Anybody have a Carfax subscription?

[fastpakr]

I'm picking up a vehicle on Monday and would love to get a Carfax report for it just to see if anything wacky pops up. Probably not worth the $45 at this point (I'm convinced the car is worth the asking price), but if somebody has a subscription I'd love to see what it shows.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Unsuspecting car's Carfax entry of the future.

"Passed away under suspicious circumstances while under the care of "fastpakr"

 

[rubydist]

pm me the VIN and an email address and I should be able to get you the CarFax tomorrow.

 

[fastpakr]

pm me the VIN and an email address and I should be able to get you the CarFax tomorrow.

Fantastic, thank you!

 

[ekrampitzjr]

I bought my Ranger from a new-car dealer and a Carfax sub was thrown in the deal. I still get e-mails with maintenance reminders.

 

[fastpakr]

And @rubydist came through. Thank you!

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

Honestly, CarFax isn’t worth the paper it’s written on most of the time. I’ve lost count of how many totaled cars with structural damage still existing being passed off with a “clean” CarFax that I’ve seen. Better off giving the car a good look over. Sight down the sides of the car for irregularities, check for turned bolts on hood, fenders, door hinges, etc. Run your fingers along the edges of panels to feel for tape lines from bodywork, most shops don’t do a good job of hiding their work. Look for dirt of “fish eyes” in the paint, sanding scratches, bad orange peel and the like. If you find evidence of a repair, check the edges of the panel for signs of being replaced and if you can see an evidence of damage behind the panel. Take a good flash light to poke around.

 

[fastpakr]

Honestly, CarFax isn’t worth the paper it’s written on most of the time. I’ve lost count of how many totaled cars with structural damage still existing being passed off with a “clean” CarFax that I’ve seen. Better off giving the car a good look over. Sight down the sides of the car for irregularities, check for turned bolts on hood, fenders, door hinges, etc. Run your fingers along the edges of panels to feel for tape lines from bodywork, most shops don’t do a good job of hiding their work. Look for dirt of “fish eyes” in the paint, sanding scratches, bad orange peel and the like. If you find evidence of a repair, check the edges of the panel for signs of being replaced and if you can see an evidence of damage behind the panel. Take a good flash light to poke around.

For sure. All that sort of thing will happen. But there's always a chance something pops on there you wouldn't know about otherwise.

 

[rubydist]

CarFax only knows what has been reported to the various databases that it scrubs. I always tell clients - you can draw no conclusions from what is not on there, only from what is on it. I have seen examples where a major crash shows up 5+ years after the fact.