Beginner’s Guide – How To Buy A Muscle Car – Part 4 – Evaluate The Car, Set Up Insurance And Buy
Welcome to Part 4 of our 4 part series: A Beginner’s Guide to Buying a Muscle Car! Congratulations, you’ve made it to the end!
As stated in our previous entries, this series is designed for the person new to the world of muscle cars. You know you would like to have one, but until now you didn’t know where to start. This series will correct that minor problem! We’ll assume you’ll really like the car, too, even if you’re buying it as an investment.
Our series has covered the following topics so far, and this post will be the conclusion. After reading this article, you’ll be ready to drive your new vehicle! (Be sure to budget a little more for high-octane fuel and extra rear tires…because you’ll need it.)
1) Determine the make and model you want
2) Determine how you want to use the car (drive often, just show the car, etc.)
3) Determine your price range and payment method
Since we’ve already covered Topic #1, #2, and #3, we can now move on to the next and final step.
Today’s topic: Evaluate the car, purchase insurance and buy
The big day is finally here! Now you’ve narrowed down the make/model you want, you know how you plan to use the car, you have a fantastic idea of what it’s worth (and you have the money to pay for it).. ..so now you just need to pick a few lucky candidates, evaluate them, configure your insurance and complete the transaction. Then it’s time to drop the hammer, Cole Trickle style.
Rate the car:
After you’ve selected a few lucky automotive candidates that fit your criteria, it’s time to see if the cars are really as advertised. Now is the time to be picky. If the car is advertised as a “match numbers” car, it really should be verified as such and it’s not out of the question to ask the seller to give you a test run. In fact, you can ask the seller for all the relevant information ahead of time and verify it using some helpful resources, such as Year One’s Vehicle Information and Decode page. Better yet, ask for the ORIGINAL documentation that came with the car (such as a build sheet ).
If the car is advertised as “good driver” or “recently restored”, ask for more details on what that specifically means. Many times, the phrase “good driver” means that the car runs and drives well, but it may have a few (or many) other issues that you will need to deal with, from simple wiring issues to major body work. The phrase “recently restored” can honestly mean anything from a new paint job to an out-of-frame coucours carvery restoration, so get the details here.
When you go to see the car in person, go prepared with all the information we’ve discussed in previous articles. If you feel a bit embarrassed about doing it alone, take a car buddy with you. You can also hire a broker to appraise the car and buy it on your behalf (they usually charge a flat fee or a small percentage of the car’s sales price). You may suspect that the pictures of the car are hiding a few things, like bad previous body work. Now is the time to see if that is true. A handy pocket magnet is a great way to check for excessive amounts of body filler that may have been used to repair large holes. Take the car out for a test drive too. Test the brakes. Try all the gears. Open and close all doors. Do they close solid or open again? Check everything and include it in your offer price. Remember, the car doesn’t need to be perfect if it’s just a fun weekend car!
If you buy the car site without seeing it (which is increasingly happening in the internet age), make sure you get as many photos upfront as possible, as well as a clear understanding of how problems would be handled if problems are found on the car. car later. delivery. Investment cars are bought on the site unseen quite often now, and it’s pretty safe to do so, especially from a high-end reputable dealer. Doug Klein of American Dream Machines in Des Moines stated that they can sell 70-80% of their cars this way.
Whether you examine the car firsthand or just order it and have it delivered, consider its condition, documentation, and the like when negotiating the price. It’s that easy!
Set up insurance:
Arrrgh! One more little problem on your vertigo before taking the car home! Sure! Fortunately, since you already know how you plan to use the car, getting the right kind of insurance for your car will be a piece of cake. We have a full post available on the subject here on Ezine called How to Insure a Muscle Car. Read it and set up your insurance. That’s all!
Buys:
This is the last step in the process… and you may have already completed this step after the evaluation phase. Alright. If you haven’t already, this is when you actually pay for the car and take it home (or have it delivered)! As mentioned in previous posts, most dealerships have access to financing as a courtesy, but nothing works better than old-fashioned cash when doing an auto deal. If you buy the car in person, take the cash with you, sign the title and bill of sale, give the money to the seller, and drive home. If you don’t see the buy site, you’ll likely handle the title and bill of sale in the mail and wire money to them (or send a certified check). In either case, you’ll need to register the car as soon as possible, and you’ll need to provide the title, proof of insurance, and (usually) a bill of sale to do so. That’s it – our Beginner’s Guide to Buying a Sports Car Series is now complete. Go burn some rubber!