Pretty much this. Normal wear and tear, nothing egregious.
Definition of a vehicle being in "good condition"
- Thread starter The Critic
- Start date
puffery is legal
It depends. I would score my Touareg "rough" because it has a scrape on the front bumper that requires paint.
It is otherwise mechanically and cosmetically in the 1%. Whenever it's clean people ooh and ahh all over it. But that scrape...
Why do you ask? Because according to audatex “good” is as good as it gets unless it’s restored and restored means Barrett Jackson restored.
IE a brand new car is “good”.
Otherwise - carry on…
IE a brand new car is “good”.
Otherwise - carry on…
What about OEM take-offs from another trim level of the same model? For example, if someone takes their 17" OEM wheels off, and replaces them with 18" or 19" OEM wheels. Is that considered a no-go mod, or would that be considered an acceptable upgrade?
The only reason I bring this up is because it can cause issues with the sticker on the door jamb. It may show the only tire size as a 225/65R17. Yet the owner does an upgrade to OEM 18" wheels and the tires are 235/55R18. The 18" is a factory size, but could really throw off a tire installer if they look at the sticker and refuse to install tires due to the wheel and tire size not being listed.
You can order the "correct" label and replace the sticker.
I consider good to be nearly, but not quite perfect. For a 10 year old car, it would be almost no visible wear inside or out. No leaks, nothing not functioning as designed. Preferably no prior work has been done aside from regular maintenance items. Or if work was done, OE quality parts were used. Maybe a couple very minor dings or light scratches in the clearcoat. Clear headlights, clean seats and carpet. No interior damage. Mechanical noises are hard to judge because so many engines don't sound as mechanically quiet as an old iron block V8. Also, I've had a shocking number of cars that sounded like crap cold, - piston slap, etc. but lasted for 200K w/ no issues. Especially newer DI engines - they sound like diesels brand new. It also seems like the transmission oil pumps make a lot more noise now than they used to. At 100K miles, I expect the car to drive nearly like new. But, I live in Florida where cars don't really wear aside from sun damage, if they are taken care of. Our roads are smooth, lots of highway, etc.
Passes a state inspection, no warning lights, all I/Ms complete.
Brakes feel good, parking brake works as intended (an oversight on many cars with glazed shoes)
Has both key fobs
Has all the plastic air dams, fender liners, and they're all secure. Same with exhaust heat shields.
Any exhaust repairs have been done with OE or like-fit parts. So if a rear catalytic flange rots out, a new flange pair would be brought in so the exhaust can still be serviced in pieces as originally intended.
No weird noises
No bent rims
Good heat and AC
Tranny shifts well hot or cold, engages gears quickly when selected.
Can beat factory MPG rating
Battery is properly held down, and terminals aren't a fuzzy mess.
Brakes feel good, parking brake works as intended (an oversight on many cars with glazed shoes)
Has both key fobs
Has all the plastic air dams, fender liners, and they're all secure. Same with exhaust heat shields.
Any exhaust repairs have been done with OE or like-fit parts. So if a rear catalytic flange rots out, a new flange pair would be brought in so the exhaust can still be serviced in pieces as originally intended.
No weird noises
No bent rims
Good heat and AC
Tranny shifts well hot or cold, engages gears quickly when selected.
Can beat factory MPG rating
Battery is properly held down, and terminals aren't a fuzzy mess.
I was speaking of cheap/junk aftermarket wheels that usually have multiple bolt patterns & don't center on the Hub without those stupid plastic adaptors.
Or when they are made for a specific bolt pattern, But require reduced diameter lug nuts. I keep the large & small Gorilla spline lug sockets in my toolbox.
Little off topic, But.....Those stupid McGard wheel locks put on just about every Honda/Toyota with alloy wheels, I've wasted too many hours of my life rummaging through a customers vehicle looking for a wheel lock key!
Due to my particular taste for 20+ year old Explorers, I'm willing to look past fixable wear and expect to give them a good going over basically immediately after purchase. Front suspension, tires, and cooling system are usually what I have to address right away and I'm fine with it. I have three trusted shops to help me with my old Explorer needs.
My main concerns as far as condition when purchasing...
- Basically no rust. Just some surface rust on the frame is fine, but no rot, no chunks falling off, and nothing significant on the sheet metal. An Explorer with rot at the bottom of the dog leg/rear rocker area is going to be a no, even if it looks ok with doors closed.
- Interior needs to be generally okay. Minimal damage and missing pieces. Don't want to be sitting directly on seat foam. A single, small crack in the dash I can live with, but a lot of SUVs at that age look like a bear has gotten inside.
- Little to no modification. Especially wheels. I can deal with some American Racing Outlaw IIs or similar, but no ridiculous looking stuff. Really prefer factory wheels. I'm willing to undo some stuff, but if the vehicle has a lot of poorly installed bling, it's probably a no.
- No severe body damage. Both of my current Explorers have light fender damage from previous owners, but it doesn't detract severely from the way they look. I can live with it. I might repair it on the "collectible," but the white 1997 is going to go to its grave with the fender dent.
- Major components need to be okay. My previous square Explorer (wrecked beyond repair in 2020, not my or its fault) was a little bit of an exception and I lucked out big time with K Seal, but purchase price of the vehicle was $250, so I didn't have much to lose.
Basically, I don't care about tires or none of that until I'm driving it to work, but it needs to be original, and not severely damaged. When I was purchasing the white 1997 Explorer for $1250, the seller had a phone conversation in a very foreign language with I presume the boss, then came back and said "good news, there are two keys and remotes!" I knew then I was going to daily drive the wheels off it.
My main concerns as far as condition when purchasing...
- Basically no rust. Just some surface rust on the frame is fine, but no rot, no chunks falling off, and nothing significant on the sheet metal. An Explorer with rot at the bottom of the dog leg/rear rocker area is going to be a no, even if it looks ok with doors closed.
- Interior needs to be generally okay. Minimal damage and missing pieces. Don't want to be sitting directly on seat foam. A single, small crack in the dash I can live with, but a lot of SUVs at that age look like a bear has gotten inside.
- Little to no modification. Especially wheels. I can deal with some American Racing Outlaw IIs or similar, but no ridiculous looking stuff. Really prefer factory wheels. I'm willing to undo some stuff, but if the vehicle has a lot of poorly installed bling, it's probably a no.
- No severe body damage. Both of my current Explorers have light fender damage from previous owners, but it doesn't detract severely from the way they look. I can live with it. I might repair it on the "collectible," but the white 1997 is going to go to its grave with the fender dent.
- Major components need to be okay. My previous square Explorer (wrecked beyond repair in 2020, not my or its fault) was a little bit of an exception and I lucked out big time with K Seal, but purchase price of the vehicle was $250, so I didn't have much to lose.
Basically, I don't care about tires or none of that until I'm driving it to work, but it needs to be original, and not severely damaged. When I was purchasing the white 1997 Explorer for $1250, the seller had a phone conversation in a very foreign language with I presume the boss, then came back and said "good news, there are two keys and remotes!" I knew then I was going to daily drive the wheels off it.
I consider my 20 year old jeep to be in good condition. 188k miles.Never been in a wreck,the paint is peeling in a few spots. Everything works except for the ws sprayed motor.
