Carfax issues? Lay me down some knowledge

[verdelaw]

Does anyone on here have inside knowledge on Carfax reports? I've been doing some reading.. and I'm wondering if it's even worth my time to go see this car I found online.

Backstory: I'm interested in buying a replacement for my current daily driver as it's fairly boring, and the G37S 6MT caught my eye. I saw this one about 4.5 hours away in Chicago:
http://www.luxcarschicago.com/web/i...initi/All_models/All_body_types/All_vehicles/

I looked up the dealership on Yelp and they only have 3.5 out of a possible 5 stars, with some reviews saying that the vehicle they sold them was a lemon (a no-kidding lemon title even though the carfax was clean).

So I did some reading about Carfaxes and found this very informative article from Oppo:
http://oppositelock.kinja.com/how-carfax-doesnt-protect-you-from-buying-a-used-lemon-1653942445

As you can see from the Carfax for the G37 above... https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=ECL_0&vin=JN1CV6EK8DM900836... this car mentions "sold at auction" (twice) and "listed as a manufacturer vehicle". That second one is the more concerning, as some internet sources say that that means it was a manufacturer buyback vehicle.. i.e. state law forced the manufacturer (Infiniti in this case) to buy back the car after it was proven in court that the car was a lemon under the state lemon law.

I'm not afraid of an auctioned car.. I understand that most used cars that go through dealerships have been auctioned at least once. I am afraid of a lemon law car and/or one that's been passed through three states and two auctions to buff out its title.

Thoughts? Specific knowledge about lemon laws/titling/auctions? I'm all ears. Thanks.

 

[jimt1971rr]

Find another! Looking at it's history would make me Leary.

 

[64`330]

Does anyone on here have inside knowledge on Carfax reports? I've been doing some reading.. and I'm wondering if it's even worth my time to go see this car I found online.

Backstory: I'm interested in buying a replacement for my current daily driver as it's fairly boring, and the G37S 6MT caught my eye. I saw this one about 4.5 hours away in Chicago:
http://www.luxcarschicago.com/web/i...initi/All_models/All_body_types/All_vehicles/

I looked up the dealership on Yelp and they only have 3.5 out of a possible 5 stars, with some reviews saying that the vehicle they sold them was a lemon (a no-kidding lemon title even though the carfax was clean).

So I did some reading about Carfaxes and found this very informative article from Oppo:
http://oppositelock.kinja.com/how-carfax-doesnt-protect-you-from-buying-a-used-lemon-1653942445

As you can see from the Carfax for the G37 above... https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=ECL_0&vin=JN1CV6EK8DM900836... this car mentions "sold at auction" (twice) and "listed as a manufacturer vehicle". That second one is the more concerning, as some internet sources say that that means it was a manufacturer buyback vehicle.. i.e. state law forced the manufacturer (Infiniti in this case) to buy back the car after it was proven in court that the car was a lemon under the state lemon law.

I'm not afraid of an auctioned car.. I understand that most used cars that go through dealerships have been auctioned at least once. I am afraid of a lemon law car and/or one that's been passed through three states and two auctions to buff out its title.

Thoughts? Specific knowledge about lemon laws/titling/auctions? I'm all ears. Thanks.

The flags are there. Don`t make a permanent decision on a temporary feeling.

 

[Mike67]

I would be curious to find out what the Carfax buy back guarantee was...but if it's to good to be true, it's probably not...

 

[69SportSatellite]

Probably not worth the trouble -- better to pay a little more and avoid any headaches...

 

[jamie]

Be very leary of anything that has been thru an auction.They have problems or they would get sold on their own lot.Rentals/lease cars are beat to piss.Accidents are not reported near as often and the cars are run thru the companies personal bodyshop to avoid insurance claims.Most of the time they are cobbled/bondo'd back together and run thru the auction.
Cars off lots being run thru that didn't sell off their own lots? Hmm,why is that?
The only cars I have seen at auction that MAY be ok are the ones with a ton of miles.
Carfax helps but don't rely soley on it.Inspect very closely with your own eyes.

 

[Ranger16]

About the only thing CarFax is good for is checking to see if mileage seems logical between each report (emissions tests, dealer service and title transfers). Most other stuff is voluntary and most accidents never get reported. I think it is pretty much a waste of money.

That said, dealers do not put cars that they can sell and make money on through the auction. IMHO, the only cars that go through the auction are cars that have a problem that the dealer does not want to disclose or get caught hiding or has high mileage.

 

[verdelaw]

Thanks for the input. I arrived at similar conclusions but wanted to get a sanity check.

Regarding auctions, I disagree a tad. IMO auctions aren't necessarily a red flag. Sometimes dealers get cars they can't sell... like an econobox dealer gets a super lux car. Or vice versa. Or maybe it's a specialty car. Or maybe it's pink. Who knows. Other times dealers simply have to get cars off the lot to make room, renew inventory, or add $$$ in the black column. It's just an easy way to move iron.

But wariness is advised. And like I mentioned in the op, the possible manufacturer buyback is almost a guaranteed red flag.