Car buyers need to do their homework

SAN JOSE, Calif. (MCT) — Are you in the market for a car or think you might be sometime soon? If so, there's a lot to sort out before you drive away in your new vehicle.

In today's car market, new-car manufacturers are offering an ever-changing array of incentives — but used cars have their attractions, too. Financing may be harder to get from auto dealers than it once was, but savings banks and credit unions can be good sources for loans.

Experts offer the following tips for would-be car buyers searching for a set of wheels.

Buy now or wait?

"Do you really need a new car right now, or is there a way to eke a few more months out of your old car?" said Eric Evarts, associate auto editor for Consumer Reports. If you've got an older car that lacks modern safety features, you're more likely to be in the market to buy a car. But repairing your old car may make more sense than replacing it, Evarts said.

When zero-down financing and easy credit terms ruled, a lot of people got used to buying a new vehicle when repairs on their current car got to be pesky. Still, Evarts said, "brake jobs aren't that expensive" compared with new-car expenses.

Even shelling out for a "catastrophic" repair like a $5,000 new engine might be wiser than buying another car, said Jack Gillis of the Consumer Federation of America, and author of "The Car Book." If you add up a 10 percent down payment on a new vehicle, plus higher insurance and monthly loan payments, he said, "It's very easy to eat up that $5,000 and you'll see how much more that new car will really cost you."

New or used?

If you really do need to buy a car, good deals abound on new models.

"There are some truly extraordinary values, compared to the manufacturer's suggested retail price," said Gillis of the Consumer Federation. With a new car, buyers can get more options in fuel economy (hybrids, for example), the latest safety and technology features, updated styles and no mystery stains on the floor mats.

Gillis said buyers looking for used cars in the $7,000 to $12,000 range — average for used cars, he said — might want to consider some new cars now selling at discount in that price range.

But there are plenty of good-quality used cars for sale these days, said Consumer Reports' Evarts.