It’s a legit search…. Open trunk and hood, unlock doors.. Fed police search interior, trunk, engine bay, and under car with mirror on a stick. Anything that looks like it could hide weapons or explosives like a guitar case or backpack gets opened. Some cops are more thorough than others, and shifts/posts change all the time so the guy who searched your car last Monday is not the guy next Monday, etc.
I walk through a metal detector and anything I’m carrying goes through the X-ray machine.
Parking on-site saves me about $700 a month, which is enough money to brave the mean 30-40 min drive north unarmed.