View Poll Results: What is most likely the status of this car?
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Seeking Advice: Preowned W223 with Potentially Uncertain History
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 13
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Seeking Advice: Preowned W223 with Potentially Uncertain History
Hello fellow car enthusiasts,
I've recently come across a preowned W223 that I'm considering purchasing. The Carfax report shows a clean history, and the price seems to be attractive. However, there's one detail that caught my attention: the car was initially listed by an official MB dealer but was then transferred to a somewhat shady dealer within a month. The latter dealer has a reputation for selling vehicles with accident histories and adding extra fees to their listed prices.
It's worth noting that the MB dealer only sells Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicles. This leads me to think that there might be some issues with the car that prevented it from being certified. I'm curious to know what possible reasons could explain this situation.
My main question is, should I be concerned about this car's history? Additionally, would it be wise to bring a mechanic with me when I go to inspect the vehicle?
I'd greatly appreciate any advice or insights you all may have. Thanks in advance!
I've recently come across a preowned W223 that I'm considering purchasing. The Carfax report shows a clean history, and the price seems to be attractive. However, there's one detail that caught my attention: the car was initially listed by an official MB dealer but was then transferred to a somewhat shady dealer within a month. The latter dealer has a reputation for selling vehicles with accident histories and adding extra fees to their listed prices.
It's worth noting that the MB dealer only sells Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicles. This leads me to think that there might be some issues with the car that prevented it from being certified. I'm curious to know what possible reasons could explain this situation.
My main question is, should I be concerned about this car's history? Additionally, would it be wise to bring a mechanic with me when I go to inspect the vehicle?
I'd greatly appreciate any advice or insights you all may have. Thanks in advance!
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2019
Posts: 2,129
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From: Costco
2023 S500
One thing I learned about Carfax is that it only collects data that is reported, with most of it coming from publicly available information (like police reports). If you get in an accident and no police report, chances are the carfax will come back clean. Some body shops also report, but most don’t. You just have to ask.
How many miles on it? It could be a buyback or someone dumped it because it had problems. There’s a 2022 GLE for sale on a dealer lot with 2k miles on it that on the surface looks pristine. But, peel back the curtains and that car had a ton of issues. How do I know? Well, it was mine and I got fed up and traded it in. I’m always wary of late-model used cars with low mileage are for sale.
How many miles on it? It could be a buyback or someone dumped it because it had problems. There’s a 2022 GLE for sale on a dealer lot with 2k miles on it that on the surface looks pristine. But, peel back the curtains and that car had a ton of issues. How do I know? Well, it was mine and I got fed up and traded it in. I’m always wary of late-model used cars with low mileage are for sale.
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 13
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One thing I learned about Carfax is that it only collects data that is reported, with most of it coming from publicly available information (like police reports). If you get in an accident and no police report, chances are the carfax will come back clean. Some body shops also report, but most don’t. You just have to ask.
How many miles on it? It could be a buyback or someone dumped it because it had problems. There’s a 2022 GLE for sale on a dealer lot with 2k miles on it that on the surface looks pristine. But, peel back the curtains and that car had a ton of issues. How do I know? Well, it was mine and I got fed up and traded it in. I’m always wary of late-model used cars with low mileage are for sale.
How many miles on it? It could be a buyback or someone dumped it because it had problems. There’s a 2022 GLE for sale on a dealer lot with 2k miles on it that on the surface looks pristine. But, peel back the curtains and that car had a ton of issues. How do I know? Well, it was mine and I got fed up and traded it in. I’m always wary of late-model used cars with low mileage are for sale.
Another weird thing is it's been listed for several months. Given the price is Carfax good value, there might be some reason behind it? But it could also be that this dealer always ask for a price increase or additional fee besides their listed price. So their actual price may not look good.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2019
Posts: 2,129
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From: Costco
2023 S500
Yeah why the dealer would dump it off to a used car lot is what would make me nervous. Maybe the dealer serviced the vehicle. They are certainly in a position to see its service history and know of any issues more than anyone else.
You should bring the vin to the dealership and ask for its service history, assuming they allow that. Even if it wasn’t serviced at that dealership, I think all of the dealers are connected and can see the service history from other authorized dealers, not sure, though. I know Audi dealers could.
You should bring the vin to the dealership and ask for its service history, assuming they allow that. Even if it wasn’t serviced at that dealership, I think all of the dealers are connected and can see the service history from other authorized dealers, not sure, though. I know Audi dealers could.
Last edited by Frenetic; Apr 20, 2023 at 09:38 AM.
Thread Starter
Newbie
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Yeah why the dealer would dump it off to a used car lot is what would make me nervous. Maybe the dealer serviced the vehicle. They are certainly in a position to see its service history and know of any issues more than anyone else.
You should bring the vin to the dealership and ask for its service history, assuming they allow that. Even if it wasn’t serviced at that dealership, I think all of the dealers are connected and can see the service history from other authorized dealers, not sure, though. I know Audi dealers could.
You should bring the vin to the dealership and ask for its service history, assuming they allow that. Even if it wasn’t serviced at that dealership, I think all of the dealers are connected and can see the service history from other authorized dealers, not sure, though. I know Audi dealers could.
- Vehicle serviced
- Maintenance inspection completed
- Steering/suspension checked
- Steering wheel replaced
- Front wiper blades/refills replaced
- Emissions or safety inspection performed
- Vehicle serviced
- Maintenance inspection completed
I happened to be also interested in one CPO W223 in the MB dealer's listing. So it might be a good chance to inquire on this issue when I do the test drive for that one.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2019
Posts: 2,129
Likes: 940
From: Costco
2023 S500
Carfax isn’t going to show diddly squat when it comes to issues. It may show routine maintenance but I doubt any dealer would report a check engine light. You should ask the dealer for a service history.
I have proof in my 2022 GLE. They advertised clean CarFax in their website lol. I know that isn’t true.
I have proof in my 2022 GLE. They advertised clean CarFax in their website lol. I know that isn’t true.
Last edited by Frenetic; Apr 20, 2023 at 09:56 AM.
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 13
Likes: 2
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Carfax isn’t going to show diddly squat when it comes to issues. It may show routine maintenance but I doubt any dealer would report a check engine light. You should ask the dealer for a service history.
I have proof in my 2022 GLE. They advertised clean CarFax in their website lol. I know that isn’t true.
I have proof in my 2022 GLE. They advertised clean CarFax in their website lol. I know that isn’t true.
Another thing I'm curious about is how the MB warranty work in this case? I assume either your 2022 GLE or this one is still in warranty.
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Yeah the MB dealer which dumped it is the dealer where the vehicle was initially sold and constantly serviced. They also did services after the vehicle was listed on sale by them. The services look like this on Carfax:
I happened to be also interested in one CPO W223 in the MB dealer's listing. So it might be a good chance to inquire on this issue when I do the test drive for that one.
- Vehicle serviced
- Maintenance inspection completed
- Steering/suspension checked
- Steering wheel replaced
- Front wiper blades/refills replaced
- Emissions or safety inspection performed
- Vehicle serviced
- Maintenance inspection completed
I happened to be also interested in one CPO W223 in the MB dealer's listing. So it might be a good chance to inquire on this issue when I do the test drive for that one.
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