A young man has claimed that a used Honda Civic, which he initially bought thinking was a bargain, would now cost him nearly three times that much, just to get it past inspection. TikTok user Matthew Snapp (@matthewsnapp1) shared his frustration in a recent video.
The car in question was a 2007 Honda Civic that he had picked up for just over $3,200. While it had over 155,000 miles on the odometer, it was a good car available quickly and at a good price for a young driver, so it ticked a lot of boxes.
Making it an even more attractive proposition was the fact it had a clean title, so therefore Snapp wouldn’t have to worry about getting that sorted. The biggest issue he would face was getting the car through its inspection so he could register it, but Snapp still expected it to require some work.
So you can imagine the shock on his face when he went to get the car inspected, and he had a bill that was nearly three times more than what he actually paid for the Honda. Cue a whole lot of stress and questioning of how good a deal the car was.
What Was Wrong With the 2007 Honda Civic?
@matthewsnapp1 Still only gonna buy cars off of marketplace #facebookmarketplace #civic #carinspection ♬ original sound – MatthewSnapp
When he bought the Civic, Snapp said that the car looked to be a great deal. It had done 155,000 miles in total, and cost him $3,200 when he bought it from Facebook Marketplace. “Seemed like a great deal, clean title and everything,” he said in his video. After buying it, he took the car over to a dealership for inspection, expecting it to need a little bit of work.
However, he then got a massive shock when the dealership told him the costs involved. “They quoted me $9,000,” said Snapp. There was no chance that Snapp could afford that, so he had to ask what repairs were needed so it could pass inspection. The dealership told him that the car needed $4,500 spent on just the power steering. Unsurprisingly, Snapp was wondering if buying this Honda had been the right move.
You could potentially argue that Snapp had been scammed by the Marketplace seller, but that wouldn’t be true. While it was sold with a clean title, that doesn’t mean it is in perfect mechanical condition. That just means that it hasn’t been called a salvage job or junk by an insurance company. As was proven by the Civic, the car could still need a lot of work. The seller of the Honda may not have known that it had so many issues either.
Other Users Said Snapp Needed a Second Opinion
The price of all the fixes, however, does seem a bit wild. A car costing just over $3,000 but requiring $9,000 to get back on the road does seem a bit crazy. However, one thing Snapp could do is ask the dealership to fully list all the problems with the car and what fixes are recommended. He can then take that list to an independent mechanic for a second opinion and quote.
The Federal Trade Commission actually recommends that owners do this. Other viewers of the video said the same, to try to avoid Snapp from paying $9,000. “Honda is 100% trying to screw you over. That’s probably just recommended maintenance stuff,” said one of them. “Rule #1: don’t take your car to a dealership for an inspection,” another said. Perhaps Snapp will be able to save some money on that initial quote.