I lied to a guy today.

[Patton]

Anybody here ever tried Carfax? I never have, just wondered if it was anything worth fooling with.

If Carfax says it has an issue then it most likely will. However, I have seen a vehicle someone was killed in that had a clean Carfax. As well, if a vehicle has been stolen and recovered in will have a rebuilt/salvaged title depending on the state's system.

[No_0ne]

It wasn't a salesman. It was a private party seller. I didn't think about it being a flood. That makes sense. He gave some story about the guy he bought it from damaging and replacing the front bumper and grille, and said there was a chance the title may come back that way. That doesn't really add up now that I think about it.

 

It was a fairly nice little truck for the money, and my teenage son was heartbroken; it was to be his first wheels.

Seller should have disclosed the info prior to making the sale.  I would have done the same as you, except I always ask about the title status as a matter of fact when inquiring about any used vehicle.  A salvage title doesn't automatically become a "deal-breaker" for me, but it's info you need to have as it has a major effect on valuation.

[Patton]

To be honest the whole system of labeling rebuilt vehicles is screwy. I have done collision reports on people hitting a deer just to come back months later telling me that their vehicle has a marked Carfax but a body shop can fix a car and not have to report it. A lot of this comes down to state laws and not all states to my understanding are on a state wide reporting system.

[npgunner]

It was a fairly nice little truck for the money ...

a pretty well dressed 20 something blonde came up

Ya know ... kieefer could have said the same thing about that 20-something blonde until he "looked under the hood" and found gonorrhea or herpes. No way it's worth the money then. An un-declared rebuilt title, flood car, or all around shady deal is likely to result in "carpes" ... a pesky booger of a car disease where you can't fix it and you can't get it to go away.

I wouldn't feel bad if I were you. You practiced safe car buying by pulling out before you got ahold of something that might require long-term treatment.

[safeandsecure]

No, Greg.  You did not do any wrong.  None.  Nary a bit.

[Murgatroy]

I wouldn't feel bad about it, sucks, cause your boy got his hopes up, but this was better in the end.

 

 

A few years back I was hit and the insurance totaled my (wife's) car out. It was all cosmetic damage and with the replacement of a headlight the car was sound and usable again. I bought it back from the insurance for a pittance. The title was never branded on the car, though it was a write off. I drove the car for a couple of months and then sold it for cheap to a feller that needed a car. But the point is, just because a car has been totaled, doesn't mean the title is branded either.

[Randall53]

I would have walked away like you did. It was a misrepresented item. End of story. Ya done good in my book.

[Lumber_Jack]

He lied to you, not vice versa. He knew the title was rebuilt and didn't offer that openly (maybe that's how he got it). In the end it's not what the deal represented. Sleep sound.


That truck could have had frame damage or a number of things not visible to the naked eye. Consider yourself blessed to have got out if that deal.

[Dirtshooter]

The thing a lot of people don't realize about a rebuilt title on a vehicle is that most insurance companies won't give you much if any coverage as the value of the vehicle is hard to put a figure on. I found a great looking Jeep near Memphis and wanted it bad until I saw the ad said rebuilt title. Also if you ever go to sell or trade it this will come up and be harder for you to sell or trade. I think you did the right thing.

[Volzfan]

That should have been disclosed before you got as far as you did. He was probably just hoping you wouldn't notice until it was too late to back out! That's not cool on his part. I don't blame you at all!

[Flyboy]

a vehicle with a rebuilt title has been totaled by an insurance company. if there is no indication of body damage repair it may have been under water somewhere. you definitely don't want a vehicle that has been flooded. the rebuilt title should have been the first thing a seller should make known. I would have done the same thing.

A thrift recovery will also show rebuilt title, even if nothing was ever done to the car. Once the insurance company pays it becomes a rebuilt title even if nothing was damaged on the car. A car fax will help with details for sure.

Good luck

FlyBoy

[Guest 6.8 AR]

You were right, Greg.

 

I've bought several rebuilt titled cars in the past, but I knew up front what I was getting into. He should have told you up front, and

had all the information before he did anything. The ones I bought were wrecks from insurance companies that I bought and did

the repairs. I wouldn't have bought them if they weren't priced right. I made the mistake once, though, of buying one from a dealer.

It was all I was looking for, and I ran it for close to 300k miles before I sold it for scrap. Got lucky on that one. Price was good

enough to learn the lesson.

[McGarrett]

You did nothing wrong Greg, don't sweat it. The seller should have informed you of the rebuilt title. Good thing you caught it and backed out of the deal.

 

My dad bought a Honda that had been rebuilt and it had paperwork from the state showing it had passed an inspection and had a metal plate like a vin plate showing it had been rebuilt and inspected by the state. The seller was very upfront about this when he looked at the car and provided all the paperwork with the title, it was a good deal so he bought it. 

[R1100R]

Anybody here ever tried Carfax? I never have, just wondered if it was anything worth fooling with. 

 

Most Auction's use a service called Auto-Check. I have seen to many bad Car fax reports.

[gregintenn]

I'm not against buying one with a rebuilt title, but will not pay a clean title price for it.

[Sam1]

I'm not against buying one with a rebuilt title, but will not pay a clean title price for it.

 

precisely on point