If you are thinking about buying a pre-owned sports car there are many things to be concerned about that you don't have with a new one. A new sports car will come with warranties and guarantees, plus it has no history to have to worry about. Conversely with a used sports car you will typically get an "As Is" statement of no warranty and unless you use a service like car fax you will have no idea about its history and even then you don't know everything.

Now don't get me wrong new cars are great and I love some of the latest technological innovations. As a matter of fact, the new electric car from Tesla Motors may have to go on my "must have" list, but older sports cars have a unique character that you can seldom find in a new car. Here are some ways for you to find the car you are looking for without getting burned in the process.

First off, do your homework and research the car you are interested in using all means at your disposal. Go to Kelly Blue Book to see what they are worth, check AutoTrader and eBay to see what they are selling for. Look for online forums and see if there are any inherent problems with the vehicle you are considering. Consult with mechanics about it, I can promise you if a certain model car has inherent problems a mechanic will tell you about it.

Having a good general knowledge about the car in question is something you should strive for. The research you should have done to this point will give you a good base to work with as you move into the next step of thoroughly investigating the exact car you are interested in buying.

The first thing you want to do is ask for service records, if they are unavailable I wouldn't even consider the car as it indicated a lack of concern with proper maintenance and keeping records to show it. If you get past this step then order a vehicle history from CarFax to ensure that the car hasn't had major damage and that it doesn't have a salvage title.

Now is where all the research you have been doing will pay off. If the car is known for a particular problem you can show the owner your knowledge by asking them what they did to rectify the issue. You will want to go over the car closely and write down everything you see that will need repairing and also watch out for signs that there has already been work done. When you take the car for a drive, be sure to be looking for any of the particular idiosyncrasies that the cars are known to have.

After you have satisfied yourself, get another opinion from a mechanic that you know who has nothing to gain from the transaction. It is always worthwhile to take this step as it can save you a lot of heartache and a lot of money!