How to Inspect a Used Car

You’ve found a car that seems perfect. The price is right, it drives well, and has all the features you’re looking for. But is it too good to be true? Whether you’re at the dealership or buying from an independent seller, you can’t always trust the salesman to reveal the dirty little secrets of their products. It’s important to learn how to spot red flags on your own. Here are some tips to conduct an effective vehicle inspection.

 

Bottoms Up

Grab a flashlight and start with the undrcarriage. Look closely at the condition of each of the components. If you find something that looks newer than the rest, and the seller hasnt' told you of any repairs, he is probably hiding something. Also, inspect the framework and floor pans for rust, and check the ground for signs of drips and leakages.

 

Tired Tires

A vehicle’s tires can be a surprisingly good gauge of the car’s condition. Check for wear by inserting a penny into the tire treads. If the top of Lincoln’s upside-down head is visible, the tires probably need to be replaced. Perform the penny test in multiple places along the wheel tread to see if the wear is even. Uneven wear can be a sign that the car is misaligned, often due to a serious accident. Check that the condition of the tires is appropriate for the mileage. If the car has low mileage and worn tires, there’s a chance that someone tampered with the odometer.

The Walk Around

Many buyers do a walk-around inspection without knowing what to look for. Your primary targets are rust and damaged seals. Check the lower part of the body for exposed metal, rust, bumps, and discolored paint. Some rust is to be expected, especially near the wheels. Use a refrigerator magnet to check for repaired panels on all sides. If the magnet sticks in some areas and not others, there might have been extensive repairs. Make sure the doors, windows, and trunk close and seal properly.

Under the Hood

Don’t be intimidated. Even auto-novices can easily spot issues in the engine compartment. Make sure everything looks clean and rust-free around engine. If there are signs of newer paint, or if the bumpers around the hood have been painted over, the car has likely been repainted due to damage or rust. Make sure the oil is clean and at the correct level. If not, it’s a good indicator that the car was not well cared for.

If you know what you’re looking for, you can keep yourself from making a terrible buying decision. Avoid the pressure to hurry the inspection, and make sure you look over every inch of your new vehicle.

Shifting Demographics: In The U.S., More Women Drive Than Men

As we saw during last week's election, the demographics of the U.S. are changing. Older white men -- once the country's key voting block -- make up an increasingly small percentage of the electorate, while African Americans, Latinos, and women are gaining ground.

A similar demographic shift is taking shape on the roadways. According to a new study from Michael Sivak and colleague Brandon Schoettle at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, older men (of all races and ethnicities) are less likely than women to drive after age 45 -- and the gender gap could get much wider.

UMTRI study
The Washington Post reports that Sivak and Schoettle reviewed 15 years' worth of U.S. driver's licence statistics, from 1995 to 2010. In 1995, 89.2 million men held licences, compared to 87.4 million American women. Men held their lead over women in every age group until age 70, when the trend flipped, perhaps in part to women's longer life-expectancies.

But life-expectancy alone can't account for the shift that researchers are seeing today. Although younger men are still more likely to have a driver's licence than younger women, the trend does reverse -- only this time, the flip happens not at 70, but at age 45. In 2010, 105.7 million American women had driver's licenses, versus 104.3 million men.

And guys aren't going to be catching up anytime soon. As we've often discussed, the number of younger Americans with driver's licences is declining thanks to graduated licencing, the cost of car ownership, and broader issues like social networking, which has reduced the need for face-to-face interaction.
As a result, the number of young women (age 25 - 29) with driver's licenses dropped 4.7% between 1995 and 2010. However, the number of young men with licenses fell twice that amount -- 10.6%. Only time will tell if men will pick up the slack as they get older. 

What does it mean?
This data could have a direct impact on the cars we drive tomorrow. Sivak tells Auto News that women tend to prefer smaller, safer rides with greater fuel efficiency. That could make small cars an even hotter property than they are today.

Also, as Sivak points out, women tend to be involved in fewer traffic fatalities. That sets the stage for an even lower fatality rate in the U.S., and potentially lower insurance premiums. (Well, maybe.)

Guys, are you giving up on cars? Gals, what changes would you like to see in the auto industry? Weigh in with your own thoughts in the comment below.

What Do The 1% Drive? The Top 10 Cars In Wealthy ZIP Codes

George Clooney advertising the Mercedes-Benz E-Class L in China

When you think of the wealthy -- if you do -- what do imagine them driving? A Porsche 911? A Lamborghini Gallardo? An old-school Rolls-Royce? 

Eh, not so much.

Sure, six-figure supercars are the province of the uber-rich, but by and large, America's wealthy families drive fairly mainstream vehicles. That news comes from TrueCar, which rounded up the ten most popular cars in our wealthiest ZIP codes.

The company began by identifying those ZIP codes based on data from the Internal Revenue Service. At the top of the list, we find 10274 -- lower Manhattan -- with an average income of $5.7 million. That's followed by Fisher Island, Florida (33109); downtown Chicago (60604); Atherton and Century City, California (94027 and 90067); New Vernon, New Jersey (07976); Greenwich, Connecticut (06831); Palm Beach, Florida (33480); Medina, Washington (98039); and finally, Ross, California (94957), boasting an average income of $497,000 .

TrueCar then used that data to pull the most popular vehicles sold to residents of each ZIP code. The findings were occasionally surprising:

• In the wealthiest ZIP code, the Honda Accord was the third most popular car, falling behind the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and the BMW X5. The Honda CR-V came in at #5.
• The only top-five car approaching the six-figure range in any locale was the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The Porsche Panamera appeared in one ZIP code -- in Fischer Island's #5 spot. 
• Of all ten ZIP codes, Chicago seemed the most down-to-Earth: the eminently affordable Volkswagen Jetta was the most popular ride there, followed by the Honda CR-V, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Toyota Camry, and Honda Civic.
• Jeep was the only Detroit brand to make any of the top-five lists: the Wrangler was hugely popular in Greenwich, and the Grand Cherokee was a winner there, too, as well as Chigago.
• Less surprising was the fact that the Toyota Prius took the #1 or #2 spot in all three California ZIP codes.

When all was said and done, TrueCar compiled all that data to come up with a list of the most popular cars in America's ten wealthiest ZIP codes. Interestingly, eight of the ten are priced below $40,000. The models that didn't make the list are almost as interesting as those that did:

10. BMW X5
9. Toyota Camry
8. Honda Accord
7. Honda CR-V
6. Volkswagen Jetta
5. Toyota Prius
4. Lexus RX
3. Mercedes-Benz C-Class
2. BMW 328

And the most popular car in America's wealthiest ZIP codes is the...

1. Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Does this list surprise you? Is there a brand missing that you expected to see? Did one make the list that completely confuses you? Let us know in the comments below.

10 Tips To Help Your Teen Stop Texting And Driving

Texting while driving is considered the most distracting driver behavior, increasing crash risk by 2,300 percent. Yet it is also one of the most difficult behaviors to curtail, especially among young, first-time drivers.

A recent article in Minnesota Public Radio News caught our attention, so we thought we’d pass along some of it here, along with two tips of our own.

As parents, there are some things that you can and should do to help your teen be a safer and more responsible driver. Take note of these ten tips to help your teen stop texting and driving.

Be a good example. Whether you realize it or not, your young teen who’s of driving age is watching you like a hawk every time you’re behind the wheel. If you engage in distracted driving behavior such as texting or talking on your cell phone, don’t think your actions are going unnoticed. The best solution is to display the kind of behavior that you want your teen to model when driving. This may take some practice and discipline on your part, especially if you have been guilty of texting and driving or talking on the cell phone and driving in the past. Maybe you never gave it much thought until your child reached driving age. Now is a good time to start acting responsibly so your children pick up on it.

You make the rules. You are the parents, after all, so what you set down as the family rules regarding acceptable driving behavior should have an impact. Your children should know that there are consequences for breaking the rules, especially the one about texting while driving. Think carefully what those consequences will be and be sure to discuss them with your children so there are no misunderstandings about what will be okay and what is absolutely unacceptable.

Observe your teen driving (with you in the car). One of the best ways to know how your teen behaves behind the wheel is to be a passenger in the car and watch how he or she handles situations. Spend as much time as possible with your teen during the Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) phase and gently correct any bad habits.

No reading or sending texts at stop lights. Your teenage driver may be under the mistaken impression that it’s okay to dash off a quick text or read an incoming text when stopped at a traffic signal. Make it very clear to them that this is against the law as well as being extremely unsafe behavior.

Have your teen watch a video of the aftermath of teen texting and driving. Nothing says how dangerous texting while driving can be like a video that shows the tragic aftermath. While the human carnage, thankfully, isn’t visibly displayed, the wreckage and interviews with survivors and the injured should be enough to get the message across that this is extremely dangerous behavior.

Check out apps to monitor your teen in the car. Sometimes this kind of “snooping” is reasonable and acceptable. Look into apps that allow you to lock out texting and cell phone use when driving as well as those that permit you to view your teen’s cell phone activity. Let your teen know that you will be monitoring their behavior. They’ll be more likely to abide by the rules.

Insist they leave the phone in the trunk or back seat (unavailable). You can’t expect your teen to leave the house without their phone, but you can insist that while they are behind the wheel that the phone stays in the trunk or in the back seat. If it is unavailable to them, they’re less likely to use it. Of course, if the phone is in the car, it needs to be turned off or muted.  An app that plays an automatic message that says the person is driving and will get back to them later is an excellent solution.

Talk about how you’d feel if they died. This suggestion may sound a bit extreme, but like watching the video of the aftermath of texting and driving, it gets the point across.

Ask if that text is worth dying for. The tendency for teens to instantly respond to an incoming text is tough to overcome. But the truth is that it is only a message that can wait. Be direct and ask your teen if that text – any text – is worth dying for. This sobering thought should help them think better about texting behind the wheel.

Take away driving privileges for breaking the rules. Remember those rules you laid down about driving behavior? They’re only as good as your willingness to back them up when your teen breaks them. The consequences for violating the rules have to be significant – and you have to enforce them. For example, teens cherish their mobility. If they text and drive, a logical penalty is to take away driving privileges for a certain period of time. That will get their attention, if nothing else will.