Purchase Inspections

[plotloss]

Spent a while reading the mine of information that is Rennlist last night.

When the members over there talk about a prospective purchase its often mentioned that a 'Leakdown and compression test' should be done.

Will this occur this side of the pond? Is it a specialist task that takes a while and attracts a big bill? (Talk about TDC having to be bang on etc which I imagine takes a while).

Just curious really as finding any, let alone a good one, seems a tricky task...

[iguana]

Well well well worth getting done, obiously depends who you use, but cost likely to be in the £100'ish' area.

[plotloss]

Ah right, thats cool then.

Are they a fairly reliable indicator of engine state/longievity?

[chris_n]

I've certainly always understood it's about as good an indicator as you're going to get without stripping the engine, perhaps better in some ways.

Paraphrasing the JZ Machtech web site, a cylinder loss (leakdown) test can determine an enormous amount about the condition of an engine, pinpointing problems like piston ring and valve Guide wear, and burnt valves without having to dismantle anything.

They reckon they can do them while you wait. In my experience, the problem with the likes of them can be that you spot a car you like, phone them up to get an inspection done, and they're taking bookings for three weeks time! Not sure how you solve that one.