Vehicle trade-ins are always an opportunity for dealers, as long as they manage the risks. From pricing and negotiating, to assessing damages – there are a lot of opportunities for error if the right tools aren’t used. In this blog, we’ll explore the importance of thorough interior inspections during the trade-in process, while outlining some tools and strategies you can use to ensure your dealership is noticing every possible issue and pricing everything accordingly. Ultimately, we’ll show you how AI can even offer solutions to the trade-in challenges you are facing.
Going beyond the exterior
When trading in a vehicle, it’s important – of course – to check the exterior of the vehicle for any damages, dents, scratches, or cracks in the glass or lights. But don’t under value the importance of the vehicle’s interior. Even with a perfect exterior, a car could have a damaged interior. And accidents, which can significantly reduce the value of a vehicle, are often noticeable on the exterior of the car, they can also impact the interior. Not to mention the additional damage that can be caused by wear-and-tear.1 To avoid losing money on trade-ins because of unobserved interior damages, dealers should be diligent about their interior assessment process.
Interior damages to look out for
- Upholstery: Check for tears, stains, rips, and worn-in fabrics or leather. For example, it's frequent that steering wheels will begin to peel over time, fabric seats will rip or pill, or stains will collect on the rugs and upholstery.
- Dashboard: Look out for cracks in glass or screens, scratches on surfaces, and malfunctioning tools or indicators in the dash of the vehicle.
- Electronics: Especially for trade-ins, it is common for older vehicles to have electronics that are becoming out of date or having faltering parts. Check screens, speakers, and all entertainment features to ensure there are no electronic issues.
- Smells: Even once the vehicle has been cleaned, check for odors that may have resulted from cigarettes, spills in the fabric surfaces, pets in the car, or other byproducts of wear-and-tear. Worse yet, there may be mold or mildew from moisture build-up which you will need to take note of.
- Structure: Check for sagging cushions, loose panels, and rattling parts.2
How to make your inspections more thorough
To ensure you notice all interior damage, there are some basic steps you can take, like bringing a flashlight so you can get better visibility throughout the vehicle, taking your time to test all electronics, adjusting all seats, testing each button, and taking photos of everything you find to adequately document the damage.2 Turn the radio on and off, connect and disconnect to Bluetooth, adjust the volume, test the heat and air conditioning – don’t leave anything unchecked.
Another effective strategy is to make sure that you sit in every seat of the car and test all of the features and buttons from that seat – roll up the rear passenger windows, recline all chairs, and make sure nothing is wrong with the upholstery or smell in that part of the car.1
But an even more thorough – and efficient – solution is to use an AI tool.
How can an AI damage detection tool help?
AI damage detection tools can scan photos of a vehicle to detect damage down to a pixel, comparing it with its existing knowledge of that model’s features. This helps dealers evaluate trade-in vehicles with accuracy and confidence, while offering a reasonable price before they ever see the car in person. This can help save time and also reduce the risk that dealers will lose money on trade-ins as a result of surprise damages. AI damage detection is already available for the exterior of vehicles with tools like ClearCar and its only a matter of time for them to be available for the interior.
Avoid Costly Trade In Mistakes with ClearCar
Our AI damage detection tool allows dealers to send customers a link to a self-guided photo process using their phone. The images are then scanned by the AI tool to help the dealer detect damage. The photo will be tagged for the dealer to reference, calling out areas where there are dents, scratches, or rust. Combined with questions that the customer can answer, the AI tool then helps the dealer estimate a price compared to the market to secure the trade-in instantly. Our tool makes the trade-in process pain-free, accurate, and efficient. Try it today.
Sources
- Thompson. November 13, 2024. “How to Inspect a Used Vehicle Like a Pro Before Test-Driving One.” Thompson Family Owned and Operated Since 1919. Retrieved February 7, 2025. https://www.thompsonsales.com/how-to-properly-inspect-a-vehicle/
- Tcheck. “Uncovering Vehicle Interior Damages: A Guide to Assessing when taking in trade ins.” Tcheck. Retrieved February 7, 2025. https://www.tchek.ai/blog/uncovering-vehicle-interior-damages-a-guide-to-assessing-the-hidden-risks-when-buying-a-used-car
