Hello, so I know by the title a pretty big detail is mentioned. I been checking out this 09 Toyota Matrix S that it’s exterior has been kept really well, underneath the car isn’t rusty , just dirty. The person selling it works at a car repair shop professionally and recently serviced the cars fluids, plugs, tires and alignment. However the main issue it has is, the engine was replaced because the previous lady he bought it from wasn’t good at checking her oil. Everything in the car seems to run fine and tested everything and even test drove it which felt smooth. It has 110K miles on it and he wants 4,800 bucks for it. My main concern is though everything looks good, if she wasn’t good at checking her oil, what else may not of been checked regularly.
She checked nothing, and the mechanic is flipping it.
You are totally right. First of all, the engine was swapped, so no one has any clue how many miles are on the current engine and how good it has been taken care of. This is a red flag itself. Secondly, the guy works as a mechanic and it seems he flips cars, so, if I were you, I would pass on the car.
@yaser , I do agree and not denying what you are saying. However multiple people have videos online about used car inspecting, and this passed all them, checking for leaks before and after driving , none. And we drove it for a good couple miles. If anything was SERIOUSLY wrong, I think I’d know it pretty quick. Checking the oil cap after the drive also showed no sign of milky residue. Plus I would think if you’re changing a whole engine. That’s a lot of work if you are just trying to screw someone over. Plus the guy fixed a Lexus his son drives to college 30 miles and back and it had a blown transmission , I don’t think he’d fix a car poorly knowing his son might be driving it. When I say major I’m talking major issues overheating and head gaskets. My 2011 Cruze recently overheated Andy now won’t run at all because we think either the radiator housing is cracked which has happened on that’s car before so I for sure don’t want another one of those issues
Don't get me wrong. I don't say that the guy wants to scam you, I just tell you the facts in a situation like this. If you trust the guy, that's another thing. You can ask him about the engine mileage to see how many miles you exactly have on the new engine and also check out the car with an OBDII scan tools, if there is no stored code, definitely, find another trustworthy mechanic to check the car for you completely. Unfortunately, the cars nowadays are so complicated that just with couple of miles test driving, you can not say for sure what condition the car has. That's the main reason you need a good mechanic to check the car for you. Good luck.
@yaser
I definitely agree and my family does have a local mechanic that we trust and if I do decide to go this direction I would have him look at it first chance. I would also see if I can get the guy to somehow verifiably agree somehow , legally I mean that if for some reason my mechanic finds something super wrong or suspects major wrong if he’s gove me money’ back within a week or two. Obviously I don’t expect him too do that 3 months down the road but this mechanic of our families should Be able to tell in just a couple of hours
@yaser
See if the mechanic will let you take it to your trusted mechanic before you buy. If he agrees to that, that in itself is a good sign. If he outright refuses I'd be skeptical.
Did you ask what shape the transmission is in? If she did not change the oils that was not done also and that maybe the next thing to fail i would pass on it.
@moe64
No I did not ask about that but I will be sure to do so and take a look at. I’m no where near committed to buying it but I do have several major questions left for the guy and depending on his answers I will go from there.
Ok.