I called in the morning to schedule an inspection of a used car I was considering buying and got a same day appointment. I received a call and emailed report with the findings. It was great to have piece of mind for purchasing the car and for a reasonable fee. I'll be using Auto PI for all future used car purchases. read more

Fast, Proactive & Thorough Review Purchased a used car from a rental car company so wanted to make sure we had a thorough pre purchase inspection since they can make in-house repairs without it ever showing up on the vehicle history. Had chosen Auto PI in large part to their existing Yelp reviews and they lived up to their high ratings. Was impressed with the amount of data/analysis in the report and on the call with the inspector. Brian from Auto PI proactively called the rental car company to get it set up, saved me some time and then Tom performed the inspection and called me when he said he would and gave me his cell in case I had questions later. Highly recommend. read more

Great service, detail, and value. I was impressed with the thorough inspection, onsite, and efficient. Worth every penny. Friendly and knowledgable. The tech identified far more than I could on a purchase today, and we bought from the seller knowing what we were buying with confidence. Made it easy! Planning to be a repeat customer read more

Life saver service. Definitely worth the money when you are planning to purchase a used car and you want to make sure there is nothing hidden. I requested from the phone and they went directly to the car dealership (where the car was) to inspect it. Payment is through credit card on the phone. I got next day service and it was very professional. In my case they found out that the car had undergone an accident that was not reported in CarFax and the repair was poor quality. They phoned me to explain the report and suggested to consider the potential costs for a future repair. I decided to not buy the car. Good value for the money, it saved me thousands! read more

Brian completed two used car evaluations for me, traveling to a San Marcos dealership that would not allow me to take a vehicle even a mile down the road to a shop. He was extremely thorough. As I was on- site, I watched him perform the evaluation on one of the cars. He gave me a complete printout of his findings and a verbal report. He confirmed my suspicions about one of the cars in a condition that was not reported on the CarFax report. I found the reports valuable in deciding which one I should buy. I am recommending him to friends who are car shopping and would highly recommend him to anyone who is looking to buy a used vehicle of any age. read more

Used Auto PI for a pre-purchase inspection in Austin and couldn't be happier. Tom was on time, extremely thorough, and walked me through the findings after delivering the report. Very efficient, no rushing, and clearly knows what he's doing. Brian handled scheduling and follow-up professionally and made the process easy from start to finish. This is a serious, well-run operation. Price was very fair too. Highly recommend. read more

Great job on inspecting my truck at 100,000 miles. Identified a couple things and made recommendations for maintenance. Will definitely use again in future when dealing with used vehicles. read more

AutoPI's certified pre-purchase inspection of a 2017 Subaru Forester gave us the knowledge and confidence to purchase. Tom, master mechanic, met us at the used car dealer for a comprehensive examination of the Subaru. We accompanied him on the test drive; drivability, extreme breaking, and swerving. At the conclusion of the exam Tom provided a verbal assessment along with a printed record. His thorough exam helped us decide to purchase, and negotiate two needed repairs. I highly recommend AutoPI for professional master mechanic assessment before making a used car purchase. read more

Brian and Tom were amazing. Tom thoroughly answered my questions about both inspections, and we spoke about dealer red flags. Brian was also knowledgable and worked with me, and he happened to just make the appointments for the two inspections I've had so far. I did not end up going with either vehicle that was inspected, but I don't regret having the inspections done. The clarity this service provides(while noone can know future maintenance issues) has changed the way I have been approaching buying a car. read more

I used Auto PI twice this week. Scheduling was easy and prompt thanks to Brian's responsiveness. Tom did both inspections and helped me a bunch! The first car I chose not to move forward with, thanks to the inspection. The second car I bought, again, thanks to the inspection. Tom was prompt and professional in his follow-up. And the cost was very reasonable. I highly recommend! read more

Worth every penny! These guys did a great job inspecting a used van for me! When buying site unseen, this gives peace of mind! Highly recommend! read more

It was clear the Toyota I was considering had a few nicking issues, but I did not know the extent beyond my rudimentary shade-tree insights. Having used AUTO PI before, I thought to call them to clarify the scope of repairs needed and to refine my thinking as I considered the purchase. The inspector arrived right on time and got to work. Mike was so smart, thorough, and eager to inform; I felt like I'd had a master class on 4Runners by the time his work was done. If you engage these guys, make it a point to be on-premise during the process. I promise you will learn stuff and be a wiser car-shopper for it! read more

I give AutoPI the highest recommendation possible. I'm located in Virginia, and in my case I was looking for a vehicle for my daughter in Austin. Normally, I could give the vehicles a once over and then decide if it's worth pursuing, however, being so far away this is obviously not possible. I called and talked to Brian and over the next 10 days both he and Mike inspected three cars for my daughter. The first two were awful, and without their assistance I would have ended up purchasing a vehicle that required thousands in repairs. The third car out great and we made the purchase. If you're in the market for a vehicle, do yourself a favor and look up Brian at AutoPI. It will be well worth the money. read more

I contacted Auto P.I and spoke with Brian about inspecting a truck I wanted to buy. The truck already had been inspected by the dealer (Ford) and came with the Blue Advantage warranty. But I wanted to be sure before spending big bucks on a truck. I notified Brian of minor damage on the passenger side front bumper. He said that is was a new bumper due to minor "bump" less than 10mph accident. Nothing wrong there; the bumper was not installed evenly. BUT he found that a lift kit and high quality control arms were installed and there was "scrubbing" of the front tires. Brian explained what scrubbing was, because I had never heard of that. Front tires will wear out faster. It would cost 2-3000 to remove the lifts and replace the control arms. Also another 12-1300 for new wheels that would need to be smaller 22" down to 20". Thank you to Brian. I decided not to buy the truck, even though I really liked that truck. I highly recommend Auto P.I and Brian. I will call Brian again when I find another truck. read more

I use these guys every time I buy a used car. It's so convenient cause they go right to you at the car dealership or the private residence of the seller. I don't think they've ever steered me wrong. They've even warned me about issues they frequently see with the particular model they are inspecting, so i can be an educated buyer or walk away if I'm concerned. read more

I would highly recommend scheduling an appointment with Auto PI before purchasing your next used vehicle, from a dealer or private seller. Their pre purchase inspection is thorough and invaluable. Setting up an appointment with Brian was a breeze he and was flexible with scheduling my service last minute. Mike who did the inspection explained the vehicle condition and repair details. With thanks to him, I was more prepared to negotiate the final sale of the vehicle..lots of $$$$ saved. Auto PI services are a game changer when you're ready to purchase your next used vehicle! read more

Appreciate the help from Auto PI. Very professional and thorough. Provided peace of mind during our used car purchase. Highly recommend for anyone looking to buy a used car. read more

I was shopping for a used car, my first one in years since I normally lease. I happened to walk into a dealership and I was referred to Auto P.I. The salesman spoke very strongly of them. I wanted a professional option before I bought the car I was eyeing. I called John on a Saturday and set up an appt for my Master Tech Mechanic, Charlie to go to the dealership in which I wanted to purchase my car from. I happened to be working the day if the insoeduo, but it wasn't an issue they were able to inspect the car without me being there. I had my report the same day with an 90 minutes of them looking at the car. In my case the report was all satisfaction which is the highest rating across the board. Charlie said if that the car I wanted I should go for it because there wasn't any mechanical damage just typical cosmetic damage you would find on a used car. I paid $169 it was more than the standard $149 due to the car being AWD and and a luxury car. However I thought it was worth after reading their Yelp reviews and getting a strong in person recommendation. I must note the salesperson that recommended Auto PI didn't work at the dealership I got my car from. I highly recommend them. I feel like I was able to buy my car with a peace of mind. read more

I called on a Friday mid-day to ask if they could do an inspection on a 10 year car I was looking to purchase and they were able to fit me in the following morning (Sat). A full report was emailed to me before noon that Sat with more detail than I was expecting. You could tell they really went through the checklist thoroughly instead of just going through the motions. read more

Brian did a good job overall of inspecting the car. He did miss an oil leak but not a big deal in the overall process.

I was shopping for a used vehicle and had to use their service twice. The first check exposed several red flag items for me, one of which was the car was reported as a salvage despite free online car history checks stating otherwise. The second check they did for me also uncovered some items that I would have zero awareness of. All-in-all, I was very thankful for the provided reports, which helped me make a more informed decision of my car purchase. I do wish there was a discount for repeat customers. Highly recommend their services if you are in the market. Buyer beware is a real thing! read more

Auto PI provides a very thorough service and a VERY reasonable price. The call after the inspecting was very informative and detailed as was the report. I highly recommend them. read more

Different side of table as I was the "seller". Extremely thorough, and at the end, recapped is both on pros and cons of vehicle. No idea what the buyer paid for service, however I'll use whenever that time comes. read more

I just used Auto PI last week for the second time and am so glad that I did. The first time I used them a few years ago when I bought a used Volvo from CarMax. They found an issue and Volvo fixed it for free since the car was still under the original warranty. This time, I had purchased a used Audi and everything checked out perfectly but the horn did not work. I had only had the car for a couple of days so was able to contact the dealer and they fixed it free of charge. I am so grateful to Auto PI because in both of these cases, not knowing these issues could have been a safety concern. read more

I had a great experience with Auto P.I. today! I purchased a 2015 Challenger RT from CarMax last week and just wanted extra assurance that the car was in good condition. I contacted Auto P.I. and they had next day appointments available. Mike showed up 10 minutes early for my appointment. He was incredibly polite and professional. I was walked through the process and felt instantly comfortable handing over my keys and letting him do his thing. Less than 45 minutes later, I had a wonderfully on depth review of all car systems. Mike went over each section of their results with me and made me feel extremely confident in my purchase. I would 100% recommend using these guys before purchasing a used car! read more

Very highly recommended!! I was buying a car for my son and looking for some piece of mind that I wasn't buying a junker or a money pit. When I called Auto PI I left a message and received a call back in less than 2 hours. They asked all the questions so I didn't have to think of everything and I was offered an appointment for the very next day. Mike was the technician. To say he did a thorough job would be an understatement. 600 point check! He was finished in exactly 1 hour, as I was told. He was professional, helpful, friendly. He explained everything, and answered all the questions from both me and the buyer with professionalism and patience. Plus, I got an email of the report to refer to. Excellent service! read more

Have used them twice and both times they were right on time or early with same /next day service. In one case, they found issues and I was able to use the information to renegotiate a car deal. The mechanic was friendly and very knowledgeable. I like that they personally walk through everything with you and they don't have any conflict of interest in selling you repairs. read more

Highly responsive and technically sound, the rep had my target vehicle assessed quickly and in a thorough manner. I am purchasing from a remote location so trustworthy eyes on are critical. Charlie pointed out that the tires were worn and needed replacement; and that the spare and tool kit for the same were missing. Hugely important for the negotiations. He also discussed nuances of the mechanical proclivities of the model, which led me to add a one year extended warranty into the offer. Their comprehensive checklist is objective and easy to follow. It guides you into asking the right questions of the rep and the dealer. Highly HIGHLY recommend investing in their service if you are a first time car buyer, or just need some added confidence in a used vehicle. Their rates are peanuts compared to the costs of ending up with a lemon only because you didn't get it checked out by the professionals. read more

I would like to offer a more positive review because John strikes me as a nice guy but a hidden charge and a screw up on their part ended up costing me money and time. If I could rate this review with zero stars, I would. I scheduled the inspection of the car at a used car lot and was told that an SUV has a $10 higher charge of $149 (see autopi.com/pricing.html) and that is fine and understandable. However, University Federal Credit Union customers are supposed to get a $20 discount. I told John that I am a UFCU customer but for some reason he only gave me $10 off and charged me $139 (just got my credit card statement today) instead of $129. So that adds up to an extra $10. On the morning of the inspection I was expecting a call to detail to me the results of the inspection but instead John called to tell me that the dealer would not let John's inspector look at the car and so the inspector left and moved on to his next job. John told me that a no-go inspection has a charge of $50. This was big news to me. When I was scheduling the inspection, at no time in my discussion with John did he tell me about this charge, and it was not detailed on their web site. I immediately called the dealer and he told me no, he did he tell the inspector that he would not be permitted to inspect the car, and that when he came back with the keys, he was surprised to see that the inspector had left. I called John back and rescheduled the inspection. The fact that the dealer permitted the inspection to go forward makes me wonder about the veracity of the inspector's claim but I wasn't on site so can't say for sure what happened between the dealer and inspector. I was angry about this hidden charge and after a long discussion John agreed to drop the $50 no-go charge to $30 but I was still stuck with the charge. I told John that he and/or his inspector should have immediately called me to tell me of the problem and it could have been sorted out then and there while the inspector was still on-site and would not have resulted in a no-go charge. His inspector should not have left the car lot without first informing me. This episode makes me wonder how many no-goes Auto PI logs - it strikes me as a pretty easy way to make $50. With regard to the inspection, the inspector found what he believed to be oil and transmission fluid leaks. The next day I took the car to an independent Volvo garage for an inspection and they diagnosed this leak as coming from the power steering pump - power steering fluid does not look like either transmission fluid or engine oil, so the Auto PI inspector mis-diagnosed this problem and it amounts to a big difference in the cost of the needed repair. I should have taken the car to an independent Volvo garage in the first place -- their total charge for an inspection that covered the exact same points as Auto PI was only $100, and they got it right. Overall, my experience has been generally negative, on both the inspection itself and the failure to contact me while their inspector was still on site so that the misunderstanding could be cleared up immediately and, after discussion, to still charge me $30 for a no-go inspection plus the $10 more than what the UFCU coupon offered. I am not a person who posts negative reviews without first trying to resolve the issue with the vendor. I sent John a lengthy email and gave him the opportunity to refund me the $30 since it was a hidden charge. His response: Thank you for bringing to our attention about missing information in our website. We recently revamped our website and the webmaster did not include some points when he combined several pages into one location. So, although John admitted that the mistake on the hidden charge sits squarely on his side, he is still making me pay for his mistake. This is unacceptable behavior on the part of a business and I intend to pursue the matter. I am posting this review so that other customers do not have to pay for John's mistakes. General advice: avoid Auto PI and take the used car that you are looking to buy to a good garage that works on that particular make and model. They will know what to look for and will not sock you with hidden charges. read more

I had this company inspect a used car for me because I did not want to buy a lemon. They normally charge $150 but charged an additional $25.00 because they had to drive to San Marcos. The person inspected the vehicle and then called me and told me he ran through all the tests they normally do and in a nutshell the car was alright to buy. They said they would send me a report, which I never received initially. After driving the car around for a little while we found that the brakes were jerking a little bit. We took it into Firestone, and they said the rotors were warped and had to be replaced which we did. Then the first time it rained I could see the wipers were worn out and had to be replaced. But the biggest problem was this, there was a rattle in the engine the technician dismissed as something probably just a little bit loose. At this point I called up Auto PI and told him about the rotors and the windshield wipers and the fact I had never received a report from them. The man on the phone told me I should bring it in so they could look at the rotors but only if they were still on the car which they were not, so I decided to let it drop even though I already spent over $600 having this car looked over. They did finally send me a report on the car as they had written my emails address down incorrectly. When I took it to the Firestone the again, I asked them to check the rattle and they pulled off the top piece and looked inside and literally found parts that had broken off rattling around in the engine. I attached a picture of the parts they found for everyone to see. Firestone told me they got everything out that they could but if something got sucked in any farther that they did not find I could blow the whole engine out. So, at the end of the day Auto P.I. told me it was perfectly alright to buy a lemon. Update: I need to respond to what the owner of Austin P.I. since what he wrote is false. First, the mechanic called me after he had inspected the car, we had about a 10 minute discussion and he told me the car was OK to buy. He never said the car needed a lot of repairs and that I should not buy it he. And just in case anyone is wondering, it is not just my word against the owner of this company, I recorded the phone call between myself and the technician. In the call the mechanic who inspected the car mostly talks about the battery and there might be something wrong with it or something called the tipm. There was never any issue with the battery or the tipm at all. That was the only thing he thought could possibly be a major issue and he even down played the likelihood of that. He thought at the worst that the battery might need to be replaced. It is all these other things that are a problem. Everything he talked about were minor things that were normal for a car of that age and he said so. In the second paragraph the owner is trying to nitpick. I already had the car in the shop and found out the rotors were warped and told the shop to go ahead and repair them. The owner of Auto P.I. wanted to see the rotors. I offered to bring the old ones to him, which you could put on a machine and check instead he said that he needed to see the car with the old rotor still installed which was not possible as the work was already done. He is nitpicking about the fact that they only go on site and not bring it to them. So, I got that one minor detail wrong, and they were going to come out. I will give them that but beyond that the rotors were still warped, and they should have known. In the third paragraph he keeps talking about how all his mechanics are certified. What does it matter if they are doing these type of inspections? The bottom line is they did not even check the wipers, which in the recording he claimed he did. Whether it is a minor maintenance issue or not I paid $175 to check the car they should have looked at them. The reason I called this company is to have them check the car to make sure that I was not buying a lemon. They did not live up to expectations and most surely deserve the review they got. He can make all the arguments he wants but at the end of the day he is wrong. And I have proof of that with my recorded conversation with the technician. So, anyone can take it for what it is worth, but I do have proof about what I wrote here! read more

Auto P I Used Inspections - Parts Found Rattling Around Inside the Engine - Car Inspectors Near Me

Good experience. It's about an hour to do a thorough inspection, but they come to you so it's a time saver.

Surprise car shopping due to an accident... John was friendly, flexible on times and got me scheduled quickly. Charlie was on time (actually early)-- that needs to be said these days. He pointed out cosmetic things that most would never see/notice and damage behind the bumper. That is what you pay for- this knowledge going in to make a better informed decision. Due to this info, I didn't buy the car and pointed out to the dealer the undisclosed accident damage (not on the carfax) under the back bumper. Auto PI will definitely be who we go to when we need to know what we're getting into with a used car. read more

Responsive and reasonably priced for service. Used when buying my son a car. Thorough and took tike to explain their evaluation of the car.

I always use Auto PI prior to purchasing a used car. The costs are reasonable are I consider it an investment in any purchase. They are extremely responsive and very detailed in their work. I wouldn't use anyone else. read more

These guys are awesome! I decided to utilize their services based on such great reviews on Yelp and they did not disappoint one bit! Bryan was beyond patient with me as the dealership I was working with kept needing to reschedule. The inspector, Daniel, was also great. He provided me with a written report as well as a very thorough phone call with a rundown of his assessment. Both guys were super personable and professional. I will definitely be recommending their services to my friends in Austin. Thank you!! read more

Wow...these guys are fantastic. Called them Wednesday afternoon and they were here at 9 AM next day. Dry thorough and knowledgeable. I had multiple repair shops try to tell me that I needed new rack and pinion and control arms. About $3,000 worth of work. After Auto PI inspected my car, they said there was nothing wrong!! If you need an unbiased 600 point inspection by a master mechanic, you won't find better service and price. read more

Great service, professionally performed, detailed, and a great assurance we were getting our money's worth. I will use Auto P.I. for every car I purchase in the Austin area. read more

Saved me money by accurately assessing used cars we were considering for our teenagers. Finally got a good one and we've had no problems with it. read more

Helped me avoid a nightmare car purchase and educated me for future buying options. On time and prompt report. Will use again!

Fast and easy service and I felt totally confident in their assessment of the vehicle I was looking at purchasing. Charlie was very informative when he called me as we reviewed the report he emailed to me. I would highly recommend Auto P.I. to anyone looking for a trustworthy source in used vehicles read more