question - may have made a major boo boo... Was, now fishy cars

[Ed Kellock]

On the contrary, below is the history I ran this morning for a car on eBay.
This level of detail is not an exception in my experience.  Yes, there are a
few that have very little, but Carfax can only report what it knows.  I
think most of the 6-10 histories I've run in the last month had a reasonable
level of detail.  If the car never changed hands or was not repaired at a
type of facility that reports, then you're SOL.

  *Date:* *Mileage:* *Source:* *Comments:* Not Reported     NICB   Vehicle
manufactured
and shipped to original dealer      01/13/1993   11,750   Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Saint Louis, MO
Title #UH468786   Title issued or updated
Loan or lien reported      11/01/1993   20,004   Service Plan Co.
Saint Louis, MO   Service Contract Issued      12/30/1993     Illinois
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Edwardsville, IL
Title #N7160608   Title issued or updated
Loan or lien reported      07/14/1995   44,344   Service Plan Co.
Saint Louis, MO   Service contract claim
Electrical sys. serviced      08/28/1995   45,811   Service Plan Co.
Saint Louis, MO   Service contract claim
Fuel sys. serviced      06/30/1998   65,998   Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Saint Louis, MO
Title #UM017108   Title issued or updated
Loan or lien reported      09/24/2002     Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Saint Louis, MO
Title #PF368034   Title issued or updated
New owner reported
Exempt from odometer reporting      09/25/2002     Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Saint Louis, MO
Title #PF368034   Title or registration issued
Exempt from odometer reporting      09/15/2003     Missouri
Inspection Station   Failed emissions inspection      09/27/2003
Missouri
Inspection Station   Passed emissions inspection      10/10/2003
Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Saint Louis, MO
Title #PF368034   Title or registration issued
Exempt from odometer reporting      01/11/2005   139,613   Auto Auction   Sold
at auction
in Missouri
Listed as
a fleet vehicle      06/06/2005     Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Chesterfield, MO
Title #PF891328   Title issued or updated
New owner reported
Exempt from odometer reporting      06/07/2005     Missouri
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Chesterfield, MO
Title #PF891328   Title or registration issued
Exempt from odometer reporting


On 9/1/06, Huw Powell <audi at humanspeakers.com> wrote:
>
> > there has been a lot of skepticism about  carfax on this list. i KNOW
> > bad things have happened to my car, but carfax comes up clean. maybe
> > they werent reported, but thats unlikely.
>
> Mine, too.  I suspect that at the very least, carfax is going to be weak
> on things that happened more than a few years ago, due to issues with
> reporting "the past" versus gathering fresh data (from insurance
> companies and states?).
>
> Not to say that they would necessarily be reliable on a 4 year old car,
> but to expect that on a 15 year old car would be pushing one's luck.
>