Never Buy a Used Chevy Silverado As-Is

Rust Never Sleeps

In an earlier article we learned that buying any vehicle advertised “As-Is” should be one of the biggest red flags that you are about to buy a vehicle that is guaranteed to fail on you in the near future and with repairs that will cost you much more than what you paid for the vehicle.

While sometimes an “As-Is” purchase can be reimbursed (under the threat of a lawsuit) the majority of the time it is viewed as a poor judgment matter on the part of the buyer failing to have a used vehicle prepurchase inspection. In those cases, the new used-car owner is left hopefully a little wiser, but definitely poorer from this used vehicle purchasing mistake.

Related article: The Most Important Used Car Test You Should Do Before Deciding to Buy a Used Car

That was the message in a recent Wrenching with Kenny YouTube channel episode where Kenny does a “show and tell” of a 2007 Chevy Silverado that a new owner came to him for repair of a suspicious smell of gasoline around the truck. The owner told Kenny that he had bought it As-Is presumably because the truck looked good for its age, and it ran. But no prepurchase inspection was done.

Related article: Chevy Trucks to Buy and Not Buy Explained by a Chevrolet Mechanic

The Problem with Rust When it Goes Beyond “Patina”

Unfortunately, the buyer of this GM rust bucket---like many used car and truck shoppers---presumably got hung-up on assuming if an older vehicle looks okay enough for them on the easy-to-see exterior, that it is probably just as good everywhere else. I mean hey, “What’s a little patina”? It adds character…right? Big Mistake!

What these kinds of consumers do not realize is that the problem of rust is not just a cosmetic or aesthetics issue but can be more of a safety issue in which rust does mechanical and structural damage that eventually becomes a hazard to the owner as well as other drivers on the same road---because rust never sleeps.

In the host’s example the rust resulted in leaking gasoline and rusted-through gas tank straps that could easily turn his truck into an automotive fireball of death while driving down the road.

As examples of the extent in which the rust problem in Chevy Silverado’s can get so bad that the mechanics of it become very unsound in multiple systems, follow along with Wrenching with Kenny and with The Daninator YouTube channels to see rust at its most damaging in both vehicles.

Please Note: For the Daninator video you can begin at timepoint 2:30 to get to the topic.

And finally…

For additional articles related to the importance of a prepurchase inspection before buying any vehicle, here are three selected ones for your consideration:

• Used Car Prepurchase Inspection Warning
• Used Car Purchase Inspection Tip from Toyota Mechanic
• Don’t Get Scammed by a Great Looking Biodegradable Mercedes Like This Guy Did

Timothy Boyer is Torque News automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for new and used vehicle news.

COMING UP NEXT: Electric Vehicle Summer Tire Recommendations

Image Source: Pixabay