FTC Buyers Guide on a Used Car: What the Window Sticker Means (2026)

You're walking a dealer lot, the car you came to see has a white sheet hanging off the mirror, and one box on it is checked: "As Is - No Dealer Warranty." The salesperson says not to worry about that, the shop went through it and they'll take care of you if anything comes up. That sheet is the FTC Buyers Guide, and it matters more than the sales talk because it becomes part of your contract. Here's what each section means as of early October 2026, what the sticker can't tell you, and what to get in writing before you sign.

What the Buyers Guide is and who has to post one

The Buyers Guide comes from the Federal Trade Commission's Used Car Rule, formally the Used Motor Vehicle Trade Regulation Rule at 16 CFR Part 455, which has been in effect since 1985. Any dealer that sells or offers more than five used vehicles in a 12-month period has to put a completed Guide on every used car, light truck, and van it offers for sale. The FTC's dealer guide says it has to go up before the car is displayed or a customer inspects it to buy, and it has to sit in plain view with both sides visible: hanging from the mirror, under a wiper, or on a side window. A Guide stuffed in the glove box doesn't count.

There are exceptions, and they're worth knowing because they explain why some cars you look at won't have one. Motorcycles and most RVs are exempt, and so are vehicles sold for scrap or parts with salvage paperwork. Private sellers who sell five or fewer cars a year don't have to post a Guide at all, which is one reason curbstoners pose as private sellers (we covered that in our piece on curbstoning and title jumping). Maine and Wisconsin dealers use their own state versions instead of the federal form. The FTC also says you're entitled to a Buyers Guide when you buy a used car online, so ask for it if a delivery-style seller doesn't show you one.

Don't confuse it with the Monroney label, the factory window sticker with MSRP and options. That one describes how the car was built. The Buyers Guide describes how this particular dealer is selling it to you. If you want the factory sticker too, our guide to window sticker lookup by VIN walks through it.

Reading the front side, box by box

The top of the Guide carries the make, model, year, and VIN. Check that VIN against the dash plate and the door jamb before you read anything else. A Guide with a different VIN, or a blank one, is a sign the paperwork was swapped or never done.

Below that is the part that matters most, the warranty section. On the standard form there are two choices. "As Is - No Dealer Warranty" means the dealer won't pay for repairs after the sale and you carry the risk of whatever breaks. "Dealer Warranty" means the dealer is offering coverage, and the Guide has to say whether it's full or limited, what percentage of parts and labor the dealer pays, which systems are covered, and for how long. The Rule doesn't let dealers write vague phrases like "power train" or "drive train" in that box; they have to list the actual systems. So if the box says "50% parts and labor, engine and transmission, 30 days," that's the deal. If it says something fuzzier, ask them to fix it before you sign.

In states that limit or ban "as is" sales, dealers use a second version that says "Implied Warranties Only" instead. An older FTC consumer booklet listed Connecticut, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and DC as places that don't allow "as is" sales for many used vehicles. State law moves, though, so treat that list as a starting point and check with your state attorney general.

Under the warranty boxes, the 2016 revision added checkboxes for a manufacturer's warranty that still applies, a manufacturer's used-vehicle (CPO-type) warranty, another used-vehicle warranty, and a service contract offered for an extra charge. The same revision, which took effect in January 2017, added two lines we obviously like, given that we resell CARFAX and AutoCheck reports: get a vehicle history report and check for open safety recalls. The Guide sends you to ftc.gov/usedcars and to the NHTSA recall lookup with the VIN.

The back side, and the contract line that protects you

The reverse lists major defects that can show up in used cars, grouped by system: frame and body, engine, transmission, steering, brakes, suspension, electrical, fuel, exhaust, and so on. Airbags and catalytic converters were added in 2016. It's not an inspection result. It's a prompt for what your mechanic should look at. The back also has the dealer's name, address, and a contact for complaints, which is the name you'll want if something goes sideways later.

Here's the catch most people never hear about. The FTC says the Buyers Guide is part of your sales contract and overrides anything in the contract that contradicts it. Dealers are supposed to put a sentence in the contract saying the window form's information is part of the deal and overrides contrary terms. If the Guide says the car comes with a warranty and the contract says "as is," the FTC says the dealer has to honor the warranty on the Guide. And if you negotiate something, say the dealer agrees to cover the transmission for 60 days, the Guide is supposed to be changed to show it, and you're supposed to leave with the original or a copy that reflects the final terms.

So the practical rule is simple. Any spoken promise, whether it's "we'll fix the AC," "bring it back in a week if you don't like it," or "it's under factory warranty," needs to be written on the Guide. The form itself warns that spoken promises are hard to enforce, and honestly it's right. Photograph both sides of the posted Guide on the lot, then compare it with the copy in your closing packet.

Common misreads we see

• "As is" doesn't mean "the dealer can lie." It means no post-sale repair promise. It doesn't give a dealer permission to misrepresent known damage, flood history, or the title.
• There's no federal three-day return. The FTC says federal law doesn't require a cooling-off period on car purchases. Some states require a right to cancel and some dealers offer one voluntarily, so get any return policy in writing.
• A service contract isn't a warranty, but it can change one. If you buy a service contract from the dealer within 90 days of the sale, the dealer can't disclaim implied warranties on the systems that contract covers, even on an "as is" car.
• "Certified" isn't a substitute for checking. The FTC says an independent inspection still makes sense on a certified car. We wrote more on that in whether a CPO car still needs a CARFAX.

What the Buyers Guide can't tell you

Look, the Guide tells you the terms of the sale. It says nothing about whether the car was in a wreck, sat in a flood, came back from an auction with a brand, or rolled its odometer. That's why the form itself tells you to pull a history report and get an inspection. A CARFAX or AutoCheck report covers reported title brands, accidents, ownership, and odometer readings, and the FTC is clear that a history report won't usually show mechanical problems, so it doesn't replace a mechanic. We broke down what each one catches in PPI vs. CARFAX, and our guide on how to read a CARFAX report covers what each section actually means.

On cost, a single CARFAX at retail has been quoted around $39.99 to $44.99 lately, and sources don't always agree, so confirm the price at checkout. Through us, a licensed reseller not affiliated with CARFAX, AutoCheck, or Experian, it's about $5.50 as a guest, about $4.50 for members, and about $6.75 for a CARFAX and AutoCheck bundle, again confirmed at checkout. Skip the seller's printed PDF if you can. A printout can be months old or edited, and you can't tell by looking, so pulling your own copy off the VIN on the Guide is the safer move.

Recalls are the other gap. An open recall isn't a Buyers Guide item, and dealers selling used cars generally aren't required by federal law to fix them first, so run the VIN through NHTSA's lookup yourself. Our note on open recalls on CARFAX explains how that shows up on a report.

If the dealer didn't post one, or the paperwork doesn't match

A missing Guide is a federal violation, not a paperwork quirk. The FTC's dealer guide lists civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation after the January 2025 inflation update. Enforcement is real, if rare: in 2015 an Arkansas dealer, Abernathy Motor Company, and its owners paid a $90,000 civil penalty after FTC staff visited twice and found cars on the lot with no Buyers Guides. Many states also fold the Rule into their own law, so your state attorney general's consumer office can act on it.

If you already bought the car and the terms don't match, start with the complaint contact on the back of the Guide and keep everything in writing. After that, the FTC points to your state attorney general, dispute resolution if the warranty requires it, and small claims court. Report the dealer at ReportFraud.ftc.gov too. If the car turns out to have a hidden "as is" history problem, pairing the Guide with a history report on an as-is car is what gives you something concrete to point to.

Sources

• FTC: Used Car Rule overview
• eCFR: 16 CFR Part 455, Used Motor Vehicle Trade Regulation Rule
• FTC: Dealer's Guide to the Used Car Rule
• FTC Consumer Advice: Buying a Used Car From a Dealer
• FTC: Buyers Guide form, English (2016 revision, PDF)
• FTC press release: final changes to the Used Car Rule (Nov. 2016)
• Federal Register: 2016 amended Used Car Rule
• FTC: Answering dealers' questions about the revised Rule
• FTC booklet "Buying a Used Car" via GovInfo (older edition, PDF)
• FTC press release: Arkansas dealer pays $90,000 over missing Buyers Guides (2015)
• F&I and Showroom: coverage of the Abernathy penalty
• Consumer Reports: How to buy a used car
• Kelley Blue Book: values FAQ (private party values assume "as is")
• NHTSA: recall lookup by VIN