Buying a Used Car

Nora sold her Honda Civic last week and the Jeep chose that time to have an alternator problem. Since we were both committed to showing folks around on Monday, we decided to push our 7 passenger mini-van search. I had previously found three cars in acceptably good mechanical condition that met our needs, but one didn't have a current license plate, one needed air conditioner work, and the other had more miles on it than I felt comfortable with. The 7 passenger requirement was a minimum and the car I really wanted was a very clean 75000 km 8 passenger Chevrolet Suburban, but we also wanted to take a look at a couple of Honda Oddyseys and a Kia Carnival that appeared in the newspaper ads this week. Our first stop was Patel Autos in Carasquilla to look at the Kia., which had already been sold, so we asked if they had any 7 passenger cars. We first looked at an 'Arrest Me Red' Dodge Durango and almost bought it, but the A/C was not cold. We looked around a bit more and spotted a white Suburban on the back of the lot. I asked about it and the young man who was attending us said it belonged to the lot owner and it was mostly used to take the children to school. It also had a small sign in the windshield saying 'Not For Sale', but he called the owner and asked if he would sell. To make a long story short, we drove it home. Everything works, the tires are almost new, it has only 43,000 kilometers on the odometer, the desireable bench front seat, which makes it a 9 passenger, and there is no evidence it has ever been wrecked. As for the sales pitch and story about the car being used to take the kids to school, I believe it. I rarely believe everything, or even most of, a car salesman's story, but there were a few empty potato chip packages in the back, and some bubble gum stuck on the carpet, so I tend to believe the story. I did NOT swallow the part about it being economical, though.

Now, to the point of this story, some tips on what to look for when buying a used car in Panama. First ask if the car was imported from the US. There are many such in Panama, and are easy to spot after a while. The speedometer should be calibrated in KPH, not MPH. There a few exceptions, like our Tempo and Cherokee which were sold by Army and Air Force Exchange, so the speedometer is not a 100% check. Next check the mileage. Typically, recent used US imports will look pretty good and run well, but have very high mileage. These cars are bought at auction in the US for a few hundred dollars and brought here and sold for several thousand. You will also find more recent models with lower mileage that were imported. Beware! Many thousands of cars were flood damaged in the US last year and there is a fair chance many of the late model imports are from that group. There have been many complaints about imported used cars. My advice is to steer clear of the ones you find on used car lots.

Mismatched tires can be an indication that the previous owner wasn't quite as attentive to maintenance as he should have been, or that the dealer bought it with bald tires and stuck on what was available. Tires shoud all be the same brand and size and show about the same amount of wear. Look for any sign of fresh paint or body work. Fresh paint usually indicates wreck damage. Some dealers will buy wrecked cars and have them repaired, usually as cheaply as possible. One car I looked at was missing most of the fasteners on the front fenders and grill, a sign of sloppy workmanship. Check the engine compartment. I usually pass on cars that have recently had the engines cleaned, because you can't tell much about a sparklingly clean engine. I prefer to see one that has a bit of dust and dirt on it, which makes it a lot easier to spot fluid leaks. Look underneath the car. There should be no oil or fluid puddles. Pull the engine and transmission dipsticks. If the engine oil is too dirty, the owner neglected regular services. Too clean on a high mileage car usually means the oil was changed recently. Take a flashilight with you on car hunts and you can look down the oil hole in the engine and see if there is any caked up oil deposits. A well cared for engine should be pretty clean inside even with over 100,000 miles on the odometer. Smell the transmission fluid (for automatics). If it has a burned smell, walk away. Check the brake and clutch pedals for wear. There should be only slight wear on a low mileage car, and with 100,000 miles you should see some bare metal on the brake and/or clutch pedals. If you find a car that shows fairly low mileage (30,000 to 50,000 miles) and has brand new brake and clutch pedals, be wary. This might indicate an odometer rollback.

Those are just a few things to look for, and after you've found what seems a good buy, spend a few bucks on a good mechanic and have him check the exhaust system, the engine, brakes, steering and engine mounts. Motor mounts take a beating on Panama's streets and replacements are not cheap. If the car is otherwise OK, but needs mounts, you should be able to talk the price down. If everything so far checks good, take the car to an A/C shop and have the system tested. Evaporator leaks are a very common problem and repairs run about $500.00 and up, so make sure the one you're buying isn't in need of repair.

Take your time, look around a lot, and don't believe everything the salesman tells you.

War with Cable and Wireless - Again

It has now been almost two weeks and Cable and Wireless still has not resolved my internet problem. The phone is working OK, and the noise level on the phone is barely audible, but internet speeds are terribly slow. As predicted, the POTS (Plain Old Telephone System) guys say there is no problem because the phone works and I should contact the internet guys. The internet guys say I need to talk with the POTS guys because the trouble started when they changed the cable. Neither side wants to bother to see if they  can fix the problem. All they do is bounce it back and forth. Nora just told them that if they haven't fixed the problem by tomorrow, we are going to change service.

The website:

I'm a bit behind on the website this week, but later I will change the 'Services' page to reflect our new ability to cheauffer up to 8 of you around in one car. No  more 3 passenger limit!

Service and Assistance for Retirees Who Want to Live in Panama