carfax- whats the deal?

[wagonista]

We bought our 07 XC in Sept last year with 70,000 miles. Clean, runs great.. may have over paid but on the salt choked island where I live ( Newfoundland), weather is harsh and corrosion a constant headache . Even aluminum is not safe. So to see a Shiny XC on a used car lot was enough to make me take a 2nd look. Took said XC to the local (only) dealer, and got a clean report. Last step was the Carfax report. We opted for the 5 search pkg deal as it was marginally more $$ than a single search. Carfax search came back clear-car came out of Minnesota and was a repo of some kind.( no ocean near there and probably no salt on the roads..hence the condition)) so we pulled the trigger on the sale. So then do a search on the wifes '04 Mazda Tribute ( Crap- don't let your friends drive one) and it came up clean...
Lastly, I search the VIN on my '04 GMC 3500 Sierra. Search comes up clean, which strikes me as strange because I know that when I brought the vehicle back form Alberta, I had the entire front end rebuilt, and some 4wd issues fixed at a major automotive chain here in Canada. I also know that in May 2014 I was T-boned in this truck and sustained nearly $6000 damage to the rear drivetrain/suspension. Insurance took care of all that and the Police were involved and all repair work was done at the local GMC truck center and documented for insurance purposes. My accident was in May 2014 and the Carfax pulled in Sept. I find it hard to swallow that it would not show up on the Carfax report . Any others out there have any experience in this area? I have tried unsuccessfully to contact Carfax on this issue but no luck...

[JRL]

They will tell you nothing (including themselves) is perfect.
Why try to contact them, they're not infallible? Many accidents go unreported to Carfax for whatever reason and/or slip through the cracks.
Any person with any knowledge in automobile sales will tell you to take a Carfax report with a grain of salt.
(They're good to find out if a car may have REPORTABLE service records, that's about it and a clean title as they do guarantee that)

[wagonista]

wow thats helpful. Where do you suppose they get their credible information from ? If I am buying a vehicle based on what the carfax report says, then shouldn't I expect more information than what I can pull off the internet myself? After all, I did pay for a service. I guess my point is not to trust it. If $6000 in drivetrain damages does not show up on a VIN search by a company that claims to find out just that sort of thing, then I just feel ripped off

[JRL]

Certain dealers and shops subscribe with Carfax
If they do you will get anything that they did.
If it was taken to Joe's Gas Station down at the corner, you probably will get nothing.
Carfax does not "look" for stuff, it gets what it gets by the subscribing shop....PERIOD

[wagonista]

whatever...still seems pretty crappy for a company that claims to be an authority on history/maintenance records. If that's how it works, then I would just make sure my (flood damaged) vehicle was not repaired by a shop that would not report it. Then sell it off to a sucker !

[Forkster]

whatever...still seems pretty crappy for a company that claims to be an authority on history/maintenance records. If that's how it works, then I would just make sure my (flood damaged) vehicle was not repaired by a shop that would not report it. Then sell it off to a sucker !. Welcome to the site wagonista. I take it you live in Bonavista? I'm originally from Fermuse and later Mt. Pearl.

Auto sites like Carfax and CarCostCanada are 'caveat emptor'. In point, CarCostCanada is paid for by the auto industry, not an independent organization. Carfax is also being sued by a bunch of dealers in the US (http://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1083776_carfax-sued-for-50-million-by-120-u-s-dealers) for 'collusion' - or for setting up deals with other dealership and shutting out others. In other words, as JRL states, take anything from these folks with a grain of salt. You probably would get more info from a lien search at a registries office than Carfax.

So - how do you like your XC70? Over here in Cowtown with a set of snows it's pretty fun to drive. I've also tweaked mine a little - stage 1 from IPD and a very simple waste-gate mod. Bit of a sleeper. People think it's a slow beast but she can move. :D