The standard set: commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, export customs declaration, certificate of origin, and a copy of the vehicle title/registration. How to verify: the bill of lading number should be trackable on the shipping line's website; the certificate of origin is verifiable through CCPIT's online system; and the VIN must match across all documents, the inspection report, and the car itself. Ask for scans of everything before paying the balance, and have a freight forwarder review the set. Mismatched VINs, missing title copies, or vague promises that "documents will follow" are red flags worth pausing the deal over.

Interior wear is harder to fake than an odometer and often reveals true usage better than any document. Focus on high-contact points the seller rarely restores. The driver's seat bolster shows creasing and cracking by 80,000-100,000 km even with covers. Steering wheel leather polishes smooth and darkens with hand oils; a shiny wheel with low claimed mileage is a red flag. Pedal rubbers wear through at similar rates — check accelerator, brake, and clutch depth. Second-row wear patterns tell you how the car was used: heavy child-seat indentations suggest family use (usually gentler), while uniform rear wear with clean front suggests commercial or ride-hailing duty. Check seat rails for rust (indicates water ingress) and look under floor mats for moisture staining or musty smell — flood cars often hide it there. Also examine the infotainment and instrument cluster: Chinese EVs log usage data internally, and a dealer diagnostic readout can cross-check driving hours against mileage. Request close-up, well-lit photos of these specific points during your live video inspection rather than relying on the seller's gallery.

The lifespan of rubber sealing strips for frameless doors is usually only 4-5 years. We carefully press the sealing strip at the edge of the roof to check for loss of elasticity and use a high-pressure water gun to wash the seams of the windows to check for direct water leakage due to aging.