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Yuba City
I know I sound like a tightwad, but is there any free way of checking out a carfax report on a vin of a vehicle I want to purchase from a private party? It seems that the official carfax report is just 35 bucks I don't want to spend, but perhaps it's worth it in the long run... Thanks for any tips!
Answer
Other than the information (vehicle summary), which is free from http://www.autocheck.com/ and/or http://www.carfax.com ....There is no FREE "Full" history reports.
Carfax has changed their pricing and policies due to the fact that so many users were reselling/distributing the information. (<-which is , in fact, THEFT) They are concentrating their sales to; dealers, auctions, and private party buyers_&_sellers.
In some instances, If a VIN is entered into the "Carfax" site, and it is a vehicle that is for sale at a dealer that has signed on to Carfax.. the dealer website/information and the report should pull up, because the dealer has already paid for the report.
Carfax is a registered trademark name for a company that provides "Vehicle History reports"
So while I CANNOT provide you with cheaper "Carfax" reports, I can suggest another company that offers Unlimited Vehicle History Reports for 60 Days ($44.99 ) "Autocheck" is the other company and they collect data much the same as "Carfax". Autocheck is owned by Experian.. another data-collecting-company.
Autocheck prices:
Unlimited Reports $44.99
Single Report + 1 FREE! $29.99
Unlimited Reports + TitleGuard $59.99
Carfax prices:
1 CARFAX Report for $34.99
5 CARFAX Reports for $44.99
(above prices current as of April 25, 2010)
There is a lot "data" that you can collect on your own though... without spending a dime.
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Free data source #1
Check the dealers website
If a reputable dealer is signed on (paid subscriptions) to Carfax or Autocheck, the dealers own website can publish the reports to potential buyers. This info is free to the buyers because the sellers have already paid for it.
NOTE!!!
If you click on a link to "view the report" from a dealer site, and it redirects you to a site that AGAIN asks you to PAY for the report, then that particular dealer is NOT a paid subscriber, BUT that dealer MAY receive a referral fee when YOU pay for the report.
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Free data source #2
Ask the private owner/seller to show you the report
Private sellers often purchase a vehicle history report and can show it to potential buyers too. That should be considered the cost of doing business and the seller can absorb the fee.
(^^BEST PRACTICE for reputable sellers)
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Free data source #3
National Insurance Crime Bureau site offers up to 5 free inquiries (VINs)a day. They collect data about vehicles reported as stolen and about vehicles reported as "total loss" (due to flood, fire, accident/collision )or "salvaged" (rebuilt/reconstructed).
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Free data source #4
Carfax
Yes Carfax! At the bottom of the Carfax home page, there are several FREE SERVICES: Lemon Check® | Record Check⢠| Recall Check⢠| Problem Car Check⢠|
The information that will be provided will be very basic and will STILL encourage you to PURCHASE their services.
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Free data source #5
Manufacturer sites.
The original manufacturer of the vehicles often has an "Owner Resource Center" website that can give you a plethora of information ..such as; owners manuals, maintenance requirements, recall information, etc.
For example, Ford has a section where you can enter any Ford VIN and it will tell you if there are any recalls on that vehicle
( http://www.ford.com/owner-services/customer-support/recall-information )
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Free data source #6
Internet Search Engines
You might be surprised at how much information you will find by "googling" a vehicle identification number (VIN). For instance, if you find the SAME vehicle is listed "for sale" at more that one "dealer".... One of them could be a scam site that has "scraped" the other (legitimate) site and is trying to scam buyers.
(if you have posted a VIN at Y!Answers, you will probably see the question in the google-search results)<--that's one of the ways that Carfax & AutoCheck can see who is violating their terms.
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Free data source #7
NHTSA-odi
(National Highway Transportation Safety Administration-office of defects investigation)
At this website consumers can look up ; recalls, technical service bulletins, consumer complaints, and defect investigations. There could be inherent problems with particular years/makes/models (vehicles).
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***FINALLY
After researching the free data, you should be able to narrow down your choices of vehicles that you are seriously considering for purchase.
That would be the time for you to actually get out the checkbook and spend some of your money on an actual physical inspection of the vehicles that made it to the "short list".
Before you purchase ANY vehicle, it would be very wise to pay a skilled/trained/certified technician/mechanic to inspect the vehicle in person.
I hope this helps.
How would I transfer ownership of car from private owner?
connor
I was looking to buy a car from a private owner, but I was curious on how the deal should go down. What transaction happens? Does he have the paperwork for it? And is there any legal obligations I would have to get from city hall? For example the tags. Would he sell the car tag with it,or if not how would I get it home without a tag and/or no insurance on the car(since I would've just bought it)
Answer
Here's a easy way to do this,
come up with an agreement type up a little contract and sign it, both of you.
It just helps in the long run and will probably never be needed but if for some reason you did you'd have it.
Now, you can put insurance on a vehicle without owning it. It's not a big deal. Just take the VIN number and get the insurance quote from any place you want.
THen when you have the insurance get the "title" from him/her, you and him/her go to the nearest local Notary that does Vehicle transfers. At that time in front of a Notary the seller would sign ownership of said vehicle over to the new owner, and it would be notarized and a new registration and plate for the vehicle will be given. Now if the previous owner has a good registration and plate most states will allow the seller to let the plate and registration transfer to the new owner which saves a little money by doing so. However, isn't a huge deal which way its done.
Contact your Local Department of motor vehicle for more info on your states requirements. However, this is usually how this goes. You can look up notary in the phone book call around find someone who does it very cheap or free some do charge upwards of 100.00 for their service, others 10.00 or free.
Good luck hope this helps..
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