help with buying car.

[rice_spirit]

sorry for the noob question but i wasn't quite sure what to type in the search because "mechanic" turned up with a lot of irrelevant threads.

anyway i don't know that much about cars yet and am trying to buy one. People have told me to always get the car checked by a mechanic. But how do i go abouts doing that? Do i ask the mechanic to come with me to the inspection? do i request the seller to drive to the mechanic?

also can anyone recommend a few good honda mechanics to me? I've heard of hanny's but i'd like to see what other options i have as i wouldn't mind getting a 2nd mechanic's opinion.

also another question is, what are the cost involved in getting a mechanic to inspect a vehicle. I wouldn't want to blow a hole in my wallet if i was to inspect 1 or 2 cars.

thanks in advance guys

[trism]

go talk to a mechanic and find out ay.

[kcokla]

call up the nrma and ask them for a car inspection service
case closed

[namski]

NRMA inspection is probably the best option.

Simply everyone knows NRMA and they do a full inspection check but also bringing it to a Honda mechanic is also a bonus since they know more about Honda and their tweaks.

[Lukezen27]

NRMA inspection is probably the best option.

Simply everyone knows NRMA and they do a full inspection check but also bringing it to a Honda mechanic is also a bonus since they know more about Honda and their tweaks.

I got the NRMA to check my EG5 before buying off a car dealer..

They missed

CV boosts broken (very easy to spot once I was shown)
Radiator was starting to fall apart (very easy to spot once I was shown)
Rings were gone (Dealer put some additive to hind the problems)
First oil change and there was white smoke everywhere..

Cost on top of the car price!

New CV Boost $120 OEM
New Radiator $300 After market
New Rings $1200 for a rebuild

I will never buy off a car dealer again
I will never use the NRMA again

A Honda mechanic is the only way to go and a friend if your lucky enough so he cares about what happens to you

[dinorider]

1. be patient. I know you'd love to get your hands on a car ASAP, but trust me, there are many dodgy cars out there and the first few you see might not be acceptable. Don't settle for second best.

2. Find a car. ask the seller if he's willing to take it to a shop for a mechanical inspection. if he's honest he won't say no. If he isn't, he will.

3. Trawl through the subforums here, find a honda specialist mechanic near the seller, and call the shop. Say you want to buy a car and want to take it in for a pre-purchase inspection. Work between you, the seller and the shop for an agreeable time. if the seller's honest and nice he'll say, "gimme the number for the shop, I'll call, make the appointment, then you can meet me there."

Or else drive the car down to the shop at the appointed time yourself. A full inspection won't take more than an hour.


There. That's all there is to it. Most specialised workshops will say to bring the car in because the can get it up on a hoist and check thoroughly. If you're buying a Honda, find a Honda specialist. The NRMA and RAC inspections do go to the seller's home, but they are generic, can miss important bits (like Lukezen27 found out) and are very expensive.

[Chriskoss]

Rings were gone (Dealer put some additive to hind the problems)



How could the NRMA have known rings were gone by doing a basic inspection?
You can only tell if you take apart the engine and im sure a dealer would not agree to that obviously.

Best thing to do with buying from a dealer is to find one who offers garuntee's/warranty's on the car for atleast a couple of years, incase something does happen, which it normally does.

[Lukezen27]

How could the NRMA have known rings were gone by doing a basic inspection?
You can only tell if you take apart the engine and im sure a dealer would not agree to that obviously.

Best thing to do with buying from a dealer is to find one who offers garuntee's/warranty's on the car for atleast a couple of years, incase something does happen, which it normally does.

I didn't blame the NRMA for the rings but the radiator and CV boosts I sure do!!

My car came with warranty, well I thought so when I signed up.

Told me rings are not part of the warranty as they ware out and its not there problem..

They quoted me $2500 witch was apparently half the cost of the rebuild by there in-house mechanic.

The price above was them trying to tell me there doing me a favor