ppi whats involved

[thstone]

Originally Posted by jdraupp

If the independent doesn't know what's on a ppi, then you probably don't want him/her doing it.

I agree. If they don't know what to do, go somewhere else.

Also, be aware that many owners won't allow anyone to do anything invasive during a PPI (where any part of the car has to be removed in order to perform the inspection). The logic behind this is that they don't want to get stuck with a big mess if something happens and the car is damaged during the PPI and its impossible to know what was pre-existing and what was caused by a careless technician during the PPI.

For example, were the spark plug threads in the head stripped before the PPI or did the PPI technician cause it? Good luck in sorting out a problem like this. This usually means an owner ban on removing wheels/tires, spark plugs, oil filter, oil pan, etc. and thus, most standard PPI's do not include compression test, leak down test, and/or oil filter/pan inspection.

If these tests are important to you, then be sure to discuss them with the owner to get prior approval and be sure to do the same with the shop to ensure that they are done properly.