Buy a car at a good price: offers from sellers
Which car to look for: the key choices
Before you write a request, three questions already narrow the choice: new or used, where the car comes from and which engine. They decide the price, the risks and the time to registration.
New cars with no history are in the new cars category, used ones in used cars. If you are counting fuel costs, look at electric cars and hybrids, and for high mileage outside the city people often consider LPG/CNG cars.
Cars from abroad: how countries differ
Many models come from the USA, but some auction cars need bodywork repairs. Cars from Europe usually have a clearer service history, and cars from Korea often run on gas and have their own equipment. There are also separate sections for cars from the USA and from China.
For imports, ask who pays the duties and the registration costs, and whether the price is final, with the car ready to drive and registered. It is also better to ask in advance about the rules and timing for importing a particular car.
Special cases
If you are ready for repairs, look at accident-damaged cars or cars for parts, but insist on detailed photos of the damage. If you want to give up your old car, there are cars for exchange with an extra payment.
What to put in your request
- make, model, generation — or the body style, if you are still choosing;
- year and kilometres driven — a range, for example 2016–2020, up to 120,000 km;
- engine and fuel — capacity, diesel, petrol, hybrid, electric;
- gearbox and drive — manual, automatic, four-wheel drive;
- condition of the body — whether you accept repainting or not;
- equipment — leather, sunroof, cameras, heated seats;
- city and way of inspection — where you are, whether you can travel to see it;
- budget, if you want to state it.
Do not forget the cost of ownership: two cars of the same class differ in fuel use, insurance, the price of spares and servicing. For daily city trips a hybrid or an electric car may win, while for rare long trips an ordinary petrol engine with cheap servicing will do. Write this in the request and sellers will filter out unsuitable options at once.
Do not fix on one model: name two or three similar ones and a budget range, and sellers will suggest things you might not have known about. For a car from abroad, add the date by which you need it, because shipping and paperwork take different amounts of time depending on the country.
How to compare offers
Compare cars on the same set: year, kilometres, equipment, history. Ask for a photo of the chassis number, service records and the diagnostic result, and before buying a used car arrange an inspection at a garage and a paint-thickness check of the body. The price gap between two similar cars often hides in the condition of the body, the number of owners and the set of tyres.
On BlaBlaPrice you write one request, and dealers and sellers reply in the chat with photos, price and terms. They see their place among the other offers, so they compete, and the price often comes out better. Contacts stay hidden until you decide to share them. Details are on the “How it works” page.
