With the growth of the phenomenon that is "Overlanding" comes some grey areas of the sport. While most of us spend our free days out on the trail enjoying every bit of what "overlanding" means to us, I also recognize a new segment of the population that is popping up. Most of us have been doing this before "overlanding" was coined but for the new segment drawn in by social media and trail rumors I have recognized some people are getting straight hosed. I mean this in a completely professional manner as well. For the past 11 years I have been either a fabricator, mechanic or salesmen for off road performance accessories by trade and as the landscape has changed so have the customers I have come to service. It was actually these very same customers who lead me to this site and community. So as a daily mechanic/ service writer let me share with you the tips and tricks of buying a good rig or more importantly the right rig.
Place of Purchase-New
Here you are pretty much forced to go to a dealer but first lets talk about the up-sales. See we all love the TRD pro's or maybe that trail hawk package has you stunned on the new Grand Cherokees. Whatever your poison is the dealer is always willing to add salt for taste. But what I am more concerned about is the fact that most of the people that show up looking to upgrade their rig after the purchase high wears off go straight for the extra "package" stuff they paid top dollar for and they throw it out. Now arguably what you will find is some things like locking diffs sometimes only come with the TRD packages, or the heavy duty, locking axles (rubicon/Powerwagon) only come with some of their packages, but do you your research, find the package you want, and make sure you are willing to dish out the extra 2500+8k plus for an option that results in pretty much stickers, shocks you are going to ditch in a year and rims you will have sold on craigslist. Or the “rock Sliders” that end up selling anyways cause there are these other ones that are thicker and have a step…..New is wonderful, new is nice, but do not be the guy sitting at a trail head in your shiny rig wondering if maybe you should have spent money on different aspects. Here is also my tip of the day, having worked with dealers in limited capacity for past SEMA work, find what you want on their website and then call for their online fleet manager. They will try their hardest to keep you away from this guy, but he or she is the candy man uh...woman. They are able to order at your request, check other dealer stocks and more importantly, they are a strictly numbers people. They want to have a car count in and car count out. You do not need to purchase 25 cars, they are more than willing to help anyone on the phone. My recommendation is have your vehicle picked out, the packages you want and if you can have the build sheet in hand while on the phone. The fleet managers have always gotten it done for me and at prices that didnt make me sit in an office for an hour while my salesman DIDNT ask his boss for a better deal. EXAMPLE: Recently I had a customer who wanted a Rock Warrior Tundra, he was licking his lips and wanting one so bad, but the price was just freaking too much to bear. He spent 2 days calling around to Fleet Managers and found a Limited Tundra, crew cab, configuration he wanted 4x4 of course, and was able to have the dealer swap alloy rims for steel wheels and get one with a LSD rear diff. At the end of the day he was 5 figures cheaper and spent roughly half that on building something that was his own. with the rims, tires and suspension he wanted.
Place of Purchase- USED
So the vehicle is a few years old, or 20... give or take. Here is my recommendation as a mechanic, do not buy a used car from a dealer and do not care about what CARFAUX.. I mean CARFAX has to say. Now let me dial it back, I understand some of us need the financing and the dealer is the only game in town. But understand this, most used cars come from an auction, they were sent to an auction because some dealer took it in on a trade and then didn’t see the advantage of keeping it, it may need work, it may have needed work, for some reason it was deemed a liability. You also have no history on the vehicle that is tangible. It could have been lovingly cared for by a grandfather, or it could have been a 16 year old BJ Baldwin Wannabee. Just be aware of the limitations but that does not mean you are incapable of finding a sound rig. So back at the dealer, then my recommendation is when you find the vehicle you want you need to immediately ask the dealer for an inspection pass for the vehicle. Some dealers say take it for 24 hrs, others say 4 hours. But what you want to do is take a list of their "100/200 point Certified Pre-Owned (CPO)" check list and take it directly to a mechanic you trust. Why you are doing this is because dealers are not always honest and a check-list largely made up of menial stuff that does not matter to the health of the vehicle will not actually give you the clear bill of health EXAMPLE: Not an overland vehicle, but the shop I work at had a great customer come in with a CPO 2015 Mini Cooper, clean little car, clean carfax, super low miles and the thing was half the price of a new one... WOW, even I loved it... 2 seconds with my scan tool and boom, 42 codes, 12 stored engine codes, 7 pending brake codes, 23 body codes. Ended up finding the vehicle had been in 2 accidents that were not reported (body panels/ bumpers did not have manufacture body codes/vin). She was buying someone else's lemon.
BEWARE- Not all scanners are the same, the manufactures have gotten smart and have started hiding codes for only "factory scan tools" the problem is you may scan a car with your Harbor Freight special and it may show no codes, when you could have codes present in the ABS, Body Control Module or have a "manufacturer codes" the handheld wont recognize or report.
The reason you want the pre purchase inspection is also an honest answer on how the vehicle is maintained. Many times the fluids will all be fresh (cheapest thing for a dealer to fix). But how about brake percentages? How about past repairs? Generally an independent shop can tell you when things have been replaced. Maybe valve cover gaskets dont match or there is silicone on something that shouldn’t have silicone. Most independents with a smog machine may be able to check previous tests? Has it had a history of failing smog? why did it fail smog? In fact you can check any car in CA by simply typing Vehicle Smog Test History in google and checking the first dmv link. (I would link but I was told it would block my post.) It is crucial to make sure your vehicle does not fail based on improperly installed cats, incorrect sensors, the list goes on. But again a good honest independent will help you steer clear.
The next thing is having a truck up on a rack tells you things, a mechanic will be able to find bends and twists in things that shouldn’t be there, maybe you have accessory covers that are missing. Rocks make noises and leave kisses, its a sign of their affection. Maybe the tires are wearing funny, is this because of tie rods, ball joints? Bent arms? Improperly install lifts? Or just a bad alignment? How about diff fluid? These are hard to check at a dealer, but up on a rack much easier. Remember shiny objects whether they are in jewelry or engine/gear oil both mean the same thing. MONEY. Again, an honesty mechanic will be able to tell you if they feel anything is in danger or not. Now remember you can take your independent advice back to the dealer and some dealers will not care at all, their price is take it or leave it. But I have always experienced some dealers who are willing to go out of their way to make their customer feel satisfied. I had one Toyota dealer do a timing belt, waterpump and cam seals because the vehicle was right at the scheduled mileage and they didnt charge the customer, I had a dodge dealer replace front and rear brakes on a Ram3500 4x4 because what the rotors were undersized but the pads where "above 60%". Again, free because it was brought to their attention.
