More on USED CAR BUYING

If I had a dime for every time a person told me a defective car was in "great shape" I'd be rich.
I've had a lot of vehicles here (Currently own 3) and for every nice one I find, I look at 100 that I wouldn't take for free. (OK, maybe 4-5 if they were free)
People here will tell you a vehicle is in great shape even though you're standing there looking at it and it's a clunker.

the thing is that you know how to pick a car. i have seen pictures of your stable, and that is primo stuff.

there are certain cars i would not touch. if i go to look at a car, and the seats have been reupholstered, i have no interest. i do not need to tell you that the odometer will say 55,000 miles, yet it has had the seats redone.  also, when i open the hood, i do not want to see Armor All on a glistening engine. you are hiding something..

I deal with a mechanic that has no connection to the dealership and knows nothing about the that dealership. This mechanic in La Romana was referred to me by an expat who has lived in La Romana for 8 years and who has weeded her way thru mechanics over the years before finding this one.  He inspected the vehicle, test drove it, and advised me that the it was safe to proceed. He said the vehicle would need brake pads in the front end and that they had 25% left. It has been maintenance free since the purchase a year ago and I just replaced those front pads with him for $80.00

glad to know that you have a good mechanic on your side...they are not all a bunch of scam artists. i am just saying that you need to do some due diligence when you choose one..

This lesson can be extrapolated to almost everything here. A commission is almost normal and expected.

When  I first moved here- almost 16 years ago - I was referred to an investment house. I asked point blank was he getting paid for this. Oh no was the answer. It was a lie.  I got referred to someone about a vehicle. A mechanic.  A builder.  The list goes on. Always there was a hand out somewhere! 

In my business we provide quotes all the time.  Recently we were told the work was ours only IF we were willing to commission the head of maintenance!

Rest assured, when I refer anyone to any business that is not owned by me -.I do not earn a peso or a penny!  What I want is for people to get great service and products!   That includes Cruffman

Always ask about it. Understand the motive of the person who is referring or giving advice!

some months ago, i found a great SUV for a guy from Cabarete. although it checked all the boxes, he wanted to take it to his ''mechanic'', to check it out. i told him that my check far exceeded what his mechanic would do, but he still demanded a mechanic check. so, he and the seller made an appointment for the upcoming Saturday morning.

later that afternoon, the mechanic called the seller and told him not to worry about anything going wrong. for 10,000 pesos, he would say nothing but wonderful things about the car.

Yup!

in the DR, everything comes with a price. in this case, if the seller was unwilling to pay the price, the mechanic would have told the buyer that the car was on its last legs...

I recently purchased a used car after my 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe that I bought new in 2003 had served its 16 year purpose for me.  One that I wanted for my purposes, as a musician carrying stuff, is one  that few others would want, hence not too many of them for sale in the DR unlike the KIA/Hyundai explosion of used ones.

The vehicle was in good physical shape, but I noticed a problem at idle.  So I took it to a mechanic I trust.  (I was going to do that anyway).  He went through it with his very expensive diagnostic device (far more sophisticated than my OBD  scanner) and tested every possible system. The CarFax was excellent and confirmed that even the mileage on it seemed to be accurate. 

He said if they fix that idle problem , the vehicle is in otherwise great shape. The "agent" accompanying me did not speak to my mechanic, so there was no back door deal being made.  I was with the mechanic at all times during the inspections. The undercarriage was also excellent and he confirmed that it was never in an accident.

The dealer  did repair the idle problem and I purchased that vehicle after I confirmed the idle was normal and no codes were present after a long test drive.   

Hopefully I can get 10 years out of it.

much has been made on these and other pages regarding the usefulness of CARFAX as a  tool in the car buying process, wherever applicable. here is a little tip which one should bear in mind....if you are going to do a car search on your own, make sure you get your own CARFAX. do not rely on some dealer or private seller to present his or her own. my sources confirm my suspicion that there are guys who are falsifying these documents. this is, after all, the age of technology, and smart types can get computers to produce anything. if you are hell bent on a carfax, get the VIN number of the car which catches your fancy, and run your own. it is like 40USD, but it is worth it. there are guys in the DR who have subscriptions, and will run you one for 500 pesos...

I have a subscription for 5 and it wasn't expensive. Well worth it!

It is always like a Lottery to deal with Mechanics .
I have two Mechanics in Santiago and one in santo Domingo , one in San Pedro and unfortunately my Guy in Sosua had a heart attack so he is out . In San Pedro de Macoris if someone Search for an electrician search for : "el Cirugano " People know why they gave him this Name . In Santiago my Blood brother has been Mechanic of the Route "C" and he did brig me in Contact to the Best of the Best coming to mechanic parts of the Vehicle . since I have met him he did take care of My starter did clean it replaced some items and did charge me 800 Pesos Now 4 Years later he did replace again some parts .I am driving a Mitsubishi Montero from 2001 I did buy used and the "mechanic" who told me in Puerto Plata this Car is ok had have gotten some for it to be so blind , but when we came around there Things have been very quick made out . So i have this car now for 4 Years Still low Maintenance . The same guy did work on my 1992 Mazda 626 a real nice vehicle but pretty difficult to find parts he did repair so many parts and did hold my Car in shape for 8 years till I sold it . When using a mechanic go and inform yourself what the Part could cost and may ask two different mechanics about the labor . if you go to mechanic in a big garage you have to pay the mechanic and you have to pay the Owner and if they are very big there are 3 People earning money on the Repair also keep that in Mind . And here comes it again if you are living in a society without completely integrate you will always pay extra. Now in Days cars are so complicated that there are Specialists for the a/c Specialists for Electric and mechanic . The Brakes and the Car body more interior and sound . So only one mechanic is not doing it and it is always somehow a bit like lottery.