Buying a used car is mostly about not getting burned. A good pre-purchase inspection isn't a tick-box exercise — it's a series of questions designed to surface what the seller won't tell you.
The diagnostic scan is non-negotiable
A proper scan pulls stored, pending, and permanent codes from the ECU, transmission, ABS, and airbag modules. It also reads adaptation data — which tells us if codes were cleared recently. If someone cleared codes 48 hours before you look at the car, they did it for a reason.
Most online inspection services don't scan. They drive it, kick the tyres, write it up. That's not an inspection, that's a vibe check.
The three places we always look
**Under the engine for weeps.** Oil at the timing cover, coolant at the water pump, power steering at the rack — these are the jobs that cost $2,000-4,000 to fix and are almost invisible from above.
**Inside the fuel cap and around the oil filler.** A dry, dusty cap on a 'well-maintained' car doesn't add up. Sludge or milky oil on the filler cap tells you the service record isn't real.
**In the boot spare well and under the rear seats.** Water staining in either of those spots is a flood-damaged car until proven otherwise.
You're not looking for reasons to buy. You're looking for reasons to walk.
The test drive matters more than you think
Cold start from first key turn — listen for 10 seconds before moving. Transmission through full gear range at low speed, then highway. Brakes from 80 to 0 with a straight stop. AC on full cold for 3 minutes. Every warning light should self-test on key-on and extinguish by 3 seconds running.
What you can do before we arrive
Pull the VIN and run a PPSR check ($2). Check the service book against the advertised history. Photograph the odometer on the test drive so you have a record. Bring the questions — we'll bring the tools.
