hungryhorace

Aren't cheque's still susceptible to bouncing weeks (if not months) after they initially 'clear' here in America like they are in the UK?

AdobePinon

If they don't get their money, they just report the car as stolen. That's why they're 'laid back'. Usually happens to buyers who's financing gets rejected after the 'sale'.

dfrbrowne

thanks for all the replies been very helpful.

I am very tempted to buy a manual, firstly I miss having the gearstick when driving the fiesta we have and 2nd them seem to be good value for money. I know it would be difficult to sell maybe in a couple of years?

So my next question. How easy is it to sell a car here. I am thinking about if we move back to the uk in 3-5 years time and want to get rid of the cars.

Also seen an Elantra, manual 2009 for $9,900. 51k on the clock I am thinking of offering $8,000 for it as I they are not so popular, (manual gears I mean not Elantras)

malch

I think this depends of where you're living. In a sizable metropolitan area I've had good luck selling cars for cash via Craigslist. Way better prices than you'd get from any dealer and really quite painless if you plan and execute carefully.

Pulaski

The vast majority of US checks now clear overnight, often scanned and submitted electronically by the retailer, so it is unlikely these days that checks will bounce more than one day later.

Orangepants

I just bought a new mustang convert for cash and I paid by check - my next door neighbor is the GM of the Ford dealership so I guess she figured I was good for it.
She advised me to sell my Hyundai Tuscon on craigslist as I'd get a better price than she could give me. Advert went in on Thursday - car was sold for cash on Friday..

Pulaski

It is fairly common for low-end used car dealers to have the car repossessed if there is an issue with the payment or later finance payments (if self financed by the dealer). They have it hauled back to their dealer lot, where they clean it up, give it an oil change and a polish and put it back out on their forecourt for sale.

Dealers can make a nice little business from bad credit risks, repeatedly selling a repossessing the same cars, because every time the car "goes around" they pocket the down payment.

e3geek

Just bought a car on credit card. They asked me to pay $50 on debit card and put the rest on credit card.

md95065

Even though you have a chain that doesn't need to be replaced you also have a "chain tensioner" that your friendly local Honda dealer will tell you that you should replace at about the same interval as you would have replaced a timing belt ...

Bob

Issues with the car, as mentioned. The battery. It might be getting close to replacement and it's expensive.

Regular car maintenance might be more expensive or a hassle. I know a lot of garages where I live won't touch them for anything but the basics like oil changes.

Buy the car in the last couple days of the month, that's when they'll be most flexible.

Never mention you're paying cash till you drop it on the table. Always get a final price on the car first.

Getting financing for a car loan is a fab idea on building up credit history. Get a loan else where and if you can, pay most of it off straight away and leave a minimal amount to pay over 12 months to build up credit history and minimise interest charges. Do check that you don't have a early pay out penalty.

TimFountain

I've bought cars for cash (way more than $10K) I signed an IRS form, forget the number of the form. I've also paid with a personal check and the dealer kept the title 'till the check cleared. Also paid with a cashiers check. Don't sweat it, you tell the dealer how you want to pay and if they don't want to play, just walk away (hey that rhymes!)

Pulaski

Watch out, with some car loans you're on the hook for the finance charge (interest) even if you pay early. Mrs had a car loan like that, though not recently, and it may be a question of what state law allows, but if you go down the loan route, be careful.

Bob

Hence looking to see the small print about early penalty pay outs.

I've never seen one though and not even sure they can do that in MA/ME.

Michael

A long time ago, I purchased a car where I had about 3/4th in cash and the remainder was from a CD (certificate of deposit) that would mature in 1 month. The dealer said to bring in the remainder when the CD matured but what I didn't know was they registered the car with the pink slip (ownership) in the dealership's name and then signed it over to me when I paid the final balance. That meant I had to go to the DMV and pay a small fee to get the pink slip (now changed to green but still referred to as a pink slip) officially in my name.