There is a GM dealer about 2 hours away that has a car I was interested in. I ran a carfax on it and this is the last entry for the car.

01/12/2006 Georgia
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Atlanta, GA Salvage or Junk title issued due to theft
Please contact NICB to verify this
vehicle's stolen status
by calling 800-447-6282 x 2
or by completing the NICB web form

Is this a stolen car that has been moved out of state? Would a dealer be that stupid to buy/post this car without checking out the background?

 

Sounds like it *was* stolen and then probably purchased at auction by the dealer. Ask the dealer (who should have disclosed the situation) or cal the NCIB to confirm.

Either way, I would keep looking for another Vette. I would be concerned about condition and the fact the dealer didn't disclose for whatever reason. Good luck

 

Stay away and don not get involved. You want your purchase to be smooth and issue you free. If you get involved you could get burned! So, Stay away

 

Yea, but if it was bought anywhere after that shouldn't there be an entry on the carfax for it?

Doesn't really matter anyways I guess. No way in hell I would buy that car now.

 

Run like hell you don't know what was done to the car or if there is any hidden damage that could come back to haunt you.

 

Sounds to me like this is a recovered stolen vehicle that somebody bought from the insurance company, repaired as necessary, retitled it, and then sold at auction or put on the road and traded it to the dealer. I would ask the dealer's used car manager about the title status. A friend of mine purchased a recovered 95 Saleen Mustang that had its Supercharger, Seats, and wheels removed. He reinstalled the missing items and got a great car out of it. Results depend on whether the car was stripped or wrecked when it was stolen and how well somebody put it back together again. It should be easy enough to check with your state officials to see if the VIN has been cleared and the car can be legally sold. Check things out but you may have a good bargaining position to get a nice car at a good price.

Bill

 

Carfax reports a car's change in ownership from registration/title records from the dmv. If the car went to auction, and then to a dealer, it hasn't been registered or titled anywhere since, then carfax knows nothing about it.

I do find it difficult to believe a GM dealer would have a salvage-title car for sale on their used lot. A shady used car-only dealer, sure...but not a new car dealer. But, depending on the state, a recovered theft car might be able to get a clean title again, not sure.

 

Bottom line is, unless this is a mistake AND you can get it removed from carfax, I would stay far far away. You can bet that if you ever go to sell the car, anyone who isn't a moron will run a carfax. They will see this same entry and run like heck.

I'd have to be gettin the car for like 8-10k to consider buying something that said it was stolen on carfax, regardless if it was or not.

-Jeff

 

I would find another car!

 

Run long and hard from this car!

 

Okay, that makes sense then. I was thinking it would have to be titled to sell it.

I also was suprised it was a GM dealership. The car is even listed as GM Certified!

To all those that say to stay away from it, well, as soon as I saw this I was never interested in buying it. I was merely curious how it could have happened.

 

That sure says a lot about " GM Certified". I wonder just what in the hell would make it uncertifiable?

 

I'm sure the dealer knew. I doubt they would acquire the car to resell without knowing its history.

But whether or not they tell a potential buyer is another issue entirely.

You did the right/smart thing to do your own research.

 

Stolen and or totaled!!! ...Avoid this Vette like the plague!!

AND..Stay away from this stealership. Their well aware of what they have on the lot....

Bob

 

Stay away unless it's at least hallf of book!!!!

 

Actually quite a few of those guys that go to the auctions are retarded, and it wouldn't suprise me that they didn't know it was a recovery. I used to work at a local Cadillac dealership and they purchased an Eclipse and forget to check out the car. It was a convertible and the entire top was trashed and had to get the whole thing redone. Just because they decided not to put the top up they had to list the car 5K over blue book to try and get there cost back. Never underestimate the stupidity of dealerships. But still walk away from the car unless they're giving an amazing deal like slammedwhite said.

 

Good advice in this post - IMO stay away from the car. There are plenty of C5s out there that do not have a history like this one.

 

Well, curiosity got the best of me. I called the number supplied by carfax and they told me that the car was still listed as stolen!

I gave her the dealership name and phone number.

Book em Dano!

 

I would steer clear quickly

 

While I would be leery of this car... Something to know about "salvaged titles"

I have a cousin who owns a body shop and he goes to auction every week to buy cars. Usually he will buy a car that has a good front nose clip or rear quarter because he can get parts cheaper and actually "fix" cars, instead of totalling a car because insurance won't pay the price for new OEM parts. He will usually tell the customer and if they argee, he'll go to work.

Occasionally, there will be a "recoved" (from being stolen), vehicle on the block for sale. He has gotten them for family or friends, looking for a nice car at a good price. In NJ, when an insurance company sells a car for auction, after a claim was settled (for ANY reason), they are required to issue a "salvage" title, for that vehicle. That is to protect the next owner from buying a vehicle that could have had major damage to it and not be told about it by the person selling the car. This practice was around before CarFax existed.

Just because the car has a salvage title, it doesn't automatically mean it has problems.... Instead, it means you have a vehicle that needs a little more inspection and research than another car..... I've bought a couple salvaged pick-up's and never had a problem.

You never know, you could be getting a great deal, if the price is right... But as somebody else has posted, with so many quality C5's available and that you don't know the dealer "personally", I'd look elsewhere.