John-Charleston Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 Hi everyone, I'm not a regular here but lurk/search sometimes in my quest for a used outback. I think I found one that's suitable and was hoping for some advice... This is an '03 Outback with <59.000 miles on it. A basic model, Automatic, cd player, not much more for options but with a cracked windshield. I should be able to get it for $11K. I'm looking to buy this car sight unseen thru a deal that started on Ebay so I'm trying to be very cautious.... First off, are carfax or other vin check type reports worth much? I don't mind paying for one but I just don't know how much stock to put in the report. Second, I'm going to have a mechanic look the car over at it's current location. I'll arrange this over the phone and will have to place my trust in the mechanic. What should I ask him to look at specifically? Any '03 issues to watch out for? I figure I'd ask him to rack it, pull the wheels (supposed to be new brakes all around), put it on an analyzer and test drive it. Hopefully he'll do at least all that. And hopefully he's not related to the seller! (the town is pretty small) Third, is replacing the windshield likely to be a future problem? I already know the price, but is it likely to cause leaks or rust down the line? I very much appreciate any help with these questions and any further advice I haven't even thought to ask about. My first (and probably best) car was a '73 subaru coupe so I'm looking forward to getting behind the wheel of a subaru again. Thanks, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeep5.9litre Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 John, a carfax reprt will give you a better idea on were the car has been and how many owners it has had. Hopefully it was a one owner! Make sure the mechanic drives the car in a figure 8 sequence in a parking lot to check for torque bind and or lurching. Also, make sure the car has 4 matching tires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John-Charleston Posted July 2, 2007 Author Share Posted July 2, 2007 That was fast! Thanks Jeep! The seller told me a funny thing about the tires when I asked him what condition they were in.....He said he replaces the tires every year because the roads there are so twisty that it wears out the tires fast. Now I've been to the area he's in (Cashiers, NC) and it is Appalachain mountains with lots of switchback roads in the area, but changing the tires every year seems excessive doesn't it? I clicked on the original ebay link and theres an Autocheck deal for ebayers that runs the vin check for $7.99 so I'll run that just for the hell of it anyway. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John-Charleston Posted July 2, 2007 Author Share Posted July 2, 2007 Further info: Vin report comes out clean except for two items; the car has a current lien against it so I just need to figure out how to exchange the title correctly. Next, this guy is the second owner and he bought the car at an auto auction in Feb, '06. Is there a reason to view the auto auction sale as a red flag? Thanks again, John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhise Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 I had a 2000 Legacy and used to live in those mountains, the roads would eat tires pretty quick. I don't know what they put in the asphalt there, but if he put alot of miles on in a year then I could see the tires wearing prematurely. -Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danz75 Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 Hi everyone,I'm not a regular here but lurk/search sometimes in my quest for a used outback. I think I found one that's suitable and was hoping for some advice... This is an '03 Outback with <59.000 miles on it. A basic model, Automatic, cd player, not much more for options but with a cracked windshield. I should be able to get it for $11K. I'm looking to buy this car sight unseen thru a deal that started on Ebay so I'm trying to be very cautious.... First off, are carfax or other vin check type reports worth much? I don't mind paying for one but I just don't know how much stock to put in the report. Second, I'm going to have a mechanic look the car over at it's current location. I'll arrange this over the phone and will have to place my trust in the mechanic. What should I ask him to look at specifically? Any '03 issues to watch out for? I figure I'd ask him to rack it, pull the wheels (supposed to be new brakes all around), put it on an analyzer and test drive it. Hopefully he'll do at least all that. And hopefully he's not related to the seller! (the town is pretty small) Third, is replacing the windshield likely to be a future problem? I already know the price, but is it likely to cause leaks or rust down the line? I very much appreciate any help with these questions and any further advice I haven't even thought to ask about. My first (and probably best) car was a '73 subaru coupe so I'm looking forward to getting behind the wheel of a subaru again. Thanks, John My 03 Outback came with the All Weather Package as standard...so there is a defroster element in the windshield around where the wiperblades rest. Might be worth checking if the car has the AWP. I believe you can replace it with a windshield without the defroster in if you don't need the function. I have no idea how much more it costs for a windshield with the defroster element. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uniberp Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 That was fast! Thanks Jeep! The seller told me a funny thing about the tires when I asked him what condition they were in.....He said he replaces the tires every year because the roads there are so twisty that it wears out the tires fast. Now I've been to the area he's in (Cashiers, NC) and it is Appalachain mountains with lots of switchback roads in the area, but changing the tires every year seems excessive doesn't it? I clicked on the original ebay link and theres an Autocheck deal for ebayers that runs the vin check for $7.99 so I'll run that just for the hell of it anyway. John That's a 4 year old car that has had 4 sets of tires? IMO that my be the equivalent of 160,000 miles of chassis stress as well. IDK if the cracked windshield is also a result of that, but this doesn't really sound like a well-cared for car. I never see cars that have well cared-for engines and abused chasses, except for those used in competition. I also don't think a lien means an outstanding balance on a loan. I think it means a dispute. A 53k mile car should appear practically new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John-Charleston Posted July 5, 2007 Author Share Posted July 5, 2007 Thanks but it may be moot now. After I got a mechanic to look at the car, got an Autocheck report and made arrangements to travel to NC to pick the car up, the guy renegged at the 11th hour. Basically he got a higher offer. I was going to buy it at $11K but he's now waiting to see if someone who's offered $12.2K can get financing. If not I might still be able to buy it at $11.5K but I'm not sure I want to deal with this guy anymore. The heated windshield cost about $375 to replace vs $300 for non-heated. I'm in Charleston Sc and don't need heated windshields but one windshield place told me it's a bad idea to not re-connect it. Think that's bull? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 no joke, he might want to save the $ and hassle anyway since he won't need defrosting depending how often/far he travels from SC. replacing every year seems like alot. it would take heat, driving, and soft tires to need replacing every year. if it was purchased at an auction, just how long did he have the vehicle? i'm more suspicious of vehicles at an auto auction, but it doesn't necessarily mean anything. i picked up an impreza for a friend this year from one. i looked it over, did all the timing belt, water pump, oil pump jazz and had a good look at it. ran great, everything seems fine so far. maybe someone who knows the car market can comment a bit more on it. i'm not sure how/why nice, nicer vehicles get moved around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John-Charleston Posted July 5, 2007 Author Share Posted July 5, 2007 That's a 4 year old car that has had 4 sets of tires? IMO that my be the equivalent of 160,000 miles of chassis stress as well. IDK if the cracked windshield is also a result of that, but this doesn't really sound like a well-cared for car. I never see cars that have well cared-for engines and abused chasses, except for those used in competition. I also don't think a lien means an outstanding balance on a loan. I think it means a dispute. A 53k mile car should appear practically new. Yeah, I'd wondered if the car had been driven hard. But the lien just means money is owed. could be a dispute or could simply be a car loan. A mortgage on a house is a lien for instance. Sigh, I'll keep looking.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 Cars that go to auction are there sometimes as a means for dealers to dump, for one reason or another, a less desirable vehicle. One they don't want to sell on their lot. So I guess you could say this is sort of a red flag. Going from previous experience I have had doing this same kind of thing, be sure the title has been transfered correctly. I would demand a copy of the title so you can see it and how it is registered. I purchased a vehicle once from a person that never registered it into his own name after he bought it. He tried to act as a dealer. I had to get a sureity bond from a insurance company in order to transfer the title. You can save some money purchasing a vehicle this way but let the buyer beware of pitfalls that can happen doing so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John-Charleston Posted July 5, 2007 Author Share Posted July 5, 2007 no joke, he might want to save the $ and hassle anyway since he won't need defrosting depending how often/far he travels from SC. replacing every year seems like alot. it would take heat, driving, and soft tires to need replacing every year. if it was purchased at an auction, just how long did he have the vehicle? i'm more suspicious of vehicles at an auto auction, but it doesn't necessarily mean anything. i picked up an impreza for a friend this year from one. i looked it over, did all the timing belt, water pump, oil pump jazz and had a good look at it. ran great, everything seems fine so far. maybe someone who knows the car market can comment a bit more on it. i'm not sure how/why nice, nicer vehicles get moved around. Geez I can barely keep up with replies here... According to autocheck he's had the car for about 18 months/22k miles. How did you buy at an auction? I was under the impression that you had to be licensed in some way to participate in auto auctions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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