If anyone has time to answer these questions I would greatly appreciate. I thought I would include this board in my research since a lot of you guys are knowledgeable about cars. You can answer here or PM me, thank you in advance.

Demographic Information
Age
Gender
Race/Ethnicity

What was your last vehicle purchase like?


What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?


What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?


Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?


What information do you look for when buying a car?


How long should a used car warranty be valid for?


What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?

10/18/2005 7:40:57 PM

Quote :

"Demographic Information 24 local white male What was your last vehicle purchase like? fine thank you What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile? who gots da hook up What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile? man i look all over the internet much more often than any printed ads. ebay, craigslist, traderonline, cars.com, stuff like that. Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle? that all depends on, well, a LOT of things. im not scared to buy one if thats what you mean, but id prefer a nice unmolested one. What information do you look for when buying a car? and i thought the last question wasnt specific enough, now this shit? How long should a used car warranty be valid for? im one more dumb question from not awnsering this shit What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle? I expect it to get fixed. "

10/18/2005 7:49:53 PM

We had specific questions, but they were too leading so our professor suggested we change them. I know they are kind of vague, it is just to get a feel of what car buyers are thinking when they hear certain words and subjects.

[Edited on October 18, 2005 at 7:57 PM. Reason : thank you for your input]

10/18/2005 7:54:01 PM

Age 23
Gender male
Race/Ethnicity cracka

What was your last vehicle purchase like?
sucked ass

What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?
a vehicle, duh

What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?
dont really care so much about how they advertise

Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?
maybe a limited edition version of something, but if you are referring to one with 324234 t.v.'s, 39" rims, and painted a god awful color of yelow/orange, then no.

What information do you look for when buying a car?
$, APR, extras(warranties etc...)

How long should a used car warranty be valid for?
bumper to bumper -- 90 days
drivetrain -- 180

What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?
see last answer

10/18/2005 8:00:40 PM

thank you

10/18/2005 8:03:55 PM

nga4sho

10/18/2005 8:06:11 PM

Demographic Information
Age 23
Gender M
Race/Ethnicity Asian

What was your last vehicle purchase like?
Used car, private seller found on autotrader online, bought on sight

What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?
Price, service, atmosphere and presentation

What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?
I dont look FOR any advertising, but when I'm looking for cars, I go back to autotrader online. Autotrader hardcopy is too limited in variety and price.

Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?
Depends on how customized (and if well-done or hacked together). If you mean bolt-on's, wheels, etc, then sure I would still consider it. Permanent bodywork is a minus (i.e. bondo'ed aero parts, drills holes, and so on). Should be relatively easy to return to stock and I would want OEM parts along with car purchase if possible.

What information do you look for when buying a car?
Upkeep and state of tune, driving habits, mileage, cosmetics ($$ involved in restoration)


How long should a used car warranty be valid for?
If certified, I would expect as long as a new car warranty. If not, I would say 2 year with an occasional dealer check-in to make sure there's no shenanigans going on

What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?
Free work for malfunctional and recall stuff (i.e. not user fault), cheaper checkup fees because they like to charge in the hundreds nowadays for that mess. A checkup should be a checkup, not mandatory replacements of possibly perfectly good parts.

10/18/2005 8:13:31 PM

Thank you as well


Do you know a guy named Yupheng? I thought I saw him in one of your pictures.

[Edited on October 18, 2005 at 8:18 PM. Reason : ]

10/18/2005 8:16:51 PM

I sure do, we're occasional drinkin' buddies .. I'm related to him on my mom's side I think (to his cousin and therefore, him)

10/18/2005 8:23:30 PM

word, I went to high school with him, he's a smart guy

maybe he will be my drunk eye doctor one day

[Edited on October 18, 2005 at 8:24 PM. Reason : ]

10/18/2005 8:24:36 PM

Demographic Information
Age 25
Male
White

What was your last vehicle purchase like?
Good and bad. Found a car that I was very pleased with, transaction with dealership left a few things to be desired. I felt they used some questionable sales tactics, though that may be the norm for the industry.

What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?
Selection, price, and reputation. I purchased used, and probably will again for some time (don't want to eat depreciation on a new vehicle plus I have expensive tastes), so a big part of my decision was finding dealerships that had cars which intriqued me. It's harder to find a Lincoln, Audi, or BMW used than it is to find a Civic or Camry. Price was of course a factor, and I feel more comfortable with a large, established dealership than a smaller operation. Also, I expect the sales staff to be professional and courteous, not snooty or pushy (both of which I encountered).


What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?
Internet, Internet, Internet. I found the car I eventually bought on Autotrader.com, and also checked out other online options. I also cruised around a couple dealerships as a secondary tactic, but mostly looked online.

Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?
I wouldn't be opposed to a mildly modified vehicle, but heavy customizations are individual enough that I'd rather do the work/have the work done myself to my specifications than buy someone else's project.

What information do you look for when buying a car?
What are you asking? About the car being considered? I like to have all the statistics, like power, MPG, weight, etc., as well as service history and reliability trends/issues/recalls for that make/model. I also check kbb/edmund's/NADA values for the car being considered.

How long should a used car warranty be valid for?
Depends on a couple things. If the car still has a factory warranty, it may not need anything separate. If there is a factory warranty with very little time remaining, perhaps a year or two supplemental. For an older vehicle, 3-6 months comprehensive may do...

What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?
A thorough check-up (free) at the end of the warranty, plus willingness to perform all recall work, fair prices for parts and labor on service, trained technicians, warranty on work done.

10/18/2005 8:54:10 PM

great, thanks

10/18/2005 8:56:35 PM

Age: 21
Gender: Male
Race/Ethnicity: White/Hispanic
Bwn: Yes

Last Vehicle Purchase: Quick and painless. The salesman was helpful and not too pushy, and not overly friendly.

When looking for a car dealership: I try to find one with a relatively good reputation and that doesn't look like they harbor fugitives. I figure most popular and well-known car dealerships, well-known without the hokey commercials of course, are so for a reason.

Advertising: I don't normally look at advertising. I look at things like Consumer Reports and other fact sheets about the quality of the car, and try not to be distracted by pretty commercials.

Customized vehicle: No.

Information: See the advertising section. I try to take a look at reviews and such for cars, and things like recalls and tests they did particularly well or poorly in.

Warranty length: I don't pretend to know too much about the legal side of car sales, but I figure whatever standard they have now, with whatever extras dealerships provide, work well enough, given the fact that I hardly ever hear complains about things like warranties.

Expectations of service: Given that I don't know too much about the technical side of cars, either, I guess relying on the warranty for any particular problems that come up works, and taking the car to specialists when the need arises. After the warranty expires, taking it to repairs shops works, I suppose.

10/19/2005 12:31:06 AM

Demographic Information
Age: 26
Gender: male
Race/Ethnicity: straight up cracker

What was your last vehicle purchase like?
it was ok.. bought the bunny from a friend (not a dealership)

What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?
friendly knowledgable staff, good reputation (this is key), they have the car i want, price

What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?
ive scanned autotrader magazines and on cars.com/autotrader.com/craigslist/ebay

Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?
depends. one hand says yes, the other no. it depends on the vehicle, modifications, and condition of the vehicle

What information do you look for when buying a car?
service records are #1, other than that, i have a checklist i go through. more details available per your request. and mileage, condition, etc.

How long should a used car warranty be valid for?
used cars get warranties?

What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?
how so? like before i buy it? i typically do all the service work i am capable of myself. before i buy it would be nice to know the oil, trans oil or fluid, and coolant was flushed, as well as the tires balanced. in fact, that would be an excellent marketing tool. also fixing anything that is broken when i get it. again, it all depends on if it is a dealer or private party, etc. but from a dealer, there shouldnt be anything broken.

[Edited on October 19, 2005 at 1:46 AM. Reason : added info]

10/19/2005 1:42:56 AM

Demographic Information
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Pale/Eastern European

What was your last vehicle purchase like?
Easy. Searched local classifieds using cars.com, contacted the seller, took the car for a test drive, wrote a check.

What do you look for in a car dealership when you look to purchase an automobile?
Fair prices, retained service records on used cars.

What type of advertising do you look for when purchasing an automobile?
Year/Milage/Transmission Type/Service Records in the used classifieds

Would you be interested in purchasing a customized vehicle?
Generally no - stock are much easier to work on - don't have to figure out someone else's project.

What information do you look for when buying a car?
Service Records, Recent maintenance

How long should a used car warranty be valid for?
90 Days

What do you expect in regards to service on your vehicle?
Easy to access major components, reliable sensor/electronic systems.

10/19/2005 7:53:48 AM

Thank you to everyone who helped out. I greatly appreciate it.

10/19/2005 1:15:32 PM