What is the difference between "Dirt Lots" & Major Dealerships?

You may notice that most dirt lots are advertising their vehicles for thousands of dollars below the competition, but is buying from these smaller lots always the best move?

Every dealership operates differently, but at their core they are typically the same. Most car dealerships go through the same process when selling pre-owned vehicles. Vehicles are traded in, mechanically inspected, detailed, and than posted for sale. However, there is one HUGE difference between what are considered "Dirt-Lots" & "Major Dealerships"

The element that separates the two is the way they mechanically inspect their vehicles.

“ When Ford sells a car, a dealer isn't allowed to take out the engine and put a different one in. When a newsstand sells the Washington Post, no one can go to the newsstand and pay them to rip out the classified section and put their own classified section in - if they could, they would do so. - Bill Gates

Mechanical Inspection

A mechanical inspection is an inspection of a vehicle's main components by a registered mechanic.

In short, during the inspection a registered mechanic looks at & drives a vehicle in order to determine if it is safe to drive. If it isn't, the dealership is required to ensure that the vehicle is up to standard before being sold.

Major dealerships will go above and beyond to ensure the vehicles they sell are safe and reliable for their customers. These dealerships have reputations to uphold and rely on repeat & referral customers. Furthermore, they typically do these inspections in house to make certain the vehicle was inspected correctly.

On the contrary, Dirt Lots are in the business for quick and easy money. They sell their vehicles at a cheaper price because they sublet the vehicles to third party mechanics who will inspect the vehicle and basically say the vehicle is "safe", as long as they get paid.

In your opinion, is it worth it to save a few thousand dollars on the price if it means the vehicle may not be mechanically sound? Or is it worth it to spend the extra money for the peace of mind?

Comment below!

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