$150 booked online · $175 otherwise · About 45 minutes
Pre-purchase car inspection in Tampa
Before you hand over the money, have someone who isn't selling it look at the car. A written report with photos, and we come to wherever the car is parked.
The cheapest $150 you'll ever spend
A used car is one of the biggest purchases most people make without an expert anywhere in the room. The seller knows the car's history. The dealer knows what came back on the trade-in report. You get a test drive around the block and a good feeling about it.
An inspection puts someone on your side of the table. Either you find out it's a good car and buy it with confidence, or you find the $2,000 problem while it's still somebody else's. Both of those are worth $150.
What we actually check
A full scan for stored and pending codes — including the ones cleared recently to make the dash look clean before a showing. Fluids, brakes, tires, suspension and leaks. A road test to feel how the car behaves under load rather than rolling down the street. A frame and accident damage check. And paint depth readings across the panels.
Paint depth is the one buyers don't expect. It's how you find accident repair that was never reported, on a car being advertised as never hit. A repainted quarter panel reads differently from the factory finish beside it, and no amount of polish hides that from a gauge.
You get a written report with photos
Not a verbal summary over the phone that you're trying to scribble down while standing in a dealer's lot. A written report with photographs of what we found, which is yours to keep.
That report is also a negotiating tool, and this is the part that often pays for the inspection several times over. Documented worn brakes, a leak, tires at the wear bars — each one is a number you can take off the asking price. Sellers argue with a photograph and a third-party write-up far less than they argue with a buyer saying the tires look a bit worn.
Dealerships too, not just private sellers
We'll inspect at any dealership. Some are completely relaxed about it, and the good ones usually are. If a dealer refuses to allow an independent inspection, that refusal is information in itself, and it's worth more than the $150 you didn't spend.
One limit worth stating plainly: this is a mechanical inspection. We tell you the physical condition of the car. We don't run title or VIN history. Pull a history report alongside our inspection and you've covered both halves of the problem — what the paperwork says, and what the car actually is.
Book online and it's $150
$175 otherwise. The difference is simply that online booking takes the scheduling back-and-forth out of it, so we pass that on. It takes about 45 minutes, and you don't need to be there — plenty of buyers are at work while we're looking at the car across town.
What's included
Every inspection
- Full scan for stored, pending and recently cleared codes
- Fluids, brakes, tires, suspension and leak check
- Road test under real driving conditions
- Frame and accident damage check
- Paint depth readings that reveal unreported repairs
- Written report with photos, yours to keep
- Private sellers and dealerships alike
- About 45 minutes start to finish
Straight prices
Labor only-
DiagnosticFull scan, live data and a straight answer
$125$95Credited toward your repair -
Pre-purchase inspection45 minutes, written report with photos
$175$150Booked online - Battery replacementAny car, any battery $125Labor only
- Brakes — all four wheelsPads and rotors, most cars $245Labor only
- AlternatorMost cars $155Starting at, labor only
- StarterMost cars $145Starting at, labor only
Questions
Pre-purchase inspections, answered
How much is a pre-purchase inspection?
$150 if you book it online, $175 otherwise. It takes about 45 minutes and includes a written report with photos.
Do I need to be there?
No. Plenty of buyers are at work, or buying from another part of town. We go to the car, do the inspection and send you the report.
Will you inspect a car at a dealership?
Yes, any dealership. If a dealer won't allow an independent inspection, that tells you something useful on its own.
Do you check the title or VIN history?
No — this is a mechanical inspection. We tell you the physical condition of the car. Run a separate history report for title, accident records and ownership, and between the two you've covered it.
How long does it take to get the report?
It's a 45-minute inspection and you get the written report with photos straight after. Fast enough to make a decision the same day.
Can you inspect a car being sold privately?
Yes. Private driveways, apartment lots, wherever the car happens to be. That's the whole point of being mobile.
Other things we do
Inspections anywhere in Tampa Bay
Looking at a car this week?
Send us the listing and where it is. We'll tell you when we can get to it — often the same day.