Steering clear of bad used cars, even on a budget - Boston Globe (subscription)
Consumer Reports has long advocated buying used as a way to get the biggest bang for your buck. It’s simple math: After one year, a new car has depreciated 27 percent of its sticker price. But picking out a good used car has never been easy. Add in the desire to avoid a car that has been damaged, and the process can feel overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be. Consumer Reports created this handy guide to help you find the small cars, sedans, and SUVs most likely to fulfill your needs without breaking down and soaking you in repair bills. Every vehicle on this list performed well in its tests when it was new and has had above-average reliability for the model years shown, based on Consumer Reports’ latest Annual Auto Survey. Here are some of the used cars Consumer Reports would recommend to family and friends. Less than $10,000 SUVs : Lexus GX (2006-2007). Nissan Murano (2011-2012). Used car disasters It’s every used-car buyer’s nightmare: getting a rebuilt wreck despite doing research. About 20 percent of cars on the road have some sort of accident damage, according to Carfax, a service that provides vehicle history reports. But a 2009 Consumer Reports investigation showed that reports from Carfax can’t catch everything. Source: www.bostonglobe.com
