Psa....

[onebdzee]

If you have a vehicle that you would like to sell and it will NOT (for whatever reason) pass inspection, take it to Mark's Automotive and have them do the inspection. The vehicle will be guaranteed to pass and you can legally sell the vehicle to an unsuspecting buyer.

My son, who is currently stationed in Iraq, came to visit and purchased a vehicle from an low-life POS that had the vehicle inspected at Mark's. The seller "knew someone at Mark's" and he recieved the inspection paperwork stating it "PASSED". Approximately 3 months ago, the transmission went out and I had the vehicle towed to Sunoco(by gate one).

Not thinking that anything else was wrong with the car and my son not returning for a while from his deployment, I informed the owner of the Sunoco that she could "take her time" with the vehicle. A week ago, she brought the vehicle into the garage to see about the transmission and the mechanic did a visual inspection. There was rust on the underside of the vehicle to the point that the floorboard was missing in some spots, the brake lines going from the front to the back were rotted to the point of breaking apart, there was a motor mount completely broken off, and a visable oil leak. All of these items are a automatic failure of the inspection and this was just part of the list.

I did call the state police as they are the ones that "watch" those with inspection licenses and because it is more than 30 days/1000 miles there is nothing they can do. My son drove this vehicle a week and then left to go back to Iraq, I drove it approximately 2-3 weeks before the transmission went out and there is NOTHING he can do other than salvage the vehicle.

 

[cattitude]

Happens all the time....

 

[Chasey_Lane]

Sorry about your son's misfortune BUT you (the buyer) accept liability when you purchase a used car. The buyer always has the option to have an inspection done by someone he/she trusts. And if a seller doesn't agree to this, that should be a red flag.

Even a Carfax report won't list every accident/incident about a vehicle, and it is still a gamble.

 

[onebdzee]

Sorry about your son's misfortune BUT you (the buyer) accept liability when you purchase a used car. The buyer always has the option to have an inspection done by someone he/she trusts. And if a seller doesn't agree to this, that should be a red flag.

Even a Carfax report won't list every accident/incident about a vehicle, and it is still a gamble.

I just think it's wrong that a "authorized inspection station" would let a vehicle that is clearly dangerous(brake lines, holes in the floorboard) pass.

I did tell my son that he did have this option of another inspection, however he trusted the inspection as he was pressed for time. This is a costly mistake on his part and I'm hoping he won't do this again.

 

[cattitude]

I just think it's wrong that a "authorized inspection station" would let a vehicle that is clearly dangerous(brake lines, holes in the floorboard) pass.

I did tell my son that he did have this option of another inspection, however he trusted the inspection as he was pressed for time. This is a costly mistake on his part and I'm hoping he won't do this again.

It's illegal but it's done all the time. Heck, I know family members that have used that method but it's so they can get the car tagged and fix it as they go..they've been aware of the problems with the vehicles.

How can you not see holes in the floorboard?

 

[Chasey_Lane]

I just think it's wrong that a "authorized inspection station" would let a vehicle that is clearly dangerous(brake lines, holes in the floorboard) pass.

It's definitely wrong and dangerous. Have you contacted Mark's Automotive about this? Maybe the owner doesn't know what is going on, and would like to be informed of the crooked schemes of his employees.

 

[Chasey_Lane]

How can you not see holes in the floorboard?

Floor mat covering them?

 

[cattitude]

Floor mat covering them?

Well, yeah.. Guess I'm old and wise.. I would never buy a used car that was already inspected. And I would go over the car to be sure there were no obvious issues. Engine/trans..stuff like that can be really hard to tell if there's an issue and sometimes stuff just happens.

Shame it happened to your kid Zee but you live and learn.

 

[Cowgirl]

Maybe the owner doesn't know what is going on, and would like to be informed of the crooked schemes of his employees.

It's not fair to blame the whole company when it's most likely the employee doing it on his own. The license is held by the employee, not the employer. And to be fair, the trans problem could have been honestly missed. I mean if it worked when it got inspected, it worked. We just bought a pretty nice used car and the seat belt quit working about a week after we bought it. It worked when they inspected it and when we brought it home, so there's really not much we can do about it.

 

[musiclady]

: And to be fair, the trans problem could have been honestly missed. I mean if it worked when it got inspected, it worked. We just bought a pretty nice used car and the seat belt quit working about a week after we bought it. It worked when they inspected it and when we brought it home, so there's really not much we can do about it.

That's sad, but true. My daughter bought a used minivan and we tested everything we could think of. It had power door locks and automatic sliding side doors and all that worked perfect when we test drove it. Drove it home an hour away and the doors wouldn't open - we were stuck in the car. Both sliding doors will not latch properly and the driver doorlock works backwards. You lock the van and that door is unlocked. It will be close to $1000 to fix and parts have been on order for weeks. Now the vehicle is under recall for a broken rear axle. She's only owned it 3 months. I think she's out a vehicle.

 

[Annoying_Boy]

The bigger problem is that these inspections only take place when a sale occurs rather than at some set time frame.

So it's perfectly alright for a vehicle with rusty brakes lines that are going to fail at any moment to be heading toward you at St. Mary's speed limits (60 in the 45zone).

But I guess that would be big government and infringing on people's rights to require that they drive safe vehicles.

 

[basshawg95]

It's definitely wrong and dangerous. Have you contacted Mark's Automotive about this? Maybe the owner doesn't know what is going on, and would like to be informed of the crooked schemes of his employees.

i've dealt with Mark numerous times and have had NO problems with him or his workers. have you contacted him about your problem, or are you just venting?

 

[mAlice]

This isn't the first time I've heard something negative about that place.

 

[desertrat]

i've dealt with Mark numerous times and have had NO problems with him or his workers. have you contacted him about your problem, or are you just venting?

PSA. In other words be careful in dealing with a vehicle inspected by his crew.

 

[thatguy]

i've dealt with Mark numerous times and have had NO problems with him or his workers. have you contacted him about your problem, or are you just venting?

I have had nothing but good experiences with marks. he stands behind his work and more importantly he doesn't just eff you because he can. I have found Mark to be a trust worthy business owner. He would probably be interested to hear what is being alledged against one of his workers.

 

[Annoying_Boy]

PSA. In other words be careful in dealing with a vehicle inspected by his crew.

What happened to the old time and tested principle of having "a respected, independent mechanic inspect/check a vehicle" before you purchase it. Especially if it's an expensive purchase.

Had that been done, all of this would have been completely avoided and instead we'd probably have a thread about the dirtbag who was trying to sell such a vehicle.

 

[desertrat]

What happened to the old time and tested principle of having "a respected, independent mechanic inspect/check a vehicle" before you purchase it. Especially if it's an expensive purchase.

Had that been done, all of this would have been completely avoided and instead we'd probably have a thread about the dirtbag who was trying to sell such a vehicle.

Supposedly the State assures us that all these good ole boys down here dutifully check every item on the list. Of course that is not the same as having compresssion checks etc, done, by someone you trust.
I can tell you for sure that at least a few of them do only cursory checks of these items. One place I know was supposed to have a car inspected for me and it wasn't ready when I got there. He said we'll get right on it, be back in an hour. Well the paper was done alright, but that car had not even been started.

 

[Annoying_Boy]

Supposedly the State assures us that all these good ole boys down here dutifully check every item on the list. Of course that is not the same as having compresssion checks etc, done, by someone you trust.
I can tell you for sure that at least a few of them do only cursory checks of these items. One place I know was supposed to have a car inspected for me and it wasn't ready when I got there. He said we'll get right on it, be back in an hour. Well the paper was done alright, but that car had not even been started.

Take the vehicle to one of the manufacturer's dealers and have it inspected.

The State may claim there's nothing they can do after xxx time, but a dealer has deep pockets and a lawyer can surely emtpy them in such a situation.

For the less fortunate who can't spare even a dime, get the smartest friend you have to look over the vehicle. The stuff we're discussing here was clearly visible to anyone who even looked underneath the car.

I'll bet there's people in this forum who would volunteer a few minutes of their time to take a quick glance at a vehicle if someone in here asked for help.

 

[BernieP]

Happens all the time....

$$$ - it's all in who you know and how much. It's a racket and Mark's is not the only garage doing it.

But thanks to the OP for advertising the fact someone at his garage does it. Now if I BUY a car and need to get it inspected I'll add one more name on the list to call - nothing keeps prices down like competition.

EDIT

I would suggest that if you are doing a private sale, you take the car to a mechanic for an inspection. The "safety" inspection is limited to state mandated items they deem to be "safety critical". It's not an inspection on the overall health of the vehicle.
You pay to have YOUR mechanic look over the car before you buy. Any seller that won't agree to those terms is not worth dealing with.
It is also my experience that the "safety" inspection in MD is a joke. It's a money maker for the garage / mechanic with the license. I had a car that had recently passed the routine safety inspection in another state. Had to get the MD inspection to register it ihere. Of course it failed. Asked how it could pass in the other state and "fail" here I was told hat "we look for different things". Have had friends with similiar experience.
One friend was fixing the "failure" the inspection was finding. Everytime he went back there was a new problem. Asked how come it wasn't caught in the previous check the he was told that they can start all over again. Finally he asked the mechanic what it would take (i.e. how much money in "repairs") would it take for him to pass the car. It was stupid, like $50 to fix a tail light.