I found a 2010 Honda Fit Sport with manual transmission and 26,000 miles for $13k. I would really like to be able to get it for $12,000. However, according to Autocheck and the owner confirmed, it's been rear ended twice while being parked on the street. The owner said the insurance company took care of it and was nicely repaired both times. The pictures look good, i haven't gone to see it yet.

How much does a car depreciate in value after being rear ended? Would $12k be a good value for this car? KBB for "good" condition is about $12k.
Any thoughts? Should I totally avoid this car all together?

Here is the autotrader ad:
Cars for Sale: 2010 Honda Fit Sport in Atlanta, GA 30309: Hatchback Details - 352822308 - AutoTrader.com

Thanks so much!

 

as long as the owner can show you the pictures of the damages each time and you can see from the report that it was only cosmetic damage and not frame damage, I personally would not care how many times the thing was damaged. As long as it is fixed now. As far as depreciation, I will never understand why people bring it up. Cars (unless it is going to be sold by Mecum or Barrett Jackson auto auction house) do not appreciate. You buy a car because you want to keep it and own it, not profit from it. Looking at cars.com in your area, you have three second generation Fits near you selling in the $12000 range. The white one at Rick Case Mazda is a 2010, manual, sport and has only 32,000 miles and also has minor damage to the rear reported on Car Fax. At a minimum, you could use this listing as leverage when speaking to the other owner to get him to drop his price. Then, not only would you have a price drop, but would not have to pay the stupid dealer fees at the Mazda dealer. Good luck with your choice.

 

Depends on the damage, was it cosmetic or enough to warrant replacement of body panels other than the bumper cover? If yes, how good was the repair? Get it inspected before buying (Honda dealers are happy to do this, or check for prepurchase inspections in your area. If you know of a mechanic you trust, this is usually best.

Another advantage in buying from an individual is there is no sales tax (at least in GA).

Does it have any factory warranty left? If yes this is good (if even only for 6 months) to allow you to work out any bugs while it's covered.

 

Thanks for your response! I appreciate the information.

I will have to ask the owner if he has photos of the damage, he says he has the repair paper work.

I definitely agree with what you are saying about depreciation. I bring up depreciation from an accident to try and figure out the value of the car. It is very possible the owner's insurance gave him a check for the depreciated value of the car after the accident. The value of the car depreciates more after an accident, I just don't know how much more. How do I know I am getting a good deal?

BurntZ, The white Fit you are mentioning is a base model, so it is hard to compare. However, there are some others on cars.com that I can compare with, good idea!

Steve244, the owner says the bumper and rear hatch were fixed. I will need to find out more information about this.

In March, Georgia changed the Ad Valorem Tax, so now you pay one large tax bill when you register and title a vehicle instead of a annual fee. So, we do now have sales tax.

That is a good idea about the warranty, I will ask the owner.

 

I would keep looking, or try to get it for $11,000 max - that KBB "Good" value is for a car with no accidents

 

I didn't know that! They're doing away with sales tax on cars and everyone pays the one-time ad-valorem (property tax) when first registering. Sucks for people bringing the cars they already own to GA. Sucks for individual sales. Dealers make out like bandits. Well the state does too. Kind of a lose-lose-win-win proposition. link

Make sure the hatch closes correctly and there are no signs of leaks (check under the spare tire). You might want to pay to put it on an alignment rack at a tire shop. The Fit really doesn't have any adjustment other than front toe-in if something was bent.

 

Why buy a damaged fit? The resale will not be the same, and KBB values are for cars that were not in a collision. Stay away and keep looking.

 

If the damage was superficial, well repaired, and is reflected in the ask price it's an OK deal, especially if you plan to keep it.

 

MPA, thanks for your recommendation. Unfortunately, I have a feeling the owner will not want to take $11K, but definitely worth a try! I was thinking the KBB value might be for no accidents but wasn't sure. I just went through the condition quiz on KBB's website and it rated the car as "fair" which puts its value right at $10,868, very much in line with the $11k like you mentioned.

Steve244, the new tax is a win situation for me, if I own the vehicle for 4 years or more I will end up saving money. I normally keep my cars forever. For this particular car it would cost a one time tax of $791.38, however, the old system over 4 years of ownership the ad valorem tax would total up to $846.42. So, the longer past 4 years I keep the car, the more money I save.

Those are good suggestions for things I should look for. I will plan at looking at the tire wear closely and test driving it to see how straight it goes down the road. If there is some weird tire wear going on then that should tell me the alignment is not right.

Born2Bfit, I guess because I have been waiting for months for a used one to come up around my area from a private party and this is the first one in a while. Resale value I am not too worried about as I normally keep my cars forever. Maybe I should just keep waiting.

 

I would hold out for another Fit. Plenty of them out there that haven't been rear ended.

BTW, I'm assuming this car does not have a salvage title, because that would be a red flag to anyone considering it.

I have nothing against salvage vehicles. I drove a salvage Toyota wagon until the wheels fell off. So as you said, if you're planning to keep the car until it dies, not necessarily a dealbreaker as long as the repairs were done correctly and the frame has been checked for alignment.

 

on the aspect of valuing the car:

Edmunds shows "clean" at $12,737 on a private sale. It looks well cared for and unmolested.

The loss of value due to prior accidents is hard to quantify. Carfax will gleefully tell you a couple grand in their promotions. Insurance companies will give you a check for a few hundred for decreased value. I suspect it's somewhere in between. He looks like an honest seller; he didn't have to disclose the damage. Low miles for Atlanta. Should still have original tires on it (although the Dunlops tend to go to hell soon after 30K).

Ask if he has service records besides the repair invoices. Knowing it had oil changes when it was supposed to is worth a lot.

 

also, how long do you intend to keep your car? if you're going to drive it to the ground, who cares about resale value.

 

bargainguy, there aren't many manual sports for less than $12k with less than 100k miles in Georgia not being sold by a dealer, I can tell you that. Last one I saw was at the end of May. Lots of automatics out there all the time, a few base models, several of them have been in accidents.
This one is not a salvage or rebuilt title.

Steve244, yeah you are right, he does seem to be a honest seller. The rear tires are new because of a puncture. This might hide some of any alignment issues if the tires are new enough and don't have much of a wear pattern.

Well, I contacted him. He does NOT have any pictures of the accidents the car has been in, he thinks he has the repair documents, he says he has all the regular maintenance docs.
He doesn't know all the damage details and what was fixed. He left it up to the insurance company to fix everything.
He said the warranty is 3/36k, so there is some still left.
It is his wife's car and she doesn't drive it much, the reason for the low mileage.
One owner.
They are getting rid of it for a new VW Jetta TDI Wagon.

keychan, I'll drive it to the ground, so not so worried about resale value, I just want to make sure I get a good deal and a good car.

 

can you have a trust worthy mechanic or car-guy friend check out the car for you before you buy?

 

i think you can get little lower than 13k...since it has been into accident..but it sounds like really minor damage....
i paid 2010 fit sport auto @ 30k miles on it for $13k. no accident. so you should get better deal

 

If the fit is essentially in perfect condition, there's no real reason to not jump on it with a slightly lower price. Don't gouge the guy, just offer them a fair price for what you think it might be worth. (If KBB says 12.5K, offer $750 less due to the damage). If he takes it, your ahead of the game as there is very little that would be problematic if all that was fixed was the bumper cover and the hatch (hatches usually are just replaced when they take a hit.)

If you like the car and it is in great shape, just go for it if you aren't planning on reselling.

I bought my prelude used and it was in a minor front end accident that was almost all bumper and body work (including a new radiator) and I ran it up to 196K miles with no incidents (related to the accident). I found the owner info in the back of the manual and called them to ask why they traded the car at the acura dealer... their response: it was time to upgrade and they drove the car for 3 years after the accident. Good enough for me!

Good luck on it.

~SB

 

Personally, I don't think it's a good deal. It depends how badly it was rear ended. Was it rear ended like the rear bumper was scratched or was it rear ended like the muffler was broken etc... I mean, if the car was in gear when it was rear ended, it could potentially have damaged the drivetrain, you don't know.

I'm always weary of cars that have been in accidents because even in an ideal situation where the seller is extremely forthcoming about information and repairs, there could be damage even he doesn't know about. A side impact that didn't make the airbags deploy might have worsened a slightly cracked engine mount causing vibrations. It might have damaged a wheel bearing that will fail earlier. Etc...

A car already develops problems over time and people are attracted to the Fit in part because its reliable. A car that has been in an accident will at best be as reliable and at worst develop more problems faster. Unless the car represents considerable savings, I would stay away from cars that have had damage.

Already, buyng a used car is a calculated risk compared to buying new with all the warranties that cover you. However, cosmetic damage can be nice because it allows you to get brand new body panels from insurance personally, I'd rather get a used car in pristine condition, even if I have to pay a bit more like that I get the piece of mind that it is as good as new but I'm happy because ofall the money I saved compared to buying new

 

MT, you've understated the extremes by just a bit. At best, a car that has been in an accident is just fine and you will get a discount for it being damaged goods. At worst, it can kill you.

 

I'm sure the original poster is vigilant enough to ensure the car is safe for the road but my comment regards the fact that even at 11k, the car the OP is considering is just not a good buy in my opinion.

Also I'm very skeptical of cars with low mileage. Who buys a car that runs perfectly and then wants to sell it after 10k miles? Unless the person is moving to Europe but even then, someone that has a brand new car thats barely a few years old with low miles would sell it for top dollar unless there was something critically wrong with the car.

 

Yep, I think it is crazy that people get rid of excellent cars like Toyotas and Hondas. Run them until they die. I sure wish I had the money some people do, to get rid of their cars with so few miles. Like you, it sets off warning bells in my head too.