Exterior
Exterior / Bodywork: The exterior / body is designed for safety, aesthetics & appeal of the car. Careful inspection of the exterior reveals the bodyline, alignment, and structural damage & if the car has been through an accident. In a monocoque body, the crumple zones that are designed to protect the passengers gets affected.
- It is important to view the car in daylight. In rainy season ensure that the car is dry with out any rain droplets.
- Check the car for rust perforations. (Like: Bottom of the front windshield, sliding door railing, under body, exhaust system, etc).
- Check for sealant application in doors, fender aprons, etc to check for accidents.
- Check the paint condition, like: gloss, bubbles, overflow, and color mis-match. Any anomaly indicates that the car may have met with an accident. In this condition take out the weather strips & check for original weld spots.
- Look for signs of oil, coolant & petrol leakage, leakage of suspension.
- Check for cracks, chip off, and deep scratches in the front windshield. This is a safety item, so never take chances.
- Check all headlights & taillights are functioning & are not broken.
- All tyres should be of the same make including the spare tyre. Check for re-treaded, re-grooving, wear pattern should be uniform.
Interior
The interiors of the cars show how well the previous owner has maintained the car. It is important not only to see the cleanliness but also the functioning of various items. Clean interiors some times may disguise the non-functioning parts.
- Check all the safety belts are functioning.
- Check all the elements in instrument panel (Battery indicator, Fuel Gauge, Temperature, speedometer, tachometer, trip meter, Odometer, Handbrake light, etc) are functioning
- Check for cabin light functioning
- Check for A/C louvers loose, hard, blower speed control, blower direction knob, and hot & cold knob.
- Seat reclining & sliding.
- Lift the carpet & see for floor damage or rust.
- Check for door trims, damage / cut of seats.
- Check all door locks, child locks for proper functioning.
- Fully open & close the window glasses & check for smooth operation, noise. Check for all switches of power windows functioning properly.
- Check the availability of Jack, Jack handle and tool kit.
- Damage of heat resistant material in the dickey area indicates rework in the rear floor area.
Road Test
Always take a road test before buying the car. Take road test for at least 10 minutes. If you are not an expert driver take some one along who is adept at driving. The road test reveals the overall condition of the car, the mechanical parts, steering, clutch, brakes, air conditioning, steering.
- The ignition key is coming out from the position when the engine is running.
- Radiator fan should not start immediately after the ignition is put on. The fan should start with a gap of after some time it should stop.
- Check for blue, black smoke from the exhaust. Blue smoke indicates heavy wear & tare to the engine.
- Check for clutch slippage. Even at high revolutions of the engine the car doesn’t speed up and engine revolution sound increases.
- Proper functioning of brakes.
- On a level road check for alignment. The car should not pull to either direction.
- Turn the vehicle completely in both the directions and check for abnormal sound from the drive shaft.
- Check the wiper for proper functioning at all the speeds & washer is also working. The wiper should come back to its original position when it is in switched off.
- Feel any abnormal noise in the steering.
- Listen for any excessive noise from the body, rattling noise from the doors.
Under Bonnet
Please note don’t wear any loose clothes, tie, pallu, etc while checking the under the bonnet. Do not open the radiator cap when the engine is hot.
- The ID plate must be there and it should match with the chassis number punched on the body.
- Listen for any abnormal noise from the engine.
- Discolored coolant (faded), level of engine oil, brake oil, thickness of engine oil, A/C gas bubbling, floating sludge in the coolant & radiator.
- Leakage & damage of the ignition coil, hoses, chords, etc
- Visually check for the damage of fins of radiator & condenser.
Document
Ask for the original RC & invoice.
- Verify the no of previous owners & status of hypothecation from the RTO.
- Always take the payment receipt from the sellers.
- Take commitments that R.C will be transferred in your name.
- If there is “no-claim-bonus” is not there in the insurance, check for the claim details.
- If the vehicle is registered in another state ask for the no objection certificate from the previous RTO. In that case you have to pay fresh road tax at the time of transferring in your name.
- The engine number, chassis number & the color, etc mentioning in the RC should match with the vehicle.
- If CNG or LPG is fitted it should be endorsed in the RC.
