There was a time when the thought of purchasing a used car made people pause, but today many factors make buying a used car a great option.

Over the years manufacturers have made cars more dependable, which means there’s still a lot of life left in a car when its first owner trades it in or sells it, meaning cars can often go well beyond the 100,000 mile mark.

“The quality of cars has generally trended upwards,” Santosh Viswanathan, co-owner and managing partner of a Delaware dealership told the News Journal. “I can’t remember the last time a customer called and said they got a bad product.”

Another advantage of buying a used car is a lower depreciation of its value. The buyer of a used car is likely to get much more of its purchase price than in the purchase of a new car.

There are also considerable savings in buying a car that is only a couple of years old. According to the news provider a driver can save 32 percent with a 3-year-old car and 19 percent with a year-old car.

Of course it’s always a good idea for buyers to check the going price of a used car by finding the market value from Kelly Blue Book.

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Just because the economy is down doesn’t mean you have to stop having fun when you’re driving. MSN autos lists a few cars that are a fun ride, but still relatively inexpensive.

Among the cars listed are the Chevrolet Cobalt SS, which Edmunds calls “an example of America’s ability to build a decent compact automobile.” MSN says if you peel away the Cobalt’s plain exterior you find a powerful sedan with a 260 turbocharged horsepower engine.

But if you want to feel like you can enter a weeklong race over the desert, then a Subaru WRX might be a good fit with its rally looks and its ability to hit 0-60 in under six seconds.

Talk of “fun” cars can’t be had without talking about the MINI Cooper. Just looking at the car makes most people smile and since BMW revived the car in 2002, many people have found it to be perfect for tackling urban and not-so-urban terrains.

Another fun car is the Volkswagen GTI. For more than 20 years VW has been selling some form of the GTI, so finding a good used one should be pretty easy.

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In what might be helpful to people searching for New York used cars in this tough economy, Kelly Blue Book (KBB) lists some important steps to buying a used car.

It should go without saying but KBB says the first step is to find out how much you are comfortable spending on a used car and find out what type of car is in your price range. After that it’s important to find what kind of car works for you, including a make, model and year.

From there you want to find out what the value of the car is. Various online sites, including KBB, can give you an idea of what the going value of the car you have in mind is.

It’s also important to get a history of the car you are buying and with services like CARFAX Vehicle History Report, it’s easy to find out if the car has been in an accident or had any damage prior to you getting inside.

The website also recommends taking a through walk around and test drive of the car. It’s easy to just fall in love with a car at first sight, but kicking the tires and driving it a few miles can tell you a lot about it.

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Even though gas prices have fallen to a more reasonable level over the last few months, it appears that the days of buying gas guzzlers are over as more people look to buy fuel efficient models.

According to Consumer Reports, there are a number of top models buyers should look at when trying to find the best used car for their money.

According to its research, the most fuel efficient car in the $10,000 – $20,000 range is the 2004-2006 Toyota Prius. It’s really the car that started the hybrid phenomenon and at 44 miles per gallon overall, it’s one of the most fuel efficient cars in the country.

The magazine also lists the 2003 Prius, which gets 41 mpg.

In fact, Honda and Toyota really seem to have cornered the market on fuel efficient used cars. Of the top 12 spots in the price range, all but the 2004-2007 Mazda3 i are in the Honda and Toyota family.

The top five cars on Consumer Reports list read as follows:

2004-06 Toyota Prius 44mpg
2003 Toyota Prius 41mpg
2006-07 Honda Civic Hybrid 37mpg
2003-05 Honda Civic Hybrid 36mpg
2007 Honda Fit Sport (manual) 34mpg

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In these tough economic times it’s hard to justify going out and spending hard earned money on a new car. But that doesn’t mean a newer car isn’t out of the question, and with the increased reliability of cars over the years, Motor Trend says there are five cars that make for a great used car value.

Motor Trend says the 2007-2008 Acura TL Type-S is not as advanced as its ’09 counterpart, but it has more power and more space in the back. And with great electronics like Bluetooth, it makes for a great New York used car.

Also recommended in the luxury class are the Volkswagen Phaeton and the 1990-2002 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class.

For the sportier car fan, Motor Trend suggests the C5 Corvette Z06 which has the same horsepower as the next generation C6, but is about half the price. But, the magazine warns that with all that horsepower, the cars may have been run hard so it’s important to find one that was taken care of.

As for a truck, the website recommends the 2004-2008 Ford F-150. With a new model coming out for ’09, it means a ton of older generations will be ready for a new owner. Meaning an F-150 with just a few years of work could be had relatively cheaply.

Find New York Used Cars with New Jersey State Auto.