Is carfax worth it?

[JS80]

Is it worth the $35?

Requesting that someone run a Carfax report for you using their account is against the Carfax TOS and is equivalent to asking for a software registration code. Any reputable dealer should provide prospective buyers with a free Carfax report and many private sellers will do this as well.

Zenmervolt - AnandTech Moderator

 

[EightySix Four]

AFAIK it is against the rules of garage to ask.

 

[JS80]

AFAIK it is against the rules of garage to ask.

How about now?

 

[thescreensavers]

Carfax is worth it, thought check autocheck. its suppose to be better.

 

[angry hampster]

The only surefire way to do it is to use both CARFAX and Autocheck. It'll cost you about $60, but that's a small price to pay for piece of mind on a huge purchase.

 

[fstime]

Carfax blows and anyone who solely relies on it is a moron.

My Carfax is going and inspecting the car myself.

If you have no idea what to look for, have someone who is qualified to do so do it for you.

 

[fstime]

Just a story to throw in here...

Went to an Acura dealership once to check out a nearly brand new Acura RL SH-AWD last generation....not the ugly chrome grill one.

Acura Used Certified, we have a clean carfax blah blah blah.

This thing reeked of bodyshop chemicals. Closer inspection showed overspray on the trim, it was just horrible. The whole car had been repainted....and not in a good way.


Never plan on going back there again. I'm sure someone bought into their claim however.

 

[HarryLui]

Paying an actual mechanic is worth the money.

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

Carfax + Autocheck. I ran an a*sload of reports hunting down the perfect 06 Lincoln LS.

 

[duragezic]

Well if its a dealer or used lot you should be able to get it from them for free. I'd say over 50% of the dealers websites, Autotrader, etc had the Carfax/Autocheck for free up front online when I was shopping last month. So unless it's private, then no I don't think you need to pay for it yourself as any dealer should give it to you. But with private, it really can be better as if the person is honest, you have a better picture than Carfax can provide with all of the service records.

Personally I used the Autocheck/Carfax just to see anything majorly screwed up, then brought the car I was interested in most to a mechanic and they checked it out on the lift and on a ride for only $20.