When looking at a Car it is easy to forget some things. I like to have a check list so I know I have not forgotten anything. This list may seen long but as can be noted it only needs for the Yes/No words to be ticked and or deleted as and when checked. If you are viewing more than one car you can refer back and it will help you to remember and compare. I realise that some of the checks are difficult but better to have to much information than not enough. If your knowledge of cars is limited it is advisable to have someone with you who has some knowledge.
This list can be downloaded as a "Word" document by clicking here. If you right click and "save as" it will download quicker.
If at any time you jack up the car to view underneath make sure that the car is well supported.
Do not rely on hydraulic or any other type of jack to support the car.
Don Kennedy.
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Sellers Name.__________________________________________________
Address.______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
____________________ Post Code. ____________
Phone. ________________________________ E-Mail. _____________________________
GTE. Type. __________ Year. ___________
Reg. Number. _________. MOT No/Yes. Expires. ____
Asking price. £___________ Price agreed £______________
V5 Information correct. O.K. Yes/No.
Chassis/Engine Numbers correct. Note engine number can be found behind the right cylinder head stamped into the block. Note that this number should start with SC. If not the engine may have come from another car (Ford). O.K. Yes/No.
Any Alterations etc_______________________________________________________________ Yes/No.
MOT supports mileage.Yes/No.
Miles supported by wear Yes/No
Bodywork. Is the trim correct for the model.
Grill - 3 bar (SE5), 5 bar (SE5a) O.K. Yes/No
Badges - 3 litre badge on front wings (SE5), shield (SE5a) O.K.Yes/No
Coach line - Aluminum (SE5), painted (SE5a) O.K. Yes/No
Aluminum strip along lower edge of sill (SE5a only) O.K. Yes/No
Look at doors and check alignment with aperture. O.K. Yes/No
Security of the doors - are the hinges okay, have the doors dropped significantly (good indications of the condition of the steel insert in the A-Pillar) O.K. Yes/No
Checks - Rear Window, Operation of the hatch lock - both locking and release O.K. Yes/No
Rear Window hinges .O.K. Yes/No
Struts for rear Tailgate. O.K. Yes/No
Condition and fitment of the weather seal.- both bodywork and hatch O.K. Yes/No
See if the interior light works! - O.K. Yes/No
Checks – Bumpers Are they damaged or rusty? - O.K. Yes/No
Interior . Check Steering Column movement ( Up/Down ) to check bushes. O.K. Yes/No
Checks trim Condition of interior trim panels - are they the right colour (check for re-colouring) and type for the car model. O.K. Yes/No
Front Seats - general condition, check operation, slide, tilt. O.K. Yes/No
Rear Seats - Fold down the back rest and check alignment, check squab and check condition. O.K. Yes/No
Seat belts - check condition and mountings, unwind and reel in. O.K.Yes/No
Headlining - check the condition, including the sun visors. O.K.Yes/No
Carpets - check the condition and the fitment (are they damp? - footwells especially). O.K. Yes/No
Have a look in the tool compartments and the glove boxes, Damp. O.K. Yes/No
Checks - Dashboard (ignition to be on, do not start yet) O.K.Yes/No
Check the operation of all switches. O.K.Yes/No
Check the operation of all lights (external and on dashboard). O.K.Yes/No
Check the operation of the wipers, (Front and Rear) wash wipe. O.K.Yes/No
Check Horn. O.K.Yes/No
Check the operation of the fuel gauge and the hand brake warning light(If fitted). O.K.Yes/No
Check the operation of the heater fan and the controls including the vents O.K. Yes/No
Look at pedal box - anything obvious?, Fluid running from Cylinders. O.K.Yes/No
Anything else?. O.K. Yes/No
The design of the electrical circuit is not perfect. Mod's made to the car usually make it better, but how good are the Mod's, Beware of wiring looms with cracked coatings. It can cause massive short circuits and fire!. Renewal of wiring is a rather difficult and time-consuming job and requires knowledge of electrics. The earthing can be a problem due to a Fibreglass Body. Check if everything works properly. Check, if possible, for corroded switch contacts by gently operating switches. These create high resistance, causing more heat than the wires can handle. They could melt with a risk of short circuits or worse.
Check if everything works properly, Lights/Indicators Wash/Wipe (Rear if fitted). O.K.Yes/No
Chassis: The chassis are really strong, but both the SE5 and SE6 can rust badly after long periods of inattention. The chassis on the SE6b and the SE8b should have no rust due to Galvanised Chassis but check. Models from 1983 and up have the galvanized chassis and should be rust free, so if rust is spotted on those, you know something happened to the car, such as poorly repaired accident damage.
Chassis front end: Rust can occur around the radiator and towards the front end. Also the front suspension mounting brackets on Chassis can be bad. Check under the car and under the spare wheel by removing the plate under the spare wheel and looking at the panels either side of the radiator and the plate below the radiator. O.K. Yes/No
Front Chassis: Front chassis outriggers; they can collect mud. Check under the car and in the wheel arches. O.K. Yes/No
The outside outrigger: Check under the car, inspection of the upper side is almost impossible with the body on the chassis but you can see enough to make a judgment .O.K. Yes/No
Roll Bar Attachments, Bolts to Chassis, Any corrosion here, note if corrosion excessive it can be a and real sod to sort it. O.K. Yes/No
Rear end: Rear Suspension mounts to Chassis are important, they hold the rear suspension and the body. They should be rust free. O.K. Yes/No
Like the front outriggers, rear outriggers also collect mud, check both under the car and in the wheel arches (wheels preferably removed). The chassis rear end rust is hard to detect with the body on, so check around the fuel tank and you can see the top of the chassis in front of the take. You will need some type of light and the car will have to be raised. O.K.Yes/No
The Fuel Tank is also prone to Rust so check.
Impossible to check the top of the fuel tank without removing it. Not the type of job to do when viewing .O.K. Yes/No
Suspension.
Front: Based on the Triumph TR series. In fact, early SE5 have the same suspension. Double wishbone mounted in rubber. These rubbers wear. They need to be replaced on a regular basis. The trunnion and the trunnion bolt need regular greasing. When neglected the bold will fix itself in the trunnion and destroy both. Check the grease nipples on the trunnions and upper ball joints, is there evidence that they have been greased regularly. If no signs of grease are visible, expect problems. O.K. Yes/No
To check the Front Trunnions. The car must be jacked up on axle stands with both wheels clear of the ground. Put a strong steel bar under the tyre with the inner end nearly under the chassis, and a similar length protruding so you can lever upwards on it. Gently lever the tyre up and down a small amount while feeling the trunnion bolt and the joint between the trunnion and wishbone. The key to this is gently. You only need to lever upwards enough to cause any slack to be taken up, any further leverage which starts to compress the springs which takes up any slack movement that may be present. O.K. Yes/No
The front springs can also sag; distance between wheel arch and road should be 25" to 27"/ 63,5 cm to 68,5 cm. (Closer to 27” is Ideal). O.K. Yes/No
Check the tyre's, they should wear equal and not on the inside. Also check the rear ones please, to exclude front-back swap. O.K. Yes/No
Check the front suspension lower mounting. The design of this allows dirt/mud to build up allowing corrosion. O.K. Yes/No
Check shock absorbers for any leaks. O.K. Yes/No
Check front wheel bearing by jacking up the car and try to move the wheel top to bottom and side to side. Excessive movement could be the bearings worn, require adjustment or the stub axle where it goes into the suspension upright being loose. Yes/No
Rear Suspension. Check the mounting for the bottom of the shock absorber that attaches to the rear axle. This is a mud/dirt trap and can corrode. O.K. Yes/No
Check the top shock absorber mounting ( Wheel removed if possible ). O.K. Yes/No
Engine. Note engine number can be found behind the right cylinder head stamped into the block. Note that this number should start with SC. If not the engine may have come from another car (Ford). The engine used is the Ford “ Essex ” 3 litre V6, used in such cars as the Granada and 3.0 Capri . And the “ Cologne ” Engine in later Cars (1986 on ?). There was a change in the “ Essex ” Engine around 1972. The visual check is the Dipstick is in the Front Timing Cover for the earlier engine and the dipstick is on the right of the engine below spark plug 5. This area can be seen if looking down near the brake master cylinder. When starting check exhaust (If possible) for any suspect smoke etc. When started Oil pressure should at between 40 & 50 lb psi at 2000 rpm but it should never go above 75 lb psi. unless a high pressure oil pump is fitted and when Hot, at idling speed pressure should read about 25 lb psi. (Check this after the Test Drive ) but a bit lower is acceptable if there are no rumbles from the bottom of the engine. Rumbles can also mean worn big end or mains bearings. Note that if you see a whitish smoke from the right exhaust pipe this could mean the seal in the brake servo is leaking and brake fluid is being sucked into the right bank of cylinders so giving whitish smoke when driving. O.K. Yes/No
Look for oil and water leaks and blue smoke from the exhausts (Especially on Overrun) which suggest that the engine could do with an overhaul. Check inside Rocker Cover ( Oil Filler ) is it clean ? No thick Gunge. O.K.Yes/No.
When Oil Filler Cap Removed and Engine is running is there any “Blowing Out” this could mean worn piston rings. O.K. Yes/No.
Check the level of the water, which should be a 50/50 anti-freeze and water mix, How clean is the Water ? Any “Funny” Smells to the Water ?. Check for signs of coolant leaks and boiled over coolant as the engine is prone to this ( Mainly SE6 etc) if not well maintained. O.K.Yes/No.
If the engine warms up very slowly, check that a thermostat is fitted. If there is no thermostat be suspicious. O.K.Yes/No.
The electric cooler fan should only cut in when the temp goes above 90 (?) degrees, usually in traffic, but should soon cut out again. O.K.Yes/No.
Overheating can cause warped or cracked cylinder heads which are expensive to repair. Take it out for a long run and check that there is no bubbling in the overflow bottle when the engine is stopped - if there is then the head gasket(s) could have blown, (Any gunge in Water to confirm) O.K.Yes/No.
The electric cooling fan should work and then stop. Depending upon the type of fan motor fitted this could take a few minutes. Keep away from cars with cooling fans that don't work. Remember that overheating can cause warped or cracked cylinder heads, expensive to repair. O.K.Yes/No.
Check the fuel inlet pipe to the carburetor. Where it attaches to the carburetor. it can get loose and cause a fire and there should have been a modification visible by a pin holding in the pipe. O.K.Yes/No.
Transmission: A lot of different types of transmissions have been fitted over the Scimitars life span. First manual; with or without overdrive. Two types of overdrives are used and at least four types of gearboxes are used. SE6/6a have all the same type gearbox and overdrive. The gearboxes are all Ford products. The overdrive should engage and disengage without to much of a "thump". Note that there is an inhibitor switch that only allows overdrive to be engaged in 3rd and 4th gear. It is possible that this override has been disconnected of is faulty allowing overdrive to be engaged in all gears so make sure it disengages before selecting reverse. Reversing with an engaged overdrive kills the overdrive. O.K.Yes/No.
Do all Gears select O.K. and do any gears jump out when pushing and lifting off the Accelerator when driving. O.K.Yes/No.
Automatics: Two types: Borg Warner Type 35 and Ford C3 (some cars could be equipped with a Ford C4). The C3 is most common and better. All gear should engage easily, kickdown should work. Check for oil leaks. No gearbox or overdrive has to leak, but automatics can leak severely without other problems. Always be alert to freshly cleaned gearboxes. Check the condition of the automatic gearbox oil using the dipstick. Is it clean, if it is very black it could mean problems. Automatic gearbox repairs can be very expensive. O.K.Yes/No.
Propshaft's and backaxles only need regular maintenance for a trouble free life. The backaxle has a small air hole on the right hand back side. This must be open; it is the only way for moisture to get out. O.K.Yes/No.
Any Oil Leaks around Wheel area and back plate. This could mean leaking wheel bearings of leaking brake slave cylinders. O.K. Yes/No.
Check behind/under the car. The differential oil should have been changed on a regular basis. The seal where the propshaft goes into the axle is prone to leaking as the earlier type were a poor design. Leaking not to much of a problem but is there oil left in the rear axle ?. Are there any leaks from the differential housing. O.K.Yes/No
It is common to get a lot of noise (heavy clonking) from the propshaft/backaxle. This is annoying but rather harmless. If there is a whine that gets louder as the speed increases there could be differential problems. A whine may not mean that something is about to go but is annoying and repairs to rear axles are expensive. O.K.Yes/No.
Clutch. Normal Checks. Hydraulics should be checked especially the Slave Cylinder. Hold Clutch Pedal down for a while, is there any “Creep” so showing signs of Leakage past the seals. O.K.Yes/No.
On the earlier Cars the clutch slave cylinder is held on by a clips and not two bolts as on the later types, is slave Cylinder O.K. on Bell Housing. i.e. not seized against bell housing as it can be very difficult to remove and this type of slave cylinder is difficult to obtain. O.K.Yes/No.
Cooling. Although these checks are mentioned in the Engine Section it would seem advisable to double check the Cooling System. The SE5 series seems to have the better cooling system, there being some issues with the SE6 series. The cooling system on the SE6s was just about OK, any slight defect in the cooling system of the 6s will cause problems. It would appear that if the System is A1, that is clear waterways through Radiator etc there should not be a problem. The problem arises that due to the age of the Scimitars sludge/gunge etc will build up in the cooling system and if this has not been addressed throughout the Life of the Car problems can occur. Check for signs of leakage etc especially with the SE6 series as overheating could have caused problems with Head Distortion etc. O.K.Yes/No.
Check around Overflow bottle etc, any signs of Leak/Rad Rad/Weld etc. O.K.Yes/No.
Brakes. Keep Brake Pedal pressed for a While, Does Pedal stay in same Position ?, or slowly go to floor suggesting Leak pass a Rubber Piston. O.K.Yes/No.
Normal Checks for Leaks etc. If possible check for Fluid loss, it may not show on Cylinders or Calipers as the Servo can leak, sucking fluid and sending it through the Vacuum pipe to the inlet manifold, sometimes if severe it will show by white smoke from the right side exhaust. O.K.Yes/No.
Nothing Special regards the Brakes but check loss of effective braking after going round a comer. This can be caused by several things. The most common cause could be loose front wheel bearings. If the bearing is loose the wheel and the disk will wobble a bit with the side load thus spreading the pads away from the disk resulting in some ineffective movement of the pads when the brakes are next applied. This problem expressed as a semi permanent feature can be caused by badly aligned callipers where the brake pistons are not working at right angles to the disk, or a distorted disk. A sticking piston which has the effect of pushing the disk off center as more force is applied from one side than the other can also give the same symptom. The cars leave the factory with shims between the callipers and their mounting points to correct the caliper alignment, but once a caliper has been off or replaced it is more than likely that the shims have been lost or misplaced. O.K.Yes/No.
Tyre's/Wheels
Are tyre's worn showing tracking or other problems. Check Fronts and Rears have not been swapped so masking a problem. Yes/No
Wheels. Type. Wolfrace - Queen Anne - Dunlop Composites - Steel. All Wheel Nuts present. Trims if fitted. Yes/No.
Test Drive,
Ease of starting - manual or auto choke. O.K.Yes/No.
Check the temperature - let it idle until the fan operates or it maintains a constant temperature. O.K.Yes/No.
Check the oil pressure - note it at start up and when warm and when held at fast idle. O.K.Yes/No.
Check the operation of the interior heater when engine warm. Does it blow out warm/hot. The heater in the SE5s does not perform very well but if no heat when heater fan on could mean blocked heater matrix. Not expensive to rectify but removing the heater unit from the Car is a "very interesting" job. O.K.Yes/No.
Engine.
Listen to at idle - tappets and exhaust. O.K.Yes/No.
Driving
Feel of the clutch - does it drag or slip. O.K.Yes/No.
Steering weight. O.K.Yes/No.
Gearbox – synchromesh. O.K.Yes/No.
General feel. Make sure the clutch if manual gearbox doesn't slip or make any noise. To check it put the car in 3rd or 4th gear, slow down to about 10MPH to 15MPH and floor it! If the clutch is slipping, instead of accelerating steadily the motor will rev up almost like it's in neutral. If it does this you need a new clutch! O.K.Yes/No.
Make sure the exhaust isn't pumping out black or blue smoke or making excessive noise. If it is the Engine noise or smoke it may need serious engine work,O.K.Yes/No.
In the case of a noisy exhaust, it needs part or all of the exhaust system replaced! O.K.Yes/No.
Accelerate going up a hill to determine engine strength and smoothness. If the car doesn't seem to have enough power or smoothness under this condition, it could indicate the need for a tune up, more serious motor problems or even a transmission problem! O.K.Yes/No.
Make sure the hand brake holds on a hill, and releases easily without sticking. If it doesn't the car needs a work doing to the rear brakes, could be cable, brake adjusters, brake shoes, leaking fluid onto brake linings. O.K.Yes/No.
Make sure the car doesn't pull, wander or shake. This could indicate an alignment problem, a suspension problem and or a tyre problem! O.K.Yes/No.
Make sure the brakes stop smoothly without pulsating, squeaking, grinding. O.K.Yes/No.
Also, make sure the brake pedal isn't too low. Could need rear brakes adjusting or the car needs brake work! O.K.Yes/No.
Are brakes defective? (e.g., car takes a long time to stop) O.K.Yes/No.
Does car pull to one side when you brake? O.K.Yes/No.
Do brakes squeal? O.K.Yes/No.
Are there other unusual noises? O.K.Yes/No.
Is hand brake defective? O.K.Yes/No.
Does steering wheel shake/vibrate? O.K.Yes/No.
Does car pull to one side? O.K.Yes/No.
Is changing gear difficult? O.K.Yes/No.
Does gear lever jump gear when you brake or accelerate? O.K.Yes/No.
Does clutch grab or slip? O.K.Yes/No.
Does engine sound different if clutch is pressed when car is idling?. Could mean gearbox bearing faults. O.K.Yes/No.
Is there a strong smell of petrol or oil? O.K.Yes/No.
After the test drive -open the bonnet and take a look while the engine is running. Any concerns ?. O.K.Yes/No.
Then switch the engine off.Does engine rattle or make other noise when stopping. O.K.Yes/No.
Are there water or oil leaks? O.K.Yes/No.
Blue or black smoke from exhaust? (indicates worn engine) O.K.Yes/No.
Grey smoke from exhaust? (indicates water leaking into engine) O.K.Yes/No.
When engine has stopped, remove oil cap - do you see white liquid like mayonnaise? O.K.Yes/No.
Are there oil leaks or damaged hoses/drive belts under the bonnet? O.K.Yes/No.
Any other Comments.