Tab Julius wrote:
> I actually ran it on two of my cars (couldn't run it on the MG, though -
> it wants a 17-character VIN, and my '78 B only has a 12/13 character VIN).
>
> A few notes...
>
> 1) You don't have to provide YOUR email address. I mean, you can
> provide any email address, even an invalid one. It will show you the
> results on screen anyway. In fact, as of yet, nothing has been mailed
> to the first address I provided (a yahoo acct). So apparently the email
> address is more for harvesting, not for getting results.
>
> 2) I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of info you get. I had
> heard of CarFax, but thought you were only told if it was
> stolen/claimed, etc. In fact, for my '96 Saab, I found out all sorts of
> stuff, including all the points where it was registered, that it was
> originally a lease vehicle, that it was picked up by the former owner at
> an auction, etc... much more about the history than I expected or knew!
>
> 3) The older cars seem to have less info; not sure why; probably
> pre-computerized. My '83 Ford Ranger pickup just listed a couple of
> historical items - not as much detail as the Saab.
>
> 4) If you want to try more than one vehicle, it won't let you UNLESS you
> pull up your cookie list in your browser and delete the two cookies for
> www.carfax.com - do that each time after you run a check and you can do
> as many vehicles as you want.
>
> 5) A check on the web for promo.cfm and carfax.com shows that they have
> run two other demos at least in the past (both now expired) so it's
> worth checking occasionally to see if there's some other current open
> promo. If I was buying a used car, I think based on what I saw that I'd
> definitely use carfax. But I would check to see if there's an open
> promo first. :)
>
> Worth doing the free one, for curiosity's sake.
>
> If anyone knows how to make it accept an MG VIN, let me know.
I ran the 81 Victor-MG Special VIN and it came up completely clean.
This, in spite of the fact that the car has been hit from behind twice
since I purchased it. The first time, the damage was $1300; the second
time it was $5000. This indicates to me that unless there is some reason
for a State DOT or equivalent to be notified of a collision, it won't
show on the search. Apparently, the insurance companies involved either
don't report these incidents or the Carfax site isn't getting the news.
To me, this means a car could have sustained extensive damage and still
not be reported as such on the site.
-Rock http://www.rocky-frisco.com
--
"JJ Cale Live" CD & Video: http://www.rocky-frisco.com/calelive.htm
The Wednesday Night Science Project: http://www.wednitesciproj.us
Larry Spears and the Hapless Romantics: http://www.larry-spears.com
/// or try http://www.team.net/cgi-bin/majorcool
/// Archives at http://www.team.net/archive
|