Hello,

Not sure if this is appropriate for this forum, but does anyone has a current carfax account to run a VIN for me.

Thanks

 

If you're looking for a car, I suggest you get a Carfax account. It may be the best $$ you spend during any car search! Then again, not everything makes it way to all Carfax reports so it may be a big waste of time. Who knows???

 

I agree, spend the money for a Carfax report. That said, be aware that a Carfax report only pulls data from DMVs and major dealers/service departments. Work done by independently owned garages may not show up in the service record. Also, Carfax reports may give you peace of mind in terms of vehicle accidents and damage caused by natural disasters but they don't always reflect the actual condition of the vehicle.

 

Further, and this is sort of an aside more for sellers than buyers, Carfax can be used against you in trade-in situations just as a private seller might use it negotiate pricing. I had a non-at-fault front end issue with our MINI that required extremely mild repair (plastic crack at the bumper cover and below, repaint) but was done through insurance. My local dealer claimed they had to lowball trade-in because the car had a 'bad carfax report'. Of course, it's not bad at all. But be mindful that when anyone points at a carfax and claims that it proves the car has lower value, you have to get to the meat of what the repair really WAS. I was astounded.

Didn't help that the driver was on drugs, pushed my very pregnant wife, threw her cellphone into the street while she was trying to take photos of the woman's license plate, and then fled. Out of country driver, so be additionally wary: car rental places claim not to be liable for what the drivers do, and if the driver can't be reached across the border (in our case, Canada) or is otherwise MIA, so is your recompense!