Well I found a good used 06 MCS with 44k miles. Seems pretty clean. The carfax only showed a minor collision back in may, report says minor cosmetic damage.

I put a deposit on the car and went to put insurance on it, that is when my insurance rep said there was an $11,500 claim pulled out on it for the accident, he doesnt have any further info on who was the insurer and the extent of damage. Now I am pretty weary as I don't know what to think. If it was accurate and that amount was paid out for repairs, why was it not totalled out.

The car dealer I put the deposit on does not want to refund me my deposit as they do not show records of this through their insurance company.

Thoughts?

 

Hmmmmmm, very interesting. Does the car dealer know who the previous owner is?

Your insurance agent needs to talk to theirs. I suspect the truth lies somewhere in the middle? But no way I'd buy a car that is 7 yrs old that had a major wreck.

 

Carfax is not reliable, in my experience. Some "dealers" are learning work-arounds.

My daughter bought a Mazda5 with a clean Carfax, but obvious respraying. Dealer told her it was "parking lot damage." Later inspection indicated major right-rear quarter damage had been repaired, with ongoing chassis alignment issues.

Proceed with caution.

 

I would believe the insurance agent, they are working for you, not trying to sell you a car. Plenty of MINI's out there, go find one that has no huge question marks.

 

Carfax is not reliable. If the damage is not reported to a system that Carfax monitors it will not show up. Go on eBay in the parts car section cars that should be a total loss have a clean Carfax because the owner did not file a claim or insurance co did not record it properly. there is a significant lag in reporting damage. A car can be totaled and rebuilt before car fax finds out about it. Use Carfax to eliminate cars that show damage but do not assume the car is not damaged utill it has been inspected by a pro.

 

My insurance company says they do not report to Carfax at all. Something about diminished value claims. But I still check Carfax when buying.

 

Well I got it up on a lift to take a better look at the reported "minor cosmetic damage to rear end passenger side" as the carfax reported.


I found the hatchback was new as I could see where they repainted the hinges where the torx bolts were removed, new rear springs, new muffler, new control arms, new shocks, new swaybar new rotors/calipers, new gas tank, new quarter panels etc etc etc.

What a sham, luckily the dealership gave me my deposit back.

 

Glad you cleared it up. Glad the dealership refunded your money. Glad your insurance company caught it.

...and VERY glad you posted this. As a warning.

 

I would never trust a carfax. They seem to advertise those things so much that I think they must give people a false sense of security. If I'm buying a used car I'm having someone I trust check it out.

I traded in my former MINI to a dealer and now they're selling it. Part of the ad mentions numerous times is that it's one owner carfax certified. And yes while I was its one and only owner I had a few accidents in that car. I wonder what the carfax has to say about that?

Good thing your insurance told you that info.

 

CarFax and similar services have their uses. When I purchased my current MINI I felt very comfortable with the purchase but it was a way to not only make sure that the car had no hidden repairs but also that the information I was receiving regarding the number and location of previous owners was accurate as well.