I arranged a pre purchase inspection at Dave's for a 2020 Sienna I was buying from JKB Auto Sales down the street. I set it up and offered to pay, but JKB dropped the van off and ended up covering the inspection themselves, which in hindsight was the problem: the shop's customer was the dealership, not me. Dave's had also inspected this same van for JKB before the sale. Within three weeks, a radiator leak was found by another shop. The leak was missed on both of Dave's inspections, even though their own report notes the coolant had been topped off, which was the clue. That miss turned into a $1,300 repair immediately after a $20,000 purchase. Reading other reviews here, I'm not the only one who's had inspection issues with vehicles coming through JKB. When I brought the van back and Dave's confirmed the leak they'd missed twice, their response was a quote at full price, full labor, no goodwill for a repair their own inspection failure caused. Dave himself is a nice guy and parts of the report were detailed, but the finding that mattered most was missed twice. Lesson for anyone buying used: pay for your own inspection, at a shop with zero relationship to the dealership, and never let the dealer arrange or pay for it. I didn't follow that rule and it cost me.
Jackson, we appreciate you sharing your experience, and we do want to clarify a few important details because some of the information in this review does not accurately reflect what occurred. The previous inspection we performed for JKB Auto Sales was an ID/OD inspection, which is limited to verifying identification and odometer information and is not a mechanical inspection of the vehicle. The pre-purchase inspection was performed specifically for you as the prospective buyer. You requested the inspection, received the inspection results, and paid Dave’s Service Center directly for the inspection. JKB transported the vehicle to us, but they were not the customer for the pre-purchase inspection and did not pay for it. During that inspection, we documented that the coolant level was low and topped it off. Because of that finding, we specifically checked for evidence of a coolant leak. The vehicle had been running and was road tested, and we did not observe overheating or an active/external coolant leak at that time. Had we found evidence of a radiator leak, it absolutely would have been documented on the inspection report. When the vehicle returned approximately three weeks later, a coolant leak was present and we were able to confirm it. We understand how frustrating it is to purchase a vehicle and encounter a significant repair shortly afterward. However, a pre-purchase inspection reflects the condition of the vehicle and the problems that can reasonably be identified at the time of inspection. Unfortunately, not every developing or intermittent problem will be visible during that inspection. We stand behind the inspection we performed and the findings documented at that time. We also want to be clear that Dave’s Service Center does not have a financial interest in whether a customer purchases a vehicle from JKB or any other dealership. Our job during a pre-purchase inspection is to give the prospective buyer an independent assessment of what we can identify at that time, and that is what we did here.
- Dave's Service Center