Carfax report

[Richouse]

My wife totaled her car a couple of weeks ago and I'm looking for her another car. I have found one from a private individual and if it checks out its the one I'm going to buy. I went to carfax.com and they want $40 for just 1 check. If I was looking at multiple cars I would go ahead and get the subscription but I just need one report. I was wondering if anyone has a subscription and would hook a brother up. I'm a cheap bastard... Or does anyone know of a good reliable free place to get a vehicle report?

Thanks...

 

[FJRBluesman]

My wife totaled her car a couple of weeks ago and I'm looking for her another car. I have found one from a private individual and if it checks out its the one I'm going to buy. I went to carfax.com and they want $40 for just 1 check. If I was looking at multiple cars I would go ahead and get the subscription but I just need one report. I was wondering if anyone has a subscription and would hook a brother up. I'm a cheap bastard... Or does anyone know of a good reliable free place to get a vehicle report?
Thanks...

Yes you are... and so am I. I did however do this because I got one month for about $30 and looked up a bunch of stuff. It did well for the car my son bought. It had a great deal of car transfer and repair info all legit.

That being said... At the time I also had two vehicles in my family that were in accidents a few years prior to me buying the one month Carfax subscription and the cars had repairs, so I though I'd check those for accuracy. Guess what, they showed up clean as a whistle. So, I guess I don't have a lot of faith in the check.

 

[Greg 03]

That $40 saved me from buying a car that had been completely flooded. I went to the lot the next day and when I pulled the carpet back found rust underneath. Needless to say I didn't buy there!

 

[FJRacer]

Personally, I wouldn't/don't trust Carfax reports. Take it to a bodyshop if you don't know what to look for.

 

[SoCalFJR1300]

Carfax only works if the incident is REPORTED.

That being said it's better than nothing.

 

[Auburn]

Carfax only works if the incident is REPORTED.
That being said it's better than nothing.

yep, garbage in garbage out

 

[HotRodZilla]

Many independent garages don't report to Carfax...Even if insurance paid out. It's mostly dealer info. But...its a good tool if its limitations are understood.

 

[garyahouse]

Great input Z. I didn't know that.

Gary

 

[wnyfjr]

My wife is the office manager of our local collision shop and she knows first hand that LOTS of stuff never gets reported to CarFax. As stated above, useful with limitations....

 

[johnww]

I have used my auto insurance agent to obtain Carfax or similiar reports. It's free!