im contemplating these two cars and was wondering which you guys think is the better deal.

Car 1

2002 wrx 53k, 7yr/100k warranty, new tires with 1000 miles on them, 6 disc changer, the guys girlfriend drove off with the gas nozzle still in the gas tank so the cover is a little bent and there is a few dents and scratches in that area, pretty small dents though, and there are also a few cuts and scratches on the rear bumper, the guys roomate also got glue over one of the back floormats, he is also offering $600 in subaru dollars. the last maintaince done was the 30,000 mile besides regular oil changes. price is $14750

Car 2

2002 wrx 45k, no warranty, new tires with 2k on them, just had 45k mile maintaince done along with an alignment, nice pioneer deck, painted side skirts, prodrive springs, the only dents are on the rear quarter panel and they are small, the estimate was $175 from the Dingking to pull them out. price is $15,000

both cars are black and have never been modified and are clean title of coarse.

does anyone know if you can buy an extended warranty?

 

you're actually kinda lucky that you have a choice, it's tough to find 2 WRX's for sale same color, similar price, same area....

Here's the factors that I pick up from what I've heard
1) $600 in Subie bucks will probably about cover your 60K service, maybe get you a new set of floormats. Depending on your local dealership's pricing.
2) Car 1 makes me a little nervous. While 45K is a pretty minor maintence, it wasn't done. He lets his GF drive the car (sorry, I'm bitter, because mine just drove my WRX into an FX-56 last week), and lets his buddies mess around with glue in the backseat (lord knows what they were doing with glue....). Plus it seems to have lots of assorted dings and scratches, which, while insignificant of their own, may be indicative of a lack of respect for the car, especially when combined with slackened maintence. These cars last very well when properly maintained, but any turbo can be trouble if you don't take care of it.
3) price is pretty much equal, especially figuring $0.15 per mile for the mileage difference (lease depreciation rate).
4) regarding the warranty, figure out what level of warranty it is. If it's a "classic" or "powertrain", it's basically worthless. It has a lot of value though if it's a "gold +" or "Platinum" plan. Also figure out what the deductable, and transfer fee is.

What I'd do is call them both up, tell them that you're looking at another very similar car, and ask them both to reduce the price by $500. If the owner of car 2 does, buy it. If 1 does, but 2 doesn't, buy 1 (between the warranty, subie bucks, and almost $1000 cheaper, that becomes a better deal). If neither does, I'd go with #2 unless that warranty is a Platinum plan, then I'd go the other way.

Keep in mind that even a plantium plan won't cover stuff like brakes, clutches, or other "wear parts"
Hope this helps

 

It sounds like vehicle #2 is all around better shape. I'd see how much it would cost to buy an aftermarket/third party warranty on the vehicle, and then see if you can grind seller #2 down enough for that to make sense for you.

With all the "little" things wrong with vehicle #1, the "big picture" sounds like the guy doesn't take care of his car. Besides If you were planning on doing a deck and springs, don't forget to count those in as well. The fact that the owner of 2 has made some very minor modifications to the car shows that at the very least he/she was interested in the vehicle and probably cared for it moreso than the owner of vehicle #1

Chris

 

check for any discoloration on the rear bumper. Tell tale sign that the car was modified. Not trying to scare you, but be careful buying these cars. Make sure you go through it thoroughly.

 

i took number two for another test drive and checked it out a lot closer yesterday. it is a very clean car and i realized that it only has two very small dents. he was firm on the price (it was already 1600 below KBB) so i ended up getting it for 14.9k. i pick it up on monday. i checked into an extended warranty and its $1895 for a 4 year/ 48k platinum package which the guy said covers just about everything except for wear items. thanks for thee replies and ill post some pics when i get the car

 

aww man ok

 

Car #2 is the wise choice. with around 10k in miles under the 600 bucks wont matter. Plus, any guy that lets his g/f drive his car and do that i wouldnt buy from him. you never know who has ragged out his car other then the girl. Take the 2nd one or buy a black 03.

 

That warranty sounds expensive. I got mine from the dealership for $1700 and it is the gold warranty for 6 years or 100k miles. I bought my car used with 35k miles on it, and got the warranty at the same time.

 

it might be different because im buying the car from a private seller and his warranty was over at 30k. im guessing that because there had been a time that the car wasn't under warranty, that the price to put it back under warranty will be more expensive. it might also depend where you are located. in your in teh bay area though let me know the dealership you got it through

 

you're paying extra because your car was off warranty when you requested the extended quote. There's a significant discount on extended warranties for continuous coverage. @ 1800, I would pass. I got my Platinum 100K for $1100, but the car was still under factory @ the time. Plus, when you buy warranty at the same time as the car, you can negotiate a good deal on it, because the dealers make profit on warranty as well.

 

I got it at Diablo Mazda/Subaru in walnut creek. They are a very low pressure dealer and are easy to work with.