On 12/9/2013 11:03:38 PM RWDriv3r wrote:I went to Donnacona Honda dealer located at 159 rue Commerciale Donnacona, QC G3M 1W2 to go see an older model 2002 Honda Accord coupe that looked clean on the pictures and that a salesman assured me was spotless and rust-free. Once there, I noticed the car was in the shop bay like initially agreed on the phone before my departure, as to be able to look at it more easily since it there was a snowfall outside. From a first sight, at a distance, the car looked immaculate and the interior was in fact really clean, which is a rare thing. Although, by looking closer, I noticed some rust in spots where it's not related to car design, having owned the same car for 7 years certainly helped to see the details that give out the vehicle's history. I used to own a 1998 Honda Accord coupe LX which was essentially the same model with a few options different, but same engine, same transmission, standard.
Having doubts about the bodywork, I took out my paint gauge, which I bought after realizing I had undisclosed repairs done on a car I previously purchased that where not shown on the Carproof report. It's not a high end gauge, but it's consistent enough for measuring overall paint thickness on a metal surface. I noticed the paint discrepancy was over 8 mils, some areas being of a different gloss, showing imperfections and impurities in the paint. The paint job still didn't look like a botched job, machine painting versus hand painting might be the reason for the discrepancy. I might even have been wrong about it, it a possibility. Nevertheless, I was still interested by the car, even repaired, this could've been a sale for them. I asked the salesman to use his dealer account at Carproof to print a report to gain knowledge of the history of the car before buying it. We then went to see his boss, the director of the Donnacona Honda dealer located at 159 rue Commerciale Donnacona, QC G3M 1W2. When asked for the report, he mentioned not wanting to provide it and that the car was sold as-is. A seller being unwilling to provide a carproof to you should ring a bell. Dealers have a dealer account with Carproof, the cost is not the same for them. You could even pull out a Carproof report from a cellphone right in front of them, but after seeing the director's attitude decide not to just because a client shouldn't be pressured into buying a car without being offered all the history of the car.
Carproof reports are probably not foolproof, some owner's or sellers prefer to do the work without warranty claim, out of pocket or in-house. A collision damaged vehicle has a lower resale value and the loss might be passed unknowingly to the next owner. Selling a vehicle that has no Carproof collision history is much easier for a seller, most buyer's don't have the knowledge and tools to detect undisclosed previous history; even a well trained eye can miss a clue. Relying on Carproof solely, some buyers are not aware of their vehicle past history, some buyers wouldn't have purchased the car knowingly. A seller might insist that the Carproof is clean, "The Carproof is clean!", or even mention that the previous owner signed a declaration saying the car was never in an accident. You might even be tempted to laugh, as trained professionals buying a car with collision damage history without noticing it while an amateur can is pretty funny. If a previous owner was in an accident with a car, would he gain in trade-in value if the car's history remained undisclosed to Carproof?
Selling a vehicle with accident damage is one thing, not disclosing it, and furthermore not being open to provide easily accessible information is another. Being nice and offering a good customer service is everything, it even directly affects the bottom line.
On 12/9/2013 7:09:51 PM Donroxie wrote:I had an apptmt. but Darrell was able to change the brake light bulb within minutes when I dropped my car off. Avoiding having to leave my car there overnight. Much appreciated!