Luscombe8A

I am looking at a used LS460 and the Carfax report indicates in the summary, "No Accidents". However in the body of the carfax it states "damage to the left side".
What does that mean, other than the obvious? Any way to quantify the extent.

I am not able to get to the car to inspect, several states away.
Perhaps an accident not reported to either civil authorities or insurance company?
Is there anyway I can obtain more details remotely.

I am not afraid of some cosmetic repairs.
I know my RC350 Carfax will show some kind of accident or damage. Two winters ago while turning around at my daughters in the sub-zero temperatures one night I ever so gently bumped the snow bank. That gentle kiss cracked the plastic bumper and the result was about a $1,300 replacement bumper skin.

Just curious as to what the above may mean and if there is anyway I can confirm.

If I go through with the purchase, I will have the LemonSquad check it out before I commit.

Thanks,

Gary

Dx3

iTrader: (13)

Mbbarron

luscombe8a I am currently also looking at possibly purchasing a car with a "clean" carfax and autocheck - no accidents reported. However, the Carfax does say "damage to front". When I pulled the Lexus service history (I highly recommend this), I got lucky in that it stated "brought in by 'name of' auto body shop". So I called the auto body shop and they wouldn't give me info without the permission of the current owner. Luckily the dealer (non-Lexus) was flexible and not trying to hide anything so they gave permission and even got me copies of the work that was done on the car. Turns out, it had a rear bumper and parking sensor replaced as well as a front bumper repainted and both headlights replaced. No way to know for sure if it was in an accident. I questioned why both headlights but only paint damage on the left side, and they explained possibly hit snow bank and water got inside the headlights. So just like your car, it is possible to have minor damage repaired and not be able to verify whether it was in a collision or not. There are other explanations other than a collision for "damage to rear".

I actually found this out after I had already done a multi-point inspection with the Lexus dealer who said they thought the car looked perfect mechanically but wouldn't comment on the current paint scratches on the car. For what it's worth, I am in the same situation as an out of state purchaser. I went with a Lexus inspection over Lemonsquad because I wanted them to do a road test and to put the car on a lift. These are things that Lemonsquad won't do. That being said, the inspection report itself was quite lacking in detail as to what Lemonsquad offers. But my road test did turn up a vibration over 60mph which is currently being dealt with by the seller before I will consider buying the car.

Good luck!

Luscombe8A

Thanks for the follow up. BTW, what did the Lexus dealer charge you for the PPI?
Did you have to specifically ask them to do the road test? Were they trying to sell the vehicle knowing it had a vibration?
I agree that it would be good to have it up on a hoist to look at but all I may get are some photos, which would be better than nothing.

Yeah, LemonSquad will do an inspection and it is a second set of eyes, but I would like to trust the dealer too. If I get there and there are some conditions needing to be corrected, it will be extra days in hotel and away from work.

The 460 I am looking at is 1450 miles away. I don't mind going to pick it up but want to make sure there are no gremlins. It does have a 90 day warranty.

I plan on closing the deal tomorrow with contingencies if they will accept that. Since I am risking a flight I am hopeful they will be reasonable.

Appreciate your insights and I hope they find the cause and correct the vibration for you.

Mbbarron

I was quoted $145 for the Lexus dealer multi point inspection. I did specifically ask them to do a road test so I don't know if they would have automatically have done it had I not asked. Another Lexus dealer I spoke with said they wouldn't do it for liability reasons. I think it depends on the dealer. I don't think the seller was aware that the car had a vibration or they weren't disclosing it if they were. The Lexus dealer said you only felt it at higher speeds and likely just needs a road force balance but that is currently being addressed by the seller. I asked the Lexus dealer if they would do another road test after the vibration was resolved by the seller to confirm that it's gone and they agreed without hesitation. This particular Lexus dealer has been excellent to deal with and I'm just lucky they were the closest at only 10 min away from the seller. I also considered flying up the drive the car back but only after the vibration was fixed and I've negotiated on price. I personally don't think that someone else is going to swoop in and buy the car before me after all my communication with the seller but you never know. They are a seller that specializes in internet sales so no showroom for many customers that would be seeing it on the lot. Hoping to wrap up my deal in the next few days. Only reason that I'm not ready to book a flight and drive the car home is that my schedule is really crazy in the next two weeks and 1) I don't have the time 2) the weather has been awful around the Boston area and I don't really want to chance having to deal with a snowstorm. They quoted me $400 to transport it so that's what I think I'm going to do. But I would have to have some assurances from the seller that if I'm truly unhappy after driving the car myself, then I have a certain window of time to return it or have them warranty it. They said so verbally but I'll need it in writing. It's tougher when the car is far away from you but not impossible to go through the right steps to have a 3rd party inspect it. Just takes more time and diligence over the phone arranging for these things. Good luck to you! Post a link to the car you're looking at and you'll get some great feedback here on what to look out for/ask about.

xfea

Just a FYI.
I recently sold one of my cars.
In the last three years it had two insuracne claims.

The first I rear-ended someone at a stop light - reasonably heavy damage.
At fault accident with a ding on my drivers license.
Went to the Insurance recommended body shop.

The second was a comprehensive claim.
My car was one of maybe 6-7 that got keyed in a parking lot.
I closed out the claim - took the check and had the repair done at a place of my choosing.

My CarFax was clean.
Zero accidents / damage.

??? Dunno

Kennyr44

My 4 Runner I traded in a year ago was in 2 Accidents. One front end hit for $4600 and a hit from behind for $2500, which they pulled the frame out a little to fix along with a new bumper. Clean Carfax and the Jeep dealer gave me high trade value for it.

PwrdbyM

A carfax should never be viewed as an absolute, only a filter to assess history. An "accident" would in most cases be reported by a police department or insurance company. If any of these were bypassed by the owner in this case then it wouldn't show on the report. You're likley looking at an entry by a repair shop. Reporting to a VIN database is strictly voluntary so not all do it. The only way to ensure a vehicle hasn't had any damage is to have each panel inspected for replacement and paint work. If you don't have the knowledge to do it yourself enlist someone in the know.