Does this story sound fishy?

[Andy15430]

I'm interested in this 2008 Subaru Impreza that the dealer is saying was just traded in by this rich, eccentric guy who gets a new Subaru from their dealership every 6 months. I find the story suspicious to begin with, and the fact that it only has 250 miles on it really makes me question if somebody was actually driving it for 6 months -- seems way low.

When I click on the Carfax link on Autotrader (where I found the car), it says there are four "records" on this vehicle, and I have to pay $24.99 to see the full report. Now, there are three other 2008 Imprezas at this dealership, but they all link to the full Carfax report for free, and each has 5 or 6 "records" that are basically title transfers from when a rental company bought the car and then when the dealer picked up the car at auction. So, clean Carfax records, basically. I'm curious as to why I need to pay to see the report from the car I'm interested in when it has just as many "records" as the other cars with free Carfax reports. It makes me wonder if there is something bad on the Carfax for the car I want.

I'm still not committed to this car, though, and don't want to waste $25 bucks on a record if it winds up being clean. The dealer faxed me a clean Auto Check record (they don't use Carfax anymore, apparently), but a quick web search shows that Auto Check isn't generally as comprehensive as Carfax. The only records on the Auto Check one I have are two from October when the car was first bought, so right there it seems like Carfax already has a more comprehensive record than AutoCheck.

Anyway, just wanted to see if anyone knew more about this than I do and could offer advice. I hate buying cars.

[inafogg]

normally the dealer can do a vin check for free

[Ray paulsen]

If your really interested in this car and dealer got nothing to hide you will be provided with a full report by the dealer, or you walk

Anybody that buys a vehicle from a dealership and waste their money on a report is a fool - exception - if your in a shopping stage looking at many vehicles the approx $30 for a month of free checks is a good investment as it will give you reports , not to waste your time to go view some vehicle's

You say there are 4 reports on this vehicle with only 250 miles " LOL" the simple answer is, if there were no reports there would be know need for you to invest money for a full report, I challenge you and anybody else to post a vehicle vin # through Carfax or Auto Check thats on the road today that wont show records " it's a cash cow "

I personally like Auto check compared to Carfax, but thats another story another day, as for you buying I am happy your doing some homework prior to buying, it's an area to many consumers neglect...good luck