Showing posts with label used car. Show all posts
Showing posts with label used car. Show all posts
Monday, February 9, 2015
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Used car buyer's checklist
Used car buyer's checklist
Initially:
- Any "bad" records in a VIN history report?
- Any service records with mileage readings? Has the oil been changed regularly? Any major engine or transmission repairs? Last emission test?
Walk-around
Indications of possible problems:
- Does the car sit level or do any of the suspension springs appear sagging?
- Are the body lines not straight? Ripples? Misaligned panels?
- Does any part of the car appear to be repainted? Mismatched colors? Paint overspray? Different paint texture on different panels? Why? Accident? Corrosion?
- Does the driver's door have a free play in the hinges? Is it difficult to close?
- Are the gaps between the panels different on one side of the car compared to the other side?
- Does the car have many rusty spots?
- Is there a trailer hinge? Was the car used for towing
a heavy trailer?
- Any cracks, chips, scratches on the windshield?
Wheels and Tires:
- Are the tires of a reputable brand or a "no name" kind of product? Are all 4 tires the same?
- Any cuts, cracks or other damage? is the tire tread low? Irregular wear? Damage on the rims?
The suspension and chassis problems:
- Does the car look badly corroded underneath?
- If the vehicle has a frame, is it badly rusted? Does it appear repaired?
The interior:
- Any smell? Excessive perfume? Dampness?
- Is the driver seat or steering wheel worn excessively? Does it look like it was a rental or heavily used car?
- Any dampness under the carpet or in the trunk?
- Do all the electrical features work? Power locks, windows, mirrors, sunroof, wipers, remote control?
- Does the air conditioner blow really cold air?
- Do the heater and rear window defogger work?
- Do windows get foggy with the heater ON?
- Is the radio reception good?
- Does the CD player play disks
- Do you feel comfortable in the driver's seat? Space? Visibility? Mirrors, controls, steering?
- Is there a cruise control? ABS? Stability Control?
- Do all the seat belts work?
- Is the rear seat space sufficient?
- Does the vehicle have an additional ignition key(s), spare tire, jack and a wheel wrench?
Under the hood:
- Is there a burnt oil smell under the hood?
- Any leaks? Is the engine dirty or oily?
- Does the engine look sludged up under the oil cap?
Is the oil level low? Is the oil on the dipstick too dark?
- Does the engine oil on the dipstick have a "coffee with milk" color? (coolant mixed with oil)
- Is the transmission fluid on the dipstick too dark or dirty? Does the transmission fluid smell burnt?
- Is the coolant, brake fluid, steering fluid low?
- Are the battery terminals corroded?
- Any indication of poor quality repair work or lack of maintenance? (e.g. badly corroded battery terminals, very low oil level, etc.)
During a test drive:
Engine issues:
- Is the engine difficult to start? Is the idle rough?
- Any noises? Knocking, tapping, pinging, whistling, piston slap? Excessive shaking?
Vibrations?
- Any smoke? (slight water steam is OK)
- Any warning lights come on on the dash?
- Is the engine oil pressure too low at idle?
- Any hesitations, sputtering on acceleration?
- Does the engine have enough power? Is it smooth?
Automatic transmission issues
- Is the time between shifting from Park into Drive or from Park into Reverse and the moment the transmission kicks in too long? (Long engagement)
- Any noises, jerks, jolts? A clunk when shifting into Reverse?
- When driving, any delays, slipping, shudder or harsh shifting? Is the overdrive working?
- Does the transmission downshifts when accelerated?
- Is there a clunk or jolt when coming to a stop?
Manual transmission issues:
- Any noises while accelerating or decelerating in any gear?
- Any troubles or grinding when changing gears?
- Is it difficult to shift into Reverse?
- Is the clutch slipping? Any noises, vibrations when the clutch pedal is pressed or released?
4WD issues:
Do you notice binding in turns? Do all 4WD modes work? Driveline noises? Vibrations?
Suspension and steering issues:
- Does the steering have a notable free play?
- Any knocking, rattling, creaking noises when driving over bumps or on a rough road?
- Does the car bounce a lot when driving over bumps?
- Does the car pull aside? Is the steering wheel out of center? Does the vehicle feel unstable? On a rough road? On a highway? In turns?
- Any humming, growling noises? Vibrations?
Brakes issues:
- Does the brake pedal go down too low?
- Does the brake pedal fee too soft (spongy) or too hard?
- Any brake pedal pulsation or steering vibration during braking?
- Any noises during braking? Grinding, screeching, squeaking?
- Does the vehicle pull aside during braking?
- Does the vehicle brake well?
Courtersy of http://www.samarins.com/check/index.html
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Things you need to know about car servicing
Engine Oil
It is a lubricant for your engine and comes in 2 types: Synthetic and Non-synthetic. Synthetic oil usually can last for 10,000 km before you need to change. My chemical engineering friend told me once that it can actually last for additional 3,000 km before the oil quality drops drastically. Non-synthetic oil on the other hand can only last for 5,000 km before you need to change. My same chemical engineering warn me not to try my luck on this one, once hit 5,500km die die must change.
I have also tried the higher quality synthetic oil verses the normal grade one. The higher quality really does gives a smoother engine. But for economic drivers like me. Just the normal one will do the job.
Oil Filter
It is a filter that filters out dirt and rust particles from the engine oil. It has to be change whenever the engine oil is change. This is because the oil filter will usually be very dirty. I have used both original and compatible and find no difference.
Spark Plugs
It is an electrical device that fits into the cylinder head of the engines. It ignites compressed fuels and creates combustion (power) of the car. Different car has different number of spark plugs and it usually comes in a set of 4. My Accord has 4 spark plugs while a Jazz has 8 spark plugs.
Different spark plugs have different life span. The more expensive and good one can last 40,000 while the normal ones can last 10,000 km to 20,000km. I have tried the original Honda spark plugs and the normal compatible ones before and I have not really felt the difference.
Auto Transmission Fluid(ATF)
It is a lubricant for the auto car gear box. This lubricant has to be change usually every 25,000 km to 30,000 km. It is also recommended to flush the gear box for every 50,000 km travel. Flushing is a process in which they use the ATF oil to clean the gear box. They will have this machine to circulate the ATF in the car. It first pump out 80% of the existing ATF and circulate new the ATF in the car. The machine will keep circulate the ATF and the dirt within the gear box will dissolve in the ATF. This process is usually repeated for 3 to 4 bottle of ATF before they put the new ATF.
In my case, my car needs 4 bottles (each 1 litre) if I just want to change the ATF, but if i were to flush the gear box, then I would need additional 4 bottles. The effect is flushing ATF is quite noticeable. I feel that my auto car is smoother when it is picking up and changing gear.
Power Steering Fluid
As the name suggest, this is a lubricant for the car's power steeling. If you feel that your steeling wheel is getting heavy while turning, it is time to change the power steering fluid. If i am not wrong, this needs to be change every 30,000km or so. And it is also recommended to flush it for every 50,000km.
The effect of change is also very noticeable as I find the my steeling wheel very light after I change it.
If for whatever reason that you hear funny noise when you turn your steeling wheel (not the noise from the tyres) Then this will probably means that there is insufficient power steering fluid or you need to change the fluid
Brake Pads & Brake Fluids
I have never change brake fluids before so I have no idea how it works. However, I have changed brake pads several times. Each set of brake pads come in 4 pieces, 2 pieces for each wheel. You know you need to change the brake pad when you hear noise when braking. This is an indication that the brake pad left about 20% of pad. Each set of brake pads usually last around 35,000km for me (It varies on driving habit, for some it can last up to 100,000km ).
I have tried both original and compatible brake pads on my car. The compatible one is more noisy upon braking even it is brand new. In term of braking distance, both original and compatible are comparable in my experience.
Tyre Rotation, Balancing and Wheel Alignment
The tyres on the braking wheel general wear out a lot faster, hence it is importing to rotate them every 10,000 km. By rotating the tyres, all 4 tyres will wear out evenly and you do not have to change the tyres so often. Each set of tyres usually last for 30,000km to 40,000km but I have a friend who drove the tyres for 60,000km before he changes his 4 tyres! I drove his Camry before he changes his tyres and the car is still quite ok.
It is also good to do your wheel alignment every 20,000 or 30,000 km. This is because if the wheel alignment is off, one side of your car tyre will wear off a lot faster. You know that your wheel alignment is off when you let go your steeling wheel on a straight road and the cars go to one side immediately.
Air Filter
It removes dust particular from the air that is going into the engine for combustion. The cleaner the air, the better the combustion. No hard rule of when to change. You just got to change it whenever it is dirty. One way to verify if the air filter is dirty is the take out the air filter and hit on the floor or wall. If there is a lot of carbon dropping out, then it's time to change the air filter.
Timing Belt or any other belts you see
If you see they wear out then it is time to change. No compromise on this one. This is because once the belt is torn, chances are that your car will not move and over heat very quickly. Once the engine over heats, then the repair bill will be huge and you only can get the tow truck to bring your car to the workshop.
Others
Change your wipers when it not working well.
Top up air-con gas if the air condition is not working well.
Ensure correct pressure on your tyres whenever you can.
It is a lubricant for your engine and comes in 2 types: Synthetic and Non-synthetic. Synthetic oil usually can last for 10,000 km before you need to change. My chemical engineering friend told me once that it can actually last for additional 3,000 km before the oil quality drops drastically. Non-synthetic oil on the other hand can only last for 5,000 km before you need to change. My same chemical engineering warn me not to try my luck on this one, once hit 5,500km die die must change.
I have also tried the higher quality synthetic oil verses the normal grade one. The higher quality really does gives a smoother engine. But for economic drivers like me. Just the normal one will do the job.
Oil Filter
It is a filter that filters out dirt and rust particles from the engine oil. It has to be change whenever the engine oil is change. This is because the oil filter will usually be very dirty. I have used both original and compatible and find no difference.
Spark Plugs
It is an electrical device that fits into the cylinder head of the engines. It ignites compressed fuels and creates combustion (power) of the car. Different car has different number of spark plugs and it usually comes in a set of 4. My Accord has 4 spark plugs while a Jazz has 8 spark plugs.
Different spark plugs have different life span. The more expensive and good one can last 40,000 while the normal ones can last 10,000 km to 20,000km. I have tried the original Honda spark plugs and the normal compatible ones before and I have not really felt the difference.
Auto Transmission Fluid(ATF)
It is a lubricant for the auto car gear box. This lubricant has to be change usually every 25,000 km to 30,000 km. It is also recommended to flush the gear box for every 50,000 km travel. Flushing is a process in which they use the ATF oil to clean the gear box. They will have this machine to circulate the ATF in the car. It first pump out 80% of the existing ATF and circulate new the ATF in the car. The machine will keep circulate the ATF and the dirt within the gear box will dissolve in the ATF. This process is usually repeated for 3 to 4 bottle of ATF before they put the new ATF.
In my case, my car needs 4 bottles (each 1 litre) if I just want to change the ATF, but if i were to flush the gear box, then I would need additional 4 bottles. The effect is flushing ATF is quite noticeable. I feel that my auto car is smoother when it is picking up and changing gear.
Power Steering Fluid
As the name suggest, this is a lubricant for the car's power steeling. If you feel that your steeling wheel is getting heavy while turning, it is time to change the power steering fluid. If i am not wrong, this needs to be change every 30,000km or so. And it is also recommended to flush it for every 50,000km.
The effect of change is also very noticeable as I find the my steeling wheel very light after I change it.
If for whatever reason that you hear funny noise when you turn your steeling wheel (not the noise from the tyres) Then this will probably means that there is insufficient power steering fluid or you need to change the fluid
Brake Pads & Brake Fluids
I have never change brake fluids before so I have no idea how it works. However, I have changed brake pads several times. Each set of brake pads come in 4 pieces, 2 pieces for each wheel. You know you need to change the brake pad when you hear noise when braking. This is an indication that the brake pad left about 20% of pad. Each set of brake pads usually last around 35,000km for me (It varies on driving habit, for some it can last up to 100,000km ).
I have tried both original and compatible brake pads on my car. The compatible one is more noisy upon braking even it is brand new. In term of braking distance, both original and compatible are comparable in my experience.
Tyre Rotation, Balancing and Wheel Alignment
The tyres on the braking wheel general wear out a lot faster, hence it is importing to rotate them every 10,000 km. By rotating the tyres, all 4 tyres will wear out evenly and you do not have to change the tyres so often. Each set of tyres usually last for 30,000km to 40,000km but I have a friend who drove the tyres for 60,000km before he changes his 4 tyres! I drove his Camry before he changes his tyres and the car is still quite ok.
It is also good to do your wheel alignment every 20,000 or 30,000 km. This is because if the wheel alignment is off, one side of your car tyre will wear off a lot faster. You know that your wheel alignment is off when you let go your steeling wheel on a straight road and the cars go to one side immediately.
Air Filter
It removes dust particular from the air that is going into the engine for combustion. The cleaner the air, the better the combustion. No hard rule of when to change. You just got to change it whenever it is dirty. One way to verify if the air filter is dirty is the take out the air filter and hit on the floor or wall. If there is a lot of carbon dropping out, then it's time to change the air filter.
Timing Belt or any other belts you see
If you see they wear out then it is time to change. No compromise on this one. This is because once the belt is torn, chances are that your car will not move and over heat very quickly. Once the engine over heats, then the repair bill will be huge and you only can get the tow truck to bring your car to the workshop.
Others
Change your wipers when it not working well.
Top up air-con gas if the air condition is not working well.
Ensure correct pressure on your tyres whenever you can.
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