It happens to all of us occasionally. Buying a lemon means you paid more then the can was worth. Typically, you have overlook other repair that need to be made or you focused so much on getting the right price, that you forgot about the cost of repairing the vehicle. When buying repo cars for sale at auctions you need to be especially vigilant. Although most newer repo cars are in fine condition, you should still take the time to carefully inspect each car prior to the auction when you are permitted to do so.
I bought a lemon twice. One time I bought a Nissan for $250. It ran and from the out side looked fine, I thought it just needed break. Come to find out, it also needed new rotor and drums. In addition, the radiator started leaking almost immediately after I bought it and their was a carbon monoxide leak somewhere in the cab. It had a few other minor problems as well. After putting 1500 into it, I ended up donating it. Another car a didn’t buy until after dark. It looked fantastic on the outside and was available for a reasonable price. Not wanting to loose the deal, I made sure to pick it up right away. It had small unrepairable oil leak, that expanded greatly after a long trip. It was to the point that I had to feed it a court of oil a day. It needed a new engine in less then 18 month and I ended up moving and having to sell it for one third of what I had paid for it.
By and far most of the cars I have bought haven’t been lemons. A few cars, I have driven for 20 to 40K and even sold them at a profit. The key to making a good investment is to have a lot of experience and to know exactly what you are looking for. Instead of saying, I just need a cheap car or a second car, it is better to say I want a ‘commuter car that get 25 mpg or better, better the 5 and 10 years old’ and this “ “ is my price range. Your more likely to find what you want if you know what you are looking for.
