Wrapped car

[Forrest Gump 9]

Hello all

 

I'm looking to buy a car. It's a car that I plan to keep for a long time. The car is currently vinyl wrapped. How do I go about getting the car check? I'm sure removing the wrap is out of the question. The wrapped job receipt was $4k.

[Geeesammy]

The car checked for what, a wreck?

 

Check for vin tags/stampings first. Odds are they didn't wrap over all of them. Panel alignment can tell you a lot, as well as Carfax although they are usually a bit delayed to say the least.

 

Check for OEM glass, maybe look at a comparable car and see what glass stampings are on it. Any major collision usually requires some glass to be replaced.

 

The obvious stuff goes without saying, clamp marks, major rust underneath, etc.

[Bam]

Pics for clicks?

[Lauren]

Open the hood and look at each fender bolt for wear from being wrenched on or mismatch. Same goes for all headlights and bumper rails and core support. Check trunk hinges for signs of being replaced. Check door jams and consistent gaps.

 

Chances are the wrap was for purely cosmetic reasons and not hide an accident

[-Alex-]

If the owner has receipts for the wrap, certainly they have pics of the car before the wrap? I assume all the jambs, trunk and engine bay aren't wrapped so you'll be able to see what kind of condition they're in. If it's listed on a forum, search the sellers old posts to see if you can find more info about the car.

[Bam]

Gotta ask, does the wrap 'increase' the value of the car? Like are you paying for it in the purchase price? That's a lot of money for some vinyl imo.

[Forrest Gump 9]

Thank you for the suggestions, all very good points. I guess the biggest concerns would be rust, scratches, and paint condition. As far as the value, no, it's not adding any value to the car.

[Lauren]

In theory the wrap protects the paint under neath. Just ask for before wrap pictures.

[cstmg8]

Thank you for the suggestions, all very good points. I guess the biggest concerns would be rust, scratches, and paint condition. As far as the value, no, it's not adding any value to the car.

The wrap won't hide anything well at all, in most cases it exaggerates it. It would take a lot of work to sand a bad spot down for vinyl.

 

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[cdk 4219]

I have seen a lot of race cars that are wrapped in semi gloss wrap that hide the laziest body. Work ever. Not sure about gloss wrap, but I bet that hides something. As for the wrap to protect , it may but there are a lot of razor blades involved in the wrapping process, making it easy to damage the paint below.