Certified Pre-owned (CPO) -vs- Used Cars

Jan 17, 2024

What’s the difference: Certified Pre-owned (CPO) -vs- Used Cars

With so many companies and dealers using words like Certified Pre-owned, Certified Used and (Insert Dealer Name Here) Certified Used Car it can get confusing as to what each means and are you getting what you know as a Certified Pre-owned Car. If you’ve read the benefits of buying a Certified Pre-owned Car, also known as a CPO, then you want to be sure that is what you are buying and not a used car someone is just putting a title on to confuse buyers. Here is a quick breakdown of what to look for so you can be confident in the vehicle you are purchasing.

What is a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle?
How does a used Car become a Certified Preowned?
What is included in a GM Certified Pre-owned Warranty?
Advantages of a GM Certified Pre-owned:

What is a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle(CPO)?

Everything starts with the manufacturer, so the first indication that a vehicle you are looking at is actually a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle is that what ever Make (Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Ford, etc.) that vehicle is can only be sold by the same manufacturer dealership. In our case, Seminole Chevrolet GMC, we can only Certify GM vehicles. We can sell any make of used car, but only a GM product can be Certified here. So if you are looking at a Dodge at a Toyota store and they are using the word certified in talking about it, then you can be sure that it is not actually a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle but just a name they are giving to it. Certified Pre-owned Vehicles are backed by the Manufacturer and have to meet certain manufacturer requirements to receive that title.

How does a Used Car become a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle(CPO)?

We can’t just take any GM used car and say that it is a GM Certified Pre-owned, the car has to meet certain requirements.

Less than 6 model years old and less than 75,000 miles
Has a clean vehicle title.
The vehicle passed our 172-point vehicle inspection.
Any safety recalls have been completed.

If you are looking at a different Certified Pre-owned make be sure to check that makes year and mileage requirements because they will vary. All Certified Programs to my knowledge will have the same requirements for a clean title. This means that the vehicle you are purchasing can not have a salvaged or rebuilt title and the vehicle can also not have been a manufacturer buyback for any reason. The inspection process will also differ from manufacturer to manufacturer, but you can be sure that the inspection process for any Make will be thourough in order for that vehicle to be Certified. Once the vehicle makes it through Certification the Manufacturer will back it with a Certified Pre-owned Warranty.

What’s included in a Certified Pre-owned Warranty?

As with everything else we’re talking about here you always want to check with the manufacturer of the vehicle you are looking to purchase since the CPO program for ever manufacturer varies. For a GM Certified Pre-owned vehicle you have the following Certified Pre-owned Warranty coverages:

12-Month/12,000 Mile Bumper-to-Bumper Limited Warranty
6-Year/100,000 Mile Powertrain Limited Warranty

The12 Month/12,000 mile Bumper-to-Bumper Limited Warranty is in addition to any original factory bumper-to-bumper warranty that the vehicle may have remaining at the time of purchase. Meaning that if the GM vehicle you are purchasing has 1 year or 10,000 miles remaining, the CPO Bumper-to-Bumper will start when that year is up or you drive another 10,000 miles, whichever comes first.

The 6-Year/100,000 Mile Powertrain Limited Warranty is from the original in service date of the GM vehicle you are purchasing. So, if the vehicle is 4 years old with 60,000 miles on it, then you would have 2-years and 40,000 miles left on the CPO Powertrain limited Warranty. Of course in the case of both warranties you can purchase extended coverages at a lower price than on a typical used car because there is some CPO Warranty coverage that exist.

Additional Benefits of Buying a Certified Pre-owned Vehicle:

Another benefit of buying a CPO vehicle is reliability. While a CPO is not quite as reliable as a New vehicle, it should be no surprise that a CPO vehicle is more reliable than its used vehicle counterpart. With the rigorous inspection process that goes into a GM Certified Pre-owned vehicle they should be more reliable. A study by Consumer Reports found that a CPO vehicle has 11% more problems over the lifetime of the car than a vehicle bought Brand New, but a used vehicle as 31% more problems than the same New Vehicle. Another reason you want to be sure your buying an actual Certified Pre-owned Vehicle if that is what you are looking for.

GM also offers these additional benefits to its customers purchasing a GM Certified Pre-owned Vehicle:

Scheduled Maintenance Program
Roadside Assistance
Courtesy Transportation
Limited trial of Onstar Safety and Security Plan and Connected Services
3-Month Sirius XM trial subscription
3-Day/150 Mile Exchange Policy

The scheduled maintenance program includes 2 maintenance visits done within 2 years and 24,000 miles and can be performed at any GM Dealer. The Roadside Assistance and Courtesy Transportation is good for the duration of the Powertrain limited warranty, and the roadside assistance is provided by Allstate. Eligible vehicles receive 1-month of Premium Plan coverage, inclusive of the Onstar Safety & Security Plan and the Connected Vehicle Plan.

A GM Certified Pre-owned Vehicle (CPO) provides the confidence that comes with knowing your vehicle is covered by a long list of great benefits you won’t get with a basic used car, truck, or SUV. Now you can dream about the journey ahead, instead of worrying about what’s coming down the road. Drive with peace of mind in your new GM Certified Pre-owned vehicle.

Seminole Chevrolet