CarFax & Accidents
 

Does CarFax catch accidents? Or only salvage title?
I was talking to the mgr of a Porsche Body shop about a Boxster he was working on and he said he doesn't report the accident.

And I think I know the answer to this one - but will pose it anyways (historical record for the forum) - would anyone buy a Boxster if they knew it was in an accident. Like minor bodywork to the rear quarter panel and suspension?
No frame or front end damage?

Why bother with a Boxster that has accident history when there are soooooooo many better clean cars without issues for sale? Keep searching to find the right one.

Car fax is suppose to report anything over (i think) $350 in damage. Now that is if the company repairing the car reports the accident, which doesn't always happen. A PPI usually divulges accidents. Carfax does have a buyback guarantee if they miss something, but I would read the fine print as it is just an insurance policy they take out to cover their ass on all reports.

Quote from a carfax: "A CARFAX Vehicle History Report is based only on information supplied to CARFAX. Other information about this vehicle, including problems, may not have been reported to CARFAX. Use this report as one important tool, along with a vehicle inspection and test drive, to make a better decision about your next used car. " http://www.vin.su/CFAU/report.php?type=carfax&vin=JTEBU17R930008587&lang= en

Yea that is what I thought.
 

I thought the bodyshop or insurance company routinely updated the car fax after any accident. The way the bodyshop manager talked, it was like doctor - patient privacy. He was only releasing the damage assement because the owner had ok'ed it. Otherwise he wouldn't give out any info.

This was a p-car dealer/bodyshop too - not spud's collision in toledo.

CFax can even miss a salvage title. As a former dealer, I always ran a CF or Autocheck. However, I NEVER relied on either for hidden damage.

For that, you have to get the car in the air and you have to use a paint meter.

Both are required.

Now, as to your second question, the Box is a unibody and it is NOT that easy to spot or differentiate frame vs no-frame involvement. MY rule was that if I found new paint, I did not buy the car.

Simple and safe.

Plenty of shops won't report damage. Surprisingly, many times the insurance company won't either. Carfax or Autocheck are a great start, but I wouldn't rely on the info 100%.

As to damage to the vehicle, it really depends. If a car has had the nose re-sprayed due to rock chipping, that's one thing, but if actual body damage more than a bumper being replaced from parking too close to the garage wall is involved, I would look for a better car. There are plenty out there in this market that have no questionable history, so I would hold out for one of those.

I don't trust either.

Autocheck said my car was 100% fine.

Carfax found a minor car accident that I verified with the previous owner and dealership records. But Carfax has had incorrect information and inaccurate dates for other cars in my house that my Dad was the original owner and kept until the day they ended up in the junkyard. :(

I judge more by receipts, quality of any repairs and the openness of the previous owner about any work that may have been done more then anything.

Carfax only catches about 1/3 the accidents - if you pay out of pocket for a repair, and no police report was filed, carfax won't catch it.

Me personally, I would never buy any car that'd ever been in any accident, especially a convertible.

Even if you have the best autobody repairman on the planet, even if they do the best job ever fixing the accident...a piece of steel, once bent, will never ever have the same tinsel properties it had before the accident...so if you get hit in the same place :(

So many great boxsters out there for cheap right now, unless it was a minor accident, and the PO has the pictures and repair records to prove it was minor, pass and find a nice accident free boxster.

I have said it before...
 

but thanks again. This forum and the folk that make it up are a great source of valuable and helpful information. Ignore the 986 forum at your own peril ;)

SO..... You gonna do it?