Vehicle Photo and Video Inspection Guide for Overseas Dealers
The four condition clips every used-car order needs — cold start to VIN, panel and paint, cabin and cluster, underside and tyres — plus what a supplier should never send as evidence and how to compare media from two different sellers.
Condition media has one job on a used-car order: to let somebody in another country make the same decision they would make standing next to the car. Most photo sets fail at that job because they were shot to make the car look good rather than to make it knowable.
Below is the media specification we work to, expressed as four clips and one list of things we leave out. The example throughout is the Geely BOYUE in our current stock, listed at $12,200–$13,200 FOB.
Cold start through to the VIN plate, in one take
This is the clip that carries the most weight, and it has to be unbroken. It should begin before the engine starts, show the ignition, hold on the instrument cluster long enough to read the odometer and see the warning lights extinguish, and then pan to the VIN plate stamped in the body rather than to a sticker.
The continuity is the point. A set of separate photographs can be assembled from any number of cars; a single take ties the reading, the sound of the cold start and the identity of the vehicle together, and it is much harder to produce dishonestly.
Panel and paint, filmed so a repair becomes visible
Paint depth readings are more useful than opinions, and they have to be shown against the panel they belong to. Film a slow pass along each side of the car with the gauge visible in frame and the panel identifiable, then repeat it around the bonnet, the roof and the boot lid.
Where a reading is high, pause and show the panel properly in daylight at an oblique angle. The purpose is not to condemn the car; a repaired panel is normal on a used vehicle. The purpose is to make sure the buyer discovers it in the file rather than on the quay.
Interior, odometer and warning lights in one pass
Open the driver's door, show the seat and the door card, sit in, and film the cluster again with the engine running. Then move across the cabin without cutting: the rear seats, the boot floor, the spare wheel well where one exists, and any area the buyer specifically asked about.
Warning lights need their own moment. Hold on the cluster for several seconds after start-up so the buyer can see what stays lit, and if anything does stay lit, film it rather than describing it.
Underside, tyres and the places buyers forget to ask about
A phone on a stick under the car will show more than any description. Record the underside from the front bumper to the rear, with the sills and the subframe visible, and then film each tyre close enough to read the brand, the size and the tread depth across the width.
Include the glass, with chips shown against a light source, and the headlamps and tail lamps switched on. These are cheap items individually and expensive collectively, and they are the parts most often missing from a supplier's media pack.
Files we deliberately do not send
We do not send edited highlight reels, we do not send photographs taken in a showroom where the lighting hides paint, and we do not send clips that have been cut between the reading and the engine bay. A file that has been assembled to look impressive is worth less than a rougher file that cannot have been. Where a car has a disclosed defect, we film the defect itself rather than mentioning it in a caption.
Comparing two cars filmed by two different suppliers
| What you are comparing | Geely BOYUE | Chery Tiggo 7 |
|---|---|---|
| Cold start and cluster in one take | Yes — the standard clip for every unit | Yes — the standard clip for every unit |
| Paint depth pass with the gauge in frame | Yes | Yes |
| Tyres filmed to read brand and size | Yes | Yes |
| Underside from bumper to bumper | Yes | Yes |
| Edited highlight files | Not produced | Not produced |
When two suppliers send media that satisfies the same specification, the comparison finally becomes about the cars. When one sends a highlight reel and the other sends evidence, the difference in file quality tells you which sheet is more likely to survive contact with reality.
Files to request by name, so the answer is checkable
Name the clips rather than asking for "more photos". Ask for the cold-start take, the paint pass, the cabin pass and the underside. A supplier who can produce all four on request is working from a process; a supplier who sends whatever is already on a phone is improvising, and improvising is what produces the disputes.
Media request questions
How long should a condition video be?
Long enough to be continuous over each of the four clips. A single unbroken three-minute walkthrough is worth more than ten edited thirty-second files.
Can I ask for a specific panel to be re-filmed?
Yes, and you should when a reading looks unusual. Follow-up footage of one panel is quick to produce and closes the question.
Will you film a defect you already know about?
Yes. A disclosed defect that is visible in the file is a pricing conversation; the same defect discovered after arrival is a dispute.
Do you use professional photography?
For listing images, where the purpose is to show the car clearly. For condition evidence we deliberately keep the footage plain and continuous, because production quality is not the same as evidence quality.
If you are comparing two units, ask for the four clips by name and we will produce the set for the car you are considering.
Choose a unit to request media for · See how inspection evidence is assembled · Request the four condition clips