Should I get a 2020 used Civic inspected and dealer finance it?

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May 2, 2025 at 5:46 pm #151 Reply
Monica
If I’m buying a 2020 certified used Honda Civic for my 17-year-old from a Honda dealership, do I need to have an independent mechanic check it out? It’s one owner, 50,000 miles, $20,000.

I’ve been told by friends it’s better to finance through the dealership. I bank at a credit union and my credit card app keeps telling me I’m approved for an auto loan, as of a couple weeks ago. Do I go with the best terms or is there a reason to dealer finance? He’s got $11,000 saved, he’ll be making the payments but the car and loan will be in my name. His car won’t make it until his 18th birthday in October, when he’d be able to finance his own. Should he put down what they’re asking for down? Or should he put down like $9000?

I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve made it to age 60 without ever having financed a car. Well, I did have a buy here/pay here for ~6 months until my first husband got arrested for bank robbery and I could drive his paid off car. But I’ve always gotten cars through love or luck, I’ve had great luck with beaters from the side of the road over the years and cars have fallen into my lap, incouding a brand new one as a relocation bonus for a job. But I’m trying to teach my kiddo right. He’s already got a decent credit score because I put him on my cards.

Thanks for any help offered.
May 2, 2025 at 5:49 pm #152 Reply
John
My advice for what it’s worth:

1. Always plan to let the dealership (a real one not buy here pay here dealer) find your financing. Your bank or credit union may have a better deal and it’s easy to change over once vehicle is in your possession, but the dealership will make a better price for you (sometimes even a loss) if they’re think they’re making money off the financing. It just speeds things along.

2. A factory certified car really doesn’t need an independent inspection. I mean it’s not wrong thinking, but they all use a long inspection list to ensure it qualifies and usually has a good warranty too that will cover anything for you.

3. If he had $11,000 yes only putting 75% down means he keeps a reserve in case he needs to change jobs etc he can still cover costs.

4. This loan setup won’t do anything to help your son build credit. Maybe apply for a low limit credit card from Shell for instance with both your names. He can use it for gas and budget to pay balance each month and build credit slowly.
May 2, 2025 at 5:50 pm #153 Reply
Kevin
NEVER finance through a dealership- they have all of the local rates available to them same as you but they add a half to 1 percent to make money off the deal.

Also I’d put the full 11k down- less money financed is less interest paid- ALWAYS.

Call up your favorite credit union and go get a loan directly though them. If it’s too big a hassle, get what you can in finance ant the dealership, and immediately go refinance it at the credit union- they do this all the time and most times there is little to no fees to do so- especially if you are an existing customer. Worth the hassle every time. They all publish their rates on their webpage for used car loans so do some homework, plan on a bit more paperwork, and you will save big time.
May 2, 2025 at 5:51 pm #154 Reply
John
I must respectfully disagree with John Hughs. Always get a used car inspected before purchase. Never rely on a dealer warranty to take care of any issues. If there is a problem, you could be without your car for months. Also, if the car has a problem that is found at inspection, that problem affects the value of the vehicle. If youndo not know about it, you will overpay.

As far as financing is concerned, take the best deal, but make sure you read the financing contract and understand all of the details. On used cars, it is very rare to get a better deal from a dealer than you get from a credit union, because the dealer will typically tale a markup over what a financial institution will charge. Sometimes a dealer will be able to offer a better deal on financing on a new car because of special financing programs through the manufacturer.
May 2, 2025 at 5:52 pm #155 Reply
Monica
I posted this yesterday and it just got approved. Literally moments after driving off the lot with my son’s new car. I’ll still take anything you have to throw at me though. Thanks.
May 2, 2025 at 5:52 pm #156 Reply
Brenden
You will almost always get a better rate through a credit union. I’d go that route. Always have a mechanic inspect a vehicle before you buy it because dealerships are great at band-aiding issues to make a sell.
May 2, 2025 at 5:53 pm #157 Reply
T.s.
My relatives have made car parts for decades. They say that car companies mostly make money on the repairs and the financing as it is much harder to increase the cost of a car due to marketing forces. Switching to a credit union after purchase is a good idea.
May 2, 2025 at 5:54 pm #158 Reply
Paula
Credit unions are better because they offer lower interest rates. Don’t know why someone would rather thru the dealership unless they have bad credit cause they will look hard to find a bank that’ll finance it for you. As for the down payment, if he didn’t give everything he has, he should give as much as possible, so he doesn’t pay too much interest.
May 2, 2025 at 5:54 pm #159 Reply
Michael
Is always better to keep a good sum of cash as a back up, to make a payment if need or buy tires, or any emergency it is always better to keep a good amount of cash & make payments higher or longer, when one has no cash saved you loose a lot of flexibility to deal with any problem that comes along if you are broke, a good vehicle does not fix that although it helps some to have good transportation,
May 2, 2025 at 5:55 pm #160 Reply
ACommentor
Yup. 9k down, choose the shorter payment period (less interest) put his other 3k into payments so he has a cushion incase he can’t make one, then continue to pay monthly.

However, I’d recommend the Civic SI, the manual trans will last longer just an overall better design plus things like limited slip front differential make it much better for bad road conditions.
May 2, 2025 at 5:56 pm #161 Reply
Dominick
For $11k go find a good used car with low miles on marketplace or find one for like $5k-$7500 keep the rest to fix what the car need later in future if u get a low mile car you’ll be good for a while if you look enough you’ll find great deals I got my 1st car for $3800 Chrysler 300 with 105k miles on it no issues ran great then my 1st 4×4 was a 1st gen dodge Durango with 130k miles for $1400 was outta registration a few months and 4×4 didn’t work due to linkage fixed within a week had 4×4 had for a year only issue I had was power steering pump very normal for a vehicle with 130k+ miles.
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Should I get a 2020 used Civic inspected and dealer finance it?

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