Hello Guys,

This question jsut came to my mind out of no where..

I bought a used 04 G35Coupe a year ago with 50,000 miles on it..
and my question here is.. how do i know whether my car has been driven the c*rap out of by the previous owner???
i mean.. even though the car does carry high mileage .. but the previous owner could be driving like a grandma or he/she could be a former rally racer.. are there any specific parts or symptons which i should pay attention to ?? so far the car runs smooth like a champ w/o any problems whatsoever.. but i am being curious the history of her...


any inputs are appreciated....

 

Is it stick or auto?

Does the window creak when you put them up or down?

Does the supension rattle?

Does the wheel vibrate when you drive at high speed?

 

It's an auto.

the passenger window was acting up since i bought her. However i did have the dealer replaced the motor for me as it was still udner the warranty.


I have also changed the rear stablizers as it was making some clunking noise last year.

And no, the wheel doesn't vibrate when i drive at high speed.

so having said all that, does it indicate by all means that the previous owner drove it like it was a Hummer?!?

 

Possibly. Just ask for the service records too that may help you answer your question.

 

You could have someone do a compression test/leak-down test to see if the motor is as tight as it should be at 50K miles. Aside from that, if the car was properly maintained(meaning regular oil and other fluid changes and the owner replaced worn parts as they broke/wore down), it might be a bit tough to detect that the car has been driven hard by a previous owner.

A lot of play in a transmission is often a good indicator that a car has been driven hard(butit's not conclusive, since certain cars trannies are looser than others from different car types)... but most of the more obvious indicators of a car raced hard(like at autocross) can be hidden/erased by just changing tires and brakes and keeping up with the regular maintenance... assuming the person wasn't taking the car offroading or anything, they didn't crash it.

You also might be able to get somewhat of an idea by pulling the plugs and looking at them, but chances are that this will not reveal much unless the person really REAALLY ran the car at redline regularly for a long time.. in which case it would probably not be running right due to plugs being damaged as a result of the heat generated from extended high-revs intervals.

 

since when was 50k miles considered high mileage? As long as the car runs good, just drive it.

 

Its tough to tell.. I wouldn't worry as long as I bought the car stock... If it had intake/ exhaust then I would begin to worry.

 

Best tip, have it inspected before buying it! Too late in this case, but any good mechanic should be able to spot trouble.
Some things you can check yourself are:
- alignment of parts (hood with fenders, doors, bumpers, etc). Anything from the factory should be straight. Check the top of the car, hood and trunk for straightness, no waviness in the panels and the alignment (could indicate rollover - this is hard to hide if the frame is bent)
- check the paint. Repainting, if not done properly, is easy to spot. Check for overspray, blending, bad taping, and body work.
- with 50,000, everything should be in pretty good shape (unless beaten hard). Pedals and interior should not be showing too much wear.
- check the engine compartment for any new joints around the fenders or front. Check the rocker panels for welds and straightness.
- check all electrical components. Electrical problems could indicate water damage
- check for rust in unusual places. Could indicate water damage
- test drive and listen for grinding or unusual sounds. Check the alignment (let go of the wheel while driving on a straight road. If it pulls to one side, your alignment is out; have it checked). If the steering wheel shimmies or shakes, you could have suspension or wheel problems.
- use your nose too - mold or mildew smell could indicate water damage. A low mileage car like this should still have a new car smell.
- check under the car for heavy corrosion or damage
- do a engine compression test as mentioned earlier
- have a mechanic check the engine and tranny.

Hope everything checks out for you.

 

what do you think? of course it was...that is why i refuse to buy use car.

 

mine vibrates at high speed, what does that indicate?

 

Are you still talking about your car?

 

yes, it was shimming when I got it but I didn't notice until a month later when I got to open it up

 

^+1

 

It looks like your G has the navigation system. Look through the mileage history. When I bought mine, the average was almost 22mpg and the history graph was very consistent.

In my case, I was able to talk to the previous owner as well and she said she babied it. The gas mileage was a good indicator that she was telling the truth.

She left a lot of details about her life in the navigation system though since she didn't clear out any of the history...

 

I meant to say shimmying not shimming. When it did it I thought it was just warped rotors or something. It shimmies at about 70 to 90