How to know what to look for in car ads

When you're looking for a used car, you'll need to look through advertisements and flyers to find the right car for you. Car advertisements contain detailed information about the condition and use of the car, its characteristics,…

When you're looking for a used car, you'll need to look through advertisements and flyers to find the right car for you. Vehicle ads contain detailed information about the condition of the vehicle and its use, features, accessories, information about the year of manufacture, make and model of the vehicle being sold, as well as the sale price and applicable taxes.

Often when used cars are advertised, the seller wants to create as much interest in the car as possible, sometimes omitting important information or making the car sound better than it really is. There are a few common tricks for doing this, and knowing these tricks can help you avoid buying a car that could lead to problems down the road.

Method 1 of 3: Learn Basic Car Advertising Terminology

Car ads are often short and to the point, so they take up less space. Ad space is purchased based on ad size, so small ads are cheaper. This means that reducing the verbosity of an ad will reduce the cost of the ad itself. Many words have been shortened to cut down on advertising.

Step 1: Know the Transmission Abbreviations. There are many transmission abbreviations that are useful to know.

CYL is the number of cylinders in an engine, such as a 4-cylinder engine, and AT is the automatic transmission in car advertisements. MT indicates that the vehicle has a manual transmission, also known as a standard transmission, STD for short.

4WD or 4×4 means that the advertised vehicle has four-wheel drive, while 2WD means two-wheel drive. Four-wheel drive is similar, indicating that the car is all-wheel drive.

Step 2: Familiarize yourself with feature shortcuts. There are quite a lot of possible functions on a car, so mastering them is a way to make it much easier to find ads.

PW means the advertised vehicle has power windows, while PDL indicates the vehicle is equipped with power door locks. AC means the car has air conditioning and PM means the car has power mirrors.

Step 3. Learn the abbreviations for mechanical parts.. Again, knowing these abbreviations can help in your search.

PB stands for heavy duty brakes, although only classic cars will not have this feature, and ABS indicates that the advertised vehicle has anti-lock brakes. TC stands for traction control, but it may also appear as TRAC CTRL in advertisements.

Method 2 of 3: Deciphering used car ads from a car dealer

Dealerships that sell used cars also use promotional gimmicks to get you hooked. This can range from additional offers not related to the sale of the car itself, to dealer fees that increase the sale price without your knowledge. Knowing some of their tactics will help you read car dealership used car ads correctly.

Step 1: Consider Additional Incentives. If a used car dealer offers a cash bonus or any other promotion, you can be sure that they factor the value of the promotion into the price.

If you really don't want the promotion they offer, negotiate a used car selling price without the promotion. The price will almost certainly be lower than if the promotion were included.

Step 2: Check for asterisks in your ad. If there are asterisks, this means that somewhere in the ad there is additional information that you need to know about.

As a rule, additional information can be found in small print at the bottom of the page. For example, these asterisks indicate additional fees, taxes, and financing terms. Consider any information in fine print when making your decision.

Step 3. Carefully analyze the text of the ad. The ad text may intentionally hide something about the vehicle.

For example, "Mechanic's Special" indicates that the vehicle is in need of repair and may not be roadworthy at all. "Fresh paint" often indicates repairs just completed after an accident. "Motorway" means that the mileage is probably above average and the seller is trying to make it not a big deal.

Method 3 of 3: Deciphering used car ads from private sellers

Car ads from private sellers are often less detailed than used cars advertised by a dealer. Private sellers may not be crafty sellers, but they can often omit or embellish details to make the car sound better than it is.

Step 1: Make sure your ad has all the basic information.. Make sure the year, make, and model are listed, and that any images associated with them are correct.

An ad that displays the equipment of the advertised vehicle is usually even more reliable.

Step 2: Pay Attention to Details That Seem Out of Place. Make sure all the details match and don't look out of the ordinary.

If a car is advertised with new tires but only has 25,000 miles on it, you can assume that either the odometer has been changed or the car has been driven under severe conditions. The same can be said about the new brakes of cars with low mileage.

Step 3: Be Careful About Selling Without Warranty or "As Is". There are usually reasons why the seller did not perform the necessary repair or inspection that you should be aware of.

These vehicles have either not been checked and may need immediate repair, or they have been checked and not repaired because the car is either not worth it or the owner cannot afford repairs.

If you are looking at the sale as is, you should never pay the same amount as a vehicle that has already been certified.

Step 4. Be aware of remanufactured, restored or otherwise brand names. A car that has some kind of title but is not clean must be advertised as such.

A restored car may have issues that have not been fixed and its selling price should never be the same as a clean deed car.

When you're looking for a used car, it can be hard to know which ones are worth looking into. To ensure a smooth car buying experience, look only for cars that have a lot of detail in their ads and that seem honest and direct. If you feel like you're being scammed, that's probably a good sign that you should step back and pay more attention to the offer. Be sure to ask one of AvtoTachki's certified technicians to conduct a pre-purchase inspection to ensure the vehicle is in proper condition.