1) Check the Car’s Condition:
Once you've chosen a car, it's important to look into the small details before making a decision to buy. If you know a lot about how a car works on the inside, you can look at it yourself or ask a trusted mechanic for help. From the outside, things might look fine, but a skilled mechanic will be able to tell if there was a cover-up on the outside and if the engine and other parts are worth the price.
Before you buy a used car in India, here's a list of things to check and look at to make sure it's in good shape.
1) Interior
Take a look at the car's upholstery. Look for tears or stains on the front and back seats. If the car has electronic features like a music system, a monitor, etc., try them out to see if they work.
2) Exterior
Look at the car carefully from all sides. At first glance, things might look fine, but a closer look might show something different. Look out for rust and damaged paint.
3) Framing: It's important to look at the car closely, but taking a step back and looking at how the car is built can also tell you a lot about it. Check to see if the car is balanced and if there is anything loose near the undercarriage.
4) Tires: The tyres can be in good or bad shape, depending on how they are used. You can see if the wear and tear on all of the tyres are the same. If the tyres aren't worn down evenly, it can cause alignment problems, which can cause the car to drift in one direction.
5) Engine
It is recommended to look at the engine carefully. Look for leaks, rust, and cracked or broken tubes. Also, use a dipstick to check the oil and the fluid in the transmission.
6) Distance
Even if the car isn't too old, if it has a lot of mileage problems, it could be a sign of bigger problems. Talk to the seller in detail about how many miles the car has been driven, as it is hard to tell at a glance.
7) Test Drive
Test driving the car will tell you a lot about how well it runs. Make it a point to drive the car on a highway, on narrow streets, make U-turns, etc., and pay special attention to the brakes. Driving the car for a long time will give you an idea of how fast it goes, how well it handles, and how well its suspension works.
2) Service Records:
Some car owners keep service records very carefully. those receipts will be having dates and times. On the other hand, some owners don't think about keeping records very much. They remember how many times they visited the service center and what kind of service they took.
Talk to the seller in detail about how the car has been taken care of in the past. If you get records of maintenance, you can follow them based on how you want to use them. If you get a verbal history of the car, you can figure out how much service it needs.
3) Check Registration Certificate:
Make sure the registration certificate for the car is real. It will have the name of the owner and information about the car, like the engine number, chassis number, etc. The certificate should be genuine. It will be marked as DRC if it is a duplicate. In that case, you should talk to the seller about the DRC status and find out where the car was registered. If you move to a different state, you have to register your car with that state's Regional Transport Office (RTO). After you buy the car, your name should be on the registration certificate.
When buying a used car, you also need to check the original proof of purchase, proof of insurance, road tax receipt, and pollution certificate. If the car was financed, NOC from the company that did the financing is also important. Note that if you change the size of the engine or the color of the car, you need to write it down on the registration certificate.
4) Car Insurance:
When you buy a used car, the old insurance needs to be changed over to the name of the new owner. If the seller doesn't take care of it, it's up to the buyer to make sure it gets transferred. If the car insurance isn't changed to the new owner's name and the car gets into an accident or something else bad, there could be legal problems.
Also, the insurance needs to be checked to see how much it covers. You need to find out if the active insurance policy is a Third-party Liability policy or a Comprehensive policy. If you think you need to strengthen your current insurance policy, you can think about the right car insurance add-ons when you renew.
You can also buy a new policy for yourself by canceling the one you already have. In India, it is forbidden to drive without valid car insurance, so make sure you have at least the required Third-party policy. The other option is to buy a Comprehensive policy that will cover a wide range of Own Damage costs.
5) Transfer of No Claim Bonus:
This is related to car insurance. NCB is a reward. It's a reward for not filing a claim during the policy period. So, it's called a "No Claim Bonus" (NCB). When you renew the Comprehensive insurance on your car, this bonus can get you a discount. This kind of bonus goes to the person who owns the car, not to the car. The No Claim Bonus can be transferred from an old car to a new car owned by the same person, but it can't be transferred from a seller to a buyer. So, it can be taken into account when the owner sells the car they used to own and buys a new one.
For example, if you are selling your current car and then buying a new one, this can help you save money on used cars. If you have 50% NCB, you could end up saving a lot of money on your car insurance. You can figure out and write down that amount when making a budget for the full coverage insurance policy for your new car.
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