Test Drive 4: Outside Checklist

There are three reasons to inspect the outside of the car carefully. First, it's one of your best clues as to whether the car has been in an accident. Second, it will help you avoid one of the most insidious of car repair problems -- rust. Third, if the exterior shows signs of neglect, the owner may have also neglected the mechanical maintenance of the car.

TIP: Always shop in the daytime. Shopping at night or under the glare of lights in a used car lot can hide problems with the bodywork.

1. Examine the glass and test the lights. Front and back windows are expensive to replace, and problems with them can mean a safety hazard. Test the headlights, taillights, flashers, backup lights, brake lights, turn signals, and parking lights. (Bring a friend and this task will go a lot faster.)
2. Look carefully for rust. Repairing rust is far more expensive than most mechanical repairs, and rust does more to depreciate the value of a car than any other single item. Take special note of the following areas: wheel wells, rain gutters, window moldings, door frames (especially around the bottom), and the joints where the roof supports connect with the body. If the car has a vinyl top, look for bubbles and push on them with your finger. A crinkly, crunchy sound means there's rust under the vinyl that can be almost impossible to stop. Also check for bubbles or blisters around the trim, which indicate the beginning of rust under the paint. Rust is a good reason to avoid a particular car because there is no inexpensive way to repair rust problems.
3. Examine the paint and body. Beware of new paint jobs. A newly painted car may have had a severe rust problem or may have been in a major accident. Unless you know the person selling the car and know why it was repainted, stay away from cars with new paint jobs.
   To determine whether a car has been repainted, check for telltale signs: the trim on the inside of the doors doesn't match the exterior trim; the color inside the hood and the trunk doesn't match the exterior; or little bits of paint on the rubber molding around the windows and doors or on the chrome.

A magnet can tell you if a fender is the original metal or filled with plastic body filler. Or you can check by tapping on suspect body areas with your knuckles. If the fender sounds hollow, it's probably okay. If it sounds solid, it may have been filled with body filler.

TIP: If the car is a sedan with a large engine, check the roof for holes that have been patched where lights or other equipment could have been mounted. Such a car may have been a cab or police car.

4. Try all the doors, the hood, and the trunk. Make sure the doors, trunk, and hood all open and close easily and tightly. Open the driver-side door and try to move it up and down. If it seems loose, then the car has probably had some heavy use. Also, if the door drops or falls out of place when you open it, again beware of heavy use. When the door is closed, check the gap between the door and the body. If it is uneven, the car may have been in an accident. The bumper can also provide a clue to a car's accident history. Both sides of the bumper should be evenly spaced from the car. If not, an accident could have knocked the bumpers out of line.
5. Look inside the trunk. If it smells musty, it might leak. Check under the mat or carpeting for rust or other problems. Make sure you have all the jack equipment. Check the spare tire. If it's worn unevenly, it may have been changed with a front tire to hide a front-end problem.
6. Check for leaks under the car. A leaking black liquid may be oil from the engine or manual transmission; reddish fluid may be from an automatic transmission; greenish, watery liquid may be antifreeze. Clear water, usually from the air conditioner, is okay. Oily, odorous fluid may be brake fluid. You can recognize gasoline by its smell.
7. Examine the tail pipe. Make sure it's cool; then rub your finger inside the tail pipe. You should see a white or grey powder. If your finger is black and sooty, the car may simply need a tune-up. However, if it's black and gummy, the car probably has a problem with its rings or valves and is burning oil.
8. Check the tires. New tires may indicate that a serious alignment problem exists. Don't be afraid of old tires. They tell an important story about the car. Inspect them carefully for wear and scuffing. If they are worn irregularly (the middle seems balder than the sides or one side or the other seems to have less tread than the middle), the car has either bad shock absorbers, poor wheel alignment or poor wheel balance. Don't forget to check the inside of the tires, the side of the tire facing the car. Sometimes, owners of tires that are badly scuffed will merely turn them around so that the good side faces out. Also check the inner side of the tires for evidence of leaking brake fluid.
9. Test the shock absorbers. Push up and down on each corner of the car until it starts bouncing. When you let go, the car should not bounce more than one time. If it does, you'll need to repair or replace the shock absorbers.
10. Examine the car's overall alignment. Park on a level surface and look at the car from a squatting position about 20 feet behind it. Are the front tires perfectly aligned with the rear tires? If not, the car has a severe frame problem and should be avoided. Also, you should check to see that the car is level. If one side dips lower than the other, or if the front dips lower than the back, the car could have serious suspension or frame problems and again you should avoid it.
11. Remove the gas cap. If a sign on the dash says to use only unleaded gasoline, look down the filler tube to the gas tank to see if the opening is small enough to prevent the larger, leaded gas fuel pump nozzles from fitting in it. If it looks like anything has been punched out, then the owner was probably using leaded gas, which can destroy the catalytic converter and will result in expensive repairs.

TIP: Flood Damage

Because of the potential that flooded cars will be on the market, you should check for signs of water damage such as: silt or mud deposits in unlikely areas such as the trunk or glove box; silt, mud or other residue on engine parts; a faulty air conditioner that emits a mildew smell; water lines on interior door panels or seats; and traces of mildew or mold on rugs and other fabrics. If you see such signs of immersion, don't buy the car.

TIP: Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

While you are inspecting the vehicle, write down the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). You'll find it printed on a small strip of metal, either in the edge of the door or on the dashboard right beneath the windshield (look on the driver's side). Then, call the state's Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) and ask them to look up the VIN in their records. They can tell you if the vehicle has been salvaged, totaled, or stolen.

from The Car Book 1998 by Jack Gillis