get an IS300 for $10-13Gs in a heart beat!
IS300s aren't bad at all.
I'd say stick to dealers... these shadetree resellers aren't going to get you anywhere except into their service bays.
Lubrico "warranty" - hassles.
Ford's used car protection - sweet.
Any other dealer's used car protection - probably the same.
ZX5focused,Oct 25 2005, 10:00 PM Wrote:sorry to hijack, mo any wrx's going at the auctions? 5 speed?
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Sorry mate, cars like that are really hard to find in auctions, atleast the goodones. a freind of mine wanted to get a 330 from my dad and he couldnt find anything good to buy so he had to go to the dealer and get something really good with warranty and everything so if you want something rare like that i would say stick with the suburu dealership. You pay a lil more but it comes with piece of mind.
w00t... TTT!
Hey Mo, what are the chances your dad can get an 02 or 03 maxima SE 6spd?
scoobasteve,Dec 6 2005, 03:42 PM Wrote:w00t... TTT!
Hey Mo, what are the chances your dad can get an 02 or 03 maxima SE 6spd?
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dont know, it might be hard to find considering you are looking for 6spd and not Auto. Give him a call and ask him. I'm sure he will help you out.
his name is Mano at 416-745-0630, just tell him you know me
Oh, so that's why my thread was revived. I was wondering...
They are usually Pakitani's that know jack shiite about cars, and they have first names like "Bob" or "Sonny"... I know this because my idot friend bought 2 old Hondas from T.O, and both looked nice until the armourall wore off, and the cars were basket cases from day 1. Don't EVER buy older japanese cars from the GTA, especially older Hondas that are supposedly "Still in high demand"....or you too could be paying more per month on a 1991 Prelude than an 01 ZX3 like my friend did.
The other shady salesmen are the ones from the used lots of namebrand car dealerships. If they have a car not built by, or sold by them for sale, they will usually try that much harder to get rid of it....that's how I ended up with mine...