advice buying a car

[terracore]

We'll be on island soon and have started the car shopping. Can anybody share their advice for car buying in Hawaii? Am considering both car lots and private party transactions.

[Bullwinkle]

if on the mainland I'd buy there and ship if spending more than 10k

lots of $2500.00 beaters out here if that is what you are looking for

- just my opinion - rust never sleeping out here......

[dwedeking]

I own one of the those $2,500 beaters. It's a situation that can work if you know your way around a tool box. Rust, hard roads (especially if you like exploring in the non-tourist areas) etc will work a car here. We were avid off roaders on the mainland and owned a built-up jeep. Not as much hardcore offroading that I can find here but it is nice to have the extra clearance and traction from a 4wd if you enjoy getting off the mainroads.

http://www.wedekingphotography.com

[Bullwinkle]

I love beaters - no issue if they rust, bend, scratch, smell and I can leave them at the airport (well as the wally world parking lot)

On the other hand.... working on them while rolling in cinder (been there done that) the pits

[dwedeking]

or driving from Kapaa to Waimea at 25mph because they're stuck in 4WD Low and the little nut to remove the motor and shift it manually is in a space too tight for normal size tools (had to go to ace and buy some child size sockets.) LOL

http://www.wedekingphotography.com

[Bullwinkle]

or being on the side of the road, hood open, raining like stink - trying to find a little rat eaten wire - that supplies the ignition.... great fun

[DTisme]

I highly recommend Hilo Mazda Subaru. Salesman Steve there is wonderful, and they totally didn't push the extras. Possibly one of the best car buying experiences I've ever had. Bought a used Focus from Big Island Toyota when we first got here and hated the experience - lots of games about price, high-pressure pushing of extras by a guy with gold chains around his neck, and when they handed us the keys, there was only one. We walked back in to tell them they needed to provide us with a 2nd key, duh, and they agreed. Had to wait a week for a check to cover the price. We had to go to the Ford dealer to get it made bc of the security thingie on the key - so bad experience at Toyota, good at Mazda.

Other experiences while shopping: Kama'aina Motors: they tried to sell us a PT Cruiser that was in Honolulu way over market price; salesman didn't know if they still made them (didn't know his product); no one to take us on a test drive and only a used one to drive. Honda dealer: no one wanted to help us; finally got a salesman who sorta shrugged that they didn't have the model we were interested in. Orchid Isle Ford: When we told the salesperson we'd just moved here, she said, "Fresh meat!" ha ha.

Next car will also be from Hilo Mazda, used or new.

[Carey]

As to what to get & such:
Rust is relative.... This island is much much better than upper midwest 'chemical treated' roads....by far THE WORST for anything metal. Our '02 had 3 winters of that before we moved, we still have the 3rd exhaust system (they only last a year or 2 in the 'rust belt'), the little surface rust spots on the hood that were here on moving haven't really gone much farther & we have no rust through on our frame (1st time for a 10 year old car for us) when we moved here our car had a recall for high corrosion areas on the back lift gate, the dealer here had never seen a high corrosion area recall...

If you are planning on bringing a car, check what parts & dealers are on island (really crappy if your vehicle has a recall and the nearest authorized repair is off island, worse yet mainland...) Same if you buy a car here... if there is no dealer, parts may be a little harder to come by, but we have ordered on-line even for our Fords, as it was much quicker than the dealer here...so that may or may not be an issue...

If you are interested in the alternative energy vehicles, there are even fewer dealers & repair people (even some hybrids are not as easily serviced) The Nissan dealer here is not servicing the Leaf, but the Maui dealer will.... stuff like that

[csgray]

My husband drives beaters, we've had 3 since we moved here, all from different used car lots. I can honestly say my impression is every used car lot here is run by scammers who view new arrivals as fresh meat to bleed dry. If we were to do it again I would have shipped my older but solid Taurus station wagon over and skipped the use car lots.

On the other hand when I got my first teaching job I went out and bought a new Scion, the one that looks like a toaster, and had a great experience at BI Toyota. 50,000+ miles later I still love that car. One tank of gas gets me to Hilo from HPP every day for two weeks. Our salesperson was Pua, but I think she runs a cookie business now.

Temporarily in beautiful central Mexico,

Carol

[missydog1]

check out the offerings on Oahu too ...
lots of cars with lower mileage and not as beaten up by the island. It can be worth it to barge it over ... of course you will have to fly over and check it out too.