It became a damaged car even before getting licensed! This AITO M9 is discounted by tens of thousands—should you buy a transport-damaged vehicle?

Hello, everyone~ The veteran from Jianchejia is back with you again. I m Akun, a used car inspector. I used to be a top dog in the auto repair world, honing my skills over the years with more than four years in the industry. Now, by a twist of fate, I ve joined Jianchejia, where I ve passed rigorous assessments and training to become a certified used car inspector. My mission is to safeguard your car-buying rights, and I’m thrilled to share this episode’s interesting used car inspection story with you. Today, I’ll walk you through the inspection of a transport-damaged vehicle.

Simply put, a transport-damaged car is a new vehicle that sustained damage during transportation, typically occurring on the way from the manufacturer to the dealership. These cars are usually cheaper than brand-new ones. Of course, some dealerships might take a chance by repairing minor transport damage and selling the vehicle as new. If discovered by consumers, this could result in compensation of three times the purchase price! Today, I, Akun, have been entrusted by a client to inspect a transport-damaged AITO M9 in Pingshan County, Shijiazhuang.

Arriving at the vehicle inspection location, I discovered this was a place specializing in selling transport-damaged cars. To be fair, if the transport damage isn t severe, these cars can indeed be a great deal. For example, a high-end model like the AITO M9, which normally costs 400,000 to 500,000 yuan, could be tens of thousands cheaper with minor transport damage. According to the information provided by the client, this particular vehicle is a 2024 AITO M9 Extended-Range Max Edition with a 42kWh battery and 6 seats, manufactured in September 2024. The odometer shows just 7 kilometers, and the original retail price was 469,800 yuan. The current asking price from the seller isn t disclosed to us—the dealer isn t sharing that information, likely due to business confidentiality concerns.

However, the transport damage to this car is not minor. You can see the front windshield is broken, and there s a dent on the pillar. The customer asked us to check if there are any other issues. So, let s immediately give this car a thorough health check.

The windshield is indeed completely shattered and definitely needs to be replaced. Additionally, there are dents on both the left and right A-pillars. The one on the left is relatively small, but the dent on the right is deformed over 8 cm in length. According to national standards, this qualifies as a standard accident vehicle—what we commonly refer to as a major accident car. It’s just bad luck that the car became an accident vehicle before it even hit the road! However, the client said he can accept these two issues, as minor deformations don’t affect much, and he’s fine as long as there are no problems elsewhere.

Upon inspecting the exterior, no issues were found in other areas, and the overall condition still appears quite new. Despite being a transport-damaged vehicle, it has only 7 kilometers on it, making it essentially like a brand-new car. The protective seat covers are still on the interior, which is also very clean without any signs of damage. It seems the transport damage did not affect the interior.

Upon inspecting the front end of the vehicle, it can be observed that the screws on the front bumper show no signs of removal, the hood screws remain untouched, and the paint surface is in good condition. Additionally, the screws on the radiator support frame and the anti-collision beam are intact without any issues.

After a full round of paint inspection, the entire car retains its original factory paint, including the bumpers, with no damage or scratches on the surface. It appears that only the front windshield and A-pillar are damaged, while the rest of the car remains in like-new condition, with no issues found. This aligns with what the seller has stated.

Although it s a new car, according to our thorough inspection process, the engine still needs to be checked. This vehicle is an extended-range model, equipped with a 1.5T range extender engine—many also call it a range extender—along with two electric motors. It delivers a maximum power of 3565 kW and a peak torque of 675 N·m, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.9 seconds. Keep in mind, this is a full-size SUV weighing 2.6 tons. To achieve this kind of performance in a gasoline-powered car, you d likely need an 8-cylinder engine or above!

The valve cover of this range-extender engine shows no signs of being removed or repaired. Both the intake and exhaust manifolds, as well as the engine mount bolts, are in proper condition. In short, none of the visible components in the engine bay have had their screws touched—everything remains in its original factory state. The battery charge level is also normal, consistent with the condition of a new vehicle.

As for the interior, the shattered front windshield fell and covered the dashboard, so some areas are not visible. However, the dashboard is definitely scratched, though it s not a major issue. These damages can be repaired well and restored to a condition where they are unnoticeable.

All the electrical functions inside, including the HUD, are fully operational without any issues.

Next is checking for water damage. The OBD port is intact, and after removing the sill trim panel, the carpet appears very white without any signs of water-induced yellowing. Additionally, the wiring harness connectors are clean, ruling out any suspicion of water damage to the interior.

After raising the chassis and removing the protective panel, it can be seen that this range-extender engine and the single-speed transmission of the electric vehicle show no signs of oil leakage or seepage, and not a single screw has been touched. Why am I describing this in such detail? Because I’m afraid someone might ask: Where does the engine in a new energy vehicle come from? Where does the transmission come from? Some people genuinely don’t think the range extender is an engine! And others are unaware that electric cars also have a single-speed transmission!

Finally, inspect all the chassis suspension components of the entire vehicle, and you can see that everything is in good condition, with no signs of scraping or bottoming out on the chassis.

After this round of inspection, it s confirmed that the issues with this damaged transport vehicle are a shattered front windshield and a deformed A-pillar. What do you all think would be a fair price for this car now? Later, I asked the customer, the older brother, how much the car cost, but he didn t give specifics. He only mentioned it was several tens of thousands cheaper than the price of a new car, which still seems like a good deal.