glerma

Hello all... It's been years since I've owned a 'Vette and I have found a prospect. The only problem is, it is about 1,000 miles away at a Chevy dealer. I know paying for an independent inspection service is typically a good idea but, since this car is GM certified and will have a factory 12 month 12,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty I'm wondering if it would be prudent to just buy the car and have it shipped without the 3rd party inspection. Logic tells me it has already been inspected and passed well enough for a GM warranty.

How rigorous is the factory certification process?
Who does it?
Any thoughts?

boraxman

Bought mine GM certified and the thought of an independent inspection never crossed my mind, of course it only had 2900 miles on it and one owner.

Depending on miles and amount of previous owners it may not be a bad idea especially after reading here of cars being bought with tunes and warranty coverage being denied.

Landru

A couple.
1st a CP car *should* have been inspected, after all it's GM who'll be paying for any repair(s) for the duration of warranty period. Unless the car comes with no warranty coverage, a second opin probably isn't neccessary. IMO.

HOWEVER may I suggest you demand, in writing & part of a contract the selling dealer VERIFY the car does NOT have a tune.

There've been a couple members reporting they'd purchased a 'CP' car only to learn later the car had been tuned. Of course dealer denies a tune was present so owner's on their own insofar as a bill for repair(s) go because a tune negates important & costlier repairs. This is especially important for preowned Z06/427s; although, all C6s are pricey to fix for major failures.

R&L's C6

I think I would pay for an inspection. I can remember reading posts on the forum in the past of people buying certified used cars and the buyers finding out that the dealers did a pretty poor job inspecting anything on their car.

Garibaldi

My 2¢:

You're paying beaucoup for a used car. An independent inspection will cost $100-150. If you can find a recommended Independent Corvette specialist, they will take an hour to an hour-and-a-half going over your potential purchase with a fine tooth comb. Anything that they find will be a negotiating point for you. But more to the point, the inspection will save you from the heartache of buying a pig in a poke.

As far as how well certified cars are inspected? My guess is, and I could be very wrong, it will consist of a tech with a drop light looking under the car for leaks, brake pad life, and under the hood, for things falling off. Remember, the dealer is protected by the 12k warranty. I don't think they have much skin in the game.

You will have a full windshield wiper tank, though.

HTH

GP

obxchartercaptain

What you say makes perfect sense....However, even if the dealer does put it in writing....whats to say if something goes wrong and they find out there is a tune, the dealer doesn't say, YOU DID IT.

I would think if the dealer is one that is respected in the area you would be ok. A "CP" on a used car ESPECIALLY a Vette is a NO BRAINER....

glerma

I appreciate the replies. What types of horror stories concerning tunes? What type of tune would void a warranty? The deal seems good and it is what I am looking for (convertible GS with manual). I have been searching for over a year... hopefully I will be "back in the saddle" soon.

Vet Interested

About four weeks ago, I bought a 2010 with 13,800 miles on it from a dealer in Chicago. I did not get an inspection because of the warranty. I drove the car to San Diego. It performed flawless and was worth the peace of mind getting it from a dealer with a warranty. In the end it's up to you.
Good luck!!!

heisnuts

Any change to the ECU will be recorded, and even if the ECU is reflashed back to stock, there will be a record of that in the ECU. The dealer can plug into the ECU and see if any changes were made, and if so, GM can deny warranty repairs because of this. This is especially true if you have an engine or transmission concern because GM can say that the change to the ECU contributed to the failure.

VET4LES

GM Certified doesn't mean much. Many times they don't want to pay a tech to do it and figure they will just do any warranty work necessary unless it has a tune.

phileaglesfan

I agree on checking for a tune. I don't have much faith in the Certified inspection. The dealer charges more money if it was done and it sounds like it is extensive but not all steps apply to the Corvette. One thread here had a new owner buy a certified Vette only to later inspect it himself and find a lot of flaws including a wrinkled dash. The certified process doesn't seem to be much more than an oil change and normal inspection. Just another pure profit maker for the dealer.

BayouCountry

Yep, missing air dam pieces. Bad wipers that scratched my windshield just to name a couple on my so called certified vehicle. Pointed them out to the dealer and I was basically called a lier. They stated the "inspection report" showed no problems or missing parts. This was a few years ago when I purchased my 2006 from a local dealer - not my current GS that I purchased new from a different dealer.

Bill Dearborn

If you are worried about the quality of the dealer's inspection process how do you know you will get any better from an independent? What are they going to check? How thorough will they be? Do they warranty their services? Probably not. Will they even take the wheels off to check the brakes or just shine a flashlight and take a look. Since you won't be there will they even do what they told you tell you they were going to do?


Sort of like house inspectors. All the rage and pretty much required nowadays but when the one came to my house he only found one issue that all the houses in my area have (Radon). Things that I thought would receive comments he never noticed even when looking right at them. I hadn't fixed anything because I wanted to see if he found any additional problems that I would have to pay for by fixing or giving money to the new owners. Glad I didn't fix anything since he determined things were all fine.


Bill

phileaglesfan

The dealer just wants to sell you the car. The mechanic (usually someone you trust) is looking for things that are wrong. Even if it is not someone you know they are hoping that you'll come back as a customer.

hawkgfr

Find an OCD member close and get him to go look....We are Everywhere...

Garibaldi

While it's true you could get shagged by an independent Corvette tech, the chances are much more likely that a recommended Corvette tech will give you a thorough and competent report on anything that doesn't meet expectations. I've bought many used cars over the years and have always had an independent tech do a PPI. The cost is trivial compared to the price of the car. To me there's infinite upside (the car's not worth the money/aggravation) and limited downside. In addition, though not something the OP could do, I've been able to be right with techs I have hired for a PPI while they walked me through the inspection and what they've found. I can't recommend an independent PPI enough.

That said, would I just call up any shop and ask them for a PPI? Absolutely not. But with so many CF members around the country, it's entirely possible that wherever your potential purchase is located, you could get a recommendation of a trustworthy, knowledgeable Corvette tech near the dealer. Heck, if the dealer shies away from letting you have the car inspected that's a warning sign in and of itself.

4SUMERZ

Although a GM certified inspection seems to imply that it is gone over with a fine tooth comb, that couldn't be further from the truth.
They are simply checking obvious things, as mentioned...brake pads, fluid levels, ball joints, tire thread depth.
I bought a used 2006 GM certified vette in 2009 with 13K miles on it.
I asked for tons of pics from under, sides, engine, etc. etc.
The dealer (Bud's Chevy) was very obliging, and send me tons of high res pics.
I bought the car from 1200 miles away, from those pics, certified inspection, and had some warranty remaining.
I wired the money, they transferred to my name, sent me copies, I faxed those to US border, and a week later, I flew in to Dayton, the dealer picked me up, and 3 hours later, I was on my way back to Canada.
The car worked A-1 on the 21 hr trip home.
The only issue I have ever had with the car is the water pump seal started to leak at 30K miles.
I replaced the pump, and no issues since.

Any reputable dealer will stand by their certified cars I would hope.

Keep 'Em Flying

"Certified" means very little when the person doing the inspection just pencil whips the checklist.

duramaxsky

Mine was certified. One of the things marked as checked and good was the cabin filter. This is the cabin filter removed the next day. The inspection is a joke.



Also the brake fluid needed to be flushed. GM Certified is a scam.

pala

I don't think gm certified is a scam, it is a 172 point inspection. the dealer might have been a scam. like the previous posts has show it is more or less on the tech.
I just purchased my gm certified 3k miles ago and everything going great. besides it has a extended warranty, bumper to bumper.