Even in the era of the Internet, the newspaper is still an excellent option when looking for used car classifieds. Unfortunately, many of the people who publish car ads in newspapers expect the readers to be experienced in reading the shorthand of car sales.

The lingo can quickly become confusing. Let's look at some of the most common phrases and acronyms present in used car ads or used car want ads.

The most general acronyms regarding the conditions and the design are:

P/U: Pick-up
XTRA CAB: An extra room behind the main seats in a pickup truck. May include two small seats.
WGN: Wagon
EX COND: Excellent Condition
LB: Long Bed Pickup Truck
HB: Hatchback
CLN: Clean
G COND: Good Condition.

In the case of car amenities, acronyms may include:

CASS: Cassette tape player
CD: Compact disc
LTHR: Leather interior
LOADED: Includes all extras and options that a specific car model can have.
MNRF: Moonroof or sunroof (they are the same)
S/R or SNRF: Sunroof
CONV: Convertible Top
A/C: Air conditioning.

In the case of the wheels, you'll see:

FWD: Front-wheel drive
RWD: Rear-wheel drive
4WD: Four-wheel drive
2WD: Two-wheel drive
ABS: Antilock braking system
OD: Overdrive
PS: Power steering.

For the engine, the most commonly used acronyms are:

CID: Cubic inches displacement
CC: Cubic centimeters
DOHC: Direct overheat camshaft
EFI: Electronic fuel injection
CYL: the number of cylinders that the engine has.
MPG: Miles per gallon
ENG: Engine.

The last list of important acronyms is related to the price:

BO: Best offer
OBO: Or best offer
K: thousands of miles or dollars

At first you may find that you need to read a used car ad aloud to get the full meaning of the acronyms. The sellers aren't trying to speak to you in some kind of secret code. Newspapers charge by the word for their classified ads. Condensing the information into acronyms allows the advertiser to include more and over time a standard set of automobile-related acronyms have developed from popular usage.

Searching Online

If you are making a nationwide search for used cars, Las Vegas, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles or Miami, for example, used car dealerships online are an excellent option. Go to your favorite search engine and simply enter keywords like used cars New York or New York used cars (the order doesn't matter). You will find that online used car classifieds are as useful as their newspaper counterparts.

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