Need advice!! About to buy FRS RS1
 

Hi guys, this is my first post. Wellll I'm about to pull the trigger on this RS1 and was wondering if you guys had anything I should look out for. I'm kind of a noobie and this would be my first manual car. I'm very afraid of all the TOB horror stories. But here is the link so you guys can check it out:

http://m.autotrader.com/cars-for-sal...31563349&Log=0

Seems to be in great condition, although it has been in a wreck, right side swipe, damage primarily on the front right side. Please let me know what I should look out for! Really hope this works out and can't wait to join the community! Driving down from Orlando to see the car on 6/18/16.


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Well, HELLO, dillanp86 ...........:)

What to look for?

Just the usual stuff. Maintenance records; Carfax report.

You may wish to take along a auto-smart friend to give a second opinion.

Check and see if the body looks "straight" and it drives straight.

You may wish to have a shop check it out mechanically.

I hope it works out for you ...... ;)


humfrz

Looks like it has OEM Audio Plus already installed. That's a $1200+ system and worth every penny! (I am one of those happy customers.)

Do you have photos of the previous accident?

Thank you! I am having someone else come to look at the car with me. I will definitely be looking at those things


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Is the system just a subwoofer or tweeters as well? It looks amazing!😍 and no I do not :/ but from the autotrader pictures, it seems to have been fixed up quite well. I'll inspect that side of the car for any signs of repair in person.


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thats a great price @ 11k miles. whofaaah at the drop in value tho!

I would avoid. You can find clean cars for great price. As soon as an unclean carfax comes up I would say avoid unless its like 12-13k.

Lol 21k for a wrecked frs.

Check the Title...if it is salvaged that price is way too high...putting the car on a lift and having a pro check underneath will identify the extent of any unrepaired damage. There are plenty of RS1's available...patience when buying a used car is wise, so don't fall in love til after all the homework is done.

I agree, I wouldn't buy it

The Carfax report would show if it has a salvage title, and it does not. It's not likely they would miss that.

I would look for signs the car had been modified and taken back to stock. I would also order a copy of that accident report to see what happened (there's a link to it in the Carfax report). If it looks like this guy took good care of a mostly stock car and just had a fender bender, it may be okay. If it looks like this guy put a turbo on it, went out racing ricers and crashed the car himself, I'd steer clear. Keep in mind also that it looks like he bought the car at that same dealership and likely had it serviced there, so you might be able to find out about the service history and whether they saw it come in with a turbo on it before he traded it in.

Thanks guys all this info is really great! I will take all of it into consideration. I know the price is a bit pricey for a used frs however I am planning on trading in my 2010 TL for this vehicle. Carmax offered me 9k for the car which I think is completely ridiculous. The car only has 81k miles w/ tech package and upgraded wheels. Please more replies are encouraged. Thank you again :)


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Oh going from a TL to an FRS? You do fully understand the differences right? Not being a smart ass here just want to make sure you know that no matter what they look like these are not luxury cars. They are bumpy, noisy and relatively spartan. As long as you realize that then all is good.

I completely understand that! I'm a huge car enthusiast and FWD is not my kind of car. I want low, noisy, and good handling. I know how great this car is and that's why I've wanted one since their release. I'm a huge fan, the TL is too big and luxurious for me. That's not what I look for in a car


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ANYONE READ THE CARFARX?? clearly states it was in an accident and was hit on the side/passenger front

http://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory...-10|80|110|10|

Yes I have seen the carfax, but imo this seems to be just a fender bender. If u believe otherwise please inform me. I care for structural damage however, which the carfax guarantees to be clean from that.


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Perfect! That is why I like it as well. We just see some guys come from BMWs or such that don't understand what they are getting into.

Yeah,that's one of the only ways that price makes any sense for that low of miles. I payed the same price one year ago for a '13 with double the miles.

Peronally,If you really like the car and really want it and can't find another one,I would definitely throw the Carfax in the dealer's face and point out that it's been in an accident,then demand no less than $5k less for the car. Mind you,that's also assuming that after a test drive and inspection,that it's nothing less than tip top.

And even after all of that,I'm still not sure I would get it.

Yep looks like a fender bender to me as well. The Carfax shows the services completed by the dealer which is a very good thing for warranty.
If happy with the price I would go for it myself.

Ok so a quick question to all, I am coming from Orlando to Miami to see the car. You guys are telling me to get it inspected, how do should I go about doing that? Take it to Toyota or ask the current dealer(A Chevy) to inspect it ? Thanks guys this is such a big help. I'm obviously new the used market


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Btw I am seeing the car tomorrow, not today lol


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OK,so looking at Google Maps is says that it's about a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive. for that,I'd have them take another $2k off the price if I'm going to make that trip.

In all honesty,forget about that car. You can find something that has less unknowns than that one for around the same price.

DID YOU EVEN BOTHER READING ANY OF THIS THREAD, INCLUDING THE VERY FIRST POST, WHERE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN DISCUSSING THE CARFAX REPORT AND THE ACCIDENT?

You should go back to sleep now.

Its been mentioned, op seems to still want it. Lol

Omfg.... 4 hr drive to see a wrecked, overpriced frs!?!? Steer clear dude.... find a clean one local to you.

And slow.... Unless you find a BRZ with turbo and AWD ;)

So everybody that has a fender bender should now just scrap the car since nobody should ever buy one that had damage? Can't wait for the screams of horror as the insurance rates sky rocket.
Or maybe they should just give them away for a dollar and knock the shit out of the resale value of all the rest.
It was damaged. It was fixed. I also think it may be a tad overpriced for a repaired car but the dude is willing to pay it so it doesn't matter what I think.

LOL You are not permitted an opinion of the speed just yet there M. Get one and then we will talk.

Part of the problem here is that it's not always easy to find these cars in some parts of the country, Florida being one of them. This has come up more than once here where people were looking for months in Florida without being able to find one, and when they finally did, the prices of what they found were considerably higher than in areas where they are more commonplace. The dealer could get that price pretty easily, especially with it being a special edition.

If it were me, I would sell the other vehicle outright rather than trading, then negotiate for the FR-S entirely on price to get a better deal. Or get a credit union car loan for cheap as a bridge loan, negotiate for the FR-S entirely on price, then sell the old vehicle outright and use the funds to pay down the note. OP will probably get more in the used market than as a trade for the vehicle he has, and he'll get a better price on the car if he doesn't give the salesman the opportunity to start playing shell games with trade value and/or financing. And considering how cheap the credit unions are financing cars these days, he'd probably only spend a few extra dollars on interest before the old car sold.

Why would I want to get such a slow car. I am waiting for turbo AWD to come out.

"demand no less than $5k less for the car."---based on what logic?

If a dealer could sell it for a profit at 17k they wouldn't start at 22k...the dealer paid somewhere between 18.5 / 19.5 for this car. They will sell it for somewhere between 20k and the 22k they are asking!:thumbup:

Or just drive to a neighboring state and buy one / offset the cost. These things aren't hard to find.

I doubt they went that high to acquire the car, but who knows.

Well, now, we have pretty much turned this thread into "mush" .......:sigh:


OP, please let us know how it turns out ..... :)


humfrz

i would 100% avoid. the car is still new so I would not mess with a wrecked one at all. find a clean one dude. but then again its your money...

Hey,you can demand anything you want. The question is how desperate is the dealer and will they bite.

I couldn't give a rat's ass what profit the dealer does or doesn't make. When I'm plunking down my hard earned cash,the only thing I'm concerned with is can I get it for as cheap as possible.

So logically speaking,I'll only spend as much as I'm comfortable paying. Sorry,but "logically",I wouldn't feel good about spending $20K on a car that's been in an accident,presumably it wasn't minor either. So even if the car ended up being ok after repairs,dealer profit be damned,I'm not paying $20k.

Maybe in your area they aren't.
Took a very quick look through FL, GA, SC and AL Auto Traders and the RS1 is a rare bird.

Last time i was checking salvage car auctions (about 2 weeks ago) i saw at least 5 of them in the US that were totaled up for auctions, made me a little sad inside.

Makes the owners of the survivors very happy in a few years though.

Alright you guys, I paid the extra $30 to get the full accident report and what happen was a ML350 just merged into the lane the FRS was in and made the upper fright fender damage. Speed was estimated at 15mph in downtown Miami. The owner of the frs was born in 1958, probably hints that it's been well taken care of. The car wasn't towed from the accident and was not disabled. So I still need answers on where/how I get the car inspected before I make the purchase. Thanks guy <3


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