# Carfax **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [November 21, 2014, 4:03am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125 "2014-11-21T04:03:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:03am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/1 "2014-11-21T04:03:09Z")
If I had a new tranny installed, how likely will this procedure show up in Carfax, and other similar reports? ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:06am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/2 "2014-11-21T04:06:35Z")
With the amount of misinformation and missing information on Carfax reports, I honestly don’t know why anyone would put faith in them. That being said, I believe that an indy trans shop likely wouldn’t bother to report this info, but that a dealership probably would. What type of establishment is replacing your transmission? ---
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:16am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/3 "2014-11-21T04:16:55Z")
They already did replace it. Was an independent, 2 -person transmission shop. ---
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:17am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/4 "2014-11-21T04:17:54Z")
Are there other procedures which a shop would be more likely to report? ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/5 "2014-11-21T04:20:46Z")
A small indy shop is extremely unlikely to have the time or the inclination to provide data to Carfax. ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:30am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/6 "2014-11-21T04:30:53Z")
May I ask why you asked this question? ---
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:33am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/7 "2014-11-21T04:33:51Z")
If no one’s legally required to report, why WOULD anyone report? ---
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:35am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/8 "2014-11-21T04:35:16Z")
I used a couple Carfax competitors today. Nothing showed for my car. I guess I don’t regret not using Carfax prior to buying my car. I was trying to use old reports to understand a car problem I have today. Sort of reverse forensics. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:43am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/9 "2014-11-21T04:43:32Z")
**"I guess I don't regret not using Carfax prior to buying my car"** As I stated earlier, the huge amount of misinformation and missing information on Carfax reports makes them close to worthless. I really feel sorry for people who fall for the advertising hype, and who buy flawed vehicles based on a so-called “clean report”. A clean report is a guarantee of…nothing. On the other hand, if a Carfax report lists collision damage, or major mechanical repairs, or only occasional maintenance, that is a good reason to not buy a vehicle. The listed information could be wrong, but–IMHO–it is better to dodge a bullet by mistake than it is to be hit by one by assuming that everything is okay. ---
**Author:** ![pmarc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pmarc/32/22491_2.png) [@pmarc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pmarc)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:45am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/10 "2014-11-21T04:45:08Z")
Well, you’ve summed it up. The car had only one prior owner. I think it’s beating a dead horse. Thanx for your time. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:50am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/11 "2014-11-21T04:50:17Z")
Dealers tend to be the ones using CarFax, probably because they use it as a marketing tool. Also, it can substitute as a set of receipts if the owners had the car serviced at a dealer. As mentioned above, it does have its drawbacks. I bought a 2 year old car a few years ago and the CarFax was a big reason I did so because the car had been dealer (only) serviced and there were no holes in the service record. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:52am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/12 "2014-11-21T04:52:42Z")
> **If I had a new tranny installed, how likely will this procedure show up in Carfax, and other similar reports?** Statistically speaking …highly unlikely. Carfax even admitted it only collects data on less then 5% of all repairs and accidents. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:57am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/13 "2014-11-21T04:57:01Z")
CarFakes? Naw, it’ll never show up. As mike said, they only collect a tiny fraction of data, and from what I’ve seen that don’t even record THAT accurately. I’ve even seen CarFakes reports with data of things that never happened. ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:08am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/14 "2014-11-21T05:08:08Z")
Carfax can show red flags at times. I checked on a 3 year old Mustang convertible once, it was a rental in Hawaii at first and sold at auction in Michigan. Why would it not be still in Hawaii with perfect top down weather. ---
**Author:** ![Yosemite](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/yosemite/32/643_2.png) [@Yosemite](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Yosemite)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:16am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/15 "2014-11-21T05:16:18Z")
Car Fax is nothing more than a marketing tool for dealerships. Very few cars out there have any history pertaining to a car fax report. And that report should always be taken with a grain of salt. Many cars out there are serviced at independent shops that have less than three mechanics working any given day. These mechanics have not the time or the desire to waste 15 minutes of their day filling out paperwork, every time they finish a job. And why would they. That car may have had every routine maintenance item taken care of on time, but it’s never recorded. Then what assurances does the purchaser have that all this work was done at a reputable shop. I knew a guy once that would save the receipts for oil, filters and other routine parts. When he’d get ready to sell a car he’s use those receipts to prove that he did regular maintenance, but those receipts were for the other two cars too. Looked good to the buyer and he’d never offer the buyer to keep those receipts, because he may want to sell another car with those receipts next month. I really don’t know if the dealers or repair shops get anything for providing info. I doubt it!!! Yosemite ---
**Author:** ![ken\_green](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/ken_green/32/816_2.png) [@ken\_green](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ken_green)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:23am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/16 "2014-11-21T05:23:28Z")
first off ; know that Car Fax is a subscription service. A private company that gets information provided TO them by their paying subscription members. And only those members who choose to give them any information at all. secondly ; the MIS-conception is that they are some kind of big brother see-all know-all cyber-hacking data-mining monger that knows every repair ever made by joe’s garage on the corner. Thirdly ; You could ask your little shop if they participate with carfax and that would answer your immediate question. The recent commercials include the legaly correct language but you really have to realize what you’re hearing … ’‘car fax reports EVERYTHING ( reported to them )’’ – key words ‘‘reported TO them’’ are barely intelegable within all the commercial hype they’re selling. ---
**Author:** ![DrRocket](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/drrocket/32/2603_2.png) [@DrRocket](https://community.cartalk.com/u/DrRocket)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 6:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/17 "2014-11-21T06:05:41Z")
I’ve mentioned it in other topics, but my wife works for the state DMV. She’s told me that Carfax reports are worthless. ---
**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 6:17am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/18 "2014-11-21T06:17:44Z")
Carfax reports are no better than gossip. I don’t listen to gossip and if I happen to overhear it…I don’t believe it. ---
**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 8:28am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/19 "2014-11-21T08:28:05Z")
DrRocket, your wife is understating. CarFarce is WORSE than useless. They mislead innocent people. Salespeople use CarFarce to sell used junk to the unwary. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 10:35am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125/20 "2014-11-21T10:35:15Z")
Carfax also buries their meter long disclaimer in the back of the website; hidden behind the colors and the fluff. [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/carfax/88125.md?page=2)