Used Car Reviews and Ratings
Buying a used car is something that more and more people are doing since the economy is one in which some people simply cannot afford anything that is brand new. However, just because the person is buying a used car does not mean that they automatically have to settle for something that may have tons of problems. They can still find a used car that fits their ideal image of what they want their car to be, and be something that is going to be a car that they are going to enjoy having for a few years.
In order to do this the person is going to find that they will have to research quite a few cars that are of interest and read the reviews and look at the ratings that these cars are getting.
Types of Used Car Reviews
There are basically two types of used car reviews that the person will look at:
- Professional written: these reviews are from when the car was brand new, however, it does give a good idea of performance aspects and so forth that the person can use to make a decision
- Consumer written reviews: these are going to be the type of reviews that the person is going to want to focus on as they will find that these will be the most helpful since they are usually written by those that own the car or have owned the car in the past.
Information Professional Written Reviews Contain
The professional written reviews will containing information about the car when it was brand new, such as:
- Performance aspects
- Safety Ratings
- Specifications
- Available trim levels
They will not contain, in most cases:
- The price that is being asked now
- Where to find these
Information Consumer Review Contain
The consumer review that the person looks up will contain information such as:
- Performance overall
- Personal opinion about the driving of the car
- Overall satisfaction
- Any major problems that they have had to deal with
- Their recommendation for the car or not
- May also include the price that they paid
What this will not contain:
- Usually there is no real numbers on performance
- The information is opinion, therefore, is not meant to be considered scientific fact
Why Use Ratings to Determine if a Used Car is Right or Not?
The ratings that of a car can help a person to determine whether the car is something for them or not, through providing:
- Safety ratings
- Number of claims filed against the company for this particular model
- Accidents involved with this type of car
- Overall rating of how satisfied people are with this car
Where to Find Ratings for Used Cars
There are many places that the person can look for ratings on the used cars that they are considering:
- Kelley Blue Book: takes the consumer comments and overall satisfaction to give an overall star rating for the car
- Consumer Reports: Will rate the vehicle according to the number of accidents that are fatal that are involving these cars, the number of complaints filed and so forth
- Cars.com: much like KBB and states the overall performance that people are getting with the car
- Any other website out there in which people are talking about their cars, such as automotive forums and so forth.
How to Use the Data from the Reviews and Ratings to Make a Decision
Once you have collected the reviews and the ratings, then you need to sit down and look at all that you have in order to make a decision. You will find these tips helpful in making this decision:
- Read all the reviews, both those that are written professional and by amateurs to get a good feel of what to expect.
- Take into consideration that not all reviews are going to be good, thus find out just what percentage is bad, neutral and good
- Keep in mind the ratings that you will be seeing are not scientific thus the person should make sure that they are just using these for comparison purposes only
- For the best selection, use at least three cars that you are considering buying to figure out which fits your needs the best, and which reviews and ratings are pointing to the best pick.
What to Watch Out for with these Reviews and Ratings
There are a few things that the person is going to want to watch out for:
- All the information should be pertaining to the car in question, many times reviews will simply plug in a used car name and the information not be relevant to the car itself
- There are going to be very bad reviews out there, the person must see past the anger as to whether the claims are something to be upset about or if the person was simply having a bad day that wrote this
- Never take the price that is given as the concrete price you will pay, the price really depends on the area in which the person is located, the miles that are on the car and the shape that the car is in
Last Word of Advice
Always remember that when it comes to used cars, you are getting a different deal with each car that you look at. These reviews and ratings are based on the majority of these used cars, therefore, they could or could not pertain to what you are considering buying.
