What the... (discovered my had SC odo tampering)
#16
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (19)
When I ran the Carfax on my own single-owner car, about a third of the info was incorrect. If you don't have that firsthand knowledge of a car's entire history, how do you know what information to trust and what to disregard in the report? Incorrect information is worse than no information, IMO.
And FWIW, Carfax's mileage numbers were way off on my report, so I wouldn't put much stock in them on the OP's. It's a borderline scam of a service, as far as I'm concerned. If it was free, I would use it with a huge grain of salt. As soon as they start charging for something that inaccurate, forget about it.
And FWIW, Carfax's mileage numbers were way off on my report, so I wouldn't put much stock in them on the OP's. It's a borderline scam of a service, as far as I'm concerned. If it was free, I would use it with a huge grain of salt. As soon as they start charging for something that inaccurate, forget about it.
#17
Lead Lap
iTrader: (8)
What I'm saying, t2d2, is that dealers will look at the carfax and will come up with a number on the vehicle based on that carfax, regardless if you believe the information on it is true or not. Think a car that has never been touched by a bodyshop would say "accident reported" on the carfax? Methinks not.
As for the mileage, I imagine Carfax is filling in whatever levels are reported, but most mileage figures I've seen are merely estimates as time goes by, based on expected driving volume. It's not hard to see how they could have a vastly inflated number after several years of no actual mileage reporting, resulting in what looks like a rolled back odometer when a real number shows up.
The only way the report would have helped the OP is in negotiating a lower purchase price. But if I'm the seller and I know what I've got, I'm saying to hell with Carfax's inaccuracies and it wouldn't matter, anyway. If I'm in the OP's shoes, I sell to a private party and reiterate my distrust of Carfax's report.
#18
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (19)
The only way the report would have helped the OP is in negotiating a lower purchase price. But if I'm the seller and I know what I've got, I'm saying to hell with Carfax's inaccuracies and it wouldn't matter, anyway. If I'm in the OP's shoes, I sell to a private party and reiterate my distrust of Carfax's report.
#22
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (19)
To which I would say, best of luck to you and your hypothetical private sale. To reiterate the statement you steered clear from, this mentality would not work with a more costly vehicle with a countless number of examples for sale without some sort of price reduction. Why, as a buyer, would you take such a risk without some sort of incentive?
#23
Lead Lap
iTrader: (8)
To which I would say, best of luck to you and your hypothetical private sale. To reiterate the statement you steered clear from, this mentality would not work with a more costly vehicle with a countless number of examples for sale without some sort of price reduction. Why, as a buyer, would you take such a risk without some sort of incentive?
Look, the OP's car says one thing mileage-wise. Carfax says another, but there are A LOT of examples out there of its inaccuracies, not just my experience. A very strong case can be made for the report to be the erroneous half of the equation, assuming the condition of the car supports the odometer mileage. Why reduce the price if you believe the report to be wrong? If you can't convince the buyer of the sketchy accuracy of Carfax reports, then you're doing a poor job of communicating (which could be said of me in this thread, apparently!) and won't be happy with the outcome of the transaction, anyway.
This is all assuming you have reason to believe the report is wrong, of course. The OP has no real way of knowing... One thing you could look at is how linear the reported mileage marks are. If there's little variance, they may well be estimates. On my previously discussed car, it probably went 15 years without a real mileage number ever being reported.
#24
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (19)
Look, the OP's car says one thing mileage-wise. Carfax says another, but there are A LOT of examples out there of its inaccuracies, not just my experience. A very strong case can be made for the report to be the erroneous half of the equation, assuming the condition of the car supports the odometer mileage. Why reduce the price if you believe the report to be wrong? If you can't convince the buyer of the sketchy accuracy of Carfax reports, then you're doing a poor job of communicating (which could be said of me in this thread, apparently!) and won't be happy with the outcome of the transaction, anyway.
This is all assuming you have reason to believe the report is wrong, of course. The OP has no real way of knowing... One thing you could look at is how linear the reported mileage marks are. If there's little variance, they may well be estimates. On my previously discussed car, it probably went 15 years without a real mileage number ever being reported.
#25
Lead Lap
iTrader: (8)
I replied directly from the email link and didn't see your add-on until responding to the part you wrote initially. "Long before," right... Maybe a minute or two. I consider your response to that a weak attempt to paint me as dodging stuff, when in fact you tried to sneak in a fairly irrelevant curve ball, which tells me you're more interested in arguing than addressing what I've said. I think we're pretty much done here.
Because I don't give a damn what they believe? If I know I'm right and Carfax is wrong, let them walk down the street and buy someone else's car. If they're interested in proving me wrong, let them do their research, tracking down the body shop who did the non-existent work for an accident that never happened. Betcha they find the paperwork matches a different car.
Again, why would an individual give you two minutes of their time to let you explain how you "believe" a vehicle, for example, hadn't been in an accident, contrary to the CarFax's findings, when they can simply go down the street and purchase a vehicle that has absolutely no red flags? It's all subjective.
#26
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (19)
I replied directly from the email link and didn't see your add-on until responding to the part you wrote initially. "Long before," right... Maybe a minute or two. I consider your response to that a weak attempt to paint me as dodging stuff, when in fact you tried to sneak in a fairly irrelevant curve ball, which tells me you're more interested in arguing than addressing what I've said. I think we're pretty much done here..
Because I don't give a damn what they believe? If I know I'm right and Carfax is wrong, let them walk down the street and buy someone else's car. If they're interested in proving me wrong, let them do their research, tracking down the body shop who did the non-existent work for an accident that never happened. Betcha they find the paperwork matches a different car.
#28
Lead Lap
iTrader: (8)
Now, how exactly is that information any better than going in blindly? Mis-reporting is worse than no reporting.
#30
Pit Crew
iTrader: (4)
Did you read the rest of what I wrote? I ran the Carfax report on two of my cars. One reported an accident that never happened, the other was a theft recovery insurance write-off and Carfax didn't reflect it.
Now, how exactly is that information any better than going in blindly? Mis-reporting is worse than no reporting.
Now, how exactly is that information any better than going in blindly? Mis-reporting is worse than no reporting.