F-150 +Lance 650 Cruise America Purchase

mkirsch wrote:
Never understood the "get a good mechanic to check it out" advice.

I don't know any good mechanics that would be willing to take time away from their shop to spend half a day road tripping to where this truck is to check it out. Any good mechanic is booked solid at their shop.

Then when they get there, what are they going to do, tear the entire truck apart? No, they are going to "visually" inspect. This looks okay. That looks okay. An expert can't tell anything by looking that a layperson wouldn't also be able to tell... Leaks, rotten hoses, belts, etc.. Just educate yourself on the basics and you can do as good a job "visually" as any "good mechanic."

Talk (advice) is cheap.
Where I live, lot of shops offer inspections, but they don't really disclosure what the inspection covers. Lot of them are "roadworthy inspections" what will inspect tires and brake + dripping leaks.
Brakes are cheap, when I can see tires easy with my own eyes.
IMHO if you can operate your android and have good glasses, you can do better inspection than most shops can offer.
-Plug the scanner and check for codes.
-lay down with good flashlight and check for leaks
-shake steering wheel, than push each corner to check for suspension play.
-take the vehicle for 0-60 acceleration test.
When there is never full guarantee the used vehicle will last, those few points will give you about 90% confidence that you are not buying lemon.