Service Records....Who Cares

They only indicate the cars was maintained as opposed to eeking out 10 years on a oil change because it looked fine to you. Big differance.

 

We often hear about people who add up the numbers very carefully to find that they can afford to buy a Ferrari.

And forget about what it costs to maintain it.

They don't tend to own the cars very long, but the "run till it stops" history is something to look for.

However; I'll agree that knowing that it's right, now, is more significant than seeing the course it got there.

I prefer to discount the purchase on a used Italian car, and then have *my* mechanic do a complete "make it right" service.
That way, I know what I have.

(Habit acquired on Alfas, when I had possibly the best Alfa mechanic in the US.)

 

What if the buyer asks what brand of tires were on the car from 1992-1996? I suppose you just stand there with a dumb look on your face.

Not so smug now, eh?

 

FWIW, I do not buy cars without them.

 

I had over 21 years of records when I sold my car last month and you know it helped me get what I was asking for the car,so it does matter to some buyers,it mattered to me when I bought,as for the oil changes it shows how long between changes or how many miles the p.o. drove the car b4 he changed oil or anything,If there was a reciept there showing the oils was changed in last 100 miles but whos to say the one b4 that was 10 years with there was no reciept,eeks

 

Most of the following is relative to prepurchase inspection.

I have spent a good part of my adult life involved with automotive service, as a service manager and/or service writer, (not real work, like twisting wrenches). I do all of my own work, except air cond, body work or upholstry.

In service records, i look for depth and breadth of service work, not just oil changes, but brake fluid changes, wheel bearing pack, hose replacements, cv boots, valve adjustments,oxygen sensors/carb overhaul. The minor stuff, i like to see repeated on a fairly regular basis and it is good to see that little minor stuff has come to the attention of the owner and called out in the repari orders.

Often times you will see interesting notes from the mechanic, giving you a clue as to the attentiveness of the owner and existing problems. One of my all time favorite mechanics comments was a note to the owner, (who had repeatedly ignored his advice about almost metal to metal brakes -to wit: " YOU GOTTA FIX THE FU**ING BRAKES OR YOU GONNA FU**ING DIE". Some how that note did not make it, verbatim, to the customers copy from the hard copy.

Real red flags would be:
Repeat problems or a series of potentially expensive problems: water leaking into the car, varied, multipul or frequent electrical gremlins, chronic running problems that never seem toget fixed.
Or real major issues like the car being inundated in a flood, fire or seriously wrecked.

For example, i noted that within the first 100k miles a Volvo that my wife really wanted had had TWO sets of motor mounts and rear suspension bushings, repeated problems with the rear wipers and a nearly endless list of small body related issues. She just had to have it so we made a low offer and proceeded to pay for a non stop list of small things which ate up the difference between a "good" car and the "deal" we got.

The handwriting was on the wall and at the first sign of engine compartment wiring issues we unloaded the little white beauty.

Bottom line...It is better to know what and when things were done to the car.

My .25
chris

Having just ended the rant, i will confessthat the red mist did foul my judgement a bit and i bought a car with almost no service records. The car was low miles and everythng worked. Through the red mist, my heart was saying, "I gotta have this car", while my brain whispered..."but it don't got none of them service record thingies..."
In truth, i was looking forward to, i mean really really looking forward to gtting back into wrenching on a nice car - so i got it and love it.

hth,
chris

 

Good cars tend to have good records though I do know many good cars that do not. However, there are very few bad cars that have good records, though it does sometimes happen. It's a matter of playing the odds and what buyers are comfortable with.

The best scenario is when you personally know the owner and what he/she has or has not done to a car. Unfortunately, this often not possible.

Dave

 

The records say a lot in how the car was treated and cared for, A) An Owner/Enthusiast, B) A person that views a car as an appliance uses it like one.

I have seen the results of 'B' many times, usually the average car is junk before it hits 50k miles, a Ferrari? Much sooner than that.

Who would you buy from? A or B?
.

 

+1, in general, cars WITH records are typically owned by those that care and have pride in their cars. Those cars without records, simply don't care.

 

Records cut both ways...

2 cars side by side. One has a 3 inch thick stack of service records fixing every little thing that ever broke on the car. The other just normal oil changes and wear items.

All things things being equal, which car would you buy? The one that broke all the "lemon" or the one that "never broke" ?

One mechanic on this thread has already said he looks for "recurring problems". Showing these records could very well hurt as much as help.


Long way of saying I agree with OP....current condition and last major is all one can really tell about a car. Anyone can make anything look good (or bad) before that.

 

Records can be fabricated as well so who knows? Really.................
Interpretation of what is in the records, how often and WHO goes a long way in making a judgment call.

 

I would never buy a car without the service records.

 

Exactly right. It isn't records being fabricated I would worry about. It is the records that are being omitted. How do you know about those? Slip the body shop receipt into the bin and claim the car has never been wrecked. Who would know? Slip the recurring overheating disasters in the trash, how would a buyer ever know?

I think too much emphisis is placed on records. If the seller says the engine/tranny/steering rack/air condo was rebuilt he'd better have a receipt for it. But as far as looking for red flags I think the worst thing you find is likely to be at least the second-most worst thing there is.

 

I bought my 308 without papers,the PPI checked out the car was in really good condition.Since owning her I had the timming belts changed,radiator record,tranz oil changed,no problems so far.Still if you purchace a car with papers/full documentation theres still no guarantee you won't have problems.Just get the service done and have fun with her!

 

I'd just say "go look on the car."

 

It's clear that a car with good records will fetch more. If you're just looking at today then what's it matter but, if you're thinking about tomorrow and maybe the day after that a car with records will sell for more. Personally I'd rather not throw money away unless I steal the car right from the start in which case records can be overlooked.

 

I wouldn't buy a Ferrari without service records. I don't buy any car without service records.

I like to know what I am getting. I want to know how my car has been treated, if there has been repeated problem areas, if all service bulletins and updates have been performed, and if certain wear items have been tended to at the appropriate mileage or time. At best, it is an excellent resource, at worst, they can't hurt.

The only people in my experience who play down service records, are those who don't have them, especially dealers. But given the choice, no reasonable person would say "no thanks" to service records and I for one, would be, and have, spent considerably more for cars that have them.

Of course, I then go the step beyond and contact the prior mechanics to learn more about the car, but hey, that's just me.



If I am going to buy a car a high performance car with the ability to rack up serious bills. I want to know where it has been.

 

I never did any investigation or web searches prior to buying mine. I felt I had enough mechanical skills to determine how good the car was. The person I bought the car from was not a gearhead but he offered me a copy of the 30k service. It was done by an independent guy who specialized in exotic's. I went to see the mechanic before I bought the car and had a discussion with him. Based on that and the 30k service plus looking at the guy's shop I felt comfortable that his work was good and the car was in good shape. So now I do my own service and my records are a spread sheet along with all of the parts receipt and a box of used parts. So I'm not to worried about service records as long as the car looks and feels good. Just my thoughts here.

 

All other things being equal, it's better to have records than not. Why not?

But the thing that is most impt is the current condition of the vehicle. A car can be in excellent condition with no records available, or in horrible condition with a bunch of records.

 

its a tough call. no doubt there is a huge selection bias. the real records u want to know about are more often than not thrown out. just my two cents.