Why Buy Certified Pre-Owned?

Chevrolet's Certified Pre-Owned, CPO, program has been available for many years.  And, when you break it down, buying a certified pre-owned Chevy can be a compelling proposition.

In this iDriveSoCal Podcast, I go to Martin Chevrolet in Torrance, CA to get honest behind-the-scenes details on buying a certified pre-owned Chevrolet.  And you're going to want to listen closely to this one.

That's because my friend Lewis Cook, who's the general manager of Martin Chevrolet, really doesn't hold anything back.  He even tells us exactly how much it costs Chevrolet dealers to certify a vehicle!  Click play below and enjoy. :0)

  

Chevy Certified Pre-Owned - aka CPO

Lewis: The factory gets involved heavily.  They go through this 172-point inspection.

They go through a Carfax and DMV history and everything, really. I mean, they try to make this car as new as possible.

You can get that interest rate close to what a new car interest rates are.  It takes that extra cost out of the picture.

Tom:   Welcome to iDriveSoCal, the podcast, all about mobility from the automotive capital of the United States, Southern California.

Tom Smith here and I am excited to be at Martin Chevrolet in the Los Angeles suburb of Torrance, California, with Mr. Lewis Cook, General Manager.

Lewis:  Hello!

Chevy Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) Podcast

Tom:  And this report we are bringing to you, obviously live from Martin Chevrolet, but certified pre-owned, the benefits of Chevrolet certified preowned. The certified pre-owned programs have—what are they? They’ve been out for a while now, haven’t they?

Lewis:  Yeah. I think each factory has some kind of rendition of a certified program.

Tom:  Basically, it’s a pre-owned vehicle, but it’s a pre-owned vehicle that the factory kind of gives its blessing to at a—

Lewis:  If you want to call it a blessing, okay.

Tom:  [Laughs] At a higher level of specification, as far as the overall condition of the vehicle, right?

Lewis:  Yeah. I joke about blessing and the reason is for—

Tom:  Are we going to get religious now?

Lewis:  This is actually pretty funny, and this is unscripted.

My mechanic just walked in and he has a certified pre-owned checklist in his hand. I promise you, this is unscripted.

Detailed Documentation to Certify a Pre-Owned Chevrolet

Tom:  This is perfect!

Lewis:  The reason why I say—

Tom:  I know it’s unscripted because it’s like, he’s not wanting to come closer.

Lewis:  He doesn’t want to come on camera. I’m not going to sign any—okay, I’ll sign it. But you need to leave this with me for a second, so give me a minute.

The reason why I laugh at the blessing is if you can see this vehicle inspection and re-conditioning, I’ll show it.

Tom:  Let’s get a close up of that.

The actual 172-Point Inspection document!

Lewis:  I’ll show the camera on the podcast.

Tom:  On the audio podcast, let me show you this! You see this right here, what I’m talking about?

Lewis:  You see this, guys? This is what I’m talking about. You say a blessing, I say curse. Not so much. I’m being facetious.

Tom:  Understood.

Lewis:  It’s a 172-point vehicle inspection and reconditioning form. It’s two pages. There’s a ton of checkmarks on here, so basically what happens—

Tom:  And now it has the boss’s signature on it, too, so this is a no joke thing.

172-Point Inspection for Every CPO Chevrolet

Lewis:  No, it’s a no joke thing.

The factory is so much behind this and they’re so concerned about the condition of ...