Community Forums

lbaker5644 · 04-15-2013, 09:56 AM

I am looking at a 1996 National Dolphin 535s. I entered the vin# into carfax and it says there are 11 records listed. Has anyone ever used carfax for a motorhome and if so was it worth it? I also found another site that seems to be basically the same reports for 1/4 the cost (Vinaudit.com) anyone familiar with this company? Thanks in advance!

wildtoad · 04-15-2013, 10:09 AM

11 records for a 16 year old vehicle probably represents each time it was registered with different owners so I suspect there are not any important facts to be had. However, the few bucks it costs may be help peace of mind. Don't know anything about the other company.

lbaker5644 · 04-15-2013, 10:50 AM

So I pulled a report with vinaudit.com since they are only $12.95 opposed to Carfax which is $40 The only meaningful information I found was that it was in Florida until 2000 (it's a 1996 model) and appears to have been here in California since then. Anyone see any red flags based on the mileage report?
9/27/2000 Florida title 38107 miles
11/10/2000 California title 38336 miles
Current mileage 41,xxx miles
Obviously it is further than 229 miles from Florida to California, is it common practice to ship from FL to CA rather than drive it?
Approx 3000 miles in 13 years obviously may have created problems from under use, anything I should look for that may be a red flag? I do have a mechanic meeting me to go over it but the more input the better.

It also has a hump in the floor in kitchen area, doesn't feel soft or mushy..just a hump. I have read that it could be a result of possible rust on from if from the salt belt. Would Florida be considered the salt belt and would 4 years there be long enough for rust to become an issue?

csrrsr · 04-15-2013, 01:06 PM

The Carfax we pulled for our coach told us a lot. Not only ownership changes and mileage, but mileage between renewal registrations, exhaust tests etc. Ours did have a fender bender in Nevada which surprised the owner when we told him since the original owner never disclosed it to him. For the money we were going to spend on the coach the carfax fee was a drop in the bucket....maybe 10 gallons of diesel. If your trying to save money and your flying blind your simply going to get what you payed for.

michelb · 04-15-2013, 01:12 PM

I usually get CarFax / AutoCheck / whatever just for peace of mind but it's really not that useful simply because I don't believe it's accurate enough to really be trusted.