Got a question for any guru's that have used Car Fax. My Magnum is in pretty good shape, but the gas mileage driving from Toledo to Ann Arbor is killing me! So looking to get a smaller car for work, and looking into getting a Car Fax report on used cars. Does the Car Fax show maintenance records of everything done associated with the VIN(Assuming the work was done in a professional garage)? I know it shows any accidents the car has been in.
I think it will only show maintenance if it was done by the dealer. I've ran the reports on my last two cars and it didn't show any maintenance records.
I wouldnt put much into car fax. People pay cash so stuff doesnt show up on carfax, ie wrecks. Just get a mechanic to look at it if you need to.
What MPG are you getting? Toledo to Ann Arbor is a pretty simple route, you should be getting at least 25 average. But no, Car Fax does not show maintenance records if it wasn't performed at a dealer (and usually there's gaps if it was done outside the warranty, or at a different dealer than the one you purchased it at). All it will show is any accidents it's been in (and even then there's ways around this). The only way to know a full service history is if the owner kept logs of it. Otherwise you're on your own to determine what shape everything is in. There a few obvious signs you can look out for, but the chassis especially can be a giant ? when it comes to condition.
Carfax is a blacklist, not a whitelist. I wouldn't trust it unless it actually shows a problem. It should not replace a proper PPI. I owned a car that was almost totaled twice -- clean carfax! Also, no, the vast majority of garages that don't do body work do not report to carfax, so they don't have that.
I usually take 23 to 94 for work and get off by Stadium in Ann Arbor, I get about 23-24 average. Tried everything to get better mileage, I do take care of her! But thanks for the response guys!