I've been car free for a looong time. (my last "car" was a 1975 ford econoline van that was already old when i lived in it for six months while meandering cross country c.1990).
life circumstances have changed and i find myself in need of an enclosed vehicle, at least for the winter months. or maybe i should say, emphatically ONLY for the winter months. (ever try renovating an extreme fixer upper, in the woods, in the winter, with a tropical-born wife, with no car? that's why)
so i go to Craigslist and look at used cars, and i have no clue because for least 2 decades my main interest in cars had been to not get run over by them. they all look the same to me. i have no idea how much they cost, how much a used car should cost, and basically any other criteria for looking. additionally, some listings give the Vin, the title status, and some identifier that you can look up to see if a car has been crashed or not... every one of these is a revelation to me, and I'm worried about what else i don't know about buying a car that could bite me in the arse.
back in the day, i personally pulled the engines in my old VW bug. but today's cars, I've no clue what to examine to determine their roadworthiness.
so: what advice would you give to a space alien who wanted to buy a car?
and: I've considered renting a car for the month i really need it, $650, unlimited miles, i don't have to pay insurance, title transfer or sales taxes, no maintenence to worry about, and no wasted time car shopping (without a car in a rural area) and most of all no time wasted doing the vast amount of research i seem to need to do to even start shopping for said car. and then write off the $650 as stupid tax and i have 9 months to come up with a better solution for next winter.
thoughts??