Very good advice from Frank. Most used cars on dealer lots come from the auto auction. While some individually owned cars do show up there, for the most part they are either lease returns, former rental cars or reposessions. Unfortunately the operators/owners of those cars have little incentive to maintain them - and it shows.

My recommendation would be to read the cars for sale ad's and find the rare owner that has most of his receipts. Then take the car in for a pre-purchase inspection by a dealer.