Things to watch out for when buying used car
 

Hi Guys,
I am now currently in the market for a Toyots 86 GTS/ Scion FRS. Is there any major things that I should look out for when inspecting the car? Rust won't be an issue as I live in Australia but is there any little signs or points that I should inspect before making a purchase?

Thanks

If your not familiar with cars in general and this model specifically then get a trained mechanic to look over it or vehicle inspection done


Oil leaks
especially from cam plate on drivers side rear of engine
also from cam covers.
not a huge drama as their usually minor but just annoying.




Coolant should be blue colour if their using genuine Subaru/toyota coolant


Oil should be clear and light golden colour, if its dark caramel or black and not transparent indicates its way over due for oil change.


service history by approved service provider especially if its still under warrantee, else very difficult to claim any issues on warrantee with engine/drivetrain.


But get a trained person to look over car its well worth the money.


If you buying a supposedly "standard" car look for signs its been modded and returned to stock ie signs of wear on intake manifold nuts/bolts or in engine bay and exhaust fittings.


Gearbox can be a bit stiff to shift to second when cold, but once warm should shift smoothly all gears, 4th and 5th often problematic in turbo/SC cars or car driven hard.


Check the brake rotors if their deeply scoured or grooved often indicates its had a hard life.




If you have a odb code scanner checked for stored CEL codes, early cars 2012 especially can have cam issues either hardware or ecu software problem but most would have been fixed by now under warrantee.


quite a number of these car may have been "tuned" ie mods made to ecu software. This is not a huge issue as most tunes are better than stock settings especially on Australian fuels. However some tune systems "lock" ecu preventing further modification or setting back to stock if you don't have the specific tune system the car was originally tuned with. Unfortunately without the correct tools and knowledge its difficult to pick if car is tuned and with which system it was tuned with , most mechanics or vehicle inspectors will be unable to tell you either. Just something to keep in mind if your buying a modded car.


also some guys that had hardware mods and tune , remove the headers and intake , but leave the tune for those mods in ECU as they are too lazy or don't want to pay to get ecu tune returned to stock. Again this can be hard to pick, without specialised tools and knowledge.


Car should drive and accelerate smoothly and idle smoothly if it doesn't it may be a sign the ecu tune does not match mods or mods have been removed and tune left in ecu.




Read the STICKY posts at top of this forum section re recall TSB and issues.


note forums generally attract people with car problems, they are actually quite reliable cars.

1) Open the oil cap and see if it's dirty, usually that's sign of an improperly maintained engine.

2) Drive the car and listens for thumps (could be blown suspension). Roll the windows up, turn off the radio and listen for rattles.

3) Check the tires and see if they're new; if it is, it could be a sign of hiding an alignment issue.

4) Check the lights interior/exterior

5) Test AC/Heat/Defroster/Radio/Exterior Mirror Control

6) Look for white dots in the engine bay, if there are white dots there is a coolant leak

7) Look for oil leaks in the strut/shock to see if it's blown.

8) Check to see if coolant is blue, if else color then the coolant life was halved.

9) Let the car idle and see if you can hear any knocking or odd ticking noises in the engine bay.

10) See if the tach jumps in idle drastically

11) While driving it, red line it and see if it can be driven hard

12) Perform 3-4 panic stops and see if ABS kicks in and listen for brake squeal.

13) Check Brake Fluid and see if it's clear (this is for clutch as well).

14) Check for chips/cracks in the windshield.

15) Check for smooth operation of the automatic up and down passenger/driver windows

16) Check for any Check Engine Lights with an OBDII reader

17) Check windshield wipers and if it can spray liquid

Thank you very much for the information, this will be very helpful!

Thank you for the in depth information. This will come into great use!