use carfax? necessary?

[skate1968]

My trusted mechanic called me back referring me to a seller with a great deal. My mechanic and i have had a great relationship for years and i SWEAR by him. Have sent other business his way.

Would i need mess with carfax? I feel that my mechanic's word is better than anything. Tempted not to bother with carfax. Don't want to waste time while someone else jumps in and snatches this up.

thanks again for all the help
This is, by the way, the "grandmom driven" dream civic that us phanatics dream of. Not yet on craigslist.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Check your local price, if it is a good price then go ahead snatch it before someone else has a change to look at the car.

 

[jmsjags]

grandmom driven would scare me. lots of short trips.

 

[Ndx]

Hi,

Carfax is cheap you can find deals online for 5$ it takes 5 minutes once you have VIN.
Why not do it ?

B.R.
Ndx

 

[Rock_Hudstone]

Cheap insurance in my opinion.
If it comes up clean great, if not, you can walk away or use it in negotiations.

 

[Rock_Hudstone]

Originally Posted By: jmsjags
grandmom driven would scare me. lots of short trips.

Short trips aside, senior owned used cars are the best kind, they've usually had an easy life, often garage kept and well maintained.

Civics, on the other hand, are typically driven by young leadfoots and get thrashed.

 

[demarpaint]

When I was selling cars I saw more mistakes with Carfax than I care to count. In fact I had an 85 E-150 van that was totaled. I bought it back from the insurance company and repaired it. Three years later I sold it, and the person who bought it ran a Carfax on it, clean title, no accidents. In fact Carfax made it easier for me to sell it. If you trust your mechanic, and you can check for body damage save the money on the Carfax. JMO

I agree with ^^ Rock Hudstone about the granny cars^^. I'll take a granny driven car any day! Most are in the wrapper.!

 

[dwcopple]

or rusty as heck under the doors because all they do is the drive-thru wash once a month. we shall see.

 

[skate1968]

Hi Rock,

thanks for responding

Originally Posted By: jmsjags
grandmom driven would scare me. lots of short trips.


Originally Posted By: Rock_Hudstone
Short trips aside, senior owned used cars are the best kind, they've usually had an easy life, often garage kept and well maintained.


and very low miles! which is the case here.

Originally Posted By: Rock_Hudstone
Civics, on the other hand, are typically driven by young leadfoots and get thrashed.


The Leadfoots install turbos and other modifcations that aren't properly wired or tuned. And maybe not even matched with each other correctly.

And then after loads of problems they get frustrated and sell them on craigslist.

I'm not leadfoot trying to do the quarter mile "in the low teens." But i do read of their woes on the honda tech forums.

 

[skate1968]

and thanks to jmsjags and everyone else also. i appreciate the dialog.

 

[skate1968]

Grannie Cars?

Hi guys,

Originally Posted By: dwcopple
or rusty as heck under the doors because all they do is the drive-thru wash once a month. we shall see.


Sorry, but actually we won't see. I used the term "granny car" as it is a low mileage family owned civic, in north philly, that wasn't beat to death with engine mods, etc.

so i was exagerating.

thanks again for all the feedback

 

[Rock_Hudstone]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
When I was selling cars I saw more mistakes with Carfax than I care to count. .!

Right, Carfax is not 100%, it only shows what has been reported and there are many ways for things to fall through the cracks.

Still, its good have as it can show number and type of owners, date originally manufactured, sold, resold, sometimes service history, etc.. but don't take it as the final word.

 

[01rangerxl]

I think getting a Carfax is definitely worth the cost just to know part of the vehicle's story. It goes over major events, shows what states the vehicle has been in, and can indicate recurring problems like repeated emissions/safety inspection failures. They definitely won't show everything on every vehicle though. I "totaled" my truck about a year and a half ago, as in the amount of damage was roughly equal to its tax value at the time. The front clip, passenger side of the cab, and the passenger side of the bed were basically destroyed. The truck has since been partially repaired and has been driven daily since the wreck. Once I yanked the bumper off the wheel, it was back on the road. While it was reported, no claim was filed for the landscaping the truck trimmed/removed or the concrete drain thing it knocked over. No claim was filed on the truck either, because I was a cheap idiot and only had liability insurance on a nice truck because it was paid for. It may show up that the truck was in an accident, but with no claims on the truck it technically still has a 100% clean two owner title, never salvaged. It passed a state inspection easily a few months ago too. So basically the stuff they show in the Carfax commercials can happen and still not show up!

 

[skate1968]

Hi Folks,

Thanks to everyone for the feedback.

FYI, i should have mentioned that the COST of the report wasn't so much the issue. Rather it was the time that the extra step might take. Don't want to be over anxious but not wanting to waste a second, either.

As it stands now i WILL most likely do this as i can do it on my mechanic's computer WHILE he inspects the car.

Subject: Do you tip your mechanic? part 2

If this deal turns out to be anything close to what it sounds like i'm going to name my first born child after my mechanic!

Because in referring me to this seller he might be totally saving my butt, for the third time.

 

[Hokiefyd]

I always get a Carfax...not so much for the assurance that nothing has ever happened to the car, but as general context when I go and look at it. When I was shopping for CR-Vs last year, one Honda dealer had an '07 CR-V with high miles. The Carfax indicated that it spent most of its time in New York (state). Sure enough, there were the tell-tale signs of heavy salt use under the hood (white-washed hood blanket, rust on hose clamps, etc). I passed.

The Carfax for the CR-V that I went on to buy indicated that it was originally sold at the dealer where I bought it from, that it was always serviced at the same dealer, etc. It was a local car, originally sold, serviced, and now sold again at the same dealer. That meant a lot to me, and was a big reason why I bought it.

So I do get a Carfax before I ever look at a vehicle.

 

[Trav]

I dont know how much i would trust Carfax.
I did a Carfax from a dealer friend on my Expedition when i sold it and it had all sorts of repairs that were false.
I could prove them false as i had every reciept from day 1.

Transmission replaced- No
4 COP-No
CD changer replacement-No
Electric seat heaters replaced-No
2 Cyl heads for oil weepage-No

All this was supposidly done under warranty and the truck had not been near a dealership for anything more than an oil change.
Almost 4 years in it did develop a oil weep at the rear of the pass side head and was denied warranty because the warranty was finished, according to this carfax the heads were done just 8 months before that request.
The Carfax report was false and made this truck look like a problematic vehicle but they only use available records so junk in junk out.

 

[stephen9666]

Carfax can be useful, but just because a Carfax doesn't show any accidents, that doesn't mean there really were no accidents.

A lot of accidents happen aren't reported, so don't show up on Carfax.

My Sonata appears to have been in a minor accident. The hood has been repainted and is poorly aligned. But the Carfax shows no accidents.

 

[skate1968]

thanks all for responding

Is is like the "GIGO" situation?

GIGO stands for "Garbage In, Garbage Out."

Meaning that any kind of report will be faulty if it relies on bad info or missing info.

It is not the fault of the report's author. As the author is merely compining information recieved. He's not auditing, investigating, confirming and/or verifying info recieved.

(i'm an an accountant, btw)

 

[SLCraig]

Originally Posted By: stephen9666
Carfax can be useful, but just because a Carfax doesn't show any accidents, that doesn't mean there really were no accidents.

A lot of accidents happen aren't reported, so don't show up on Carfax.

My Sonata appears to have been in a minor accident. The hood has been repainted and is poorly aligned. But the Carfax shows no accidents.



I don't think it will if it hasn't been claimed.
If it is a cash fix then it more than likely does not show it. I could be wrong I don't know. I have bought several used cars and I do not even use these things like Carfax. If the car runs and drives well and has no problems or whatever, I will buy it on that alone. Have never had an issue going that route.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: SLCraig
Originally Posted By: stephen9666
Carfax can be useful, but just because a Carfax doesn't show any accidents, that doesn't mean there really were no accidents.

A lot of accidents happen aren't reported, so don't show up on Carfax.

My Sonata appears to have been in a minor accident. The hood has been repainted and is poorly aligned. But the Carfax shows no accidents.



I don't think it will if it hasn't been claimed.
If it is a cash fix then it more than likely does not show it. I could be wrong I don't know. I have bought several used cars and I do not even use these things like Carfax. If the car runs and drives well and has no problems or whatever, I will buy it on that alone. Have never had an issue going that route.


As I mentioned above, my 85 E150 was totaled, and I was paid by an insurance company for it. There was a police report too, the van was legally parked and hit by a drunk driver who decided to try and run away. It didn't work out well for her though.

I sold it years later and it showed no accidents on the Carfax report. The buyer of my van did a Carfax report on it, and never asked about accidents. As it turned out the report showed no accidents. If you're counting on a Carfax report to show accidents, don't. Yes many accidents are also taken care of outside of Insurance w/o police reports. If body damage is a concern it's best to either learn how to look for body repair or have the vehicle checked by a pro for damage. JMO