Used car inspection checklist: 40 points before you buy

Before you go: three things to prepare

Ask the seller to keep the car cold before you arrive, meaning not started for a few hours. A cold engine reveals hard starting, smoke and noises that vanish once it warms up. Go in daylight: scratches and paint mismatches don't show under night lights. Take a second person, a small torch, a tissue for the dipstick, and this list printed.

The full checklist: 40 points

A. Papers and history (before the viewing)

• The owner's name on the papers matches the seller, or they hold a clear, valid authorisation.
• The chassis number (VIN) on the papers matches the car: under the windscreen and on the door pillar.
• Expiry dates of the registration or licence, insurance and periodic or technical inspection. Anything expiring soon is a cost to you.
• No unpaid fines on the car: check them yourself on the official portal before you pay.
• Service receipts or a log: regular dates and kilometres.
• The odometer makes sense for the car's age. Check it against the odometer readings on old service receipts: they should always go up, at a similar rate from year to year.
• Ask directly: has it been in an accident? Is there finance still owed on it? Why are you selling? Write the answers down.

B. Body and exterior

• Stand a few steps back at each corner: do doors and wings match exactly? A colour difference means a respray.
• The gaps around doors, bonnet and boot are even on both sides.
• No rust or bubbles under the paint, especially along door bottoms and around wheel arches.
• Bolts on the wings and bonnet: spanner marks mean the panel was removed or replaced.
• All glass carries the same markings and year in the corner; a different pane may point to an accident.
• Lights are clear inside with no moisture, and equally faded left and right.
• Look under the car with the torch: oil or water leaks, or dents in the chassis.

C. Tyres and brakes

• Read each tyre's date code (four digits after DOT), the spare too.
• Wear is even across the tread; one worn edge means alignment or suspension trouble.
• All four tyres are the same type and size.
• Brake discs have no deep lip or heavy scoring (look through the wheel spokes).

D. Under the bonnet (engine cold)

• Dipstick: level between the marks, colour brown to normal black. Milky oil or foam: walk away.
• The underside of the oil filler cap is clean, with no white or heavy black sludge.
• Coolant in the reservoir has its colour and no oil floating on it.
• Hoses and belts are not cracked, and there are no leak marks around the engine.
• Battery: read its date on the label, and no white corrosion on the terminals.
• Have the seller start the engine while you watch: no blue smoke (oil) or thick, lasting white smoke (water) from the exhaust.
• The engine runs evenly, with no metallic knocking or loud whine.

E. Interior and electrics

• With the ignition on, every warning light comes on, then goes off once running. A light that never comes on may have been disconnected on purpose.
• The AC blows properly cold within two minutes, with no musty smell.
• Wear on the wheel, pedals and driver's seat fits the odometer reading.
• Windows, mirrors, locks, interior lights, screen and camera all work.
• Lift the boot floor: no water, rust or welds, and the jack and spare are there.
• No damp or mud smell under the carpets (a sign of flood damage).

F. Test drive (at least 20 minutes)

• The engine starts first time from cold.
• The gearbox shifts smoothly, without delay or jolts, up and down.
• At speed the steering is straight, the car doesn't pull to one side, and there's no vibration.
• A firm stop on an empty road: the car stays straight, with no noise or pulsing pedal.
• Over speed bumps: no knocking and no excess bouncing.
• In traffic: the temperature gauge stays mid-way with the AC on.

G. After the drive, before paying

• Open the bonnet again: no new leak and no burning smell.
• Have it checked at an independent inspection centre you choose, not the seller, and read the whole report.
• Work out the full cost before you negotiate: papers expiring soon, tyres and battery if due, and the instalment if on finance.

Walk away at once if…

Some findings can be fixed and taken off the price, like old tyres or a weak battery. But each of these is enough on its own to leave the car:

• Milky oil or oil in the coolant (possible head-gasket damage)
• Flood signs: damp, mud and rust under the carpets
• Chassis number doesn't match the papers or looks tampered with
• A warning light disconnected or not coming on with the ignition
• A gearbox that jolts or shifts late
• A seller who refuses an independent inspection or rushes you to pay

Read next: Questions to ask the seller and ownership-transfer steps in Saudi Arabia and Egypt

Checking a used car in Egypt: three notes

The same list applies in Egypt, with three additions. First, ask for the original car licence and compare the chassis and engine numbers with it. Second, if the car has been converted to natural gas (CNG), ask for the installation certificate and the date of the cylinder's last test, and listen to the switch between petrol and gas. Third, many cars are sold by power of attorney; make sure it's valid and issued by the real owner, and plan to transfer ownership into your name at the traffic unit, asking the unit which papers it needs before you pay.

Read next: CNG conversion calculator

After you buy: the first three things

1) Log the odometer on the day you buy and the expiry dates of the papers and insurance. 2) If there's no clear service record, do a full service, oil, filters, brake and fluid checks, so you start from a known point. 3) Read the tyre and battery dates and set reminders for them.

Read next: Tyre age and date code · Car battery life

Print the checklist

Sayarti+ team

We write practical guides on car costs, maintenance and company cars. Every number has a source.

From Sayarti+ — sayartiplus.com · Not affiliated with any government entity