Porsche Pre-purchase Inspections

• What We Do for You
• Price
• Geographical Coverage
• The Small Print

We aim to be the UK's leading Porsche pre-purchase inspection service and we work hard to maintain our recommendation from the Porsche Club Great Britain. For less than the price of an annual service we aim to save you money and give you peace of mind when buying a used Porsche. We pride ourselves on our personal, independent  and thorough approach and our efforts to achieve the highest standards of quality and dependability. We have long backgrounds within the Porsche, engineering or automotive assessment world, but are completely independent of the official network and independent sales or service specialists. In the course of each year we inspect and/or drive literally hundreds of used models.

We work only on your behalf and report only to you. Our opinions on Porsches for sale are impartial and unbiased (our business does not depend on selling you service or parts). We will advise you on the desirability, what work might be required and offer guidelines on the price of specific cars.

Our expertise covers all street Porsches. We will be pleased to inspect all models (including 997, 996, 993, 964 and all Turbos), 912, plus the 944 in all its forms, 968, 928, Cayman, Boxster and Cayenne.  We have specific expertise of the faster Porsches (including the GT, RS and Turbos), the classics (1974-1989) and the early Porsches (pre-'1974) (see About us). By special arrangement we can inspect 356 models and other premium sports and classic brands such as Ferrari, Mercedes and  Lotus.

For less than the cost of a typical annual service, our inspection is a comprehensive appraisal on the car you have selected at the seller's location and includes an Experian autocheck, estimation on value and an ECU diagnostic check (if relevant). We take the equipment required to site and perform a well-practised and thorough 230-point inspection, including a drive test (if permitted). On a typical car, this can take up to three hours for the full review. We aim to offer the most thorough Porsche mobile inspection service in the UK.

We aim to complete the service within 2-3 working days of your instructions.

The 230-point inspection includes (very broadly):

• Paintwork and trim condition (searching for crash damage, new paint and poor workmanship, corrosion signs). For the early cars this would include a more detailed bodyshell check
• Underbody and suspension condition (with the wheels off the ground)
• Wheels and tyres condition
• Operation of brakes and brake disc/pad condition
• The engine and transmission external condition (oil leaks, coolant and consumables condition, corrosion)
• The interior and luggage compartment (wear and tear)
• Operation of electrical equipment
• Basic document check (registration document, service book, road tax, etc).
• Experian car data check.
• On the 996/997 & Boxster/Cayman models, including the 2009-onwards Gen 2 cars, we use diagnostic equipment to read ECU data (Over-revs, fault codes and operating hours) 
• Driving behaviour (conditional on seller's permission). Because of traffic regulations, the drive test (which lasts up to 5 miles) may be restricted but in any case does not assess the high performance attributes of a car). We carry the necessary comprehensive commercial motor insurance for this and carry a copy of the certificate that the seller can check.
• Basic document check (V5C, VOSA, service book)
• Viewpoint on the declared selling price.

We call you after the inspection to discuss the bullet points of the car's condition, its desirability and value for money. We can advise broadly on repair costs. We are particularly used to meeting the needs of both buyers unfamiliar or nervous of the car trade and buyers outside mainland UK who may not have been able to see the car. Our comprehensive report (including photo evidence) will follow shortly after. We don't just hand you a hand written list of issues with a list of ticked boxes.

The quality is in the detail

Our inspection procedures have been developed over more than 10 years of daily contact assessing the type of high performance cars you are looking to buy. We use state of the art tools and our expert engineers are passionate about their work. And we are independent. As many Porsches receive our scrutiny each year as pass through the busiest specialist service shop. Our knowledge of what should be and what shouldn't be lets us form a realistic opinion on the condition of the car.
We inspect cars for clients at official dealers, indepedent specialists and at private sellers and we have formed productive working relationships with many respected dealers that directly benefit our clients.
We aim to improve your peace of mind about the actual quality of the car. For instance, some traders may tell you that their cars are already exhaustively inspected prior to sale and that you don't need an inspection. Our experience is that while we reveal our share of showstopping faults, we also frequently reveal issues that they would rather you find at the first service. These are issues that could cost you time and money after purchase. And of course, it must be said we really enjoy it when we are able to report on a very good car. In-house dealer warranties also frequently don't cover items that are considered wear and tear, while claiming on an in-house warranty can be a nightmare when you live miles from the selling dealer. And it is perhaps obvious that problem identification can rise sharply on private sale cars. We don't often fail to justify our fee!

For instance, we would carefully check all areas of the upper bodyshell for signs of paint change, filler or corrosion. We lift the car safely and carefully check underneath for items like corroded inner brake disc faces and pipework, worn out suspension bushes, split CV boots, leaking shock absorbers and accident damage. We look for oil leaks as a sign of various potential issues on various classic models from the early 911s, through Carrera 3.2s to 964s and 993s. The engines on the  water-cooled models come in for a very thorough non-intrusive check, including again assessing any oil leaks (RMS, coil units, etc), coolant leaks (reservoir, pump or rads), corroded exhaust systems and perished electrical parts. On the post '98 models we put a laptop on the ECU and look for electrical and electronic fault codes (such as faulty coil packs or air bag warnings), over-rev history and of course, comparing the engines total lifetime recorded with the indicated odometer reading. On the drive test we are able to compare the behaviour of the car with other similar models and form an opinion on what is typical or not.

More detail of how we approach the inspection of different Porsche models.

Pre-purchase inspection

We have a pricing structure based on a core fee, plus our travelling distance to the inspection.
Please call us for a quotation.
As a guideline total inspection costs typically are in the range £340-375.

Documentation option

Cataloguing a good provenance is at the heart of a cherished car's intrinsic value. The main inspection includes a basic legal document check. As an option we offer a key event documentation log that costs £30.00. This additional check includes examination of any history file presented with the car and is highly recommended for any Porsche made before 1998. We record the option codes, all service and VOSA (MoT) data presented, key history data (which can reveal some very interesting facts!) and any other relevant data.

Payment

Payment is usually by debit or credit card. We can accept bank transfers, but this may delay the inspection. 

Overseas customers buying in the UK can contact us by e-mail if required and payment can be made through our secure server or using our fax facilities to advise us of card data (+44 1672 511930)

Because we do not sub-contract, we cannot claim to cover the extremities of the UK. Our bespoke service covers central and southern England (north to the Birmingham area, etc). Please call to see if the car's location is within our range.

The inspector's costs for bridge tolls, parking or entering any urban congestion zone will be added to the cost of the inspection.

Our acceptance of your instructions in central London is conditional on the availability of a suitable, safe inspection location with adequate parking.

International or other inspection assignments

In special cases and conditional on our availability, we will undertake inspection assignments in Western Europe and on other premium brands. Please contact us to discuss your requirements further.

Terms and Conditions

We use best efforts to identify problem areas on a subject car, but please note the inspection report is not a warranty or an insurance policy In any event our liability to you is limited to the cost of the inspection fee.

Inspections on the early 911s and special models are made only on the car's condition and it is assumed you will perform due diligence to establish the wider authenticity of the specific example.

Please note that although the inspection is far more comprehensive than the annual VOSA test, it does not carry any legal authority with respect to the car's roadworthiness. In instructing us to perform an inspection you accept our Terms and Conditions.

Disclaimer

Our use of the word 'Porsche' or any of the accepted trademarks and logos, is purely to describe the subject area in which we work and implies no connection or liability to Porsche Cars Great Britain, its parent organisation, its subsidiaries or any Official Centre.

Contact Us
If you would like to learn more about how we can help you,
call 01672 514038 (from outside the UK: +44 1672514038),
08:30 - 18:30 weekdays 08:30 - 12:00 Saturdays or email peter@porscheinspections.com