Today I went to view this:
https://knoxville.craigslist.org/cto/6043989264.html
My first impression of the outside was good, however once we got into the van, it was a mess. I don't really care about the condition on the inside, but there were cigarette burns and stains all over, things were broken off, lights and doors didn't work... it just screamed "not looked after", and my theory is that this stuff is the easy, cheap stuff, so I would bet that the engine has had even less love.
The test drive was actually good, but once we got to a stop I asked what under the carpet looked like, and wow - rust all over. I had him dig his hands in because the carpet was so gross I didn't want to touch it. And I dumpster dive, so that's telling you something...
Finally, I inspected the engine and the body underneath, and there was lots of rust. That, combined with the poor upkeep of the inside, said that this was not a loved van. The guy had literally bought it 2 days ago but his girlfriend hated it and told him to get rid, and he had bought it without even knowing the history of the thing, or even seeing it. So many red flags I could barely see the vehicle for them!
So the search goes on. With each one I look at I learn something new. This time, under carpet checking is important!
