Don't Buy A Lemon

Why It Matters

The Cheapest Insurance In Car Buying

Every used car looks its best in a listing photo, and every seller says it "runs great." A pre-purchase inspection (PPI) is the one moment in a car purchase where someone whose paycheck doesn't depend on the sale looks at the actual machine. For a fraction of one month's payment, you find out whether "runs great" means runs great or means started this morning, eventually.

Because we're mobile, the inspection happens where the car is — the seller's driveway, a dealer's lot, a storage barn outside Sequim. You don't need the seller's permission to move the vehicle, and sellers with nothing to hide almost never object to an inspector visiting. When one does object, that's a finding all by itself.

What the 51-point inspection covers

• Engine & drivetrain — cold start behavior, idle quality, leaks, compression indicators, transmission engagement and shifting, clutch feel, differential noise
• Rust & structure — frame, rockers, floors, wheel arches, and the seams where Pacific Northwest cars quietly dissolve
• Brakes, steering & suspension — pad and rotor life, hydraulic condition, play in the steering, worn bushings and joints
• Electrical — charging output, lights, gauges, and the health of aged wiring
• Cooling & fuel systems — hoses, radiator condition, signs of overheating history, fuel delivery
• Tires, wheels & alignment clues — wear patterns that reveal suspension and alignment problems
• Body & paint honesty — evidence of accident repair, filler, respray, and mismatched panels
• Road test where the seller permits — how it actually drives, pulls, tracks, and stops
• Records & identity — VIN check against the title, service history review if available

You get a straight verbal debrief plus documented findings: what's wrong now, what's coming due soon, and what it all costs to make right — which is exactly the list you negotiate with.

Classic Car PPIs Are A Different Sport

Anyone can check tread depth. Evaluating a 1971 pickup, a 1985 Land Cruiser, or a pre-'94 Volvo wagon takes a different eye — and classics are our specialty, not a sideline.

On an older vehicle, the expensive questions are different: Is the rust surface or structural? Is that engine original, correct, or a mystery swap? Are the "restored" bits actually restored, or scuffed and sprayed for the sale? Which parts on this particular model are unobtainable, and does this car need any of them? A generalist inspection reads a classic like a used Corolla and misses precisely the things that make the difference between a $9,000 car and a $25,000 mistake.

What It Costs & How To Book

PPIs are quoted on request, because a straightforward late-model sedan in Port Angeles and a barn-find in Forks are very different jobs. Tell us the vehicle and where it sits via the estimate form, and you'll get a firm number — no surprises, in keeping with our published pricing policy for everything else.

When to schedule

Before the deposit — always. A PPI after money changes hands can only tell you how bad the news is; a PPI before gives you leverage or an exit. Most sellers will hold a car a day or two for a serious buyer's inspection, and we can usually schedule quickly enough to keep a deal alive.

The Fix-It List Comes With A Mechanic Attached

If you buy the car, our findings become your maintenance roadmap — and since we're the ones who wrote it, we're well placed to work through it with you via driveway repairs at your place, on your schedule. And if the inspection saves you from a bad car? That's a win too. We'd rather lose a repair customer than watch a neighbor buy forty hours of hidden problems.