BUYER'S GUIDE QUICK REFERENCE

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What follows should be used for determining a quick estimation of the condition of a used Syclone or Typhoon. Please feel free to email the management any additional suggestions for the inspection of a used Syclone or Typhoon.


NEVER buy a used vehicle at night, no matter how well-lit the garage/lot/driveway is.

Start the engine. Open the hood. Unscrew the cap from the oil-filler neck. (Behind the alternator) Look for smoke or vapors coming out of the oil filler. If there is a lot of smoke, the rings/valve guides are worn and the smoke you see is blow-by. If there is no smoke, hold your hand above the filler neck. If there is a lot of air coming out, it's a sign of blow-by. Neither condition is good - It means you'll be going through the engine soon.

Take it out for a drive - get it good and warmed up. While you're out there driving, stop, hold the brakes down as hard as you can and rev the motor up. You should be able to get the boost gauge to go positive, about 4-5 psi. If you can't get at least 3 psi, there is a turbo/wastegate problem.

Listen for rattles/clunks/shakes while driving. Regular engine-speed or wheel-speed vibrations indicate bent or damaged wheels or drive train components. Make a couple of really tight left/right turns in a parking lot, and listen for clicking from the front CV joints.

Get up to speed (in a secluded area) and slam on the brakes. It should become apparent whether or not the ABS works.

Check all the fluids. Tranny fluid should be full, clean, and free of a burnt smell. Transparent red, not reddish-gray sludge. Motor oil should be clean and oil-looking. White milky-looking bubbles on the oil are a sign of water, usually meaning a blown head gasket. Smell the engine oil for presence of gasoline - this indicates that the engine has been severely flooded, indicating possible fuel system problems.

With the engine cooled, remove the radiator filler cap (the main one, not the IC). Look for bubbles. With the engine warm, look for bubbles in the radiator fluid reservoir. Both are signs of a blown head gasket.

Get under the vehicle with a flashlight, and look for leaks. Severe leaks should be avoided.

While under the vehicle, grab the front driveshaft and twist. If it moves a lot, the truck has had a lot of hard launching. Same goes for the rear driveshaft. Really loose is bad things, man. Check the boot on the front propshaft, too; these have been known to crack and allow dirt in, killing a $1400 propshaft. (Although, you can get them rebuilt for less)

Engine noise: Syclones have a characteristic "ticking" noise that is considered normal. If there's a pronounced metallic clicking, just walk away. There have been problems with bent rods making a loud knocking noise, but you should be able to tell the difference. The known injector tick is sort of sewing machine-like ticking.

The trans. should shift firmly by itself through all the gears. Slipping is not acceptable. 1st-2nd shifts really hard sometimes; don't let that scare you.

Heavy road vibrations on smooth pavement indicate bent wheels, which is a common problem. Rear end vibration can be caused by bad driveline alignment due to lowering kits, which could cause damage elsewhere from all the shaking.

Make sure the air conditioning works. Cruise control acts funny on all of them.

Check for rust starting in the cab corners and bottom door edges. Also, the cladding likes to rub through the paint in places - look for it.

Ask for all the stuff. There should be a folder with two manuals in it, a wheel cover key (really important!) and some tools to take off the tonneau cover. The spare should be under the rear of the truck, the jack and wheel chucks are under a cover behind the passenger seat.