Questions to Ask Before Booking a PPI

Published 2026-10-28 · Updated 2026-10-28

Independence

Ask whether the inspector has any relationship with the seller, the selling dealer, the storage facility, the transporter, the auction, or a broker who is paid if you buy. Ask who chose them. An inspector the seller prefers is not automatically biased, and an inspector you found yourself is not automatically right. You still want the conflict question answered in a sentence you can keep.

Ask who the client is. The report should come to you. If the shop’s habit is to brief the seller and send you a summary, say you want the same photos and the same fault printout the shop keeps. The NMVTIS site’s summary of FTC buying tips puts “hire a mechanic” on the buyer’s checklist, separate from whatever the seller has already done.

Scope, in words you can repeat

Read what a PPI is and turn it into a yes-or-no list for this car. At minimum, confirm:

• Will the car be raised, and on what? A drive-on ramp, a two-post lift, and a floor jack are not interchangeable.
• Will the inspector drive it? On which roads, and for about how long? A loop around the block will not show a hot-running complaint.
• Which scan tool, and will you receive the printout rather than a paraphrase?
• Are paint readings included? If the car has vinyl, matte paint, or fresh repaint, ask whether the meter is useful on those surfaces.
• Is a borescope, compression test, or leak-down test included? If not, what would make the inspector recommend one after they see the car, and will they call you before adding it?
• How are fluids checked: level and condition only, or samples? Say which you are paying for.
• Will photos be labeled with the area of the car?
• Will the written report list areas that were not inspected, and why?

For a BMW, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, or collector car, add the questions from that guide. Do not assume a generalist will volunteer a campaign lookup or a factory-tool procedure.

Access, timing, and the seller

The inspector cannot inspect a car the seller will not produce. Before you book, confirm with the seller, in writing if you can:

• The address, and whether a lift is there or the car must be moved.
• Who will start the car, and whether it can be cold when the inspector arrives. A pre-warmed engine hides a cold-start noise.
• Whether a road test is allowed, and whether the car has plates and insurance that make that drive lawful. The inspector should not invent a workaround.
• How long the car is available. A hard stop can cut the underside or the drive.
• That the buyer, not only the seller, receives the report.

Ask the shop what they do if they arrive and the car is not there, the lift is booked, or the seller limits them to a look with the wheels on the ground. You want to know whether you still owe the visit fee. The cost guide is about those factors.

If the car is far away, use the remote logistics guide before you agree to a deadline set by an auction clock or a transport pickup.

Who does the work, and who explains it

• Will the person you spoke with inspect the car, or will a colleague? Experience with this make should belong to the person on the car.
• Can you call them after the report, and is that conversation included?
• How soon after the visit will you have the writeup? A verbal “it’s fine” on the way to the truck is not the report.
• Will they note open campaigns only if you ask, or do they check as part of the visit? A PPI is not a substitute for the seller or a dealer confirming campaign status on that VIN.

Tools worth naming

You do not need a brand list. You need to know whether the tool can see the modules this car uses. On cars that use a manufacturer diagnostic system, a generic reader can miss controllers for the transmission, suspension, or body. Ask the inspector what they will do if a module will not communicate. “Could not connect” belongs in the report.

Federal OBD inspection rules, in 40 CFR § 85.2222, look at monitor readiness and at whether the malfunction lamp is commanded on. Ask your inspector to include those two facts even if they are not performing a state emissions test. The report guide shows how to read the answer.

Write the answers down before you pay

After the call, you should be able to forward one note to the seller and one note to yourself. The seller note names the address, the cold-start request, the lift, and the road test. Your note names the fee, what is included, what is extra, who does the work, when the file arrives, and what you still owe if the seller cuts the visit short. If you cannot write that note, you do not have a booking yet. You have a conversation.

Bring the same note to the report. The report guide is easier to use when you already know which photos and which scan pages you asked for. A missing page is then obvious. On a marque car, check the note against that marque’s guide so a general “full inspection” was not standing in for a campaign question you meant to ask.

Red flags while you are still choosing

• They will not describe the scope without a deposit, and they will not say what the deposit covers.
• They guarantee the car will “pass,” or they offer to withhold findings from you.
• They discourage photos because “buyers misread them.”
• They have never worked on this kind of car and are not willing to say so.
• They suggest skipping the inspection because the car is certified, freshly serviced, or has a clean history report.
• They pressure you to decide on the phone before you have the written report.

None of these questions produces a ranking of shops. Listings in the directory are starting points. Call more than one if the first conversation is vague. Confirm credentials, insurance, and local rules yourself. This site does not verify those.

This is buyer guidance from PPIFinder Editorial. It does not certify a car or a provider, and it is not legal, insurance, or appraisal advice. Confirm what a specific inspector will actually do before you pay.