My Used Car Buying Experience - Advice for Newbies - 2021

[syeddanishanwar]

Assalam Alaikum fellow Pakwheelers,

I have recently purchased a used car in Karachi and I thought sharing my experience with others. I hope the following points will help newbies in buying a used car from Pakwheels or OLX.

1. I had found to my surprise that most of the ads on PW and OLX are from owners of small car dealers. I have said 'to my surprise' since they don't advertise as dealers. It is only once you visit and ask questions you will know that they are a dealer and not the original seller. The obvious hint of a dealer is selling on open letter after a few weeks of purchase.

2. The dealers will do their best to hide the fact that they are dealers. They advertise their personal address rather than shop address. One dealer posing as a genuine seller said he didn't register the car since he is a big businessmen with 9+ cars in his name. But upon enquiring with a nearby shop it was revealed the home was of a car dealer. Another dealer did not hide the fact that she was a dealer saying 'yuh hi samjh lain' when I asked if she was a dealer. She used salesy tactics that made it clear that she was a dealer encouraging me to buy the car the same day saying 'aisi gari jaldi bik jati hai.' She had also advertised using her personal address. Another dealer selling a car on open letter had assigned the task of answering the phone to his 12-13 year old son to pose as a genuine seller. I think the dealers have got a bad repo due to which they were now using these somewhat funny tactics for selling a used car.

3. Most dealers will ask you to pay in cash and don't accept payorder or check. This is even if the price of a car is Rs. +1.5 million. I don't know what is the reason for demanding a high amount in cash (tax savings or avoidance?). I had no option but to pay in cash since I could not find genuine sellers of the car I wanted to buy in a good condition. Most banks including SCB require an advance notice if withdrawing 2.0 million or above in cash from the bank. The car I was buying was about 1.5 million so I got the cash the same day.

4. The best advise to deal with dealers is to make a deal with another dealer. Only a fellow dealer will know what to look for when buying a car from a dealer. I had hired the services of another dealer located near my home for Rs. 5000 for inspection of 2x cars. I was forced to use this tactic since I could not find a genuine seller for the car I was searching for at the time. I do not trust a dealer selling a car so I hired another dealer to help me look for a good car. I asked the dealer to negotiate for me by agreeing that the money saved will be divided 50-50 when the car is transferred in my name. This encouraged him to negotiate a good deal. He looked at three cars I had found on PWs and pointed out bad deals such as being overpriced, showered car, etc.

5. I also found to my surprise that you can get a car transferred in Karachi without physical inspection of the car. Car dealers have 'special' agents who can transfer the car without having to take your car to MR wing. They charge between Rs. 7000 and Rs. 9000 for the transfer. The agents claim to legally transfer the car in your name without you having to sign anything. Just hand over the car return file and your and seller's valid NIC photocopy. I asked the car dealer who is a nimazi with dari like me if they pay a bribe as I will not pay a bribe. He said the fee was not a bribe but his agent fee who has special power to transfer the car due to connections. And indeed, the car was transferred in my name the next day without me having to do anything other than pay the fee and hand over the car return file after photocopying. I had kept the sales receipt and car running paper (one leaf) with me. The dealer said he has the transfer receipt and that I will get the smart card in about 10 days.

6. When buying a car, make sure that the NIC is valid and the return file is complete by getting it checked by a professional. I had got the papers checked by my dealer. The NIC of the person on whose name the car was registered was found to be expired. So, my dealer asked the other dealer selling the car to get a valid NIC from the original seller, which he provided the next day.

7. Not all dealers are fraud. You have to do your own research and if you buy a car in good condition with all the documents in order, you should not hesitate from buying through a dealer as it will save you a lot of hassles. Do encourage the dealer such as using the 50-50 sharing tactic I had described above.

Here is a picture of the car I had bought Alhamdulilah. I had started searching for the car on Friday and landed a deal on Tuesday, 6th April after looking at three cars.

[sardarg]

very detailed account of purchase mubarak sir ji.

this shall be connected to this thread

Free car advisory service for all Pakwheel members - buying/selling/ mechanical etc

Dear all Assalam o Alaikum I have been using pakwheels since last many years and my personal experience is that Pakwheels is an excellent platform for all those people who want to buy, sell and discuss cars. Apart from this i have seen many threads in which members were seeking advice/help from senior members related to their car related issues. In order to facilitate all my brothers and sisters, I am pleased to announce free of cost advisory services to all Pakwheelers, specially to those who…

[UAHMAD]

A very good write up. It depicts true picture of the used car market and its dynamics.

[mehran]

Informative article. I once bought a used car and it too was a dealer who had used a retired army officer as his front man. Long story short, I was cheated and was sold a junk car. I resold the car after a few months but informed the new owner about its issues. Bad experience for me.

[syeddanishanwar]

I once bought a used car and it too was a dealer who had used a retired army officer as his front man. Long story short, I was cheated and was sold a junk car. I r

I had used the strategy of hiring a reliable dealer whom I knew personally to check the car being sold on PWs. Alhamdulilah, he was able to identify a good deal after reviewing three cars. Two of the cars were being sold by dealers in guise of genuine sellers. The person from whom I had bought the car - I have now learned - is not a dealer and used it personally for two years but did not get it transferred. He had a milk business and was in urgent need of cash so he sold the car at the right price.

Whether buying through a dealer or a genuine seller, it is critical to get it checked by a reliable personal acquaintance or professional. Car mechanics can't identify the costly hidden faults. Even if they do they would want you to buy a faulty car as it is their bread and butter.

Befriend a reliable dealer with no history of cheat or fraud as I had done. I believe an experienced dealer knows exactly what to look for when buying a car since he has personal experience in selling so many cars. They can tell what's wrong with a car just by driving it. Mechanics are good at resolving apparent faults but not identifying hidden ones.

In 2008, I had bought a car (Suzuki Margalla) from a person who had advertised in a newspaper. The car turned out to be accidental that required a lot of repairs. At that time, I did not get the car checked by a professional dealer. I had paid my mechanic Rs. 1000 to check the car but he could not identify that it was accidental.

This time around I decided to get the car (Honda Reborn Oriel) checked by a reliable car expert and alhamdulilah it is in much better shape i.e. non-accidental. The paint condition is 100 percent original and the car has all the bells and whistles like Android panel, back camera, etc. It requires usual repairs - oil change, radiator water change, tyre, PS leak repairs, etc. But there is no major fault like engine mount, suspension, or rust issue etc.

Genuine sellers are like pearls in the ocean that are hard to find in my experience. Get an expert help to find those gems.

[syeddanishanwar]

I wanted to share additional experience regarding my used buying experience. These tips will help used car buyers to buy the right car and avoid the mistakes I had made when buying the car.

1. You must have at least Rs. 50,000 saved for additional car expenses in the month you buy the car. I have spent about Rs. 23,000 on important after-purchase expenses. The details of the expenses are mentioned in the post here... https://www.pakwheels.com/forums/t/note-about-honda-reborn-maintenance/946438/31
   Alhamdulilah, my car was in a good condition with no suspension or mount problems. In case you buy a car in a bad shape with paint, suspension or engine mount issues, you must save at least Rs.120 lacs for the repairs.

2. Don't presume that the previous buyer have bought a new battery even if he says that it's brand new. Ask for the warranty card as a proof. Otherwise, you MUST install a new battery. My used car's battery was on the last leg and died the third day after purchase.

3. Make sure that the car can be opened both through the key and the central locking. I did not check the manual car lock during purchase that was faulty. I presumed that the central lock feature is adequate. But once the car battery died I could not get inside the car. The car electrician couldn't do anything as the old battery had died and the car was completely locked. Even the key maker I had hired could not get inside the vehicle. He used what any thief would do to break-in - he broke the small rear window to get inside the vehicle and unlock the car.
   I had the car key lock and window repaired two days after when the market opened. You should avoid this mistake by checking the manual lock during purchase.

[chinyoti]

Can you share the price you got this car for.

I am also looking for one. People are asking 16 to 21 lacks for similar year models. Cars are comparatively in very bad condition.

Many total genuine cars with alot of mechanical troubles in the market.

[syeddanishanwar]

I had paid Rs. 15.25 lacs for the car that I bought in Karachi. During my search, I had even found one seller selling a good condition 2008 Oriel model Automatic in Rs. 14.5 lacs that was sold soon. That car had paint issue so I went for the present car as it had 90 percent original paint.

There is no significant difference between Reborn 2007 to 2012 models. It would be smart to pay less for an older model car if found in good condition. You should never pay more than Rs. 15.5 lacs for a Reborn aka Civic 8th generation.