Re:(2)Buying/Selling a Used Car

["Doyt W. Echelberger" <Doyt@nwonline.net>]

At 07:08 PM 2/6/1999 EST, you wrote:
>I am in the market for a used Quattro.  If I decide on one from an
individual,
>how should I go about purchasing the car?
>
>Thanks in advance.
>
>Chris


......................Chris....These are the suggestions I mentioned in the
last post. If you are not experienced at evaluating used cars, EMPLOY AN
EXPERIENCED MECHANIC to survey the car before purchase, and estimate the
condition of all systems and cost of necessary repairs.Basically, you are
trying to avoid buying a car that has been in a serious wreck, and you want
to be assured of what needs to be done to maintain the car in good safe
condition for the next 6 months to a year.


>ON THE PHONE, before even seeing it, I am going to talk to the owner  and
>ask basic questions about ownership history, wrecks, and maintenance. I
>will encourage talk about repairs and upkeep and how the car was used. I
>will ask about rust, body damage, interior appearance, and how the car runs
>and what needs to be done to it. Why is it being sold? What is the mileage?
>Are you the original owner? What are the tires like?  What is the asking
>price? The answers allow me to decide if I am going to take the time to go
>see the car and test drive it.
>>
>>WHEN AND IF I GET THERE, I do a walk-around and eyeball everything visible
>from the outside. Then I can pop the hood and look around  the engine
>compartment cold, pull the dipstick and feel the oil. Check parking spot
>for leaks. Then I can open the trunk and check for water, dirt, and spare
>tire. During the walk-around, I can eyeball the car for fit and finish,
>glass, rubber, wheel damage. Feel rotors for ridges/gouges.Leaking rack
boot? 
>>
>>THEN I CAN OPEN ALL 4 DOORS and check the entry sills and lower door
>edges, for rust or repairs, while looking over the rubber seals. Then I can
>enter the car and sit in the driver seat to eyeball seats, trim, feel
>floorboards for leaks, move seats, check safety belt front and back. Set
>emergency brake and release it. Look out front window for glass chips,
>cracks, scratches, fogging, bulls-eyes.
>>
>>WHILE SITTING THERE, I can touch and operate all the cabin controls and
>gadgets. Power locks/windows, incl trunk lock. Lights high&lo beam, dash
>lights and adjustment, wipers, heater/AC ,and radio. I will check for
>leaks. I will test pedal pressure for brakes, and pedal movement for
>clutch, listening for strange sounds.  I will go through the gears at rest
>to check shifter linkages. And I can cold start the car, observing how it
>cranks and catches, and how the idle system works cold. Then I can re-test
>the gadgets that wouldn't work without the engine running. Can't test
>quattro in/out until car is moving. CAUTION! Owner may have disabled bulbs
>in warning light cluster.
>>
>>I  let the engine warm up a few minutes, and then DO A SLOW TEST DRIVE,
>in the parking lot and local street.....and then around the owner's town,
>and maybe on a cross-town freeway. This will include a moving test of the
>switching levers for the QUATTRO. Does speedometer and trip computer work?
>Rear window defroster? Strange noises on bumps? Taut and firm, or loose and
>sloppy? Power steering feel and sound? Alternator belt squeal with full
>electric load? History of new brushes. I can try starting and stopping and
>run through the gears and check out the feel of the clutch and brakes and
>accelerator systems, and the steering and suspension. I might do some
>doughnuts rt an lt in a parking lot to test for bearing noise. Then, back
>at the owner's home I can re-set the emergency brake and see if the clutch
>slips against it, before shutting down. I keep the engine running, and get
>out of the car. Emergency brake is on. Front wheels cranked hard right, to
>show tire wear.
>>
>>>>OUTSIDE, WITH ENGINE RUNNING, I go to the back of the car and hold a
>paper dollar flat against the tailpipe and see if it gets sucked into the
>pipe by any faulty exhaust valve. If the test drive indicated sloppy
>shocks/suspension, I would bounce the corners and wiggle each wheel for
>play. Not a bad idea anyhow. Examine tire treads for depth, feathering,
>cupping, unusual wear at edges or in center. Front and rear. Feel temp of
>tires and wheels, for heat due to dragging brake.
>>
>>>>>If I am still serious, I will DRIVE THE CAR FOR ANOTHER HALF-HOUR at
>higher speeds, on a freeway, and check passing systems, and wander
>tendencies. And I will watch the gauges for under/over heating. And check
>both the horn and the audio system.
>>At this point, even if I have to pay for it, I will make sure the gas tank
>holds a complete fill-up, because an almost empty tank doesn't reveal tank
>leaks that exist, especially where the top and bottom molds of the tank
>meet... a likely place to find corrosion on metal tanks. After the drive, I
>can decide if I want to meet the selling price, negotiate, or TAKE IT TO A
>TRAINED AND TRUSTED AUDI MECHANIC FOR AN EXPERT OPINION. Also, I'd want a
>compression test.  This last step is the insurance policy, and is worth at
>least a hundred dollars if you already have decided to buy the car.
>
>>So, that's it. Hope it helps. Go to this web site and check.
>
                    http://www.stationwagon.com/My_audis.html
>
>
>>Doyt    87 5kcstq    86 4KcsQ         85 Jetta TurboDiesel