Car has been wrecked....twice
07-20-2011, 10:44 PM
#1
Car has been wrecked....twice
Bought a car here on the forum and just wanted to get some peoples thoughts on what they might think is the right or ethical thing to do. I bought a car recently and turns out it has had not 1 but been in 2 accidents. Seller stated title was clear, but never mentioned the 2 accidents, one of which the car had to be towed off.
The car is beautiful and I love the way it looks and sounds, but just can't help feel that I've been taken from a ride. I have bought cars from forums from members that have been around cause its my thinking that they wouldn't do someone wrong to ruin their reputaion, Guess that was my mistake. Anyways, just found out this info and i'm pissed at both him for not disclosing, and me for not running a car fax.
The car is beautiful and I love the way it looks and sounds, but just can't help feel that I've been taken from a ride. I have bought cars from forums from members that have been around cause its my thinking that they wouldn't do someone wrong to ruin their reputaion, Guess that was my mistake. Anyways, just found out this info and i'm pissed at both him for not disclosing, and me for not running a car fax.
07-20-2011, 10:54 PM
#3
No liens, no salvaged or junk title or anything, so basically the title is clear.
Many cars are in accidents everyday, your chances of getting a used car that has been dinged up or had a large insurance repair bill is pretty good.
Buyer beware. Carfax or take the risk.
Enjoy the car for what it is and from now on use carfax. Hopefully nothing will come back to haunt you from those accidents.
I'd like to see how the car was described in the ad.
I do want to clarify that I don't condone omitting background history on a sale item, but I do accept that it happens, and that is why I trust no one.
Many cars are in accidents everyday, your chances of getting a used car that has been dinged up or had a large insurance repair bill is pretty good.
Buyer beware. Carfax or take the risk.
Enjoy the car for what it is and from now on use carfax. Hopefully nothing will come back to haunt you from those accidents.
I'd like to see how the car was described in the ad.
I do want to clarify that I don't condone omitting background history on a sale item, but I do accept that it happens, and that is why I trust no one.
Last edited by pologreen1; 07-20-2011 at 11:00 PM.
07-20-2011, 11:01 PM
#4
Instructor
Carfax doesn't catch everything
Carfax is certainly no guarantee that the car hasn't been in an accident. If the car was in an accident and fixed by the owner, it ain't gonna show up on the report. Also, not all insurance companies report to Carfax. Probably a better approach would be to use Carfax AND take the car to a mechanic, put it on a lift, go through it with a fine tooth comb, etc.....
07-21-2011, 03:22 AM
#5
Race Director
well, a carfax won't always show up the information.. case in point, I wrecked a 97 Mustang twice when I traded it in on my 98 Corvette I told the dealer about it (what had been fixed etc) a year later I looked it up on carfax (the Mustang) and there wasn't ANYTHING in it about it being wrecked..
07-21-2011, 10:17 AM
#6
Drifting
so let me get this straight? You bought a car from a private party without runing a carfax nor taking it to a mechanic to get it inspected and now you think you've been taken for a ride? Hate to say it bro but you are the one who is at fault here. The first thing I do before even going to look at a used car is run a carfax on it. After the test drive if I think it rides good I take it to a mechanic to do a full inspection on it. You just can't buy a used car anymore without having it checked out. More then likely they were fender benders and it was repaired correctly especially since you say it rides good and looks good. What I would do in your case is call the seller and ask him about the accidents. Have him provide you with the info of were the repair work was done as most shops warranty their repairs. If something comes up you might be able to take it back to that shop and have them repair the issue free of charge. Wish you the best, but you really need to start doing more homework on a car before buy it.
07-21-2011, 10:38 AM
#7
Well like I said, I was pissed at myself for not running the carfax. It was an out of state purchase, so test drive and mechanic inspection didn't apply. I've bought several cars sight unseen and never had any problem with them.
You see a forum member with over 5000 posts, you would think they would be a little more forthcoming with the history of the car. The wrecks occured over 20k miles ago, so it seems the car was repaired properly. I suppose I could even give into the thought that he didn't know about the wrecks and didn't run a carfax either cause he says he bought it from a friend.
I was just taken back when I saw the carfax.
You see a forum member with over 5000 posts, you would think they would be a little more forthcoming with the history of the car. The wrecks occured over 20k miles ago, so it seems the car was repaired properly. I suppose I could even give into the thought that he didn't know about the wrecks and didn't run a carfax either cause he says he bought it from a friend.
I was just taken back when I saw the carfax.
07-21-2011, 11:23 AM
#8
Le Mans Master
Well like I said, I was pissed at myself for not running the carfax. It was an out of state purchase, so test drive and mechanic inspection didn't apply. I've bought several cars sight unseen and never had any problem with them.
You see a forum member with over 5000 posts, you would think they would be a little more forthcoming with the history of the car. The wrecks occured over 20k miles ago, so it seems the car was repaired properly. I suppose I could even give into the thought that he didn't know about the wrecks and didn't run a carfax either cause he says he bought it from a friend.
I was just taken back when I saw the carfax.
You see a forum member with over 5000 posts, you would think they would be a little more forthcoming with the history of the car. The wrecks occured over 20k miles ago, so it seems the car was repaired properly. I suppose I could even give into the thought that he didn't know about the wrecks and didn't run a carfax either cause he says he bought it from a friend.
I was just taken back when I saw the carfax.
We all would like to think that others are as honest as we are but is just not true. Being a member of any forum does not make someone any more honest than one who is not.
I fell for the "brother member" here who came with a good recommendation but I still got burned bad before finding out the persons "real reputation".
07-21-2011, 06:46 PM
#10
Yeah, but wrecked and mishaps are two different things. If it was just minor repairs that is all part of the risk of driving a car around. If they were actual major hits, or maybe not in this case, but in some states they can play with the title that is really wrong.
Do you know if they were major or not? Have you contacted the last owner and asked what they had to say about your findings. Not that it will do anything, but just to clear the air.
Hopefully they were small and it won't affect your resale.
Do you know if they were major or not? Have you contacted the last owner and asked what they had to say about your findings. Not that it will do anything, but just to clear the air.
Hopefully they were small and it won't affect your resale.
07-21-2011, 06:48 PM
#11
Burning Brakes
well, a carfax won't always show up the information.. case in point, I wrecked a 97 Mustang twice when I traded it in on my 98 Corvette I told the dealer about it (what had been fixed etc) a year later I looked it up on carfax (the Mustang) and there wasn't ANYTHING in it about it being wrecked..
07-21-2011, 06:52 PM
#12
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '11, '16-'17
If it has been fixed correctly, I wouldn't worry about it.
BTW, out of state inspections can be done. You arrange it with a mechanic over the phone and have the owner take it to the garage.
BTW, out of state inspections can be done. You arrange it with a mechanic over the phone and have the owner take it to the garage.
07-22-2011, 09:33 AM
#14
Yeah, but wrecked and mishaps are two different things. If it was just minor repairs that is all part of the risk of driving a car around. If they were actual major hits, or maybe not in this case, but in some states they can play with the title that is really wrong.
Do you know if they were major or not? Have you contacted the last owner and asked what they had to say about your findings. Not that it will do anything, but just to clear the air.
Hopefully they were small and it won't affect your resale.
Do you know if they were major or not? Have you contacted the last owner and asked what they had to say about your findings. Not that it will do anything, but just to clear the air.
Hopefully they were small and it won't affect your resale.
Again, it was 20k miles ago, so hopefully all is well.
07-22-2011, 02:04 PM
#15
Le Mans Master
It's hard to judge this without seeing the original ad but you're probably 50/50 to blame.
Sure, it would've been courteous of him to report the accidents but I'm assuming he reported the title as being clear, which is the most important thing.
You on the other hand should have asked him for a carfax at the very least. Perhaps that would've forced him to tilt his hand. If not, it would've been a small price to pay for the overall cost of the car.
07-23-2011, 12:43 PM
#16
"The car is beautiful and I love the way it looks and sounds"
its your car now, just enjoy the dam thing
its your car now, just enjoy the dam thing
07-23-2011, 02:01 PM
#17
Team Owner
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St. Jude Donor '08
I am feeling a little buyers remorse ......If a report of some kind hadnt been made for your information you would be none the wiser ...
Its a car ...if you are not happy ...move on ..
Make sure you disclose the accident's when you sell ....
Its a car ...if you are not happy ...move on ..
Make sure you disclose the accident's when you sell ....
07-25-2011, 12:34 PM
#20
Burning Brakes
Member Since: Jun 2005
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No liens, no salvaged or junk title or anything, so basically the title is clear.
Many cars are in accidents everyday, your chances of getting a used car that has been dinged up or had a large insurance repair bill is pretty good.
Buyer beware. Carfax or take the risk.
Enjoy the car for what it is and from now on use carfax. Hopefully nothing will come back to haunt you from those accidents.
I'd like to see how the car was described in the ad.
I do want to clarify that I don't condone omitting background history on a sale item, but I do accept that it happens, and that is why I trust no one.
Many cars are in accidents everyday, your chances of getting a used car that has been dinged up or had a large insurance repair bill is pretty good.
Buyer beware. Carfax or take the risk.
Enjoy the car for what it is and from now on use carfax. Hopefully nothing will come back to haunt you from those accidents.
I'd like to see how the car was described in the ad.
I do want to clarify that I don't condone omitting background history on a sale item, but I do accept that it happens, and that is why I trust no one.
