BUYERS LEARNING APPEAL OF PRE-OWNED CAR MARKET

Cape Girardeau Motors owner Richard Kirkpatrick knew a market for pre-owned cars was just waiting for a company to come along.

"Two-and-a-half years ago we cornered the market on pre-owned cars here," Kirkpatrick said. "It didn't take long for us to get some competitors."

Pre-owned cars usually have about 10,000 miles on the odometer when they reach Kirkpatrick and other area dealers. The cars are an attractive buy to the consumer because the dealer is able to provide a relatively new product with 25 to 30 percent discounted off the original sticker price.

"With the depreciation of a year or two comes a deal most people can't pass up," Kirkpatrick said. "I can offer a late-model luxury car with a list price of $30,000 for $20,000 to $22,000 and still provide the same factory warranty. Who wouldn't go for that?"

In the last two years some 2,000 customers who ventured into Cape Girardeau Motors' lot to go for such a deal. Kirkpatrick sells utility vehicles and late-model cars at his lot on Independence.

Kirkpatrick's business was tested when traffic on Independence was limited to one-way west of Caruthers for three months because of the Cape LaCroix flood control project. "We saw some business fall off during that time, but 1994 was still better than 1993," he said. "If they didn't limit traffic for three to four months, we would have had a banner year."

Cape Girardeau Motors isn't the only pre-owned dealership that thrives in Cape Girardeau. Campus Auto Tire and Budget Motor Sales are also enjoying brisk business.

"Every pre-owned dealer here has his own niche," Kirkpatrick said. "Even though there is more competition today than when I first started, the consumer demand is still very high."

Jim Eakin, who owns Campus Auto & Tire, specializes in pre-owned pickup trucks and late-model cars. "Pre-owned pickup trucks are at a premium," Eakin said. "There is a shortage right now."

Eakin said the pre-owned car market is "about as good as you want to work it."

Leonard Seabaugh, who owns Budget Motor Sales in Cape Girardeau, said his first year as a pre-owned dealer was even better than he anticipated.

"I knew it would be a good market to get into because I've sold new cars," Seabaugh said. "We opened in January and had a better year than we expected. I don't see that changing in 1995, either."

Seabaugh said his lot holds "a wide variety of vehicles.

"We generally stock from 20-40 cars," he said.