Buying a Used Car in Winnipeg? See our Initial Used Car Checklist

We provided this “buying a used car checklist”, because buying a used can in Winnipeg (or anywhere for that matter!) can be stressful process. The more knowledge you have going into it, the more you will increase your enjoyment level of the buying process. This is the same checklist we use to buy cars, because we in fact are buyers first!  So, we are very familiar with the necessary things to check when buying a used car.

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1. Open the hood, check the oil level and condition.  It should be light to dark brown, black oil means it has not been changed in a while.

2. With engine cold & hood open, start the vehicle.  Listen for any unusual noises and also check the tail pipe for white & blue exhaust smoke.  

3. Interior Check - make sure these are all working:

• air conditioner
• all settings of the heater
• power windows
• power locks
• power mirrors
• power seats
• heated seats
• radio, cd player, dvd player
• power doors
• power hood
• power roof

4. Body Check
Open the doors and check the bottom seam position, check for rust.  Repeat this process for the hood and trunk check the rubber, taillights, headlights, to see if areas have paint overspray.  This could be to cover something small such as a scratch, or could be from something much more significant.

5. Tire Check
To check the condition of the tires, you can run your finger between the tread.  Every tire has what they call a wear bar.  The tread should be at least a ¼ inch above that bar.  Also check for cracking between the treads.

6. Test Drive
Take the vehicle for a drive.  You should drive over bumpy roads, drive in high speed & city traffic and listen for any unusual noise coming from the engine, shocks, tires, front & rear ends.