[ad_1]
Ok people. CARFAX… what is it and how do I use it? Well, CARFAX is a great recourse to use when shopping for a used car, truck, or SUV. There are a few things you must keep in mind, however. Where is the info coming from?
CARFAX pulls a wealth of information about all registered vehicles from various government and privately held agencies. People ask me all the time… why do they charge so much for their service? Well, this information costs. And honestly, in my opinion… if you are seriously looking to make a vehicle purchase… CARFAX is a very necessary tool. Period. What’s $40 when it could potentially save you thousands in costly repairs?
You need to keep a few things in mind when it comes to CARFAX:
1) CARFAX is not a used car Bible by any means. The information found in a CARFAX report is only information that has been reported to their recourse agencies. For instance… if a car was in an accident and the repair work was performed by an ASE certified shop then it will show on the CARFAX report 99% of the time. However, if the previous owner got their buddy who owns a body shop to perform the work under the table… then there’s a 99% chance that information will not show up. Keep that in mind.
2) Often times a dealer will be listed as an owner if that dealer has registered the vehicle with the DMV. The only thing you need to look out for at that point is large discrepancies in the miles on the vehicle. For instance… if the last reported odometer reading on the report reads: 25,000 miles and you are looking at a 30,000 mile odometer… it’s safe to assume somebody at that dealership has been taking it out on some joy rides.
3) Always read your report in its entirety. There are 10+ points in the top half of your report that are there for a reason. Never skip anything… even with 1Owner vehicles.
4) Always, always, always verify the vin number on the report matches the one found on the vehicle, letter for letter and number for number! This was an old trick dealers used when CARFAX first came out and I’m sure there are come out there still pulling this today.
Now that you understand these basic pointers… let’s look at a report.
Section 1:
Look for: No Accidents……………………………………………………..Good!
Previous Owners………………………………………………..1 is Excellent, 2 is Good, 3 is Ok…
You want to look for the 1Owner – 2Owner vehicles. Keep in mind the less owners the less chances of a Ferris Beuler moment with that vehicle.
Service Records…………………………………………………The more the better. A lack of service records does not mean the work wasn’t done… just means it wasn’t reported. However, it doesn’t hurt to know you can prove the work was done by a trained pro.
Detailed Records Available…………………………………….Not a big deal. These include registration dates, odometer readings, etc etc.
Last Reported Odometer Reading……………………………Remember, look for big discrepancies.
[ad_2]