How to Read a Korean Vehicle Inspection Report (성능·상태점검기록부): The Complete Guide

1. The master summary. This is the top-line verdict panel: whether an accident record exists, whether the car has had a "simple repair" (minor, cosmetic-level work, distinct from structural repair), whether it's been tuned/modified, whether there's an open manufacturer recall, the mileage-status flag, and whether it carries any "serious history" markers — the Korean categories for total-loss, theft, or flood damage. If any of these serious markers is present, it is disclosed here, not buried.

2. The exterior panel map. This is the diagram Rami was staring at — a car outline with individual body panels (doors, fenders, hood, trunk, roof, pillars) each marked with a status. Two codes matter most:

• Sheet-metal work / welding — the panel has had metalwork or been re-welded, short of full replacement.
• Exchange / replacement — the panel was swapped out entirely.

Panels flagged as structural carry extra weight, because structural panel work usually implies a more serious past impact than a cosmetic dent-and-repaint. An empty panel map does not automatically mean "zero damage ever" — it can also mean the panel section of the record wasn't populated. We pair this section with the separate, more reliable accident-count field so you're never reading a false "all clean" into a simply-empty diagram.

3. The mechanical self-diagnosis tree. A nested checklist covering the engine, transmission, and other major systems, each marked "good" or "not good" by whoever performed the inspection. This is the closest thing in the record to a mechanic's opinion, not just a paperwork history.

4. Repair-needed items. A shorter list flagging cosmetic or minor items (exterior finish, interior wear, wheels) that may need attention — informational, not usually deal-breaking on its own.

This is the part most guides skip, and it's the part that matters most. Some fields on some records — mileage-tamper status is a common one — are frequently left blank rather than marked "verified okay." A blank field is not the same as a passed check. We will never present a blank field as a green checkmark, and if a listing doesn't show a "mileage verified" badge, that's because the underlying record doesn't support making that claim — not because we're hiding something.

The honest way to use this record is layered: read the master summary for the headline flags, read the panel map alongside the accident-count field (not instead of it), read the mechanical tree for a working opinion of the car's mechanicals, and treat every blank field as "we don't know," never as reassurance.