How to check a car body before buying

How to inspect a used car

In order not to make a mistake with the purchase

I worked as a trade-in salesman for an official car dealer.

Over the years, I have attended dozens of used car inspections. I'll tell you how to check a used car when buying.

I will write a separate article on how to choose a car based on an ad. In short: if the number is hidden in the ad, the VIN code is not indicated, or the price is lower than the market price, this is a reason not to trust the seller. In this article, we will consider a situation when you have already selected several suitable options and you need to choose the best one from them.

Checking against databases

Even before the in-person inspection, be sure to check the car according to the database. You may not have to go for an examination after this.

To check against the databases, you need to know VIN, or wine code, - this is the individual identification number of the car. Sometimes sellers immediately indicate it in the ad, sometimes they hide it. If you like the ad, but there is no VIN code, ask the seller to send it. If the seller refuses, explain that the VIN code itself is not a secret: anyone can look it up on a plate under the windshield. If the seller flatly refuses to send you the VIN code, just don’t buy such a car.

In addition to the VIN code, you will need the full name of the car owner. With this information, we will check the car in open sources: on the traffic police website, FSSP and in the Autocode service.

Traffic police website. In the special section, enter the VIN code. We see how many owners the car had, whether accidents involving it were registered, whether there are restrictions on registration actions, and whether the car is wanted.

Service "Autocode". If the car is from Moscow, then using this service and the VIN code you can also check it against Moscow databases. It's free. Be careful: there are sites on the Internet that are similar in design, where an inspection report costs 250-300 rubles. Checking on Autocode is free.

FSSP. We check the car itself using the VIN code, and the seller using the full name. On the website of the Federal Bailiff Service, you can check the owner for the presence of enforcement proceedings. If there is enforcement proceedings against the owner for debts, his car may be taken away and sold.

An example of checking a car on the traffic police website. The database is updated daily

On the website of the Federal Notary Chamber you can check the owner of a car by full name and passport number. There you can check the car by VIN code for collateral.

The car with this VIN code is pledged to Plus Bank

What to take for examination

Thickness Gauge - You can rent one, but learn how to use it first. The thickness gauge shows the thickness of the paint layer. Too much paint is an indirect sign of an accident.

Flashlight - you can use it to illuminate the engine compartment or parts of the body.

Where and how to inspect a car

The car must be inspected clean, in the light and not in a cramped garage, but in a spacious room or in the open air. This way you have a better chance of seeing imperfections in the paintwork, possible traces of an accident and body repairs.

Inspecting a car in an underground parking lot under dim artificial lighting is dangerous: you can easily miss defects. If the car is parked close to other cars or to a fence, ask to drive it to a free area. If the car is dirty, ask the seller to wash it. A normal seller won't mind.

If the car is parked in a cramped and dark parking lot, ask the seller to move it to a spacious and well-lit area. If you look around in a parking lot like the one in the photo, it's easy to miss defects.

During the inspection, we first check the documents: vehicle passport (PTS) and vehicle registration certificate (VRC).

If the car has had up to four owners inclusive, then it is very desirable that the title be original. A duplicate PTS could be issued simply to replace the disposed one if the space in the old passport ran out. Or they could have issued it in exchange for the lost one - I do not recommend buying cars with such a title. There is a risk that this is a stolen duplicate car or a car recovered after a serious accident and written off by the insurance company.

The reason for replacing the PTS is indicated in the “Special notes” column.

If the seller is a private individual, he must be included in the PTS and STS. This makes him the owner of the car. Check that the owner’s full name in the PTS matches the seller’s data in the passport. As a last resort, the husband can sell the wife's car.

If the seller says that he is the brother, friend or matchmaker of the owner, be wary. Most likely, this is a private reseller who resells low-quality cars. Such businessmen buy a car in poor condition at a price below the market price - after an accident or with a mileage of several hundred thousand kilometers. Then they repair it as cheaply as possible, increase the mileage and try to sell it at the price of a good car.

The body is one of the key elements of a car. Your safety depends on its condition. A body restored after a serious accident is unpredictable in the event of a repeat accident. At the same time, a minor accident in which only the attached elements were damaged is not critical for the body.

One way to check that the body is intact is to look at the bolts that secure the parts to each other. Sometimes, in order to hide traces of intervention after changing a part, the bolts are painted. To determine the actual condition, run your fingers along the surface of the bolt. If it is factory, it will be smooth and without scuffing. If it was unscrewed, marks will remain on it. The same applies to the inside of the wing - in the factory state it is smooth and even.

Assess the condition of bolts and attachments. It's good if they don't have burrs from a wrench. Also pay attention to the shape of the fasteners - they should be smooth, as in the photo. The surface is smooth, without scoring, and the bolt is in the factory color

The gaps between the body panels must be uniform throughout the entire junction of the body panels.

If the gaps between similar parts on the right and left sides of the car differ in thickness, this is an indirect sign of an accident in the history of the car.

If you are buying a car yourself, I recommend looking at several options for one model. This way you will understand which gaps are normal and which are not. The fact is that cheap cars from the factory may have poor build quality, and the gaps will be large or uneven.

Please note that the hood runs straight along the bumper, but the headlight sticks out a little. This is the norm for this Kia-Sid model. Sometimes, to understand the permissible limits, you need to look at several cars of the same model. If the gaps are obviously uneven, then most likely the car was involved in an accident. Source: malceva.mostlux.ru

Paintwork

Experts can identify painted parts by eye and touch, but the average car enthusiast is better off using a thickness gauge.

Pay attention to the color of adjacent body elements. If there is a difference between the shades, the car may have been repainted. Different tones between plastic and metal elements are the norm for mid- and economy-class cars.

Run your fingers along the end of the body element. A factory-painted surface is smooth, while a repainted surface is rough and convex, like an orange peel.

The thickness gauge must be calibrated and applied strictly perpendicularly

Glass marking

There is no uniform standard for glass marking. Each manufacturer encrypts data about the year of manufacture in its own way. If you do not understand the features of a particular car, compare the markings with other glass on the same car.

The number 16 is the year the glass was produced. Here they are from 2016, just like the car. Instead of 16 there can be 6 - this also indicates the year of manufacture of the glass

A 2016 car may have 2015 glass. But glass produced after the year the car was assembled can only appear on it as a result of replacement. The glass could have been replaced due to an accident or wear and tear. If the glass has been replaced, it is important to understand the reason and carefully check the nearest body elements.

The automaker's logo indicates that this glass is original. When repairing after an accident, they usually install cheap Chinese glass Xyg, SAT, Benson.

The same goes for body parts. If there is a car brand logo on the hood, that’s good. If not, then the hood is most likely not original, but from an accident.

Engine compartment

Under the hood, look at the internal body parts and the condition of the engine. The main strength elements are the wing spars and flanges.

The lower square tubes are the spars. There should be no creases, traces of welding or deformation on them. In the photo the spar on the right, with gray marks, is after repair: it was damaged in an accident

The metal at the top of the engine compartment is the fender flange. It should be smooth, without creases or cracks. The thickness of the paint layer according to the thickness gauge on the internal elements of the body should not exceed 150 microns. The sealant at the joints of the parts must be applied evenly.

Spars with traces of deformation, rust, or incipient cracks indicate either a serious accident or poor condition of the body.

You can often determine the mileage of a car based on the condition of the interior. It is usually indicated by wear and tear on the steering wheel, pedals and seats.

Sometimes, in order to hide high mileage, sellers change all the elements in the cabin that show signs of intensive use: the driver's seat, gear lever, dashboard buttons, upholstery, and so on.

One of the key indicators of a car's condition is mileage. Sellers often twist the odometer readings, so you have to guess about the actual mileage based on indirect evidence. Scratches and abrasions indicate that the car has been driven a lot for a long time. If the steering wheel is in the same condition as in the photo, sellers often reupholster it. This can be understood by the rough stitching or the material being different from other similar machines. An altered steering wheel is not a gift to you, but an attempt to hide the mileage. Source: iconsult.by Worn pedals also indicate a high mileage - certainly more than 100,000 km. Source: rocketmotors.ru

On the other hand, the condition of the interior depends on the thriftiness of the owner. If the interior is bad, most likely the owner did not take good care of the car. The make and model of the car also influence the wear resistance of materials in the cabin. I recommend researching the durability of the materials in the car model you are interested in. To do this, you can watch a series of videos on YouTube from auto selectors and reviewers. Then you need to inspect several used cars of this model with mileage. This way you will know which damage is typical for the interior of this car and which is not.

Look in the interior for uneven gaps between trim elements. This may be a sign of repairs after an accident. Traces of a panel rupture in the airbag area are a very bad signal and an indirect sign of a serious accident.

During an accident, airbags deploy sharply and forcefully. At the same time, the plastic parts of the interior are torn and the fastenings of the trim parts are broken. If a used car has crooked gaps between the interior panels, and seams or bumps are visible where the airbags fly out, there is a high probability that this car was in a serious accident. Source: hellhoundcustom.ru They can restore the steering wheel this way: they just put everything back. Source: airbagrostov.ru

Check your car with a scanner

When you have already chosen a used car and are ready to buy it, check the electronics with a diagnostic scanner. Scanners can be portable - for checking a car on site - and stationary - for working at a service station (service station). I recommend going to a service station of an official dealer and having it diagnosed there. The price depends on the brand and model, on average 3000-5000 rubles.

An airbag error may indirectly indicate a serious accident. A gearbox error is a reason to have it checked carefully at a service center. The more expensive the car, the more sensors it has and the more relevant this check is.

Technical check of a car before purchase: step-by-step instructions

A technical check of the car is a mandatory part of purchasing a used car of any class. It includes many points. We will give step-by-step instructions on what needs to be done to the car, where and how.

Content

Step 1. Visual inspection of the car's appearance

• paintwork, appearance;
• salon;
• body geometry;
• dynamic characteristics (control, braking, acceleration, etc.).

Let's take a closer look at them, starting with the appearance of the car.

Bring a regular magnet to inspect your car. It should stick to all parts of the car. If contact is lost somewhere, there is an additional layer of paint.

If there is no magnet, but you have good vision, squat down and look closely at the side of the car: is the reflection uniform? Does it seem like there are kinks? The car has been repainted.

Assess the overall appearance of the car: the condition of the headlights, glass, mirrors, joints of parts. There should be no large chips, fogging, or rust.

A separate element of checking the appearance of a car is the condition of the tires. Assess tire wear, tread depth, edge wear, and find out the year the tires were manufactured. Make sure there are no microcracks, cuts, or signs of repair.

See if the joints and gaps between the doors, hood, trunk and the rest of the body are even, if they are symmetrical, and if they close easily. If effort is required, you see discrepancies, sound the alarm. A crack in the windshield without a visible center, especially a horizontal one, is also a reason to be wary.

Step 2. Inspection of the car interior

Based on the condition of the interior, you can understand how long the car has been used, as well as whether everything is in order with the technical fluids, and whether there are any leaks. You should be comfortable on the seat and dry under the mat.

An important step in checking the interior is the presence of airbags. If you see that the seat trim or windshield has been changed, or the color of the plugs does not match the interior trim palette, there is a high probability that the car was involved in a serious accident in which the airbags deployed.

After inspecting the interior, proceed to checking the “inside” of the car. First, open the hood.

Step 3. Checking the engine compartment elements

Checking the internal combustion engine

Inspect the motor. If you see smudges, foreign liquids, deformation of the body or the absence of a plastic cover (on those cars that should have one), the car could have been involved in an accident, or partially or completely failed. If the engine, on the contrary, is clean, refuse to purchase. There are problems with the motor that the seller is trying to hide.

Start the car or ask the owner to do so. It should start without problems and run smoothly, without any extraneous knocks, dips, or throttle bumps. If rattling is the norm for a diesel engine, then it is not for a gasoline engine.

Battery check

Inspect the battery. Dirt on the contacts will interfere with the operation of the contacts, oxidized terminals (terminals with plaque) will interfere with the operation of the battery as a whole. There should be no cracks or dents on the body - electrolyte may leak out.

It is effective to check the battery when the car has been standing outside for a long time in the cold season. If it starts easily, the battery is serviceable; if it’s a stretch, it needs to be changed or the cause of the voltage loss should be looked for.

After checking the engine compartment, return to the cabin.

Checkpoint assessment

Before you check the oil in a manual or automatic transmission yourself, make sure that the car you are interested in has a special dipstick under the hood. The reason for concern is color. If the oil turns brown or black, this indicates that it is time to change it or the gearbox parts are very worn.

If you are looking at a used car with a CVT gearbox, remember: the oil should be transparent, without lumps or clots. If it's dark or even black, the box has probably been wrung out. If there are veins, the gearbox is also quite worn.

The oil level should also be normal. There are two marks on the dipstick: for measuring with the engine off and with the engine running.

Ignition system evaluation

It is especially important to do this if, standing next to a running car, you hear uneven operation of the cylinders, popping noises in the pipe, or see that the engine is overheating, the consumption is increasing, and black smoke is pouring out of the intake manifold.

Instructions describing how to do the check correctly are available on the website.

After you evaluate the operation of the ignition system, start checking the vehicle's chassis.

Step 4. Checking the vehicle's chassis

Suspension check

In terms of increasing costs, the list of suspension elements consists of the following:

• ball joints;
• silent blocks;
• racks;
• shock absorbers.

In fact, without resorting to the services of servicemen and without driving the car onto a lift or inspection hole, you can only look at the steering rack, shock absorbers and bearings.

So, a working steering rack should not make any extraneous sounds or play when turning the steering wheel.

If you see oil leaks on the springs, and the car does not stop swaying when rocking, it’s time to change the shock absorber. A sign of a heavily worn spring is sagging of the car.

To determine if the bearings are working properly, rock the car up and down. If it behaves like a pendulum, it's time to change the bearings.

Step 5. Connect the equipment

After a visual assessment of the car you are interested in, take hold of the equipment. Let's talk about what you can check with it.

Paintwork

It is also better to start checking using equipment from the car body, the external component. The most advanced ones take a thickness gauge to inspect their cars - the device will help you evaluate the thickness of the paint without any extra effort. Simply place the device on the body and follow the numbers on the screen. It is important to understand what is within the normal range for the car you are looking at. Find out the latest information from fellow car owners or on forums.

After assessing the paintwork, open the hood and take a multimeter. The first step is to evaluate the operation of the generator. This element generates current in the car and powers the battery. If it is faulty, you risk getting stuck on the road at the most inopportune moment. The normal voltage when the engine is off is about 12.5 Volts; when the engine is running, it is from 13.8 to 14.8 Volts. Turn on the lights, heating, air conditioning - the voltage should “drop” to 13.5 - 14 Volts.

Battery

You will also need a multimeter to check the battery. Normal voltage figures are the same as when assessing generator operation.

Many sensors that are important for the smooth operation of the car also need to be checked using an ohmmeter or multimeter, as well as a simple set of tools, such as a screwdriver or wrench.

Be sure to check the operation of the temperature sensor if the engine often overheats, fuel consumption is increased, and if the temperature in the engine elements rises, the car loses control.

If you experience sudden surges as the revs rise or the engine idles rough, it's time to check your throttle sensor.

Step 6. Test drive

Step-by-step instructions for technically checking a car are not complete without testing the car in real conditions. Be sure to take a ride in the car yourself. If the seller won't let you drive it, well, let him test the car yourself.

Ask the car owner to turn around, slow down, accelerate, and drive, for example, over a speed bump several times. Observe the actions of the car owner - he will not worry about the safety of the car, and you will receive answers to questions.

When testing the car, pay close attention to the steering.

Close the windows, turn off the music and listen to the sounds the car makes while driving. Sound the alarm if:

• when turning the wheels and operating the pump there is extraneous noise, crunching, clanging, etc.;
• the rack knocks;
• the steering wheel turns with force or, conversely, too easily, vibrates when turning, and also plays or sticks;
• When driving straight, the car pulls to the left or right.

Step 7. Professional vehicle inspection

Alas, checking a used car yourself does not provide a 100% guarantee that instead of a reliable iron horse, they won’t give you a pig in a poke. We recommend visiting a car service center together with the car seller, but be prepared to pay for the procedures yourself.

There are 2 types of inspections by specialists: stationary (in a car service) and on-site.

The usual, stationary one, assumes that you come to the service station and give the car into the hands of auto repairmen. They do everything that you do when checking yourself, only more thoroughly. The technicians will fix the problems found on the same day or at least help you order spare parts.

Also, many services today have modern scanners and programs that allow you to find electronic errors. Most used cars are stuffed with a variety of electronics. The failure of one system will lead to another, and you may lose your vehicle for a long time.

But checking at a car service has several disadvantages. For example, do not visit a car service that was recommended by the owner of the car - he may have a preliminary agreement with the specialists. Also be prepared for the fact that the verification will take a lot of time - 1-4 hours.

On-site inspection

On-site inspection has more advantages. You can completely distance yourself from inspecting the car, but at the same time you will be sure that the car will be examined inside and out. An outside expert will only be interested in ensuring that the car you choose is safe and technically sound.

You can order an on-site inspection on the Autocode website. A specialist will arrive at a time and place convenient for you, where he will perform the following procedures:

• check the paintwork using a thickness gauge;
• scan the engine with a video endoscope, which helps to study the wear of parts in hard-to-reach places;
• connect a diagnostic scanner to find out if there are errors in the electronics;
• inspect the suspension, gearbox, and engine elements using a two-post lift;
• will evaluate the driving performance of the car during a test drive and much more.

To order an on-site inspection, leave a request on the Autocode website: indicate a contact phone number, the city in which the car is located, as well as minimal information about the car you are interested in.

What else is important to check

In addition to the technical check, it is important to conduct a legal check. For this, however, specialists are no longer needed. All the necessary information is in the databases of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, RSA, customs and tax services, insurance companies, and banks. You can find out information about your car in 5 minutes, without leaving your home, or directly while inspecting the car - you just need to open the Autocode website or mobile application. Enter the license plate number or VIN of the car in a special form and start checking.

The report will show fines, the number of owners, the actual year of manufacture, and repair work performed. From the results of the check, you will learn the details of the MTPL policy, PTS, as well as information about restrictions or prohibitions of the traffic police, customs history and much more.

We hope that our step-by-step instructions helped you understand how to check the technical condition of a car before purchasing.

We check the car body before purchasing

Friends, hello everyone! Vitaly Dmitriev is with you. In today's article, I will tell you why checking the body of a car before buying is so important. The most important and expensive element in a car is its body, so when inspecting a car we pay special attention to it. The chassis and motor can be repaired, no matter what happens to them; in extreme cases, the motor can be replaced with a contract one. And restoring crooked body geometry after a serious accident is quite expensive and almost impossible.

Awkward

Deformation of the body geometry leads to various problems:

1. Unstable driving on the highway, the car constantly pulls to the side, and there may be vibration in the steering rack.
2. The rubber of the wheel will wear out faster and unevenly, fuel consumption will increase, because there is no way to do wheel alignment, that is, set the correct wheel alignment angles.
3. A failed part in a car suspension that is not replaced in time leads to the fact that many others will have to be replaced in the near future.
4. Well, and most importantly, the geometry of the body, which once saved the lives of passengers as a result of an accident, will not be able to do this next time. If the metal structure is damaged in an accident, the car will collapse like a house of cards.

In general, we can talk a lot about non-deliveries of broken geometry, let’s better understand how to identify it and not buy a crooked car.

• Rule No. 1 (clean car, good lighting)

And so, the inspection must be carried out on a clean car in daylight, or in a well-lit place, so as not to miss possible body defects.

• Rule No. 2 (we use a paint thickness checker)

In order not to waste time looking at the car body and to eliminate errors in the inspection, I recommend that you always use a device that measures the thickness of the paintwork (thickness gauge).

You will spend several days, or even months, searching for a good car; the main thing is not to rush and buy the first car you come across. You will have to use the thickness gauge often, so if you have nowhere to borrow the device for free (for example, from friends or relatives), I do not recommend renting it for money. The total amount for all rental days may be higher than the cost of the thickness gauge itself.

Therefore, I advise it is better to purchase the device immediately, especially since it will be useful in the future. There is no need to buy an expensive, professional thickness gauge; it will be enough to purchase, for example, GM200. I myself have been using it for several years, and I am quite satisfied with its capabilities. I talked about this device in this article.

• Rule No. 3 (we shoot with a thickness gauge in order)

We start checking the body from the roof of the car, because... it is extremely rarely damaged and is a reference sample for measuring paintwork. Of course, it can also be painted if the car has been turned over or completely covered in paint (freshened). Thanks to the thickness gauge, you will understand that the car has been repainted, because... its performance will vary greatly on different parts of the car.

Hind wings

After checking the roof, we move on to the rear fenders. We pay special attention to the places marked in the picture. If the thickness gauge showed that in these places there are traces of repair (the thickness is greater than the reference), this indicates to us that most likely the wing was cut. After serious accidents, when the stiffeners are damaged, it is not advisable to stretch the wing, straighten it and paint it. It’s easier and cheaper to cut off the damaged part, replace it with a new one and paint it. You can verify this by opening the hidden cavities in the luggage compartment, peeling back the trim and looking under it. There we will find non-factory sealant, most likely traces of corrosion and non-factory welding.

Carefully check the spherical parts of the body, namely the wing arches. They are most susceptible to external influences, and in case of repair they are often repaired using putty, because... On the back side of the wing there are stiffening ribs that prevent high-quality repairs.

Pay attention to the gas tank flap; it is usually used to select the color for painting the body parts of the car. If you find traces of removing the gas tank flap, then you can say with 99.9% certainty that the car has painted elements.

trunk lid

Next, we check the trunk lid, look at the fastening bolts, they should be undamaged and painted in the color of the body. Torn splines on the fastening bolts tell us that the cover has been dismantled. It can be removed in several cases: for painting or for ease of body repair, for example, it can be removed to straighten the rear fender from the inside.

There have been cases when, after an accident, body parts matching the color of the car are found during disassembly and they are installed in place of the damaged ones; the thickness gauge will not be able to detect replacements. Therefore, be sure to pay attention to the fasteners.

An important indicator in a car that can help identify signs of repair is the sealant. At the factory, it is applied automatically, using an original seam, along the perimeter of each body element. After repairing a body part, it will not be possible to apply the same seam. Therefore, on all body elements, be sure to pay attention to the sealant layer. Non-factory sealant is quite easily pressed with a fingernail and, if a thick layer is applied, when pressed, it is squeezed out from under the paint.

In the luggage compartment, be sure to fold back the rug, take out the spare tire and inspect the floor. It is also sealed and there should be no creases, cracks or signs of repair. Often they try to hide repairs in the luggage compartment with a layer of mastic or seal them with soundproofing material guerlain. Particularly suspicious may seem if the trunk floor is not completely sealed, but in parts. They may tell you that there was not enough material, but in fact, most likely, in this way they tried to hide the traces of repair.

This example of removing the trunk lid also applies to the doors and hood. For example, repairing a jammed car threshold, for convenience, is often carried out by removing the door. Therefore, if you find traces of dismantling a body element that is in the factory paint, you need to try to establish the true reason for the dismantling.

So, let's move on to inspecting the doors. We measure them with a thickness gauge, and similarly look at the mounting bolts, hinges and sealant. On many models, control strokes are made from the factory on body fasteners in a color different from the body color. If an element with a control stroke is removed, this indicator will be damaged or not match the pattern, so we pay attention to this.

Power elements

Regardless of whether you find traces of repair on the doors or not, you definitely need to check the doorways (central pillars, sills and internal arches), they belong to the load-bearing structure of the body and are responsible for the geometry of the car. In the event of a side impact, the rack takes the entire impact; if it is discovered that the rack has been repaired, does not have factory seams, or has putty, it is better to immediately abandon such a car.

If you have any doubts about the door openings, remove the rubber seal and make sure there are factory spot welds underneath everywhere. If there is no welding in some places under the seal, then repairs have been made.

Front fenders

Next, by analogy with the rear wings, we inspect the front ones; here you need to pay attention to the inside of the wing next to the mounting bolts. Most cars are painted matte from the factory and should not be glossy. Compare these parts of the wings with each other. Also, if the wing is replaced with a non-original one, we will find that the stamping is not factory stamped.

Obvious signs of hood repair will be the same torn edges of the mounting bolts, smeared sealant that is not in factory form, and areas of severe corrosion. If you don't find sealant on the edge of the hood at all, it means it was replaced with a cheap Chinese hood that they didn't bother to apply sealant to at all.

In a car, the hood is most often repaired because it gets chipped from stones and sandblasting. There is nothing wrong with the fact that it was redecorated. The main thing for us is to determine whether the car was involved in a serious accident, as a result of which the geometry of the body was disrupted.

Engine compartment

Let's move on to inspecting the so-called shock absorber strut supports (glasses). It is important that factory sealant, spot welding and stamping are applied to them. The shock absorber strut support must be carefully connected by spot welding and factory sealant to the amplifier and mudguard of the engine compartment.

We inspect the side members very carefully, preferably with additional lighting; they also belong to the load-bearing structure of the body and are responsible for the geometry. If you notice traces of repair on the side members, not factory sealant, they may be covered with mastic to hide defects or, in the worst case, cracked, bent, or have traces of creases. In such cases, we immediately refuse such a machine.

Don't forget to check the vehicle's VIN number, it is usually located under the hood, under the floor trim on a marked panel next to the driver's seat, and also on the driver's door pillar. You can check all the locations of the VIN number before inspecting a specific model on the Internet. In addition to the fact that the identification markings must not differ from those indicated in the PTS, there must also be no traces of non-factory painting, debris under the varnish, traces of welding, putty, poorly readable symbols, or any defects.

If during registration during inspection the inspector has doubts about the authenticity of the identification marking, the car will be sent for examination. If it is confirmed that the VIN number has been welded in or broken (the characters have been replaced), it will not be possible to register the car, and problems will also arise with law enforcement agencies.

Bumpers are the last thing we are interested in, because... they are most often exposed to external influences. But if they assure you that not a single part in the car has been painted, you need to check them too. The thickness gauge will not help us with this, because... in modern cars they are made of plastic. So you have to look with your eyes. Pay attention to the end parts of the bumper, they are a good indicator. Usually, none of the painters in these places do it to perfection. If you find roughness, marks from sandpaper, paint spraying or smudges, then the bumper has definitely been painted.

What we need to understand

Our main task is to buy a smooth car! You shouldn’t immediately abandon a car in which you find 2-3 painted parts; you need to figure out the reason for their repair. It may have been a minor cosmetic repair due to some chips and minor scratches.

If thickenings are found on any body element that are larger than the average thickness of the car’s paintwork, special attention should be paid to it. Be sure to look at the hidden cavities, this is the only way to understand the scope of the repair. Because it is extremely rare for anyone to remove traces of repairs from the inside.

We refuse the car, no matter how much it attracts us, if we find traces of repairs on the central pillars, inner arches, side members and on the floor under the spare wheel. Because repairs to these elements indicate serious damage to the body geometry.

I advise you not to look at cars that are covered with film; it is not known what is underneath it; perhaps they tried to hide body defects with the help of film. It is much cheaper to cover a car with film, especially Chinese, than to repaint the car. Take your time when choosing a car, you will definitely find the right car.

Have a nice day and happy car shopping. Come again!

Buy a car and you won’t regret it. Part 4. How to inspect the body correctly

We continue our large-scale and detailed project, revealing all aspects of the automotive sector. We have already decided how to choose the model and modification of the car, talked about how to select ads and how to communicate with the seller. Now the most interesting part: how to inspect a copy offered for sale and what to pay attention to first?

Our previous materials

On your own or with specialists?

If you yourself know perfectly well how to check a car before buying, then you don’t need to read further - this series of publications is intended primarily for less experienced motorists. And for them there is clear advice: at the final stage, it is better to show the car to specialists who can give a qualified opinion on the condition of the body, engine, gearbox and other car systems, as well as estimate the cost of the required repair work. This is especially true for relatively “fresh” models of the 2000s and even more so of the 2010s, where the cost of repairs turns out to be much higher than for the “oldies” from the 20th century.

Which experts should I trust with these checks? Regarding the body part, individual complex units (for example, a robotic gearbox or a variator), these can be specialized specialists, but this approach means that one car will have to be shown at several service stations, which takes time, money, and the patience of the seller. The solution may be a service station that can carry out comprehensive diagnostics. Another piece of advice is to contact specialists who specialize in this particular brand of car. They know all the chronic “sores” of the models well, so they are able to quickly determine the condition of the car and estimate the cost of investments in the initial period of operation.

But sending every car you like for service is too much: you will simply waste a lot of your and other people’s time, and diagnostics also cost money. Some cars can be eliminated during the initial inspection. Ideally, it is better to carry out it together with a familiar mechanic or simply an experienced motorist. But going to inspect a car with a whole bunch of friends or your family is not a good idea.

Get ready!

As in the case of a telephone conversation with a seller, you can make a small cheat sheet - a kind of checklist that will allow you not to forget all the main check points. But more on that below. We also advise you to study the weak points of the model in order to pay attention to them during the inspection. Here our publications, as well as reviews from real owners, can serve as a source of information.

Be realistic! It will not be possible to accurately assess the condition of a car without the appropriate experience, especially if the car was prepared for sale and “tweaked” by eliminating obvious symptoms of problems and malfunctions. The rule works: the more expensive the car, the better the “camouflage”. Fresh models with units that are expensive to repair can undergo very thorough “pre-sale preparation”, so only specialists with special equipment can identify problem components. No one will bother with cheap old cars like that, but methods for eliminating signs of a malfunction, and not the malfunction itself, will also work there.

One more thing. A used car, especially an old one, will not be ideal. Or its cost will be appropriate. After several years of operation, the car may well have an accident history, painted elements, worn upholstery, rusty suspension or exhaust system parts. And here it is important to assess which problems are really serious, which are not, which will require mandatory and expensive repairs, and which, at best, are grounds for bargaining.

And one last thing. When arranging a meeting with the seller, ensure that the inspection of the car takes place under suitable conditions. At a minimum, this means good lighting (even artificial lighting is possible), lack of precipitation, and ideally, the ability to drive the car onto an overpass/pit/lift. And also enough time for inspection and test drive! There is no need to rush here.

Body inspection and assessment

But here is the car in front of you. What and how do we look, what do we pay attention to? Let's go over the main points that will allow you to get a general idea of ​​this specimen.

We inspect the body for corrosion, possible accident history, paint work, and geometry. We have already said: it is almost impossible to find a used car without repainted elements; even if there were no accidents, you probably had to remove scratches and chips. Therefore, a painted wing or bumper is not a reason to refuse the purchase.

External corrosion of external elements in itself is not very scary, but if due to such local outbreaks you have to “drench” the entire body, it will not be cheap. It is also important which part has suffered from corrosion. For example, removing bugs under the windshield or rear window is not easy: to do everything correctly, you need to cut out the glass. Roof repairs are also expensive.

The arches on the outside may be “living,” but there are outer and inner parts that are joined and rolled. If the car is being made for sale, only the outer part of the arch is put in order. But no matter how well it is made, rust will still creep in - and everything will have to be redone.

The main rule: you should never look at a detail head-on - you won’t see anything. You need to sit on the side. In good lighting, everything will become visible: glare, paint subsidence, unevenness and poor joining of elements. The unevenness of the gaps can also say a lot. But all these are just signs that certain parts were painted, removed and installed. However, it is not always possible to determine how badly a car was damaged in an accident.

There are a number of signs by which one can ascertain the scale of restoration work and assume what caused it. If the roof was being made, then, most likely, paint subsidence will be visible on the racks. However, they can be removed by polishing. But it is difficult to polish doorways, and therefore it is difficult to hide the fact that they are painted. But if the damage was local, the openings are not painted. If they were done, it means that something serious happened, for example, the power elements of the body were damaged, and this is already very bad.

Much worse is the corrosion that develops from the inside: everything looks good on the outside, but in fact the metal rots. For old cars, corrosion of power elements , which are often hidden from view, is relevant. Here we pay attention to the condition of the bottom, sills, side members, engine shield, and suspension cups.

Even if there are no signs of painting, it makes sense to inspect the engine compartment, lift the trim in the trunk, and look at the car from below . It is important to make sure that there is no deformation of the side members. It is useless to pull a seriously damaged spar, and welding another one, even a used one, can be expensive. Especially if everything is done using technology.

Deformation of the power elements indicates a serious impact from which the body geometry suffers - hence the loose gaps, broken alignment and the inability to return the wheel alignment angles to factory values. By the way, this is why before buying a car it is strongly recommended to check it at a wheel alignment stand. This operation is cheaper than measuring the body geometry. By the location of the wheels and the angles of their installation, you can already judge whether there is a problem, and if so, how critical it is. In this case, the readings of the stand will only indicate the problem, but with its help it cannot be determined whether it arose due to damage to the suspension elements (levers, steering knuckles, shock absorber struts) or the body itself. Here wheel alignment is not enough - the car will have to be measured.

To check and restore the geometry of the body, a stand or slipway is used, on which the car is rigidly fixed using special devices. The measurement itself is carried out at control points using a measuring system. Yes, it is not cheap, but it still cannot be compared with how much it can cost to restore the geometry of the body.

You can check the geometry of the body in the garage using the same ruler. This operation will just take longer. And it is also possible to stretch the body without a proprietary slipway, using other means. After all, the result primarily depends on the knowledge, experience and accuracy of the performers. But if it comes to such measurements, is it even worth getting involved with such a specimen? Unless it is an exceptional option in other respects.

Take the time to look at the ends of all elements: they should be smooth, without thickening. The opposite indicates that the part was “removed” using putty. “repair” seams can indicate an accident past - they differ from the factory ones. But again, the point is not whether there was a repair or not, but how high quality it was. If the seam is smooth, neat, and the sealant is in place, then the part will last long enough.

If there are cracks on the paintwork, this indicates a large layer of putty - and automatically means that the part has not been restored as expected, but is made from putty, which will subsequently burst.

There is no need to be afraid of a painted car or body repair - you should be wary of outright hackwork and cheap restoration. But in any case, “made” parts and loose gaps should alert you and become a reason for good bargaining. We'll tell you about the further stages of checking a used car next time.

ABW.BY

Having reinforced the “theory”, according to tradition, we propose to move on to “practice”. There are more than 65,000 advertisements for car sales in our database - choose, look, buy!

How to check the body of a car before buying. #8

This is part 8 of 16 of the large guide “How to choose and check a used car before buying.” Links to other parts are at the bottom of the article.

Attention! The article below completely repeats the text material of the video, but the video contains more illustrations. Choose what is more convenient - reading or watching and listening.

Try to avoid inspecting a dirty car in the dark, under artificial lighting or in the rain - all these factors can complicate the identification of external defects in the body. Start with a detailed visual inspection of the vehicle for existing damage.

Inspect every detail of the body very carefully - even minor damage will affect the residual value of the car when it is sold or will require repairs, which will entail unnecessary costs. Eliminating deficiencies will add secondary painted body parts, which will also negatively affect the liquidity of the car. For you, at this stage, all cosmetic damage is a reason for bargaining with the seller.

When performing an external inspection of the car, check the condition of the tires. Pay attention to the degree and nature of its wear. Inspect each tire for cracks, bulging (hernia), uneven wear, that is, “eating” of the rubber. After all, if the tires are badly worn, you will have to prepare for the costs of purchasing new tires, which can also become an extra reason for bargaining with the seller.

Cracks in tires may indicate the approach of its critical age, when the rubber has begun its process of chemical decomposition. A herniated tire also does not bode well; it can cause imbalance and beating, and at high speed a herniated tire can cause a rupture.

A hernia most often occurs as a result of a wheel hitting a hole or a curb - the internal reinforcing cord breaks and the rubber swells in this place.

Uneven tread wear can be caused by trivial reasons, such as insufficient or high tire pressure. Or more serious - incorrect wheel alignment, play in steering rods and ends, bent arms, worn wheel bearing or silent blocks, and maybe shock absorbers require replacement. But what’s worse is that this could be the consequences of an accident in which the geometry of the load-bearing part of the body was damaged.

Use a thickness gauge to identify repainted body parts. Take several measurements on each body part to identify local colors and putty. By taking measurements over the entire body, you can get an overall picture - there were slight rubbing marks, if there are two layers of paint on the body or the car has been in a serious accident and the paintwork is hidden by thick layers of putty.

Don't forget to measure thresholds, pillars and doorways - this is the most important. In doorways, the thickness of the paintwork is usually less than on the outside of the body. Measure all the openings, the thickness gauge readings should be approximately the same; if the thickness in some place is seriously different, this is a reason to pay special attention to this part of the body. The abundance of putty on the load-bearing part of the body, in the openings and on the racks is a reason to refuse to purchase this specimen.

If you don’t have a thickness gauge, you can also determine secondary painted parts. Compare the color shades of all body parts; the shade should not differ from part to part.

Compare shagreen on body parts - this is a relief of paint, the so-called orange peel. If you look closely at any body part, even one painted at the factory, you can see a barely noticeable “relief” on the paint - shagreen. Naturally, factory shagreen is usually barely noticeable and uniform throughout the car body.

If on some body part the shagreen is distinguished by its “pattern”, then most likely this part is painted a second time. If the shagreen is too obvious, this is a serious cosmetic defect, which means that the coloring was carried out in violation of the technology.

Even a quick inspection can reveal body parts that have most likely undergone body repair - compare the width and uniformity of all gaps between body parts. From the factory, the car is produced completely symmetrical, for example, the gaps between the right wing and the hood should be identical to the gaps between the left wing and the hood.

If the gaps between the parts on the right and left are of different widths or are uneven along the entire length, then there is a high probability that the hood or fenders were dismantled for painting or replacement. Of course, the gaps should be symmetrical and uniform between the doors, as well as on both sides of the car trunk. The gaps must be uniform and identical, both in the horizontal and vertical planes - that is, one part should not be higher than the other.

Violation of the symmetry of the gaps could occur due to poor-quality installation of the body part or due to incorrect geometry of the part itself, if, in order to save money, when carrying out repair work, a non-original, low-quality part was used. But what’s worse, “crooked” gaps can be a sign of a violation of the geometry of the power part of the body, which did not allow the mounted body parts to be installed correctly.

Also, secondary painted body parts can be identified by looking for painting defects, most often these are specks of dust that have fallen on the painted surface or craters. Factory painting prevents dust from entering the body during painting. If the painting was carried out outside the factory, especially in a budget workshop, most often these types of flaws can be found on the inspected surface.

It’s worse when the car is painted in such a way that you can find smudges of paint, obvious shagreen, cracks in the putty under the paint, which clearly indicates poor-quality body repair.

You can also identify a re-painted body part by running your finger along the edge of the part. The edge of a factory-painted part is smooth; for a second-painted part, roughness may be felt on the edge along the color border of the part.

Pay special attention to the edges of the nuts and bolts securing body parts - doors, trunk lid, hood, front fenders. If the paintwork on parts fastenings is damaged, it means the parts were dismantled for repair or replacement.