Korean Job Discussion Forums

[keysbottles]

www.encar.co.kr

I'm a newbie and do not read Korean. On this web site is the amount the total asking price or down pmt?

Where are some of the best places to shop for an auto?

What are some of the pitfalls to watch for.

Educate me,,,please.

Thanks in advance.

[Emark]

Well, if you don't read Korean, you will have a hard time. Use that encar site, but here are a few others.
http://www.autoshop.co.kr/
http://www.mycar114.co.kr/
http://chasale.com/

First of all, just because some guy is advertizing that he sells cars to forigners, doesn't mean that is a good thing. His product availability is low, and the lure of English will certainly come at a premium price.

Secondly, get all your ducks in a row BEFORE hunting for a car. You MUST have a Korean Drivers License and your A.I.D. card or no one will sell you a car. You need to purchase insurance for said car before the deal is finalized and you can drive it off the lot. Lucky me, I have an insurance agent that speaks English.

Finally, play with the car sales sites. Learn how to navigate around on them. Try to select a search that gives you results for OLDER cars with LOW,LOW kms.

I'm gonna get flamed for this comment for sure. I know what I'm talking about. I have purchased 4 cars in Korea. The first one I got royally hosed on. My other 3 were awesome deals. I still own those 3 cars.

What are the best cars to buy in Korea? Look for the oldest cars that are still on the road. They are proven to be indestructable or at the very least, bullet proof.

Best buys are:
Hyundai Galloper, Hyundai Grace, Hyundai Porter. After owning 2 diesel vans myself... I swear by them. Diesels are the same price to run as a small 4cyl.

Kia Pride, Daewoo Tico and Hyundai Elantra. These are cars that just will not die. Pride and Tico are both 1997 and there is no problem getting them seviced.

Just because the Korando and Istana are powered by Mercedes motors, doesn't mean they are any good. Mercedes Benz has fallen off the chart for product reliability in the last 10 years and parts for them are EXPENSIVE!

Don't buy a Sonata. I might be an old TAXI! Korea has checks and balances installed so vehicle ID and spedo tampering is reduced, but I know I have seen old taxi's being sold with low km's at a few sites and dealerships.

There are tons of Matiz's running around, but don't let the numbers fool you. The ones that are 1997-1999 are few, especially when they are over 100,000 km.

Well, that's all for now. Happy Shopping!

[bassexpander]

You can click "global" on that encar site and see pretty much the same in English. I think it's still that way.