Jacksonville
Used Cars – Pushing Your Buttons
By: Steve Kicklighter and Beth Kicklighter
Today we would like to talk about the third of our top ten
things we recommend you look for when purchasing your next pre-owned
vehicle. These ten items are not in any
particular order of importance, but are things we feel will help insure value
when shopping for a car and could prevent you from making a costly mistake.
Week Three: Power windows and door locks:
Believe it or not this is a part
of your vehicle that could add up to hundreds of dollars of repairs if not
properly inspected.
While the inspection process is as
simple as it gets, by simply checking each button to see if it is working
adequately, it requires thoroughness to inspect each and every switch or button
in a vehicle to insure they are working properly. For example:
While the right rear window switch located on the drivers control panel
may properly lower and raise that window it is possible that the switch located
at the right rear passenger seat may not lower and raise that window at
all. So the key here again is simply to
be thorough with your investigation in these areas. The repair can be as simple as repairing a
switch or be as costly as replacing a motor. If the car has power seats
installed make sure you check all directions including the lumbar support to
see if they are working properly.
These repairs shouldn’t prevent
you from buying a used car with these issues, but beware the costs could add up
if several of these problems are found. Testing all the switches in a used car
is a must including the a/c and radio. If you find out there are broken
switches, talk with the dealer to see if they are going to fix the problem
before you make the purchase.
Note: don’t forget to turn child locks off before
testing. Some vehicles are equipped with child locks to prevent the door from
being opened from the interior of the car. This is also the case with power
windows. Newer vehicles have a standard window lock option that prevents the
passengers from rolling down the car windows.
Some models can be terribly
expensive to replace window and door switches and motors. These repairs can add
up in a hurry.
Steve and Beth Kicklighter own and operate Kicklighter Auto
Sales in Jacksonville, Florida. To see more helpful hints, including
videos, go to http://jacksonville-used-cars.com
