Pre-Purchase Car Inspection in Sarasota

What the Inspection Covers

• Body and frame. Paint thickness readings, panel gaps, overspray, signs of prior collision repair, rust in the rockers and subframe mounts.
• Flood evidence. As described above, plus the headlight housings and under the spare tire.
• Engine and drivetrain. Cold start, idle quality, noises, leaks at the valve cover, timing cover, oil pan, and axle seals. Oil and transmission fluid condition. Coolant condition and signs of oil in it.
• Scan tool. Stored codes, pending codes, permanent codes, and readiness monitor status. Monitors that are all "not ready" mean someone cleared the codes recently, which is worth asking about.
• Brakes and tires. Pad and rotor measurements, tire tread depth and date codes. Snowbird cars in Sarasota often have tires that look new and are eight years old.
• Suspension and steering. Ball joints, tie rods, bushings, struts, and the clunks you hear on a road test over the brick streets downtown.
• Electrical and accessories. Every window, lock, light, the AC, the heater, and the dash warning lights at key-on.
• Road test. Shifting, braking straight, noises under load, steering return, highway stability.

You get the findings as a plain list: what's fine, what needs attention soon, what's expensive, and what's a reason to walk away. Nothing is dressed up or buried.