Re: best way to make the exchange when buying from out-of-state private seller

Good points.

Is a carfax report sufficient to show a clean title?

Carfax helps in verifying mileage and possibly how many owners the vbehicle has had and what states it may have been registered in. I would not trust it for accident/damage history info since not everything is reported to CarFax.

Peter

In that case, it might be better to have a pre-purchase evaluation done as well. Probably better to do it before I make the trip.

Just a suggestion - order an independent appraisal before anything else. There are many nationwide services and several will go out to the car so it does not inconvenience the current owner. Here is one example just for illustration -

I'm in Tulsa and found my 83 300SD in Dallas and it sounded like the car I wanted. I asked the seller very specific questions and listened intently for the any weaseling in the response. I heard very little so asked if she would give me the name and number of the mechanic, which she did. He confirmed everything she said. I called back told her I would buy it provided that everything was verified by my personal inspection. I asked her if she objected to a mechanic lookin at it and she didn't hesitate in agreeing. I took a cashiers check and asked if she would pick me up at the airport and have clear title. The airport inspection convinced me to drive it around town and the only thing I found that wasn't revealed was that the power antenna didn't work. I testeted everything I could, checked the 0 to

That's a really good suggestion. Thanks!

I've never tried an independent appraisal before. Is this better than a pre-purchase evaluation?

Sounds like a good way to go about it. In addition, I'll probably rely on someone more adept at mechanical inspections than I am.

Sorry, didn't mean to confuse you - it's mainly just terminology since both do similar jobs. Probably best in your case to go with a co. that specializes in pre-purchase evaluations.

Good luck!

That's definitely a good thing to keep in mind. Even though this car is not from a state that gets floods, one never knows where a car has been.

Lynn You never mentioned how much you know about cars or this particular model. Does it have maintenance recors? You can usually take the last digits of the VIN to the local stealership and they'll tell you what they did. If they won't release because you aren't the owner have the owner get the those records. YOu can check lots of stuff yourself like all the power windows, seats, roof, ant, lights, signals, wipers, heater, ac, def, radio, tape/cd, mirrors, oil leaks, tranny leaks, coolant, (is it clear), belts, etc. How it starts, accelerates, shifts, brakes, turns, etc. If anything seems sluggish or doesn't seem right get an estimate to fix. An estimated cost to fix a small problem will sometime floor you by its magnitude. Body and upholstery work are also expensive.. Tires, if they're new see if they're cheapos, will give you a clue to the sellers intentions and also worn cheapos might mean lack of maintenance.