NorbaS

Hi Fellow Porsche Enthusiasts!

After years of hard work, I've decided to fulfill my dream and purchase my first Porsche!

However, I'm encountering some difficulties in obtaining the service history of the cars I'm interested in bidding on. I would greatly appreciate it if someone could assist me in retrieving the records for the following cars:
1. WP0AA2A88JS260198
2. WP0AA2A87JK262315
3. WP0AB2A82JK278130
All of these vehicles are listed for sale on IAAI/Copart, and every dealer I've contacted has declined to provide me with this information. As I plan to import the car to Europe, it's crucial for me to ensure that the vehicle I want to bid on has been properly serviced.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Kind regards,
Norbert

Zhao

I think your priorities are funny. It's like buying a house that was hit by a tornado half falling down and going mmm, they better have changed the furnace filter every 6 months!

2 of those cars I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole. Only the blue one of the middle vin seems like it may be worth a gamble.

Here is the owner of the last one though.

WP0AB2A82JK278130
https://rennlist.com/forums/market/1362667

TXshaggy

Porsche won't provide you with service records.

While they are often incomplete and/or inaccurate you could establish a CarFax account and see some service history.

Welcome to RL and Good Luck.

NorbaS

Hi Zhao, TXshaggy

@Zhao Hahah, well you have a point I must admit! But please try to look from my point of view.

I know that the car will require replacement of body panels, as well as some bodywork repairs - It is something that I already expect and factor in. However if I can confirm that previous owner maintained the car properly then I am less concerned by the potential problems with engine and other key systems. It is simple as that, I am willing to take a gamble on repairing the bodywork, but would prefer not to risk other issues.

Could you please elaborate why you would not consider 2 of the cars? Maybe there is something that I am missing.

@TXshaggy Thank you for the information! I was actually hoping that someone within our group might have access to this data

Best,
Norbert

Bxstr

Getting all service history is going to be challenging. I have friends that take their cars to independent shops that won't show up on CarFax or do their own maintenance. Unless you're buying from a private seller, it's unlikely you're going to get all service information. Dealers, as you've found, are typically unwilling to provide physical documents to you on what was done, but most are willing to give basic information of "it's had oil changes every year". Since you're looking at 718's, they're new enough where it's likely whoever owned it had the means to maintain it. If you were talking about a 20 year old car, then it would be more likely that someone along the way skimped on maintenance. This is just a generalization though and not a rule.

Zhao

Here some advice from me who runs an autobody shop:

WP0AB2A82JK278130 will likely need the front tub. This is not replace some body panels. I'd bet a good chunk of money that thing doesn't cross measure. I'd be surprised if it was less than 30g to fix.

WP0AA2A88JS260198 will likely need a new hinge pillar, plus some big dollar items need replacing. This thing is another one I can't see being less than 30g to fix.

The reality is that most people who buy from copart to put cars back on the road over pay well beyond what makes it worth it to fix these cars properly, so the only way to put one of these back on the road cheaply without cutting corners is to either get the car for basically free, or to own a salvage yard and piece one car together from others. I know what I"m looking at at copart, and inspect most of the cars in person that I buy as well, and it is very very very rare to find a car that makes sense to me to buy to put back on the road. Most of what I bid on goes for a stupid amount. What I do end up winning is generally stuff with very minor damage.

The other thing is, what I do end up winning has the obvious damage, and usually surprise damage. My #1 rule with buying from copart is if it had minor damage, assume it has hidden damage, probably mechanical. There is always a reason it got written off and is at copart, and insurance doesn't write vehicles off for 5g damage on a 60g car. 3 vehicles I bought from copart have needed engine rebuilds, 2 of which I knew about before I bought the car by inspecting it myself, but none of them were disclosed and were listed as 'runs and drives'. People also hide damage and run it through the auction again. i've literally seen cars run through multiple times where the last time they put sheet metal over top of the major structural damage so someone like you thinks its an easy fix.

NorbaS

Thanks for the info!I'm probably going to pass on the two cars you mentioned. I'll dig deeper into the blue one.

Regarding the financial aspect of this operation, it's critical to keep in mind that I am importing this car to the EU. Here, where I live, the cost of labor is probably 1/4 to 1/3 of the cost of labor in the US. Additionally, the prices of both used and new car parts are significantly lower. On the other hand, cars are much more expensive here than in the US. All of these factors combined make importing a damaged car from the US/Canada an interesting option (One of my family members imported 20+ cars this way). I hope this sheds a little more light on my motives.

Best,
Norbert

SteveG

Porsche dealers in general are not helpful in this area.
I queried my local dealer who I sometimes use for maint., so I am a customer, for a PPI. Their inspection is near worthless (no over-rev report) and it costs $600.00. The only useful info is a tire tread depth, got a dime? you can do it yourself and a measure of brake pad depth.
Porsche ownership is indeed a test of your commitment and resourcefulness.