Vehicle inspection checklist

Last updated: October 28, 2026

A free multi-point inspection form for auto repair shops. 31 check items across under the hood, lights and wipers, under the vehicle and other checks, each rated green, yellow or red; a battery test; brake pad thickness and rotor condition for each wheel; tread depth, pressure, DOT date code and wear for each tire; and a recommendations section split into “now” and “soon”. One page, in PDF, Word or Excel.

Download the checklist

What’s on the checklist

• Under the hood (12): oil, coolant, brake fluid, power steering and transmission fluid, washer fluid, drive belts, hoses, engine and cabin air filters, battery terminals, leaks.
• Lights, glass and wipers (8): headlights, brake lights, signals and hazards, tail, plate and reverse lights, horn, wiper blades, windshield, warning lights on the dash.
• Under the vehicle (8): shocks and struts, tie rods and steering linkage, ball joints, CV boots, exhaust, brake lines, engine and transmission leaks, differential and transfer case fluid.
• Other (3): parking brake, alignment, road test notes.
• Battery test: rated and tested cold cranking amps, and a result.
• Brakes: pad or shoe thickness in millimetres and rotor or drum condition for each wheel.
• Tires: tread depth in 32nds, pressure found and pressure set, DOT date code and wear pattern for each tire and the spare.
• Recommendations with an estimate column, the technician’s signature, and a line to record when and how the results were reviewed with the customer.

Green, yellow, red

Green means checked and OK. Yellow means it needs attention soon: plan it for the next visit. Red means it needs attention now. Leave an item blank if you didn’t check it, so the form never says something was inspected when it wasn’t. Every yellow or red item should have a note and a line in the recommendations, with a price if you can give one.

Tires: what to record

• Tread depth. NHTSA says tires are not safe and should be replaced when the tread is worn to 2/32 of an inch. Built-in treadwear indicator bars show the same point. Record each tire in 32nds so the customer can see the trend between visits.
• Pressure. Set pressure to the vehicle maker’s figure on the tire and loading label (driver’s door edge or door jamb) or in the owner’s manual, not the maximum printed on the tire. The form has “found” and “set” columns for that reason.
• Age. The last four digits of the DOT tire identification number are the week and year it was made: 2122 is the 21st week of 2022. NHTSA notes that aging can’t be seen by looking, and that some manufacturers recommend replacing tires six to ten years old regardless of tread.

Brakes

Write pad and shoe thickness in millimetres for each wheel rather than a word like “worn”. Minimum thickness varies by vehicle, so rate against the manufacturer’s specification. Mark rotor or drum condition green, yellow or red.

The filled-in example

The example is a 2017 Honda Accord at 84,212 miles, the same fictional car as our invoice example. Front pads at 3 mm and dark brake fluid are yellow (the customer approved both that day); a cracked serpentine belt, rear tires at 2–3/32″ and inner wear calling for an alignment are red; the cabin filter, wipers and a plate bulb are listed for next time.

The Excel version

Type G, Y or R in the status column and the cell turns green, yellow or red, so you can fill it in on a shop tablet or laptop and print or email it. The status cells only accept G, Y or R. It prints on one letter-size page.

Paper or digital inspections?

Full shop systems include digital inspections with photos sent to the customer’s phone: Tekmetric from its $199 Start plan, Shopmonkey with two templates on its $239 Basic plan and unlimited from Clever (compared here). If you’re not ready for that, a paper form plus a phone photo of the problem does most of the job.

Where NextCarHub fits

NextCarHub doesn’t do digital inspections. It keeps the schedule and each vehicle’s history: you can attach a photo or PDF of the completed checklist, and photos of the worn parts, to the appointment (JPG, PNG, HEIC or PDF, up to 20 MB each), and book the yellow items as a follow-up appointment before the customer leaves. Next visit, the sheet is in the car’s history. Look around the demo without signing up; it’s $49 a month per shop with unlimited users after a 14-day trial with no card.

Sources

Read on October 28, 2026: NHTSA, Tire safety, Tekmetric pricing, Shopmonkey pricing. The example uses a fictional shop, customer and VIN.