When you decide to buy a car does name and reputation help?
 

Buying another Maxima soon since my max needs a little bit too much work in order to be a suitable car for me. I have a couple concerns though...

Here in South Florida, I see alot of maxima's for very cheap (2003 SE Maxima for around 6,500) and I'm enticed greatly. As a person who is back in school and cannot afford a new car I want to try the car out but I hear so much negativity about the smaller car lots that people try to sell.

I went to Carmax (who usually has some great cars but a bit more expensive than usual) and the guy told me these smaller dealerships usually get their scraps or lemons and try to tie them up to make a sale.

Pretty scary.

My car has been running well but outside of the engine I probably need every single other part on the car to be replaced... too much money to spend in my opinion.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...500&cardist=11

Small lots will typically have cars from rental fleets, cars they rebuilt, high mileage cars, cars with flaws that were easily hidden.
I would stick to buying a used car from a private party or if financing is needed, from a new car dealer used car lot. they typically have mostly trade-ins there and they are very easy to deal with as far as inspecting the car at your mechanic and stuff goes. they also have been real good with me after the sale as well.

but these days, I buy cars I can pay cash for, and are cheap. I get labor for free so for me to buy a car that needs brakes and an alternator, is way cheaper than a car payment.

when car shopping always do your research before buying. Tools such as www.kbb.com and www.carfax.com are great tools. See what going rates for cars on craigslist to see what people are selling them for. Don't buy the first car you see.

scott....STAY AWAY FROM THOSE MINI DEALERS

i am also in south florida, and have had the unfortunate dilemma of having to buy three used cars over the past two years (one was a POS, one was wrecked).

in my experience all of those mini used-car-dealerships you see all over the place around Miami and Hollywood (route 441, etc.) have highly questionable cars. you know the places im talking about - with 25 cars parked in a lot surrounded by a chain link fence.

during my maxima quest about a year ago, i drove everywhere from homestead to miami to fort pierce looking at used 4th gens..... in total, i saw about 40.
at LEAST half of them were in those small dealerships, and the majority of those, i noticed right off the bat, had the check engine light CUT (so you could not see it when you put the key in the 2 position, when all dash lights should illuminate). on top of the cut CEL, i saw two with completely rebuilt engines.....one with horrible water damage and one with a bent rim.


anyway i could go on with a few more stories but you get the idea.

imo you should stick with craigslist.org, autotrader.com or cars.com and buy ONLY FROM PRIVATE SELLERS.
you will not only get a more negotiable price (especially in todays economy) but also a more "honest" product.

i ended up finding a pearl 97 with 41,000 miles for $4400. old ladies FTW>

I agree you should avoid used car dealers. Buy from private. Use CARFAX, have the car inspected by a trustworthy shop. Somehow, some way the used car dealer paid a relatively low price for the car and they are GOING to make a profit on you. They are not your friend. Cut out the middleman and just buy cash from a private sale. Get a bank loan, W/E you gotta do.

BTW, a 2003 car is pretty old these days. Could be 6 years old depending on build date. I had bought a 2001 QX4 2 years ago and I used the remaining factory warranty several times before it expired at 5/60,000. Expensive stuff too, like new TCM and valve body for the trans. I have also heard that the newer maxima's are not all that reliable compared to the older ones. If you want a reliable Max, get a private party one with the lowest miles you can find. If you want a reliable used car, get a Toyota Corolla.