[WorkingGuru]

MANY People on OLX / Quikr / classifieds aren't interested to sell within a time frame. Without a time frame the purpose of an advt is to just check the value & curiosity for the price they can get for their car.

IMHO I won't be shocked if the number is such people is 90%.

Buying a car is often a heart + head decision, if you've set your heart on a used car then you can get stressed if you don't get it at the price you hoped for, or the vehicle condition isn't as good as you hoped it'd be.

Used car dealers have noticed this and insist on keeping the car within their premises at a cost. They even clean / refurbish the car. While they're trying to bridge the gap between buyer and seller, they're notoriously untrustworthy for their shady practices.

[BoneCollector]

My family has had only 1 used car till now and that was a Premier Padmini in 1986. After that we have been having only new cars till now. The reasons for staying away from used cars for me are -

1. The risk involved. The used car market can get you a lemon or a thoroughly abused car which has not been maintained or has been into an accident. Moreover, many people use drivers for their cars and these cars are mostly handled in a very rough way. There is also a risk of getting a car with falsified papers as it might be a stolen car.

2. The mantainance part. I've seen people who have no idea about how to maintain a car. They feel that a car if washed and looking nice with less of scratches is a well maintained car. The engine and other mechanicals are seldom serviced. The excuses are, car is run very less, there is no problem with the car, it's just 2 years old, there is no black smoke etc. They even don't know the service schedule of their vehicle. If you land up with such a vehicle, you are bound to face issues.

[gururajrv]

Voted for others - listed below.

It depends on the mentality basically. To me none matters if I get a good car within my budget. In fact my next upgrade to an SUV will surely be a pre-owned one as owning a new one is currently out of my budget types. Ya mostly 5 years down the line depending on where I’d stand in my financial terms.

But, ya I’ve heard few friends / family worried about the following;

1) Condition
2) Issues that could be hidden
3) Car that might look new on the outside vs pretty old on the inside but masked on the odo showing false reading (read tampered intentionally)
4) This could very well be on the back of few minds (mainly elders who are religious) - will it bring any negative energy with it?

Cannot think of any other factors such as status or any other stuff.

[for_cars1]

In both friends and family circle, a consistent trend observed over the years is that once people get into a tendency of buying used cars, it is very hard for them to come of that 'habit' of buying used cars because they will always feel they are getting much better value for a much lesser cost. The car will then be used for a shorter timeframe, 2 to 3 years and then gets replaced with another used car and the cycle continues.

Then there is the other category who will always buy new, use it for a considerable number of years (used to be very long greater than 12/15 years and now has drastically reduced to around 7 to 9 years typically) and then replace it with another new car and continuing the cycle.

A new car buyer who is paying the premium is in a better position to put the car to full/extensive use in a more reliable and hasslefree manner with lower maintenance and lower risk.
A used car buyer may be able to enjoy a higher class of vehicle at a fraction of its new cost. The lower cost is due to the aging (lower reliability factor) There is no right or wrong with both approaches, it just depends on the buyers priority/needs. There is always a higher risk of part failure in an aged car, a new car is always safer if you intend to use it extensively especially involving highway use.

End of the day, in both categories of buying patterns, there is no 'free lunch'. You basically get what you pay for.
A modern car is typically covered by warranty (std +ext) for the first 4 years and if maintained well will have no issues for the first 7 years. All components have a shelf/usable life, after that reliability gets progressively lower as the years pass and the service cost increases dramatically (especially for higher segments).

[balenoed_]

Contradictory to the thread subject, "Are you kidding? I LOVE pre-worshipped cars stands at third place with 26% votes.

I am the third owner of a 2004 model car (i.e used & used car) and using it for the past 9 years. And again contradictory to some of the posts above, mentioning the huge expenses that could incur in maintaining a used car, I believe it is the other way with the present situation of huge service bills slapped to the customers by the so called "authorized service centers" in the name of regular car servicing of new cars. I never visited ASS but just local mechanic for the regular basic checks. Saved a lot of money from the service center scams.

[PrasannaDhana]

I have had a fair share of buying used vehicles.

First gen Maruti Zen
Tata Sumo DX
Tata Sumo Gold
Tata Estate
Mahindra MM540

1986 CI Bullet 350
Honda CBR250R
KTM Duke 390

I have bought about thrice as much times new cars/bikes as I have bought used. In my experience, there is something that used vehicles never match up with the new ones.

I have had some bad times with the early used Tatas, and have had 0 issues with any of the new vehicles I have bought.

I would rather buy something brand new from a segment lower than to buy an used car which has a higher probability of being unreliable, specially in tier 2 cities where you don't have a large pool of used cars to choose from.

To sum up,

It's safe to buy pre-worshipped cars, but the issue is, not all used cars are pre-worshipped. You can never tell completely how it was treated/driven. You either get lucky or just live with regrets.

That being said, I am open to risking it with motorcycles as it is just a fun stuff and not an essential like a car to me. I can afford downtimes of a motorcycle and can judge about the dynamics/past treatment better after a single ride than it is possible about judging a car after a single drive.

Both my pre-worshipped motorcycles have been very reliable while the archaic CI Bullet caused issues every now and then.

I ended up with a new KTM and still think I should have bought an used one and saved more than half the money I spent on the new one.

[itsashishsharma]

I have bought some used cars:

Maruti Esteem 1998 - bought in 2005
Maruti Baleno 2006 - bought in 2007
Fiat Palio 2003 - bought in 2007

And new cars:

Maruti 800 - 1997
Maruti Swift - 2011
Tata Zest - 2014
Ford Fiesta - 2015

So the feel a new car gives, a used car can never match, I agree. But I know how to maintain a used car. And I can buy a used car, and use it to the fullest. I am not scared at all buying a used car. My next car is going to be a used car. Reason: sheer value for the buck. Just get it detailed properly, fix the dents/scratches, replace tyres, batteries or whatever else needs to be replaced and you are good.

[rajshenoy]

Here is a new convert and a fan of pre-owned cars

Well my biggest apprehensions are about the car breaking down midway. Though this can happen with brand new cars as well(we have seen bad examples) but the probability is more as the car becomes older.

Eg: Weak battery, Old tyres can leave you stranded midway. And stuff like AC failure and electricals failing becomes more common with age. This is one of the reasons many(I did) sell their cars after 6-7 years (or after a lakh kms).

I am assuming the buyer has done due diligence when it comes to engine and transmission though.

[vikram31]

Voted for others - more often than not, high quality, better resale vehicles dont offer VFM. The ones that are really cheap are with some or the other major grouse like - discontinued models/expensive parts etc. A good place to check is the tphp classifieds section itself. I have never found VFM or even a well balanced offer..

[gvivek75]

I voted for the risk aspect being a deterrent for me. But the way I look at it is a matter of trust more than anything else.

I handle my car with utmost care, and it takes a lot of time and effort to do so. And getting a used car whose owner has bestowed the same love and respect towards their cars is extremely rare. I have seen how cars are generally used/abused on day to day basis by most people.

I sold off my car last year after 7 years of use, and in tip top shape. I am even in touch with the buyer who's 350 km away. For many it's just a transaction - you sell, you get paid, matter over. My headaches are now yours. So yeah it works both ways. We got to practice what we preach.

So net net unless I am getting it from someone I personally know, I wouldn't risk used car purchase from the open market or unknown entity who I cannot trust.

[TurboOnTarmac]

Voted for -

1) Risk
2) Too much hassle to TD and find one while worried about trust factor (machine and people)
3) Worry about maintenance costs (specifically the expensive ones)
4) Other - cost benefit does not add up. Primarily could not find lucrative prices or reasonable depreciation. In other words, asking price is high enough for me to think again 'why not buy new?'

I must confess that I normally prefer to be the first owner and like to drive the brand new ones. During my two US stints, i drove away Accord and Camry from the showrooms. In India my first car was Alto that i picked up from showroom. However, I also bought a corolla, pre-worshiped one, and used it for over two years before selling it again. Only reason i could buy corolla was that it was owned by one of my good friend and i was 100% sure that he maintained it well. So there was no risk and i purchased it from him by paying exactly the market value shown by one of the used car website. It was risk-free and no bargain transparent deal. I loved that car and put a lot of km on the same within the short period of time

During last 5-6 months, i had checked a few used cars as well, trying to find some stop-gap arrangement while we wait for the BS6 transition. Unfortunately, in Bangalore, could not find any. Precisely due to the reasons that i selected and quoted above for this poll. So, here i am, still waiting for my new car

[abhii176]

3 main reasons I prefer buying new:
1) Just love the whole new car experience (for me, a used car just doesn't give that feeling)
2) The very high likelihood of getting a bad lemon, given my very very limited expertise in evaluating a used car
3) The time and effort involved in finding a used car is also a put off for me

[vishwasvr]

Voted for risk of being cheated etc.

I'd never bought a used car in all these years. Since I was madly in love with the 2011-12 Skoda Laura TSI, I was hunting for close to 4 months before I picked one up. He had done basic mods, stage 1 upgrades, alloy wheels, exhaust etc. Looked in great shape, had good service history. I got it checked thoroughly before I made the payment. The owner was happy to let me do the checks which gave me the confidence too. The previous owner worked at a Mercedes Showroom so he knew a thing or two about his car. Felt happy with the purchase but the issues started with rubber and plastic parts a few months later. He claimed he never had issues. I spent a bomb fixing all the problematic parts and eventually, as luck would have it, I barely found time to drive the car around. So much so I decided to sell it because I just couldn't find time to drive the car as much as I had hoped to. In 2 years of ownership, I barely clocked 6000 Km on the odo.

[NTO]

In the initial days when my family could barely afford having a car, we bought Maruti Omni which had 84K kms on the odo, may be more and tampered. Without any knowledge on how to check a used car for flaws, we took the plunge with the word a mechanic gave after driving the car. This was a very bad decision and we can't remember of one trip where my family was not stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Followed by this, we bought a Premier 118NE. This was from the used market again but had velvet seat covers, Air conditioner, music system, added power windows etc. Also the engine sounded good and the previous owner was a reputed doctor in Tamil Nadu. "Doctor Owned"should've been maintained well... And there ends the common belief. This car was parked in the garage more than it was parked in my place and we distinctly remember a couple of trips alone where the car ran trouble free.

This was the tipping off point for my father and he decided never to buy a used can ever again. The following three cars were new. The '06 Wagon R, '14 Vento 1.6 TDi, '15 Punto MjD.

Followed by this we bought a used Jazz Automatic. Beautiful car but it did not suit my needs. It was an impulse buy just to cater to my office commutes. I was well aware of what I was getting into, bought a 6 month old car for 25% less than market value of new and many more great things about owning this almost new car. Still it did not work out. Drove 7K kms in 6 months and sold it for a loss of 1.5 lacs.

Followed by this I bought a used '12 Civic AT. What a car.... Phenomenal performance and it is just 10 months and I have already done 15K kms since I bought that car.

So, my final point is, when you know what you are getting into while buying a used car, there would not be any surprises and you can save big bucks in the process as well!

[silverado]

When does a person buy used car?Below are some points that come to my mind.

1) Short on cash
2) Wish to buy a high end car.
3) Second/Third car in home.
4) Parking is on road ( Scared of buying a new car )
5) Newbie driver wants to do his "Haath Saaf " on old car before buying one.

I have stayed away from used cars till now.

Few of my friends have burnt fingers buying used cars in past and that didn't help my thought process.

I never felt the need to buy a used car. I went for Nano when I was low on cash but still it was brand new.( This was against suggestion from many who told me to buy a second hand car for same value ).

I am sort of a guy who likes to keep cars long term, so buying a second hand car is mentally a big No-No since I don't know how it was treated in past ownership.

The only time I will buy a second hand car is if I know that car personally ( Friends/Family etc ).