I am considering purchasing a used certified acura from a dealership that is over 150 miles from my house. Chances are I will never go there more than once(just to purchase). The dealership has a so so reputation(per online rants) but they have a car I want. So if I buy the car and theres something wrong with it...I would assume I can bring it back to any dealer to have them fix ? or do I have to go back to that one ? Does certification really mean anything outside of a extra 12k of warranty coverage ?

 

i would say go check the car and comb through it very well to make sure nothing is wrong with it. warrant work can be taken care of by any acura dealer. sometimes however problems do arise a few weeks after purchasing a car, so there is a slight chance u may have to return to the dealer u bought it from in hopes they will fix it for free

 

You're only safe as long as the warranty is in effect. Once the warranty expires, you're dime. Any Acura dealer and if an Acura Certified warranty, the powertrain is extended to 7 years 100K along with the additional 12/12000.

 

Bring someone you know to check out the car for you. If you have to, even phone a reputable mechanic and let them "hear" the engine and take pictures of the engine bay, body, etc... Can even find a local mechanic near that Acura dealership. Check CarFax AND Autocheck. Also test drive and pay attention to EVERY defect. Shifts hard, rattles, and everything in between.

 

Take the same precautions you would take if you were buying a car that had no warranty. If the car has been abused or not taken care of well then you will probably have more problems in the future. Warranties are nice to have but it doesn't mean you're getting a better car.

 

Yes, any Acura dealer should honor the warranty. When you say "something major wrong with it," do you have reason to suspect there is something major wrong with it? Or are you just asking just in case? Also, don't worry too much about the dealer reputation on here. I think they all pretty much suck, and many on here are like me in that sense.

Plus, how about some details on the car: year, model, transmission, mileage would be helpful.

Like theChamp said, do all the cursory checks like carfax, test drive, etc.

Finally, use (link>>)this checklist(<<link) if you do decide to buy the car. It takes a long time, but it will be worth it.

Quick anecdote:
One time I was about to take a CPO 2005 TL out for a test drive. My wife had something she needed to tell me just before I took off. So I put down the front passenger side window and it made this awful screeching sound. It was cold out so I wouldn't have used that window for months, most likely well after I might have purchased the car (I didn't buy it). The windows were part of the CPO checklist that they handed me, and they all had a check mark as if they had been checked. Certified my ass!

 

I just took my certified pre-owned 07 TL back in because there was a noticeable grinding sound when I made a slow tight turn. I noticed it about a couple of weeks after I bought it. They first replaced the power steering pump and when that didn't fix the problem, they replaced the entire steering rack. The warranty covered the repair. It is 100% better now.

 

In August, I bought a CPO '07 Acura TL Navi in a totally different state from mine. I was leary like you but the car only had 13k miles on it and still under factory warranty plus the 12k/12 month extension to that warranty. Carfax was good and aside from the vehicle not being quite as clean as I would have liked (which it is pristine now that I've detailed it), I have been very pleased with the car. I sold an '05 TL w/o Nav and bought this one. To say I love it is an understatement. Everytime I drive it or even look at it I almost get wood....:-) Go for it and enjoy it. The dealer may suck but Acura makes a trustworthy product. I would just make sure it hadn't been wrecked or mistreated. BTW, any Acura dealer will honor the warranty. I asked that question too.