arch01

Hi

My wife and I have recently relocated to LA from the UK and are looking to buy a car for use while we are here over the next 12 months or so.

We are looking to spend up to $5000 cash but preferably less. So far we've found that second hand cars here are expensive compared to back home and the sort of rubbish you wouldn't pay £500 for is going for several thousand dollars on craigslist.

We have the age old problem of no credit history as we've only been here 2 weeks and because our Visa is only a year, leasing say a basic Jetta is about $600 a month.

Is anyone selling a car/know someone that is? Can anyone help?! We have a hire car for the next two weeks but are effectively looking to buy immediately.

Thanks, Dan

larrabee

I might have just the thing for you!
Will pm you now.

Noorah101

You won't be able to PM arch01 until he makes 3 posts on BE.

Rene

larrabee

Thank you for reminding me of that!

arch01

Hi Larrabee, Noorah101. Is that 3 posts as in these replies, or 3 new threads/topics?

Thanks

arch01

I'm guessing replies count as my post number has just gone up to 2. And now it should be 3 so please pm me Larrabee.

Cheers guys

larrabee

Will do!

dickiederson

Can you let us know how you get on with the car search Dan?

My wife and I are moving over in september and, like you, just can't believe the crazy prices of used cars over there!

I keep trying to figure it out....

Is it because they don't have an MOT so it's easier to keep a wreck on the road?

Is it because cars have an easier life in California because of the weather/better roads/lack of roundabouts/ridiculous speed limits and so they last longer?

I just don't get it!!

At least the fuel is a lot cheaper... But then... INSURANCE!!

I might just take my bicycle...

arch01

Hi dickiderson

It's pretty unbelievable, I've been all over the place looking at second hand cars - both off craigslist and the used car dealers and still can't get my head around it.

We sold my wife's nice little peugeot for less than a grand (£) with only 60,000 miles and in decent nick, and now we are looking at 10-15 year old corollas and Kias with 100-150,000 miles and in really bad cosmetic shape for twice or three times the cost. Don't forget the dealers will also add tax to the list price!

It's a dilemma for us as it means either blowing a load of savings to get something back home we would consider average, or biting the bullet and driving round in a real piece of rubbish for a year but saving cash.

I think generally people seem to take good mechanical car of the cars so they last longer, plus they don't get the same sort of weather treatment as they do back home so they run and run (I've seen cars at 200,000 miles plus for $2-3k) but of course they get battered in the sun so the paint takes some damage and people drive pretty outrageously so the bodywork takes one or two (or ten knocks)! Also, the interiors have their fair share of coke and maccers stains!

Insurance wise I know a contact so if you do get here and need a number I can send it on...on an '03 ford focus with 100,000 miles full coverage and $500 excess we were quoted $100 a month.

It's a grim job...been caught out by it as I expected to be picking up a mustang for a few hundred quid!

I'm in the midst of also looking for a fixie...it's nice and flat in our part of LA!

dickiederson

Thanks Dan,
I might just need that number in a few months!
We had our final green card interview and approval last week. It's taken us a bit by surprise so we're using the 6 months we have in the UK to put our affairs in order and hopefully save some money.

It looks like we'll need more than we'd thought after checking car prices, cell phone plans (seem about as nuts as car prices!), insurance and rent...

We're hoping to head to the Loz Feliz area anyway, it seemed nice and we didn't get shot at all when we were visiting :-)

Thanks again

Dickie

S Folinsky

Living in LA, I think the thought of finding a decent reliable car for $500 is quite unrealistic. I drive a 1998 Volvo S70 with 175k on the clock. It got sideswiped last fall and I was worried it would be "totaled." I found out it was nowhere near that. [BTW, I spend on the car whatever it needs on the theory that even expensive repairs are cheaper than car payments].

You may want to look at the used car appraiser on edmunds.com.

Just for fun, I ran the appraisal on what I thought might be one of the cheaper cars around -- 1990 Chevrolet Cavalier Automatic with 175k on the clock. Dealer trade in was $232, dealer sale as a little over a $1,000 and private party sale was $519.

p.s. one little thing to be aware of -- the State of California will not allow aliens without lawful status to obtain driver's licenses nor to register vehicles. Accordingly, there is a premium on clunkers with as much time as possible on the tags. [When the car is first sold/registered in California, the fees and tags are good for one year]. When a used car is purchased, the owner signs the Pink Slip over to the buyer and the buyer is supposed to go over to DMV to change the registration. The seller should send a notice of sale to DMV to CYA. However, if one cannot register the car, the idea is to avoid having expired tags on the car. Lets not get started on the requirement of the smog check -- the seller responsibility, but the buyer usually takes care of it.

larrabee

When I moved to LA 23 years ago, I was told by the recruitment agency who sponsored me, to budget $1,000 for a car.
Even all those years ago, it was the same. I ended up having to partner with another of the recruits and we bought a car together as neither of us had brought more than the suggested $1000 and there was simply nothing to be found at that price. I think we ended up paying around $1600 between us for an old Chevy Citation from the used car auction !

Bob

There is an annual inspection. Just a different name. Only a few states don't have one, but what is checked and the cost does differ wildly from state to state.

The roads are shit, btw.

Don't forget to include sales tax in the price.

S Folinsky

California does NOT have an annual inspection. In many counties [particularly the urban ones, including L.A. and Orange], there is a biannual smog test.

It used to be that CA roads were not all that bad because of mild winters. Now, it is because of "deferred maintenance."

California does have that sales/use tax.