As a benchmark I picked up my clean 2011 ISF no accidents and 64k for $33k. Deals exist and I bet you could definitely pick up that damaged car in the $20s.

 

Corrected for truth.

Never forget, BMW was sued for selling new cars with body repairs from shipping damage - some requiring complete panel replacement. Buying any car is really a box of chocolates.

 

that's pretty underhanded from BMW. I wonder is that's corporate shenanigans or just dealership.

 

Good point, but I thought you were going to go the other way with it.

Ultimately Autocheck\Carfax are just data aggregation services. Carfax used to have it hidden away in their fine print that they estimate that they only catch ~30% of accidents.

Wrap your car around a telephone pole and have it towed to your brother's bodyshop? Won't show up in the history report.

Certain insurance companies flat out refuse to share information with Carfax\Autocheck. I've personally seen hundreds of cars with clean history reports that had structural damage.
There is no replacement for a qualified, independent, pre-purchase inspection

 

I actually saw that car and for the price and obvious carfax report I skipped it. Had it been around 30k (so I can drop 1-2k), I wouldve definitely considered it.

You can eliminate most of the obvious issues if you know what to look for. You shouldnt only rely on a carfax report to rate a car. You should actually check the cars condition on your own. Many obvious signs of damage,abuse,etc can all be checked in person and if confident I wouldnt hesitate on purchasing the car. Even better if you have a pro looking at everything.

 

Yah I went and looked at it. Had a Lexus dealership look it over as well. It looked good but like everyone said with its history the price was jus too high.