Cars
There are times when you can find great deals in life and buying a car from a mechanic can be one of those. It can also be a nightmare. Sometimes the reason a mechanic is selling a car is because the owner couldn't pay the bill. Other mechanics buy cheap broken cars to fix and resell. What you need to figure out is what kind of business does this person run.
There are proper ways to fix any car and quick fixes to get it back on the road. Every mechanic knows these tricks it's up to you to find out which way they would go in this situation. Would they take the time to check the head for cracks and have it resurfaced before putting in a new head gasket. I have known people that will replace a blown head gasket with a new one and that's it. That new gasket in turn will blow back out not to far down the road.
Is the shop your buying the car from also a tow shop? If so why was the car towed? Did it break down or was the owner arrested? This makes a difference. It's better to buy a car that was towed for legal reasons than one that wasn't running. If your buying some pile that left a previous owner stranded you have to ask how many times did this happen before.
Ask the mechanic for service records. If they worked on it they'll have these for tax purposes. If they don't then just walk away. If they aren't responsible enough to keep up on the paper work are they responsible enough to repair a car properly? How long has the car been sitting? Check the tires for cracks. Rubber has to be used regularly to stay pliable. Start the car, take it for a test drive with the air conditioner blowing full blast. After the test drive bring it back to the shop and leave it running for at least ten minutes . Listen for the electric fan to turn on, if it doesn't why? Check the temperature after letting it idle for ten minutes it should be mid range on the gauge still. If not you are not going to want to drive this car in stop and go traffic. You will overheat.
If you take this advice and use it you will be looking a long time before you find a car that passes these standards. Most are not worth your time. maybe you'll find that diamond in the rough. Good luck.
