The Cars People VIN-Check the Most (26,563 VINs Analyzed)
We give away a VIN decoder, so I get an unusual view of the used-car market: not what people buy, but what they stop and check first. 26,563 unique VINs later, the pattern surprised me. Pickups everywhere, sports cars right behind, and the sedans everyone drives way down the page.
Rebuilt Title Cars Aren't Cheaper — the Odometer Fools You
I went looking for the rebuilt-title discount in our listings. On the Camry and the F-150, rebuilt cars actually cost more than clean ones. The only thing making them feel cheap is 35,000 fewer miles.
Dealer vs Private Seller: What the Markup Really Costs
The market-wide gap between dealer and private-party prices is $6,845, and almost all of it is a lie. So I matched the model, the year and the odometer, and the markup was still sitting right there.
What Counts as High Mileage? The Price Curve, Band by Band
I split our listings into 25,000-mile bands to find out what "high mileage" actually costs. The first half of the curve was predictable. What happens after 200,000 miles was not.
Does Car Color Affect Resale Value? Our Data Says No
Everyone knows white and black hold their value best. I pulled 306,046 listings to confirm it, and the whole thing fell apart the moment I compared cars of the same model and year.
The Used Car Inspection Checklist I Never Skip
You don't need to be a mechanic to catch most of what's wrong with a used car. You need to know where to look and what a warning sign looks like.
How to Buy a Used Car Without Getting Ripped Off
Buying a used car should be exciting, but for most people it's stressful, because it feels like everyone at the dealership knows more than you do.
The Best Time to Buy a Used Car (It's Not Random)
Most people buy a car whenever their old one dies, which is the single worst way to do it. Timing genuinely moves the price, sometimes by a lot, because dealers run on quotas and seasons and inventory cycles you can actually predict.
The Cars That Hold Their Value (and the Ones That Don't)
Here's a money trick most people never think about: the smartest way to save on a car isn't the price you pay, it's how much you get back when you sell.
CR-V vs RAV4: the Compact SUV Fight, Settled
These two basically are the compact SUV market. The CR-V and RAV4 trade the best-seller crown back and forth every year, and if you're shopping used you will look at both.
The Best Family Cars, Ranked on Space and Safety
A family car has the hardest job of any vehicle. It has to be safe, it has to survive years of abuse from small humans, it has to swallow strollers and hockey bags, and it can't cost a fortune to run.
Rebuilt Title vs Salvage Title: the Difference Matters
People throw around "salvage" and "rebuilt" like they mean the same thing. They don't, and mixing them up can cost you real money or land you in a car you can't insure.