Alan A

Closest shop to the car I'm trying to get PPI'd only does visual checks and a road test.

They don't have a paint meter and won't remove anything to check - like turbo lines for instance.

Shop has a good rep on here - multiple recommendations .

Would anyone think this was sufficient or am I looking for a different shop?

ALLUC

As others will soon weigh in. A PPI isn't the end all be all in you decision. More important is to get the service records and talk to the mechanic that has worked on the car. That history is more important than a PPI, imo

I have 2 buddies with 996tts. The one that got a PPI has had more maintenance needed than me and the other. FWIW

Freddie Two Bs

It's true that PPI shouldn't be taken as a revealed absolute truth, but I'd go for another shop without hesitation.

Atrox

Leak down tests, turbos,etc aren't normally covered on standard ppi's. You have to pay extra for those.

Atrox

Leak down tests, turbos,etc aren't normally covered on standard ppi's. You have to pay extra for those.
You pay em they will check.

Carsly

Second the service records, knowing what services should have been done / were done and when can tell you a lot about how the car was taken care of. I'd definitely still get a DME readout and get someone knowledgeable to get eyes on the car / test drive. Unless you are buying a high mileage car with history of engine issues a leak down test is overkill IMHO.

Alan A

Not in this case.
Paying for it wasn't the issue.
Getting them to do it was.

Service history and all that is fine. The DME was part of the visual.
I think I'll have them do their ppi and see if they note anything. It's pretty inexpensive. If it's fine I'll go look myself.

If something gets noted I'll have a different place do a more thorough check or walk, depending on what's what.

ezdriver

Move on and find a shop that will do what you want as part of YOUR PPI. IMO, a PPI should be defined by what the potential buyer wants done. If this shop won't do it, why bother with the recommendations that you mentioned?

Freddie Two Bs

If this is in the NY area, there should be plenty of good PPI options. I'd be curious to know which shop this is.

Alan A

It's not. Rennwerke is like 15-20 minutes from me and if it was local I'd take it there.

The vehicle I'm interested in is 4-5 hours away. I'll post pictures if I end up buying it

Stephencs601

Where are you in NY we have many shops in Long Island

greencalex

So I went through this a bit.


While one might be willing to pay the shop, the fact of the matter is that it is not your car, and if something goes wrong during any sort of substantial disassembly the situation can get "sticky" as to who pays for the corrective work.


In really high-end cars, a lot of shops won't even do PPIs anymore, because the stakes can be so high if they miss something...

"02996ttx50

how and since when is a shop inspecting at the behest of a current or potential buyer of the car financially responsible to ANY degree for any parts or labor should something on the car fail??!

that's preposterous, as an inspection of the car by an independent 3rd party offers NO warranty or representation of the cars mechanical integrity.

it simply informs said party as to the condition of the car based upon the inspectors advice. no shop in the world that inspected a car and gave it a "clean bill of health" would be responsibly "legally" should some issue with the car arise.

it's no different than asking your buddy to tag along w you to inspect a ( insert car ) because he has a wealth of experience with said car.

i think pi's usually miss stuff. sometimes a LOT of stuff...and i bought a car from porsche that was "certified" which one preumes had been "ppi'd" also, and their expenses of warrantied work in the first year of my ownership were at least 14K$ out of pcna's pocket.

i'm not suggesting you don't "inspect/look/smell/drive" the car pre purchase, just don't believe that this PPI is actually buying you any peace of mind. though some shops are better than others, and know everything to look for from a leaky rms to an uneven spoiler deployment.

me? i wouldnt spend 300/400 to have someone tell me the car was mechanically sound, though i would "inspect" it to the same degree i would any 15 year old car. a decent test drive and a cursory glimpse at most all else. but i am different than most.

Alan A

And I would do the same if the thing was local.

Since it isn't, I'm relying on someone else to act as a filter to determine whether the time investment in going to see it is worthwhile. I wouldn't buy it sight unseen, but I'm not prepared waste a day driving if it isn't worth the time.

greencalex

You can say such things. You can have them written down. You can have all parties sign something.


The world is littered with bankrupt people who were submarined by a court deciding that a signed agreement was not valid (there are lots of reasons that this can be the determination, not the least of which being inconsistency with state-level consumer protection laws).


And even if a contract did hold-up, this does not mean that one wants to deal with the costs/hassles of a court case.


As I said, it is not uncommon to find that a shop won't do PPIs on high-end cars...