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So I've been looking for a newer model used vehicle and found one I really like a lot visually at this place. Cleaned my vehicle up today, got oil changed and talked to my mechanic and told him I was thinking of driving couple hours to buy or trade but was anxious about it due to not having someone I trust inspect it for me. NWMS have multiple stores in Seattle area and specialize in lifted trucks, etc.

Tonight I decide to look these guys (NWMS) up once and see how they review. Now I know that you can say whatever you want on some of these review sites but YELP came back with 80+ reviews and about 80% of those were 1 star with horror stories.....

Took any incentive I had to drive (took 2 weeks to get myself talked into it) and 1/2 hour of reading to change my mind. Curious if any of our Northern brethren have had any first hand experience at this place. They advertise like crazy in the Portland Craigslist which is the only reason they popped up on my radar. I assumed they had a local store although they did offer to drive it to PDX for free if I purchased it Sight Unseen...........:eek:

I haven't bought a used car in almost 30 years and haven't bought a new on in almost 12 and now I remember why on both of those counts.:s0013:
 
I have bought and sold a lot of vehicles and equipment over the years. Car dealers and sales persons are with out a doubt the worst and most unethical "legitimate" business people there are.

I have only bought 2 brand new vehicles in 40 years. The rest are good used vehicles. I made my living turning wrenches for a few years so the mech side is not problem.

When I think I want a different vehicle, I start looking a year ahead of time to find the right one. Just got a 97 F 250 4x4 club cab with 7.3, 170K for $ 9,250. Had it serviced and the mechanic said it was the tightest old Ford he has worked on.

Car dealers are out to make the most they can and screwing people is a standard business practice. Just he way it has been and will be.
 
They put a lift and wheels/tires on it then price it 10 - 15K more than they are worth. Sure come on down and assume a high interest loan on this Jeep Wrangler with 97K miles.....it'll only be a 7 year loan on a 6 year old vehicle that's half worn-out.
No thanks.

I have steered some unassuming people at work away from that place.
 
It is buyer beware when you deal with a used care salesman (or woman). I, like CoastRange57 have only bought 3 brand new cars in my lifetime, 2 of them were complete nightmares and the last one (2002 Focus wagon) I'm still driving with 169,000 miles and realize that I finally got a good one!!!
That being said, I have owned many many used vehicles bought from good honest people.
My buying tool is my conscience, I can pick out a shyster in a crowd. So if you feel that you are being pressured in any way, RUN, do not walk or you are going to be unhappy with the DEAL.....

Good luck on your future truck buying experience.;)
 
Know your #'s for both vehicles.
Don't give them the keys, "EVER".
No financing unless your pre approved some where you trust.
Be a D--K, and remember, there are a hundred million more cars out there to chose from.
Shopping for my daughter, sales guy is trying to get me to do something I don't want to do, say's to me, "what's the matter, don't you like me ?" I say's, "NO I DON'T" my daughters jaw hits the floor and I say lets go. That's how you role with car salesman, you can leave just like you came.
 
That type of rig is going to go very fast. KBB is a very good source for pricing. You can check either dealer or private party sales price. You will always pay more to a dealer. That rig would probably go for over a good condition KBB price and probably worth it.

You have to search a lot, and be ready to buy when something like that comes along. Within hours of finding it. hold the line on the KBB pricing, depending on the condition. Have cash and do not screw around. Offer what you will pay and walk away if they start squeaking about it.

The one I just bought, I went $ 650 over the KBB price. I knew the guy, he had service records and receipts for a worked over heavy duty transmission with upgrades, extra large fuel tank, nice rims and 30K left on the tires. We went back and forth, but made the deal in about 20 minutes.
 
There are a number of these private sales places around PDX. They have a warehouse of cars, a small office and no lot. You make an appt. with them and they bring out the car and you test drive it. They usually buy a car from an auction, detail it to look nice and then try to sell it for more than they paid.

I decided to steer clear of them. Some are probably good, others not.

I don't know which.

I am currently looking for a car too, and I think that if I am buying used from a used car dealer, I am going to prefer someone who has been around for a while, who has a service center and a long term reputation that they care about.

You are going to encounter some people who are unhappy with whomever they deal with, but you can usually tell when the fault is on the seller when the more than 50% of the buyers are dissatisfied - probably less.

I did buy my current car from a small lot in the Seattle area about 10 years ago and got a good deal - I think I was just lucky to either pick a good car and/or a relatively honest seller. I am not going to push my luck, especially since the mainstream dealers seem to have decent prices.

In this case, trust your gut - as others have said, there are a LOT of cars out there - at least if you are not searching for something rare.
 
I just bought a used truck.

Here's some of the resources I recommend:
carfax.com (should be able to get this free from the dealer - if not and there is any question then it is worth the price)
kbb.com
nadaguide.com
http://www.lemurmonitors.com/ (OBD-II scanner - worth the money if you spend the time to learn how to use it. There are similar ones but I like this one and it has worked well for me.)
carcomplaints.com
repairpal.com

With the exchange rate these days and the oil fields in Alberta struggling there are a lot of used trucks coming out of Canada. You can get better details on Canadian vehicles from this site: https://www.carproof.com/ but you have to call their CS department if you live in the US to process the payment (PITA).

An example of these smaller dealer lots is a 2011 GMC 2500HD that looked awesome in the pictures - low mileage - low price - out of Canada. I went and looked at it. The under-carriage was filthy and rusty - it had been driven hard - probably in the oil fields. They had done an awesome job detailing the exterior and engine bay and had replaced the wheel well plastic and sprayed new black "paint" in all the easily visible areas. The truck was a disaster, battery was near dead, pulling codes, etc.

I found a mechanically sound truck with low mileage (dirty but salvageable interior) at a local reputable new car dealer. Single owner trade-in and I even feel I got a good price. But I used all the tools above before I made the purchase.

I've used the OBD-II scanner on my wife's car to troubleshoot and reset engine codes and so far it has been great. Use it in combination with repairpal.com and you have some good troubleshooting tools. It's virtually impossible to properly service modern vehicles without a decent OBD-II scanner - too much computer machines.
 

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