losdeanos

I was thinking about trading in my 2009 997s, still under CPO and found out that before I bought the car and it was certified that it had been stolen and recovered and in some sort of wreck. The dealer said they didn't know and I have a clean carfax from when I bought it but now it has a scarlet letter.

I spoke to the dealer who i've brought a bunch of cars from and they played it off as no big deal. I've owned and driven the cars for 2 years and there isn't anything wrong with it, but now the value of the car is jacked. I don't think they knew but can you ever be sure.

I've heard from a few friends who've all said carfax is slow to post things and can get things wrong. But is there anyway, other than buying new, to find out all the dirt on a car before buying it?

Leader

Carfax is far from infallible when it comes to determining a car's past accident/incident history. They rely on police accident reports and/or cooperation from a loose network of body shops around the country.
If the car in question was in an accident not reported to the police, or if it was repaired at a body shop that does not send info to Carfax, then its Carfax can be crystal clear.
My former DD was in an intersection wreck which resulted in $14k in repairs. I traded it in, but later saw it for sale being advertised with a "clean Carfax," which it had.
It's buyer beware. You cannot rely on Carfax. Your only true protection is a PPI by someone you trust...apparently even on a CPO car.

BrakingBad

Well. There is this thing called a PPI that most of us rennlisters recommend, even on CPO cars.

Sorry for your misfortune. The good news is your car didn't seem to be adversely affected performance wise. Good luck if you decide to sell.

shellbmb

Out of curiosity, how did you discover this? And is it now listed on your carfax?

I once was looking at a car with a supposed clean carfax. I tracked down the owner and they said it had run over an animal that totaled the front end and damaged the radiator which later resulted in total engine failure and rebuild. Carfax was clean!! Buyer always beware.

losdeanos

I did a PPI, and they didn't see any evidence of an accident. I'm trying to track down an accident report to understand what the specifics were. The car is very clean with full service records and 46k on the clock. The place I bought it offered me 45 as a trade, then I approached a second place and they found the stolen issue and offered me 36. So now i can't decide if I should keep it knowing what i know or sell it and get out from under the issue.

losdeanos

I found out when I was looking to trade the car in.

BrakingBad

I would definitely seek confirmation that an accident took place. Mistakes are made and a stolen vehicle is reported as a "total loss" by the insurance companies. Strange that it wouldn't show in a carfax if this was the case. Good luck.

sandwedge

I'd go back to the dealer you bought this car from (along with many other cars as it sounds) and ask them to make good on the 45K trade. They sold it to you as a clean car so it was misrepresented to begin with. Hard to believe a dealership would miss a theft recovery history on a trade-in.

nathan1

It's possible Carfax has it wrong as well. I had one of my cars show an accident on Carfax that happened in NY, I live in Washington State and the car has never been farther west than Colorado. When I inquired turns out a car the same make/model had an police report filed and they messed up the VIN and it came up as mine. I went through the process with Carfax and they removed it.

Not saying that's what happened but worth digging into. I would also put a paint meter on the car. If it's 100% OE paint an accident is doubtful, painted panels then... Official CPO rules state no more than 2 painted panels. If it has more than that you have a legitimate beef, especially since you know the Porsche store used a meter on it before it was CPO'd.

Buddhamonk

most indy shops that do ppi don't to a paint check with a meter unfortunately

M3 Defector

Maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but it sounds like you are going on what this second dealer is telling you about the car...the second dealer that is offering you a low trade in price. Have you seen the documented evidence of it being stolen and wrecked? They may be using a scare tactic to get you to accept a lower price. It should be easy to verify.

KNS

The OP did a PPI, found the car in good condition, was happy with its appearance and bought the car. Up until very recently he was content with his purchase. I think people put way too much emphasis on minor paint work or a tiny fender bender. Cars have their front valance resprayed routinely for rock chips, etc.

Carfax is good for one thing: to see if the car is salvage/totaled or major repair work (which a keen eye or PPI should spot). Because of Carfax buyers and sellers have become paralyzed at the smallest amount of repair or paintwork - for trivial crap. I believe Carfax has done more harm than good in the buying and selling of cars. There is no Carfax for cars made before 1981 and it doesn't seem to have affected the market for those cars. People purchase those cars with common sense.

I bought my 993 and could spot that the car had been repainted (very well) within several minutes of looking at the car fr the first time. Nothing showed on the Carfax. Didn't bother me at all and I love the car.

BIG smoke

My landscaper came over to look at some backyard improvement I was contemplating. A new privacy lattice and an extension of the stonework. He told me the original stone work was done poorly and that it would have to be all redone.
Odd, that he had done the historical questionable work 7 year prior, and obviously forgot. Great that he was slamming his own work. I would take your second dealers report with a grain of salt. Perhaps they are looking to give you a poor offer. Perhaps they are wrong. Perhaps the carfax was late and did not show these issues when you purchased the car originally.
You have been happy with your car up until the second dealer brought this to your attention? Obviously you were happy before. Worst case scenario if you don't like the trade offer? Drive your car more. Drive it up to 100k? The car had no problems before you found out?
My car had a $8k claim for a pothole? Wheel, tire, two tie rods and alignment. And an attach from a truck trailer hitch. Hood, wing, light, $18k. Repaired at the dealership. In 24000 kms and 20 months, and 100's of washes, I never found a problem with the repairs. I could not tell.
Don't like the trade price? Don't do it. Suffer driving your fantastic car.
I got my Wife used. I still have her.

myw

big smoke for president!

Blu311

Quote of the day!