The vehicle history report of a used car is generated from a database of used vehicles registered with DMV (department of motor vehicle). To generate this history report, your VIN (vehicle identification number) will be needed. The VIN is the car’s 17 digit serial number, located at the bottom corner of the windshield on the driver’s side, or at the bottom part of the frame of the car that is visible when the driver’s door is open. Many companies, the most popular being CarFax offer to generate a full vehicle history report at a cost, but many dealers also offer this service for free. Either way, the generation of a history report is essential before purchasing any sort of used vehicle because all the information that could possibly be hidden about that vehicle will appear in that report.

Reading the vehicle history report

When reading a vehicle history report, especially one that you have paid for, it is essential to get the most out of it by understanding exactly what it is saying. There is a lot of necessary information on the report that may be easily glanced over as unimportant if the time is not taken to read the report properly.

Vehicle information

At the top of the report, usually in the left hand corner is located all the "sticker" information about the car, this includes: the VIN, what type of car, the year the car was made, and standard engine information. Check to ensure that the VIN and engine information coincide before continuing with the report.

Safety options

Directly below the vehicle information on the header of the report are three options from which the customer can select to display various safety features. Detailed here is all the cars safety information as well as estimated costs in the unfortunate events of an accident.

Ownership history

This section details how many times the car was previously owned, in what states and the type of owner that had the car. The most important piece of information in this section is the last odometer reading which is clearly stated on the report. Any difference between that reading and the actual reading could be a bad sign for purchasing that particular used car.

Title problems

This section of the report explicitly details potential problems to buyers found on the car title, it states everything about the cars title, from what type of damage it sustained, to embellishments regarding mileage.

Other information

There is usually a section for other information, and even though this is so called, the information here is very important and needs to be read carefully. An accident check will appear in this section which basically details the safety of the car in its present state.