CAR CHECK?

lumpster, Oct 14, 3:35am
Ive been in the motor trade for 25+ years and was thinking about starting a little company that check over cars for sale for people who dont have a clue about what they are buying. starting from the body work and down to the basic mechanical with a check list. plus see that the car is worth the money.This could be a mobile service.what do you think!pros & cons.
ps i know you can go to AA
neverl8, Oct 14, 5:26am
thecarguy.co.nz
edangus, Oct 14, 5:38am
Interesting. Perhaps I should start charging, been doing it for free for 15 years!
daryl14, Oct 14, 5:46am
Most people in here will tell you don't go near AA with a barge pole. Either get your regular mechanic or an independant (of Dealership) brand specialist to do the PPI.

I think maybe there could be a target market for people listing cars and having a pre purchase inspection listed on the auction as a selling feature.

You'd have to convince sellers that if they spend a few dollars with you that they will make their money back in the sale price they get for their car. It sounds like it will be a hard sell.

Buyers won't get a PPI if they think they'll miss out on the car as it's wasted money. Or if they do spend the coin and it checks out okay they may be more likely to fight for it.

I think you're gonna need a big Hook.
arrithedog, Oct 14, 9:24pm
Someone who knows what they are doing would be good. A car I was selling was taken to VTNZ. One of the things they "picked up" was the spare wheel well was "rusty/leaking" So I vacuumed out the brick/clay dust, from a bone dry wheel well (it was pissing down for a week before I took it in to them) wiped it over with a dry duster and the "rust" was gone.
They also said they couldn't assess the bodywork as the car was 'dirty' (no, it was wet), and the carpets and interior were 'dirty', again, they weren't, the mats that protect the carpets were a bit dusty. On the positive side, they did discover a radiator leak (or maybe cause a radiator leak, I'd had the car 2 years and never needed to top up water) when they pressurised it, and a shock absorber needed replacing, but the total cost of the work including parts, was 200 bucks, not much more than the price of the inspection, and for a 16 year old car, what do you expect!
So if you are able to offer a service from someone who knows what they're doing, and can give a realistic estimate of repair cost, I think its a great idea.
curlcrown, Oct 14, 9:40pm
I don't think people doing mechanicl inspection should comment on a car's value but providing a prompt inspection service is a good idea. The AA sometimes take a couple of days to come out. A some day inspection would be great.
hopie, Oct 14, 9:52pm
and if someone buys the car based on your advice and it blows up the next day, but was sold as is where is as a private sale, where would this leave you! you have already obviously thought about this so where do you stand!
thejazzpianoma, Oct 14, 10:02pm
I think they absolutely should if they want to, this service is for the non car savy remember!
Just because some dealers might object to a fair sale price estimate is no reason not to offer this valuable part of the service.
sw20, Oct 14, 10:05pm
Nah. Not for the person checking it out to stick their nose in on the price IMO.

You do can do your homework in five minutes what a car is worth. Too much bias on part of the inspector. The price is for the buyer and the seller to determine.
brightfire, Oct 14, 10:36pm
+1 on this one. Even a few years later people might try find you accountable. Miss something like a dodgy rail repair etc and a wof man finds it they might come after ya (the purchaser not the wof man)
lumpster, Oct 14, 10:56pm
All sounds interesting some good comments some not so good it's good to here what people think.
mechnificent, Oct 14, 11:00pm
I help buy cars and always find the best way to ensure the buyer is happy with the car they eventually buy is to go with them for the day or weekend and look at as many cars as possible. Compare the relative merits and prices, and eventually you find a car that is a clear winner, sometimes one you saw earlier in the day, sometimes a new one that is obviously better for the price as soon as you arrive to look at it.

One thing is for sure. if you go with them and buy the first car that you look at, no matter how good it was, as soon as it has a problem the buyer has doubts about your diligence. If you have insisted that they look at several, they are always happy knowing that the car they got, despite the problems it might have, is the best they saw for the money. and lets face it, all older cars have some things needing doing or coming up.
wimwom, Oct 14, 11:07pm
A great idea for sure but given all the 'butt covering' done amongst the trade alreadymake sure you have both broad shoulders and some kind of insurance,if it goes pear shape for either end it will be your fault.Best of luck!