Pre Purchase Inspection out of town

[OR VietVet]

I personally would never buy a used vehicle unless I get a chance to look over repair and maintenance paperwork, ask questions of the previous/current owner and do a thorough inspection/testing of the vehicle. If I am not allowed to do this, I walk away. Sometimes we find and want to buy a vehicle that is far enough away that it is cumbersome and a PITA to do all this before making a purchase offer. In this case, why not have a trusted member of the forum do the leg work and questioning for you. The proposed buyer can dictate the questions and the particular inspection concerns for the inspection process. A fee for this can be agreed upon by the proposed buyer and the inspecting member or member representative. No matter what the agreed cost is, it can save a headache/nightmare for the buyer or put them at ease with their remote purchase. I am in the PNW, in the Eugene, Oregon area and we have lots of rust free vehicles in the area. I know that a lot of people depend on CarFax but that only shows highlights of what has been reported. If this sounds like something that would interest any of you, message me.

 

[tagexpcom]

The suggestion above is fantastic - good idea. Kind of thing I wouldn't think of myself.

We bought a used 2021 Yukon Denali last Aug from a local big-3 dealer. Even so, after years of reading that one is foolish not to have independent review, we actually forced the issue and required a check by our trusted auto-repair shop. The Sales guy rolled his eyes trying to make us feel 'bad' but... they let us take the vehicle for a couple of days. Didn't find anything wrong but still, the non-making-a-sales perspective from the auto repair shop helped us focus on testing things and forced a couple of days 'process' to slow things down from impulse buy.

There's actually a TON of things to check and it can be daunting. The 2021 Yukon Denali literally has at least 100 things to check and we still missed some - such as the auto-sense windshield wipers working.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Great idea!!!

I am always willing to assist a fellow Forum member. I've helped fellow Forum members with my Tech 2, and I've given available spare parts (not sold) to fellow Forum members. To me, this is just one more way to assist fellow Forum members.

 

[the 18th letter]

What if you’re buying from a private seller who won’t let you take the car for a couple days to ‘have it checked out’? I wouldn’t even let a buyer take my sales for a test drive alone lol

 

[tagexpcom]

What if you’re buying from a private seller who won’t let you take the car for a couple days to ‘have it checked out’? I wouldn’t even let a buyer take my sales for a test drive alone lol

Then arrange for them to take it there and meet them there.

 

[OR VietVet]

I personally would not need a couple of days. I would bring ramps and floor jack and scanner and cooling system pressure test equipment and DVOM and a bright flashlight. I would want to see paperwork. It may take longer to do the round trip to the vehicle than it does to do the inspection. I would want a list of questions/concerns from the buyer. If the seller balks, walk away.

 

[Stbentoak]

You may want to do all of this….but

#1 I would make sure to agree on a price that won’t change ….before traveling, unless show stopping deficiencies were discovered.

#2 If the vehicle is THAT decent or desirable, the seller might not want to screw with all of your demands…Someone else will probably just show up and buy it…

#3 i’ve had buyers show up from 600 miles away and then nitpick my vehicle to death and say well we agreed on ”A price” but I am going to give you 1000 less because the mud flaps are crooked, and I will take it home today. Well that puts you in a real pinch because you waited for this buyer, he’s traveled, and then when he gets there he says it’s less or nothing, and you really just want to move it. Especially if you haven’t had many interested parties.

That’s why you need to agree that if it’s everything that I have advertised, you will pay the asking price or don’t come… there will be no negotiating on site.

i’m at the point in life that I really just don’t want to screw with selling to private buyers. They all have idiosyncrasies and quirks and most of them mostly want to just show up and tell you why your vehicle isn’t worth that….

 

[OR VietVet]

You may want to do all of this….but

#1 I would make sure to agree on a price that won’t change ….before traveling, unless show stopping deficiencies were discovered.

#2 If the vehicle is THAT decent or desirable, the seller might not want to screw with all of your demands…Someone else will probably just show up and buy it…

#3 i’ve had buyers show up from 600 miles away and then nitpick my vehicle to death and say well we agreed on ”A price” but I am going to give you 1000 less because the mud flaps are crooked, and I will take it home today. Well that puts you in a real pinch because you waited for this buyer, he’s traveled, and then when he gets there he says it’s less or nothing, and you really just want to move it. Especially if you haven’t had many interested parties.

That’s why you need to agree that if it’s everything that I have advertised, you will pay the asking price or don’t come… there will be no negotiating on site.

i’m at the point in life that I really just don’t want to screw with selling to private buyers. They all have idiosyncrasies and quirks and most of them mostly want to just show up and tell you why your vehicle isn’t worth that….

I agree with you. The buyer and seller should agree on a price or a price window, IF the vehicle is as described and discussed by the buyer and seller. I would want to know the ENTIRE conversation between the buyer and seller. If I would find something that is not in the previous info between buyer and seller, that is between them. It is my job to report what I see with my experience. I can't bring a shop but I can anticipate what I would need. I am a detailed enough person that I would cover all that I can with the buyer and have a list of things to check. The fee can even be adjusted depending on what the buyer wants looked at.

I had my own company called Lemon-Aide that was a mobile pre purchase inspection service that had 3 price levels and was strictly within a mileage range. Then everyone decided to use CarFax and hope it was the way to go. I had my own air compressor and would pull wheels and do a thorough inspection. If someone now days wants an inspection, the seller has a "guy" to do that.

 

[grouch]

I personally would never buy a used vehicle unless I get a chance to look over repair and maintenance paperwork, ask questions of the previous/current owner and do a thorough inspection/testing of the vehicle. If I am not allowed to do this, I walk away. Sometimes we find and want to buy a vehicle that is far enough away that it is cumbersome and a PITA to do all this before making a purchase offer. In this case, why not have a trusted member of the forum do the leg work and questioning for you. The proposed buyer can dictate the questions and the particular inspection concerns for the inspection process. A fee for this can be agreed upon by the proposed buyer and the inspecting member or member representative. No matter what the agreed cost is, it can save a headache/nightmare for the buyer or put them at ease with their remote purchase. I am in the PNW, in the Eugene, Oregon area and we have lots of rust free vehicles in the area. I know that a lot of people depend on CarFax but that only shows highlights of what has been reported. If this sounds like something that would interest any of you, message me.

I wish I'd have done that with the El Camino I spent two days traveling to look at. I've since traded the PT for something else, but it still rankles.