Hey guys, i had a question about the VIN# and how it works. If you order a mercedes, lets say an S550, to be built and its build date is in march and you get the VIN number from the dealer after it is built but has not yet reached the US...if you put in the VIN# into carfax, would the car show up? Meaning once a car is made, regardless of where it is, does the car automatically show up on carfax (does the manufacture have to make the information available as soon as the car is built?)...let me know...

I guess the alternative to what im asking would be, does the car actually have to be in the US and at a dealer to have its VIN# accessible through carfax...thanks

 

I think the car has to be in the US before monitoring of the vehicle begins. Carfax is a US company with US patents and after reading their website terms and conditions policy, it leaves me with the feeling that the car is not monitored until someone takes delivery of it from a dealership here in the states.
I've never done a carfax history report before. I should research my own car on it sometime just to see if anything pops up. Carfax may not know anything of any car unless it has been in a collision or fender bender.
I wonder how this data is passed on? Through insurance company reports? Body shop requirements to relay the info? etc, etc,
Good question

 

OK...thanks...i think i figured out whats going on...im sure most of you know this, but i was clueless...anyways, the VIN number is essentially a code that has a lot of information in it that describes the manufacture/year/model of your car, as well as the engine, the factory in which it was made and even the number of your car coming off the assembly line. Basically if you put in a VIN number into car fax it will generate this information because it is decoding the VIN number...the car doesn't actually have to be in any database because it is just a bunch of letters and numbers that are being decoded...so that makes sense now...thanks guys.

 

Don't know about carfax relevance for new cars....

I prob order 3-4 new MBs/yr....what I do is have dealer tell me which boat it's on and ETA of arrival; can track (on-line) boat arrivals at relevant US ports....

Am most concerned about damage during shipping (would refuse any car w/even microscopic damage); so, I watch time spent at VPC (extended periods make one concerned re: damage repair being done at VPC)....

Car goes "dark" in time on truck from VPC to dealer (one can on-line track a $10 Fedex envelope w/amazing precision during its travels, but $200K cars go MIA btwn LA and SF).....MB uses cheapest poss trucking, so trucks play all kinds of games to maximize loads for efficient deliv but seem to want to keep dealers in dark on specific ETA of car at dealer....

And once truck reaches my dealer, dealer preps car to my usual specs...and I always take deliv within an hr or so of finishing prep (in daylight ideally)...before anyone non-authorized has time to sit in my car; rev it; drive it, etc....or ding its doors in the often tight dealer pkg lots....

Post-prep, my salesman does a great job of inspecting car for any imperfections....and I do my own careful inspection in sunlight before signing any lease papers....

Have a superb OCD salesman who understands my preferences and keeps my car away from any curious individuals who may do damage...and/or just spoil aesthetics of a pristine, new car.....other customers can do whatever to those stale, unsold new cars on showroom floor/on dealer lot; bespoke-spec new cars are handled on a "need to touch" basis at any competent dealer; if they aren't, one is shopping at the wrong dealer....

 

^^^hey, thanks for the info...no, i know there is no relevance for carfax info for a new car...i just randomly put my VIN# i got today into google...just to see if anything would come up and it did to a link to carfax, so i clicked on it and it listed that it was a mercedes s550 4matic 2008 and that was built in germany...i was a bit confused because i didn't understand how it could already show up on carfax if the car hasn't even been delievered to the US...then i searched online and realized that the info carfax is giving me can easily be obtained by the VIN# by decoding what the numbers mean...

Relating to what you just wrote...how do you track the boat? What info do you need and where do you go online to track this info?...also, how do you know how long the car is at the VPC...how do you track this info as well...please let me know as this is great information that i would like to utilize as well as i am very critical of the most minimal details...if you are buying a brand new car...you want it brand new in every sense of the term...let me know WSH...i'd appreciate it...if you would prefer you could private message me the info...thanks again.

 

Def appreciate an OCD approach to delivery of cars.....part of what one is paying for w/a new car is pristine aesthetics and no history of paint/body repair, no matter how minor....IMO, would never buy any allegedly new car that's been sitting on a lot...too much stuff periodically happens and is repaired, w/dubious disclosures (if any)....would rather carefully track a car I spec'd through the deliv process, so I can chk quality at various points before committing to the inevitable depreciation costs....

Will provide as many logistics of tracking as I can recall off-hand; my exemplary salesman does much of it for me these days (been buying many new AMGs from same superb salesman for yrs, so he knows my fanaticism about new cars and makes process seamless and time-efficient for me), but, if I missed something, ping me and I'll try to find out details....

Tracking boat....dealer will know when car is assigned to a boat; get name of boat from dealer and ETA at US port; ports have web sites so one will know (to the minute) when boat is arriving and sched to depart port (much like real-time airport scheds); takes some 12hrs to unload boat.....car needs to clear customs before heading to VPC

VPC....dealer computers indicate when car reaches VPC; shouldn't be there more than a ?day; my salesman knows guys at LA VPC to call to get a better read on status if computer summary is delayed.....car is then released for trucking (computer will indicate this status)....then the blk box begins....sometimes car can sit for 1-2 days waiting for a truck....and truck can mysteriously take a while to get to dealer....

Perhaps most importantly, before car reaches dealer....would have a clear understanding w/a competent salesman re: one's specific preferences, e.g., no front plate drilled; no machine wash; only hand wash; no silly dealer plate frame/advertising on car, etc etc....if salesman seems inept and not detail-oriented, one's car is prob screwed here....would immediately reconsider dealer/salesman....life's too short and time of any purchaser of a $100K+ car is too valuable to waste dealing w/an inept salesman, no matter how much disct is offered....let's not forget that no one "needs" a $100K+ car...these are discretionary...feel free to be as obsessive re: details as poss.....

In my expce, those salesmen w/deep books of repeat new S/CL customers tend to be most familiar w/detail-oriented customers who are short on time, but not money....I have no problem compensating a salesman better (via less disct) if I know he will save me a lot of valuable time/hassles, by my not having to micro-manage the process....

Hope this sketch helps; good luck and let me know (via PM, as I tend to read stuff on forum randomly) if any other questions....