Nuff

The dealer I bought my 993 from had all the records bound in a file from the PO. The PO wanted the dealer to show the records to any potential buyer. This tells you something about the PO and how they took care of the car.

Plus the dealer was more than willing to have a PPI done wherever I wanted.

TMc993

I ran a CarFax on my car before I bought it and the report indicated correctly that there were no outstanding recalls. (I know...I know...CarFax isn't always completely reliable, but it can be a starting point).

Terry

RallyJon

Just to be clear, there is no "right" of confidentiality here, is there? Is there a promise of confidentiality in the service paperwork? Or is this just an arbitrary business practice of Porsche?

Mark Harris

Blah, blah, blah...all the assumptions and rhetoric aren't going to get Jason the paperwork if the dealer says no. End of story. Whomever mentioned social engineering had the best advice.

On my beamer purchase the stealer wasn't going to release any info. They delivered the car new and had done all the service on it.

I got friendly with a service adviser. He know he wasn't allowed to do what he did, but I was courteous to him and treated him professionally. Didn't attempt to trick him with what I wanted simply reasoned with him.

He couldn't give me a printed copy, but took the time to write down everything with dates off his computer screen. It took him about 10 minutes.

Unfortunately this can't be done over a telephone. If they have a nice car and they know it, they also know that someone will eventually come along and simply buy it. Just like the guy did on the one in Florida you passed on.

At some point Jason you are just going to have to go for it. There are no guarantees in life.

blake

When I purchased my GT3 from the state of MS over the phone, I was able to pursuade one local Porsche tech to read me the service log over the phone, but was rebuffed by another. I then called my local dealer and persuaded him to look up the car by VIN and check the system as well. The stories matched, the PPI went well, and I picked up the car a few days later...

So why is the service log important in addition to a PPI? Simple. A PPI will tell you things like "the engine was out", but can not tell you why. And from what I can tell, most PCars under warranty are serviced at the dealer....

-B

c993k

The only records legally allowed to be seen by you are the ones in your name.
Many reasons why this is the current trend, court settlements, divorce cases,
situations for a lien to be applied etc. When I tried to get the original price of my car,
which it's a heavily optioned Exclusive, from the dealer it was purchased from. it became
a 2 year pursuit which included many different avenues of retrieval with no luck
~Chris~

kjr914

Mark Harris has it right. A bit of friendliness and understanding towards the service manager can get you a long way. If they sense you are a genuine Porschephile, your work will be easier Car guys love to talk about cars with other car guys (and car gals too).

When looking at my car, I called a dealer that was listed in the limited paper work available, then chatted with the service advisor. He couldn't release the records, but I asked if he could tell me if some of the standard stuff had been done (clutch, valve guides, etc) prior to the records that the PO had...before ya know it, I'm getting mileage numbers at services and what was done. Knowing the valve guides, steering rack, clutch had been done (and when) was a major factor in me feeling confident in my purchase.

dhicks

When I bought my car from Exclusive motors they got the local two dealers that had serviced the car from new to supply photocopies of the service records with the previous owner name and address blacked out.....thanks Bob

lucycan

By "go for it" I assume you mean buy a car without knowing ANY service history? Should I skip the PPI too?

lucycan

This is all just one more reason to buy a car from a personal party. Especially a RLer!

Mark Harris

No. Obviously you are much smarter than that. I have watched your search and respect your due diligence.

What I was implying is that when we make that "perfect" purchase something completely out of our control can still go wrong with the car 6 weeks, 6 months, or 6 years down the road. It's all part of the joy of ownership.

For me the hunt is one of the best parts of any game. Enjoy it, I think you are, but don't let it own you.

With my 993 the right car (blk/blk 4S) tipped the emotional scale I couldn't be happier despite having to spend some money on it in the first year.

lucycan

Well said.....and something I have seen in other car purchases as well.

dbf73

I've gotta believe that if the dealer really wants to make the sale, it'll find a way to get the service history to you in some form (oral, personal info redacted, etc.) Most people are of the opinion that the service records run with the car, that is, the current owner has the right to the records, minus, perhaps the personal info. I know this has been the position of many dealers.

RallyJon

So again, is this a trend or a law? If the latter, please cite a source.

jimbo3

Common law ownership. Refer to Black's Legal Dictionary and look up "owner", "property" and "conversion". Struggling to recall business law but, basically, if Party A is holding B's property, A may not sell/give/lend/provide that property to C without B's consent. Doing so is called "conversion".