Carfax??

[jcrules78]

Hey guys,
I'm starting a full scale search for a winter auto, considering the fact that my current daily driver is an 88 IROC and I don't want to perish this winter. I was really considering purchasing a Carfax month long subscription so that I could check some VINs, but I kind of feel it is foolish that I have to pay them 30 bucks so I can see the history of a car. I think that it is robbery, and it should be our right as a consumer to be able to know the background of a vehicle before you buy. My question here is if there is anyone on this board who has a subscription to Carfax that would be interested in helping me out a few times? If someone wouldn't mind running a few VINs for me, respond to this post, and I will pass my email along to you. Anyone's help would be much appreciated! Thanks!
JCRULZ

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

Actually, $30 is a bargain. From time to time I go shopping for a parts car. I've used the other service, forgot the name of it, cost $26 I think. Saved me some ownership issues with the 95 GC I bought last year.

 

[Drew99GT]

Well, the government sure as heck ain't gonna provide that service! And there is cost involved with running any business. You could likely track down the history of a vehicle but it would take you a month! oldmopar is spot on; $30 is a bargain.

 

[jcrules78]

Thanks guys for your input. It would be cool if the government did offer a program that allowed you to check VINs when purchasing used cars. That service would be a great help not only to the common consumer, but also to the private dealer. Man, I wish I could put that idea into fruition, I would be a common hero to motorists and auto salesman throughout the country!

 

[55Test]

Heh, my brother had an 86 Camaro he drove for part of one winter. Almost bald rear tires and very little to no rear brakes, for some reason the rear bumps stops pounded the rear brake lines flat so no fluid got through.

 

[jcrules78]

Wow dude, does you're brother enjoy flirting with disaster or what?!? What a brave soul to try and take a Camaro to the barren winter streets! I fear that if I were to attempt a harsh Maine winter in that tire spinning beast of an automobile that I would surely spend more time off the road than on it. And that's with fully functioning rear brakes, and decent rear tires, even though one of them could use a change soon. Stupid non-posi gears! Also, I want to garage the car because it is my new toy, and I want to take great care of it. It is a goal of mine to have this car last another 6-7 years so that I could own it as an antique! That means lots of time in the old garage bay!

 

[Bob Woods]

Just remember that Carfax is not always the complete history. It can only report whats reported to them. If a car has been wrecked but not reported to the DMV and/or the insurance company carfax will not know that and will report it as a clean title.

 

[The Critic]

Carfax is better than nothing, but it often lacks info about any accidents. Thus, imo, its borderline useless except for the obvious.

 

[Drew99GT]

The majority of wrecks get reported to insurance and the police department/DMV and will show up on Carfax. I've seen it many times with friends that have carfaxed a vehicle in question.

 

[jcrules78]

Yeah they are pretty good with accidents, but when it comes to ownership history and stuff, I think they may miss some things. Especially with the older cars. I had this 85 Buick Regal LTD (I loved this car) and when I did a carfax report on it, they had no info on the ownership/history of the car prior to 1990. So, I guess according to CarFax, modern civilization as we know it began Jan 1st, 1990.
That is another reason I am a bit tentative about buying a month subscription from them. That's why I was kind of hoping someone here might have an active month long membership that would be willing to help a brotha out!

 

[Papa Bear]

"Heh, my brother had an 86 Camaro he drove for part of one winter. Almost bald rear tires and very little to no rear brakes, for some reason the rear bumps stops pounded the rear brake lines flat so no fluid got through."

55 .. I guess you could say it had no rear shocks either.

P.B.

 

[jmacmaster]

"It would be cool if the government did offer a program that allowed you to check VINs when purchasing used cars. That service would be a great help not only to the common consumer, but also to the private dealer. Man, I wish I could put that idea into fruition, I would be a common hero to motorists and auto salesman throughout the country!"

And when is the last time that you heard of the federal government doing something right! They'd screw that program up just like they screw everything up. They'd probably hook up with the car sellers to screw you over. It amazes me that so many people constantly look to the government to do for them what they should take some initiative and spend the time and energy and do for themselves, especially since the government would not do right by them.

 

[TheTanSedan]

Carfax gives you ownership history. I found myself pulling info off of autotrader last December looking for a Jeep for my son. One prospect had spent 5 of last six years in Chicago.

Nope.

Another had 4-owners in five years.

Nope.

Another had been auctioned twice.

Nope

And yet another had sat on dealers lot for nearly a year, then, under new owner, gone to another dealer for problem fixing five times in 18-mos.

Nope

Another was a lease vehicle and rolled 35,000 in first year, and was sold twice in next 18-mos.

Nope.

CARFAX has value. Doesn't hurt, either, to go to a dealership to see if a service writer will pull the VIN to see what internal info they have.

The two (along with a good inspection) are good homework before making a trip.

Done this twice now in a little over a year. No surprises.

 

[jcrules78]

jmac, the whole idea behind the post above was how the general public could get CARFAX-like info for their autos "for free." It wouldn't necessarily be a fed thing, it could be done through local government, like at the City Hall. If I had "taken the initiative and spent some time and energy and done it for myself"; 1. I would be Mr. Carfax himself 2. I would be probably doing the same thing Carfax is doing, selling people their right to know the history of a vehicle, and therefore 3. I would be a multi-millionaire.

Tan, I like your method, seems very thorough and efficient. The dealership thing could prove very helpful if you are able to track down where the car initially was sold from. I can't believe all those **** Jeeps you happened to stumble upon! Carfax definitely saved you some major trouble! I always try to buy a car that has a decent inspection sticker, that's the number one common sense rule of purchasing a car. Unless you like to gamble. Or you are a certified mechanic with lots of tools.

 

[eljefino]

Texas, for one, has a free flooded vehicle search by vin on thier website. IDK if they're in cahoots with other flood-prone states to share data.

You could always google your vin on the off chance that some bozo put it in some database somehow.

 

[rjundi]

An alternate idea at least.

4 quality winter tires on your IROC will get your car around. I had a BMW 318i(RWD) over a very snowy winter with 4 studded Nokian snows and no issues in the white mountains of NH. I also skiied 50 days that year and never thought twice about driving to mountain in a snow storm through the backroads of Maine to Sunday River/Sugarloaf.

 

[eljefino]

For a winter car I'd get something for $1000 that just passed inspection and has good tires. Something on 14 inch 70-series will qualify for cheezy-but-nice store brand $50 snows from VIP. At the $1000 level I would actually aim for a rebuilt title to provide haggling room and get a nicer car for the money. You know that Maine now doesn't even print mileage on titles for cars over ten years old? What a rip-off... the fee is the same.

Condition of the individual car matters more than paperwork history I feel.

 

[TheTanSedan]

"I can't believe all those **** Jeeps you happened to stumble upon!"

Was doing a very broad, national search. The one's mentioned were within 300 miles. Lot's of XJ Jeeps out there.

 

[jcrules78]

Oh by the way, **** up there represents the word C-R-A-P. I didn't thing they would sensor that word. Sorry guys. I'm gonna try that VIN thing with my wife's Alero, to see if anything miraculously comes up. That would be sweet!

Rjundi, not to be rude or anything, but the low end torque difference between a 330 lbs/ft 5.7L Chevy small block and the BMW 3 series is probably huge! That Camaro easily fishtails at the slightest punch of the pedal! Only an absolute maniac would attempt to survive a harsh Maine winter in an IROC! I did drive a RWD 85 Buick Regal for a few winters though and I loved it. I felt like I had more control with the RWD then I did with my FWD winter cars. Granted, the thing only pushed 110 horses, maybe.

Hey eljefino, that is exactly my plan. It seems us Mainers think alike. I have exactly 1,000 dollars to buy a beast for the winter. It's imperative that it has a good inspection sticker for me to buy it. I actually am a bit more fussy too when it comes to titles, because I bought a car for a good deal that had a rebuilt title once, and it ended up having a lot of electrical issues. I also wasn't aware that cars older than 10 years don't have mileage printed on their titles now! This state is insane dude, they come up with the most foolish rules and regulations. By the way, did you happen to go to UMO to get an engineering degree, by any chance?

 

[Oldmoparguy1]

quote:

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Originally posted by jcrules78:
[QB]
Rjundi, not to be rude or anything, but the low end torque difference between a 330 lbs/ft 5.7L Chevy small block and the BMW 3 series is probably huge! That Camaro easily fishtails at the slightest punch of the pedal! Only an absolute maniac would attempt to survive a harsh Maine winter in an IROC! I did drive a RWD 85 Buick Regal for a few winters though and I loved it. I felt like I had more control with the RWD then I did with my FWD winter cars. Granted, the thing only pushed 110 horses, maybe.
[/B]

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jcrules78,

I'm going to have to disagree with you on that. I drove my 65 GTO, (4BBL, 4 speed, positraction), from Monroe MI, to Toledo, OH, 5 days a week 12 months a year, from 1966 to 1971. Never had a weather related problem. In late 1965 I put a new set of Sears radial tires on it. Now I know that goat had more power then any pony car or camero of the era. I know because I raced them and always beat them. I even embarrassed a couple of vettes of the era.