malanjari

I need to inspect a used '07 IS250, and was wondering if Pep Boys San diego were good. They have a Golden inspection for $200. It covers:

• Colling system.
• Electrical system.
• Fuel system.
• Engine diagnostic.
• Other regular things like checking: lights, interior, battery, tires, brakes, suspension and steering, exhaust, body panels, and other regular stuff that you get from regular used car inspections.

There are other inspection companies like inspectacar, inspectmyride, and AIM; but they are all mobile inspectors. Pep Boys will do a garage inspection, where they lift the car and check it from underneath.

What do you think? Is this a good inspection or over the top? Do you think it's better than the regular 150 point inspections?

The car I'm interested in is old ('07) and has highish mileage (125k), and is not cheap for its specs. Plus it had an issue with the front light (the dealer said he fixed it), and had many dents and scratches (with paint damage, which has been fixed too).

I just want to make sure the inspection I do will highlight any other damaged things or that might need replacing\fixing soon.

Crispy

iTrader: (3)

Personally, I wouldn't recommend Pep Boys, I've had some very poor experiences with them.

I would think you would be much better off having the inspection done by an independent Toyota/Lexus shop. There should be plenty around San Diego.

edgeucated

iTrader: (4)

I too would recommend an independent mechanic. This is because while the inspection procedure might be good, most likely it'll be performed by under-skilled technicians or technicians that don't care at Pepboys. An independent mechanic runs his own shop, so he'll have more pride/attention in his work

malanjari

I was going to chose inspectacar or inspectmyride, they both do general 150 point inspections for about $150. They come to you and inspect on site. Their services would be fine if the car I was looking into was clean and reliable enough.

But since all the clean cars I've been looking into have either been sold or are a lot more expensive, I'm stuck with the one with the rotten highlight problem. That's why I thought I would get a better inspection report, from a mechanic shop to do a more thorough checking like lifting the car to check for leaks.

When I called PepBoys, they assured me they were ASE certified, and that a Master Inspector will do this Golden service inspection.

I just thought they would be better. I'm going to call the Lexus and see how much it costs to get a report. But honestly, I was only looking for something between $100-200, and PepBoys seemed like a more detailed report.

malanjari

They told me they were ASE certified mechanics.

My first option was to get the inspection done by inspectacar for $140-150. But then I thought doing it at a mechanic's would be better, so that they can lift the car and check for leaks. PepBoys' name came up when I searched online. And their price was perfect ($200).

I don't think they're connected to the dealer who's selling me the car.

Fizzboy7

"The car I'm interested in is old ('07) and has highish mileage (125k), and is not cheap for its specs. Plus it had an issue with the front light (the dealer said he fixed it), and had many dents and scratches (with paint damage, which has been fixed too)."

Old, high price, high mileage, low specs, dents, scratches, paint damage, etc. What about the car do you like so much to make you want to pursue it?

malanjari

I like the IS, and this was the cheapest one I've see so far.

Now I know why. The car turned busted way more than thought. Deployed airbag and busted shocks.

malanjari

This is an update. I went to Pepboys and they were great.

I did the basic $80 inspection, because the car still had a few problems that needs fixing by the dealership, and I didn't want to pay $200 just yet when I knew the car wasn't ready.

Pepboys' master mechanic inspected it and told me:

• Engines is beautidul. With regular oil changes, it can last 10 years.
• The Airbag was depolyed, even though the dealer insists the car wasn't in an accident.
• The Shockers need replacing. And that's a $2.4k job.
• He adviced me to take the car ONLY if I wanted to fix the shockers first. He said the engine was "beautiful".

All in all, I am very happy I used them. The simple inspection costed me just $80, vs. $150 by inspectacar and inspectmyride. And I didn't even have to shell out for their Gold inspection of $200.

The inspection they did with the $80 saved me from buying a busted car.

lateapex

Bring me the car here in NC, I'll do the shocks for half that....parts included! Where the fudge do these mechanics get their prices from?

malanjari

Thanks for the offer, but I scrapped the idea of getting that car.

Sffd103

iTrader: (16)

I'm glad you did because why who'll you want a car that had so many issues with it? Cause its cheap? Just be patient and wait for something better it WILL come along. Ever ask how much a Lexus dealer charged to inspect?

malanjari

No I didn't ask. Everyone said inspectacar and inspectmyride were enough, plus they come to you so that was a plus. The dealer hanged me on the line for more than 10 years, and he still hadn't fixed the issues before I had it inspected. So I ended up choosing a simple inspection for $80, just to get a feel of the car.

I guess Lexus would charge between $280-400?

BTW, I bought a different car yesterday. A 2013 Mustang Premium with just 17k miles.

I was tired of looking for a good used old Lexus, because I couldn't afford the newer cleaner ones.