Carfax accuracy???

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Can't you just bring the VIN to any Chevy/GMC dealer and ask 'em to run the vehicle?

I know they can supply something close to a "build sheet" which lists everything in the car.

A local Chevy dealer has done this for me 3 times.

I believe the specs (50 State car etc.) are apparent in the emissions control section of the VIN.

Also, are there any differences now-a-days? By that I mean, "Aren't they all 50 State cars now?"
 
Everything in Canada is CARB compliant since the mid to late 1990's. We have strict emission laws up here for vehicles. With BC & Ontario being the strictest. Because the vehicle was registered here in Ontario and it's newer than the 1990's it would have to be in full compliance of CARB emission standards. We aren't governed by CARB but our emission regulations are the same in Ontario as they are in California with regards to vehicle emissions.
 
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I don't trust car-fax one little tiny bit. A "bad" car-fax report is likely accurate, but lack of bad news on the report doesn't necessarily mean anything. Just because it didn't get reported, doesn't mean it didn't happen. The best example I can think of is the BMW M5 I was involved with a repair on...guy got into the cable barriers on I-70 and rounded-off all 4 corners of the car, to the tune of $15k. He didn't want his insurance to go up so he paid out of pocket...car-fax would never find out about that. Or the Cadillac Eldorado that had sentimental value because it was inherited from the customer's late father...this thing got walloped, but since he paid out of pocket, there was no car-fax report on it. Some shops report, some don't. I assume all insurance companies sell claims information to car-fax?!?
 
Thanks all. I asked a contact at GMC dealer to run it for me.
My concern is even if it is CARB compliant, would any parts or programing be different since it is "Canadian?"
Excuse my ignorance.
 
No because of all the trade back/forth we are all on the same page as you. We produce a lot of vehicles for the US in Ontario.
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Originally Posted By: StevieC
Everything in Canada is CARB compliant since the mid to late 1990's. .......... would have to be in full compliance of CARB emission standards. We aren't governed by CARB but our emission regulations are the same in Ontario as they are in California with regards to vehicle emissions.


Wow, I had no idea. I would've never guessed that.
 
I think Carfax is starting to be more accurate but I had a 2009 Mitsubishi Outlander that sustained $18,000 of damage after a collision where a vehicle lost control on ice striking the left front corner. We went through the other insurance carrier and when that vehicle was replaced in 2013, the Carfax and AutoCheck report both showed no accidents. The repair on the vehicle was great and it drove exactly the same, something that major should have shown up. I also had a friend that had a new Lexus in 2005 that sustained $23,000 in damage which insurance paid for and when it was replaced 4 or 5 years later.....the Carfax was clean. Recently I had someone barely tap my rear bumper causing about $400 in damage which DOES show up on Carfax as "accident reported, minor rear impact, vehicle drivable". I think as time goes on, Carfax accuracy is increasing.
 
I usually use carfax as a starting point when looking at a vehicle, then go from there. Never assume carfax lists everything. I've looked at many vehicles that according to carfax were "one-owner, no accident" that had fenders and bumpers that obviously had been replaced.
 
The speedo in my 2008 Impala has the km/h heading centred at the top of the dial and everything is green. When I switch the readout to "English," the mph heading is off to the left and is orange, though the colour of everything else remains green.

I've taken note of the same dash in U.S. cars on YouTube, where mph is centred at the top in green, so I assume that on those cars, the km/h heading would be off to the left in orange.

If GM did anything similar with the Sierra, it would reveal the truck's default instrumentation, which might pose a problem at resale in the U.S., much as the truck's history is raising questions now.
Maybe you could use that to your advantage and get a few bucks knocked off the price.
 
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Regarding 50 state vehicles, my GTI and my wife's A4 are not 50 state cars. They have a different engine code for federal and another once for the stats that follow California emmsions like New York....... . There is a difference between the two. Mine feels faster.
 
$36K! Pay a little less and get a new one:

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=451947058&zip=43065&referrer=%2Fcars-for-sale%2Fsearchresults.xhtml%3Fzip%3D43065%26keywordPhrases%3Dleather%26startYear%3D2017%26incremental%3Dall%26endYear%3D2017%26modelCodeList%3D15SIPU4WD%26makeCodeList%3DGMC%26driveGroup%3DAWD4WD%26listingFeatures%3DonlyPrice%26listingTypes%3Dnew%26sortBy%3DderivedpriceASC%26engineCodes%3D8CLDR%26firstRecord%3D0%26searchRadius%3D0&listingTypes=new&startYear=2017&numRecords=25&firstRecord=0&endYear=2017&modelCodeList=15SIPU4WD&makeCodeList=GMC&searchRadius=0&makeCode1=GMC&modelCode1=15SIPU4WD



And the VIN starts with a 3 meaning its made in Mexico. Some of those GMC trucks are made in the USA, some aren't.
 
carfax is regularly wrong. and no real way to fix the issues.
like my truck, carfake says it's been in 3 accidents. it's never been in one. i've had it from showroom.. I've talked to them and they have no solution for me.
 
My aunt traded in her 2nd hand Honda Pilot (2nd owner) and Carfax initially listed it as a two owner vehicle but then a couple days later Carfax and the dealer said it was a one owner vehicle. I saved them as PDFs.
 
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Anybody have a CARFAX account? I got rear ended in April, was clean beforehand. I'll leave my VIN below.

5NPE24AF0FH050449
 
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