Would you buy this ??? - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

u1-2go · 03-26-2005, 09:21 AM

Boxster Afficonados

I found a 2001 Boxster S
with 37,000 miles

I can get it for $24,000

The only problem is the Car Fax has stated it was in an accident 1.5 years ago

and

Air bags deployed

The Porsche looks clean
but
I am not sure

Thanks

Mark
u1-2go

Subanez · 03-26-2005, 10:48 AM

Welcome to the site

See if you can get a more detailed report. CarFax catches big things, but often times I and others on this board have discovered that it misses more than it catches. Because of the low pricing, I would wonder the full extent of the damage from the accident.

I speak from experience...cars bought after a major accident (whether you knew about it or not..grrr...) can have problems far after the original damage is fixed. It seems that every month or two something "new" happens to my car, and I think I can relate it all the way back to an accident I found out about using Lexis Nexis, which wasn't reported by carfax.

Not trying to scare you, but BE CAREFUL!

:dance:

-Kevin

Brucelee · 03-26-2005, 10:51 AM

No! The accident follows your Porsche around like a curse.

Subanez · 03-26-2005, 10:55 AM

Okay, Rich, you're a bit more to the point, haha.

Dang it...I had hoped my car wasn't cursed...

Rowag · 03-26-2005, 11:20 AM

A small fender-bender is never really an issue, but anything that involves serious damage (frame, airbags, etc.) will usually haunt you for a looooong time.

A friend of mine has a '97 BMW 528i that was in a horrible ($7000+ repair) side-impact accident almost 4 years ago. A month ago one of his main axle-to-chassis bolts (I forget the name, but it was about 6 inches long and an inch in diameter) sheared - the mechanic said in 20 years of servicing BMWs he'd never seen that happen. Two weeks later his front right lower control arm just split in half... I know BMWs have their issues (we're on our second), but these kinds of structural issues have got to be at least partially related to the wreck.

Brucelee · 03-26-2005, 11:28 AM

Sorry but once an accident has hit the Car Fax system it is not dropping off. That is the killer for you at resale.

The hard part is that an accident is an accident to Car Fax. Could be nothing, could be near totalled. So, I always err on the side of caution.

To wit, I passed on a 911 at the auction that was a screaming deal but the CF indicated a past accident.

Kiss of death to a car dealer.

Hey, wait for the next one and there is always a next one.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subanez

Okay, Rich, you're a bit more to the point, haha.

Dang it...I had hoped my car wasn't cursed...

u1-2go · 03-26-2005, 06:23 PM

Boxster Aficonados

Thanks you for the info

In the car fax was a police report
Is this public record ( can I get the details) ???

Anyway

The dealer gave me my deposit back
( funny thing, when I test drove the salesman gave the wrong key) bad omen ??

I drove up to Tampa today to look at a 2000 S with tiptronic

They wanted $29,000 ( low miles and certified)

Dam, this Porsche " BUG" is hard to shake

On the hunt and hungry

Mark

u1-2go

tqtran · 03-29-2005, 10:18 AM

After talking to Rowag for a bit, I decided to shed a little light for some people on this board.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brucelee

Sorry but once an accident has hit the Car Fax system it is not dropping off.

Sorry to break it to you buddy but you are wrong.

Car Fax can be changed and I have seen it with my own eyes. Now I'm not saying just anyone can. Also, a touched record generally leaves a clue to the trained eye. Typically you need a lot of resources to alter a record, so don't think its a common thing. Unless your some large "luxury" car dealership in the chicagoland area (who's purpose is not to sell cars), some of you know who I'm talking about.
Lets just say, a car fax report acts simular to a credit report (if you know what I mean then great, if not then too bad). I'll just leave it at that.

Just remember to not ONLY rely on a car fax, use your own gut instinct and go look, tough, feel, and drive the car first.

Rowag · 03-26-2005, 11:21 AM

Hey Subanez, could you PM me who you used for your Lexis Nexis search? I'd like one done on a particular care, and I'm having trouble finding someone that uses Lexis Nexis that can do it for me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Subanez

Welcome to the site

See if you can get a more detailed report. CarFax catches big things, but often times I and others on this board have discovered that it misses more than it catches. Because of the low pricing, I would wonder the full extent of the damage from the accident.

I speak from experience...cars bought after a major accident (whether you knew about it or not..grrr...) can have problems far after the original damage is fixed. It seems that every month or two something "new" happens to my car, and I think I can relate it all the way back to an accident I found out about using Lexis Nexis, which wasn't reported by carfax.

Not trying to scare you, but BE CAREFUL!

:dance:

-Kevin