Pre-Purchase Inspection
You found a used car and it looks fine in the driveway. Cold engine, clean paint, seller standing right there telling you it runs great. That is exactly the situation where you want somebody else to look at it first, somebody who has no stake in whether you buy it or not.
Most problems that end up costing real money do not show up in a test drive around the block. A slipping transmission can feel normal for the first ten minutes. An oil leak might be dry until the engine warms up. Rust underneath a car that was sold two states over does not show unless you get it up on a lift and actually look. We have talked people out of buying cars in under an hour, and we have told plenty of people the car is fine, buy it.
What we actually do
We put the car on a lift and check the underside for rust, leaks, and anything that has been welded or patched that shouldn't have been. We check the brakes, suspension, and tires for wear that tells you how the car was actually driven, not how it was described. We pull codes and check the engine and transmission for anything the seller may not know about, or may know about and isn't mentioning. We check fluids, belts, hoses, and the battery and electrical system. If something needs a closer look than we can give it in an inspection, we tell you that too, rather than guess.
At the end you get a plain answer: what's wrong with it now, what's going to need attention soon, and roughly what that's going to cost you. We don't tell you whether to buy it. That's your call. We just make sure you're making it with the same information the seller has.
When it's not worth doing
If the car is a few thousand dollars and already has 200,000 miles on it, an inspection can cost you a meaningful chunk of what the car is worth. We'll say so if that's the case. Sometimes the honest answer is: for a car this cheap, budget for a repair instead of paying to find out what's already obviously old.
Bring the car in, or have the seller bring it in, before you sign anything. We're in Graham, open Monday through Saturday, and we see people from Puyallup, Spanaway, South Hill, and around the South Sound doing exactly this before they hand over a check. Call ahead so we can get you on the lift at a time that works, especially on a Saturday.