Time for a "new" vehicle! - Advice Needed

AprilZ81

We've known for awhile that DH's 2006 Saturn Vue was due to be replaced, it is pushing 100,000 miles, is pretty beat up inside and out (mostly cosmetic) and is starting to have a lot of issues with vibrations and weird sounds.

I drove it for the first time in a long time this weekend while my Mom was with me (and she is very MM minded herself) and we were both feeling a little uneasy about driving the car and couldn't think about putting a baby in this SUV.

Current Situation:

Debt - Mortgage and $5,000 left on a HELOC (minimum payment $75/month, currently paying $300/month)

We are both working full time, we are expecting our first baby in January ($3,000ish in delivery costs and OB care), currently fully max out our ROTHs, put $600 a month into general savings and save for Christmas, Vacation and other "slush fund" type items each month.

We are still working out the details and cost of child care.  I work from home so I would like to have someone come to our house (mother's helper type person) that wouldn't be as expensive as a nanny but would allow us more flexibility and time savings.  I'm guessing that it will be about $700 or so for childcare at a minimum so that will mean we will need to adjust our budget pretty significantly.

I hate car payments, but I hate the thought of having an unsafe vehicle more.  My thought is to take money out of savings (currently about $19,000 liquid and about $6,000 in a mutual fund) to pay off the HELOC and then take a little more out of savings for a down payment on a new/used car and turn the HELOC payment into our car payment.

We are postponing our bathroom remodel due to health issues with our contractor and not being able to find another one that is even close to that cost, so while I'm disappointed, I'm okay with using our bathroom funds for a safe SUV.  

We are likely going to get a substantial tax refund ($6-8,000) next year and at least $2,000 for a bonus for DH, possibly a lot more.  This would be available to either pay down the car more or replenish the savings account for the remodel.

We know we want a small SUV/crossover type vehicle for the storage.  We take frequent trips out of town to visit family and it just makes life easier.  

What would you guys do?

LillibetteV

I would compare the interest rates on the HELOC to what you can get for a car loan and then either pay off the HELOC and take on a car payment, or pay cash for a new to you car and keep the HELOC depending on which rate is lower. 

I would also adjust your withholdings so you don't get such a large refund so that you can have more money in your monthly budget. 

brij2006

I know my advice is going to be totally different than most, but you asked what we would do. ;-)

I personally would bring the SUV to a repair shop and get an estimate to repair it to what you feel like is a "safe" standard.  If that amount is over a few thousand then I would look at replacing it with a vehicle in the range that you can pay cash for it.


Honestly, my personal thoughts and opinions are that you can never have too much in the bank when bringing a child into this world, and I never get emotional about vehicle safety.  I know there are tons of safety testing and standards out there and vehicle 1 can be called "not as safe" as vehicle 1, but really as long as a vehicle rides and drives then there's no "need" to go out and buy a new vehicle due to having a child.  *I know this is very debatable, this is just my thoughts.*  We personally brought DD home from the hospital in a *gasp* $3,000 2006 Mazda 6 that we paid cash for. It needed $1,000 worth of work done to it 1 month after we bought it.  We actually purchased that when we were pregnant with DD and got rid of a car payment and $13,000 2011 Nissan Altima.  We had a family member who is in debt up to their eyeballs guilt trip us with this.  Telling us it was an unsafe vehicle and how could we dare take our child home in it.  Um, it still had side curtain airbags and latch.  Just as safe as the 2011 Nissan. 

So I would try to fix the existing vehicle.  There really is nothing wrong with a vehicle with 100k miles on it.  If that is going to cost close to or more than it is worth, then I would try to find something within a reasonable range that is used and won't mean having a car payment.  If that $19k in savings includes your emergency fund, then I would subtract that as well as the $3k you have for medical expenses, and work with what is left plus whatever you will get for selling the Saturn.

However, I would actually wait to do all of this until after baby is home and everything is good and all medical bills from that are paid for.  This is the time to have as much cash in savings as possible, just in case.  There's a lot that can go wrong between now and then and the last thing you want to think about is how you're going to pay for X or Y expenses or how you're H is going to take more time off than originally planned.   
A baby also changes a lot of things.  You may find that if you hire a mothers helper, you never put baby in your H's car.  We found that out with H.  DD rides in his vehicle maybe once a month. 

Again, I know my opinion is very debateable and not the norm.  I personally just fight back from the societal norm that you have to have a brand new SUV in order for your children to be "safe" in a vehicle.

Xstatic3333

I agree with @Lillebette, but depending on the interest rate you can get on an auto loan and how it fits into your overall budget, I would consider financing the whole thing and sticking to your current plan with the HELOC, perhaps with the intention of making a lump sum payment to reduce your debt load once the baby is here.  You have a great liquid savings buffer, but for me, something about having a baby on the way is just making me want to hoard cash for all of the unknowns.  I'm also not especially averse to low-interest debt, so that colors my opinion.  

I do think upgrading is definitely justified in your situation and that you have plenty of money to do it.  

Edit-Phrasing

Edit #2-Horrible grammar

jtmh2012

brij2006 said:

Again, I know my opinion is very debateable and not the norm.  I personally just fight back from the societal norm that you have to have a brand new SUV in order for your children to be "safe" in a vehicle.

Probably one of the few areas that you and I actually agree on.
The primary car I drive now is just shy of 150,000 miles and is a 2008.  The vehicle before that was 300,000 miles and over 25 yrs old.  However, vehicles do need to be maintained.

Also, I'm guessing everyone on here is at least 20, if not older.  I'm almost 40.  I was brought home from a hospital in a 1979 Surburban.  I've lived to tell about it.  Yes, newer vehicles are safer.  But a 2016 vehicle being safer than a 2002 does not necessarily mean the 2002 is a death trap.  Heck, my 2002 is in better condition than my 2008 right now.

hoffse

Xstatic3333 said:

I agree with @Lillebette, but depending on the interest rate can you get on an auto loan and how it fits into your overall budget, I would consider financing the whole thing and sticking to your current plan with the HELOC, perhaps with the intention of making a lump sum payment to reduce your debt load once the baby is here.  You have a great liquid savings buffer, but for me, something about having a baby on the way is just making me want to hoard cash for all of the unknowns.  I'm also not especially averse to low-interest debt, so that colors my opinion.  

I do think upgrading is definitely justified in your situation and that you have plenty of money to do it.  

Edit-Phrasing

I agree with this.  You might be surprised by rates.  I was seeing 1-1.5% rates for car loans recently, which is basically free given the inflation rates.  The rate on your HELOC will be higher than that.

I would not sell any investments in order to pay cash.  Any car you buy for your daily driver will be a depreciating asset, and this is a large reason why I prefer to do a low-interest loan.  

Cars are an area where I am not super MM.  Safety is primarily dependent on the driver, but if you can afford passive safety upgrades then it makes sense to me to do that.  I have had my car for 10 years, and we will be replacing it at the end of the year.  It's in fine shape, but it's time for a change.  The newer models have been redesigned for certain types of crashes, and we will buy whatever trim level we need to buy in order to have blind spot sensors, automatic braking, etc.  

Also, I will totally acknowledge that I prefer nicer vehicles.  It does not bother me at all to spend extra on a car that will be low-maintenance with nice features.  If I am keeping that car for a decade, then I want to enjoy it.  That means it will have a sunroof.    

People have wildly different philosophies on car ownership though.   

cbee817

DH and I got new vehicles last year and this year- 0.9% and 1.49%. My cousin bought a brand new explorer last year and got 0% for 5 years.. the rates on new vehicles are crazy low. 

short+sassy

I'll be a mix of some of the other PPs.  If the 2006 Saturn Vue could be fixed and the repair isn't more than half (or so) of its value and would add good life, I'd consider fixing it.

But then, I'm also not opposed to a low interest loan for a car, especially since I keep them for as long as possible.  That sounds like your all's philosophy also.

Especially with the baby coming, though.  I'd be more inclined to take a car loan out for most of it.  Then, once the dust settles for hospital bills and childcare help, re-evaluate the best way for paying the car loan down.  @hoffse makes a good point.  Most car loans, for a new car, are going to be a lower interest rate than for a HELOC.

vlagrl35

I tend to agree with BRIJ - 100k miles is really not that bad.  My car is a 2003 and has 162k and DHs is also a 2003 and has 215k.  I know you feel unsafe but I would take it to get a diagnosis and a quote - put the repairs in order of importance and knock them out 1 at a time.  Now if the repair bill is gawdly expensive then maybe its better to look for a newer used car.

als1982

I agree with @brij2006 and @vlagrl29, that a car with 100,000 miles is fine.   I would also hang onto it, but if you're really set against it.  I'd take the $19,000, hold back $3,000 for L&D, pay off the HELOC, and then put the rest towards a used car.  You can find a perfectly safe car for $11,000.

smerka

I just traded in my 2004 Vue for a 2016 Odyssey. I would wait but for a different reason. Once baby comes you will have a better idea of how much stuff comes with a baby. In those early years I REALLY wished I had a minivan with the sliding doors because the Vue was kind of a PITA with infant carrier. I wound up getting pregnant again right away. If I had been in car buying mode then I would have kicked myself for not getting the minivan. Your Vue might just need new tires or something relatively easy to make it feel 'safe'.  I'm also assuming you have a newer car. 

smerka

Interest rates are pretty low right now. I got .9% for 60 months (it will be paid off long before that). Used vehicles through the dealer would have been 2.9%. They started at 4.99%. We decided to go new so I didn't even mess with looking around for other rates. 

smetter04

We actually just decided to trade in my 2002 Chevy Malibu for a 2016 crossover. Like you @AprilZ81, the 2002 needs multiple fixes that would add up to be more than the car was worth, and it doesn't feel safe. We are also looking at starting a family in the next year and need the space. Heck, we need the cargo space even without kids - we've borrowed my mom's van so many times for our DIY home projects. Anyway, we looked at buying a used crossover but honestly, crossovers keep their value so well that buying new isn't that much more expensive, and comes with a lower interest rate (we're looking at 0.9% for 60 months, to be paid off long before that). And, we ended up liking the features on the new cars (i.e. smart entry sounds amazing while towing kids and groceries). We haven't actually purchased the new car yet - will probably be this week. But, for perspective, this is the decision we've come to.

AprilZ81

I drive a 2011 Chevy Cruz (paid for, bought used and only has 48,000 miles on it).  We have no intention of selling mine because it is a great car and paid for.

Kelly Blue Book value is about $2,000 on DH's Vue (and that might be generous depending on what exactly is wrong with it) so it wouldn't take much for the cost of repairs to be not worth the investment.

Our car philosophy is to buy the best deal we can (usually a gently used vehicle), pay it off as soon as we can and then drive it until we have reason to believe it needs replaced.  Neither one of us are "get a new car every four years" type of people.

My sister has a mini-van and is trying to talk us into that, but she also has three kids (5 and 3 year old twins) and I feel like jumping straight to a minivan is a bit much for us, even though we are considering a second child.

With our credit rating Honda is offering 0.9% interest on a new vehicle (we are considering the CRV) and I didn't check on their rates on a used vehicle.  Our HELOC is a 3.5% variable rate (give or take a half percent) so it would make more sense to pay off the HELOC with the cash on hand and then have a loan for the car.

Some of the lower mileage used CRV's I saw online were "only" about 5-6,000 less than brand new so it might make sense to buy new for the lower interest rate and lower mileage.  Some of the used ones had 40,000 miles on it and they were still asking $23k with a brand new one listed at $28k.

We are not debt averse when it makes sense (aka no interest/super low interest).

If I felt DH's car was safe we would be keeping it for another year or two and we want to get an SUV for the storage capacity more than safety.  It is nice to have a vehicle that you can take to Lowe's/Home Depot and put 10 bags of mulch in the back and head on home.  The safety is a nice feature, but we do use his SUV to haul larger purchases several times a month.

smerka

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

als1982

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

AprilZ81

als1982 said:

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

Is there any liability for selling it yourself as long as we disclose any known issues?  I wouldn't want someone to sue us if something breaks or if they are in  an accident.

als1982

AprilZ81 said:

als1982 said:

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

Is there any liability for selling it yourself as long as we disclose any known issues?  I wouldn't want someone to sue us if something breaks or if they are in  an accident.

http://www.dmv.org/buy-sell/selling-your-car/release-of-liability.php

We we were meticulous in keeping track of maintenance and noted that on our listing, as well as specifically pointed out any known issues and took photos of visible dents and scratches.  I also kept the physical records of repairs, but offered the buyers a copy.  

You'll need to print out the right paperwork, but its definitely worth the minimal effort.  Also it's pretty easy to weed out the Craig's List flakes by how they communicate.  And don't list during the week so that you can avoid taking time off work to meet people.  Post your listing on Friday night or Saturday morning.

AprilZ81

als1982 said:

AprilZ81 said:

als1982 said:

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

Is there any liability for selling it yourself as long as we disclose any known issues?  I wouldn't want someone to sue us if something breaks or if they are in  an accident.

http://www.dmv.org/buy-sell/selling-your-car/release-of-liability.php

We we were meticulous in keeping track of maintenance and noted that on our listing, as well as specifically pointed out any known issues and took photos of visible dents and scratches.  I also kept the physical records of repairs, but offered the buyers a copy.  

You'll need to print out the right paperwork, but its definitely worth the minimal effort.  Also it's pretty easy to weed out the Craig's List flakes by how they communicate.  And don't list during the week so that you can avoid taking time off work to meet people.  Post your listing on Friday night or Saturday morning.

His SUV has a lot of scrapes and scratches and minor dents.  Those along with the TBD mechanical work makes me wonder if it is worth the hassle.  

Thanks for the info, it is good to know!

jtmh2012

My wife's car had a blown transmission.  I listed it on a Sunday morning and it was leaving my driveway two hours later.  There's people out there who find cars that need repairs, fix them, and sell them.

cbee817

Just be careful with Honda CRV's back window- it is super small and once you have a booster seat in there, you can't see anything. (I test drove a 2015 and put DD#1's Britax booster in there.. it was really bad)

brij2006

jtmh2012 said:

My wife's car had a blown transmission.  I listed it on a Sunday morning and it was leaving my driveway two hours later.  There's people out there who find cars that need repairs, fix them, and sell them.

Yup.  My husband brings in an extra $200-1,000/month by doing exactly this.  He has notification alerts for all the surrounding Craigslist ads and has it alert him if something like this comes up.  Something like April's Saturn he would consider depending on what she says it's doing. 


We've had a lot of luck selling cars on Craigslist.  That's exactly how my H resells the cars he buys and fixes.  As long as you price it right, we've never had one sit around for more than a week after we list.

julieanne912

I won't chime in on most of this, because my opinion on cars is not MM at all.  

However, I just purchased a new one (again, not MM at all), and was impressed with the financing options with Ford.  They had 0 interest for 60 months, 1.9% for 72 months.  To me, if you decide you want a brand new car, it makes more sense to just get the car loan at 0% interest and pay it off as fast as you can, than it does to borrow from your HELOC to pay cash for a car, or even to put down a huge downpayment on one (unless you need to to be able to afford the payment).  

short+sassy

AprilZ81 said:

als1982 said:

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

Is there any liability for selling it yourself as long as we disclose any known issues?  I wouldn't want someone to sue us if something breaks or if they are in  an accident.

My "Judge Judy" advice, so take it for what it is worth, lol.  Used cars, especially from private parties, are always an "as is" sale.  If the car breaks down as they are literally driving away after the sale, it's still a done deal.

Potential caveats to that are if you all choose to give some kind of warranty (which would be nuts).  If you all lie about something in regards to the vehicle, like saying the motor is only 2 years old and it is really 3+ years old.  Or if, for some reason, it can't be registered or pass an inspection (if there are inspections in your area).  And even the inspection thing usually has to be within a fairly short time frame of the person buying the car.

You actually don't even have to disclose anything.  Even problems you know about.  Though, if they asked that specific question, you do have to tell the truth about it.  However, I'm the kind of person I'd rather just tell buyers X,Y,Z are wrong with the car.  Then they are forewarned and I (hopefully) won't get an angry phone call later on.

Anyone can sue you for anything but, worse case scenario, a malfunctioning used car would be a small claims case.  Which you'd probably win and it would just cost you a bit of hassle and a really boring morning or afternoon of your time.

julieanne912

And yes, for decent vehicles, the spread between a low mileage used and a new one is not very much, especially if you buy a 2016 right now.  I got my new vehicle at an incredible price because it was a 2016 with 400 miles on it... still considered new, but definitely something they wanted to unload since they were already getting 2017 models.  

I test drove a used version of the car I bought, it was 2 years old and had 25,000ish miles on it.  It also already had some dings and scratches.  It was only listed 4k less than I paid for my brand new one with a full warranty, and as others have mentioned, we got a way better rate for the new one than a used one.  Dealers can also work better deals on new cars vs used.  Used cars are about the $$ amount, since they don't want to lose money on them.  New cars are about volume.... the manufacturer gives a dealership a bonus if they sell X number of new cars... not based on the $$ amount.

AprilZ81

julieanne912 said:

I won't chime in on most of this, because my opinion on cars is not MM at all.  

However, I just purchased a new one (again, not MM at all), and was impressed with the financing options with Ford.  They had 0 interest for 60 months, 1.9% for 72 months.  To me, if you decide you want a brand new car, it makes more sense to just get the car loan at 0% interest and pay it off as fast as you can, than it does to borrow from your HELOC to pay cash for a car, or even to put down a huge downpayment on one (unless you need to to be able to afford the payment).  

We won't be borrowing from our HELOC for this no matter what. If we go the route of a new/used car we will be paying cash to pay off the remaining balance of the HELOC so we don't have two debt payments going at once (not counting our mortgage of course). I hate long drawn out car payments (even at 0% interest) so I try to finance no more than 3 years which puts most new cars out of reach due to our savings goals and other expenses. One time I financed for 4 years and still had it paid off early. The down payment would be to keep the monthly payment manageable without draining our savings.

hoffse

One thing to consider on the trade-in vs. private sale is taxes.  In some states a trade-in lowers the base cost that you are being taxed on during the sale.  So you buy a $25,000 car, your trade-in is $5,000 and you are taxed on $20,000 instead of $25,000.

Whereas if you sold that car to a private party, you net $5,000 but you are taxed on the entire $25,000 from the dealer.

Obviously this varies from state to state, and it also depends on your state's tax rate and how much more you can get out of the car in a private sale.  However, it's worth running the numbers to see what you would need to get in a private sale to break even, if your state has this rule.

EDIT: elaboration.

brij2006

short+sassy said:

AprilZ81 said:

als1982 said:

smerka said:

We dealt with the exact same thing at Honda. The slightly used ones were not that much cheaper and the finance rate on the used ones was triple. In fact a 2015 Odyssey with 8,000 miles on it was $2,000 more than the new one we got. My 2004 Saturn Vue with 127,000 miles was worth $1,500 at the dealer and $1,200 at CarMax. They mentioned that because Saturn is OOB, that people were hesitant to buy them for the lack of parts. Once you put car seat in the back seat, it sort of becomes useless. Especially if you put it in the middle which is safest for baby. Even my 40/60 split would not fold down anymore.  And taking a car seat in and out sucks. I am always nervous I put it back wrong. 

You should definitely sell your used cars yourself.  We just sold our 2001 Honda Accord with 210,000 miles and 2000 Toyota Corrolla with 165,000 for $2,000 each on Craig's List.  The Honda took one day to sell and the Toyota, two HOURS. 

Is there any liability for selling it yourself as long as we disclose any known issues?  I wouldn't want someone to sue us if something breaks or if they are in  an accident.

My "Judge Judy" advice, so take it for what it is worth, lol.  Used cars, especially from private parties, are always an "as is" sale.  If the car breaks down as they are literally driving away after the sale, it's still a done deal.

Potential caveats to that are if you all choose to give some kind of warranty (which would be nuts).  If you all lie about something in regards to the vehicle, like saying the motor is only 2 years old and it is really 3+ years old.  Or if, for some reason, it can't be registered or pass an inspection (if there are inspections in your area).  And even the inspection thing usually has to be within a fairly short time frame of the person buying the car.

You actually don't even have to disclose anything.  Even problems you know about.  Though, if they asked that specific question, you do have to tell the truth about it.  However, I'm the kind of person I'd rather just tell buyers X,Y,Z are wrong with the car.  Then they are forewarned and I (hopefully) won't get an angry phone call later on.

Anyone can sue you for anything but, worse case scenario, a malfunctioning used car would be a small claims case.  Which you'd probably win and it would just cost you a bit of hassle and a really boring morning or afternoon of your time.

All of this.  When we resell vehicles on Craigslist it is as-is.  Both my H and the buyer sign a bill of sale that states what date the vehicle was purchased and that it was purchased in as-is condition.  My H is very truthful about them though.  If it's making a weird noise or something doesn't work, he says it.  He had a Cadillac he flat out put in the listing that the engine was knocking.  He listed it for under book value and sold it in a few hours.  That person knew what they were getting and signed the as-is bill of sale.


In general though, you can get more from selling it private party.  Especially if you're under the $10,000 range.