The marketplace of used trucks in sacramento can be a scary place. Although most truck dealers have come a very long way since the wild west days of the 1970s and 1980s, there are still plenty of vendors out there looking to take advantage of unsuspecting buyers. So how are you going to protect yourself?
The best way to make sure you don’t buy into a problem-filled truck is to get informed and do at least a basic inspection of important truck components. Okay, so what are you supposed to look at?
Begin with a document on vehicle backgrounds such as CarFax or AutoCheck. Review these in detail to see if the car has any pending violations, and to see if the vehicle has failed an environmental check at any stage, or an incident has happened.
Next, take a fundamental walk around the truck. Inspect and paint the body. What you’re searching for is anything that stands out with the rest of the truck as contradictory. Check to see if any of the body’s light or brightness is off. Check at the openings in the body panels. Of example, if on one side of the hood there is a smaller gap than the other, at some stage it is probable to have been patched, eliminated, or substituted. Look for areas that don’t seem to fit right with bumpers or trimming. Check whether the bumper is safe or wiggling or losing. This is a warning that an injury has happened and the bumper has not been fully reinstalled.
Body or exterior job isn’t necessarily a sign that the vehicle isn’t decent or worth purchasing, but it’s worth bearing in mind as it can impact the truck’s value. And if the vehicle has been repaired on the chassis, ask the seller if they have a report of the job completed. If it’s at a manufacturer, and the work was made before they got the truck, did they do an audit to guarantee that it was adequately patched or to safeguard the vehicle’s safety?
First glance at the tires. Check the inside, center, and outside of each tire’s tread depth. Uneven wear in the tire is a sign of a problem in suspension or alignment.
Before you came to see it, look where the truck was parked. Is the planet dry? Or are there traces of petroleum or other liquids falling on the ground?
If the dealer has service records on the vehicle you’re looking at, you’re probably looking at a well-maintained truck, but it’s always good to look for other indicators of how well the truck has been cared for. Cut the dipstick of the oil. It usually has a yellow or white handle, and it’s going to be sticking out of the truck. What is the oil’s color? Is that deep, almost black?
If you want to get further, you might search underneath the vehicle for indicators of oil leaks, or check things like shocks or CV boots for splits or fractures, but those items are tougher to see, and if you don’t know what you’re looking for, you’re probably best left to a specialist. It’s okay to ask the seller to let a third-party mechanic check out the car. Also note, mechanics make money by fixing things, so some may have a tendency to make decisions that are not important needs.
