Why dont people keep service records?

[Flexin]

Originally Posted by Homeslice

So on the one hand, you guys are saying proof of maintenance isn't important, yet on the other hand you're saying you'd call a shop to find out if it's been maintained. Which is it?

I think most are saying a piece of paper don't mean shit. But talking to the guy that does the work does.

You have to remember that a part can be put in by a good shop and replaced later by a friend as well.

You know what they say, Buyer beware.

James

[Flexin]

Originally Posted by Homeslice

It is important if it saves me time when deciding whether to buy someone's car. No matter which make & model I'm looking for, there's always several of them being sold in my local area. Asking about service history is one way to whittle down the options and save time, rather than going over to everyone's house.

Forget saving time. How about saving money? Ask your questions by email or by phone and decide which ones to go look at. Don't go by a piece of paper. Any papers that make the car look bad can be tossed in the garbage. Now the car looks like a great car that was well taking care of.

Look at the car yourself and decide. Going in knowing what things cost can also help when your deciding what to pay.

James

[Tmall]

Originally Posted by Flexin

Forget saving time. How about saving money? Ask your questions by email or by phone and decide which ones to go look at. Don't go by a piece of paper. Any papers that make the car look bad can be tossed in the garbage. Now the car looks like a great car that was well taking care of.

Look at the car yourself and decide. Going in knowing what things cost can also help when your deciding what to pay.

James

Another great point..

On my Buell I had the; ECM, Front brake rotor, Front motor mount, Exhaust vv solenoid, belt, rear tail light assembly, steering head bearings, and AFV sensor all replaced under warranty. (I'm sure there are one or two things I'm forgetting)

If you didn't know better, you would think I had abused the bike. And that just wasn't the case. I was above and beyond on my maintenance. The only thing I didn't do before schedule was change the fork oil.

By the time it was done, everything that could go wrong had and it had been fixed. So essentially, somebody would be buying the most trouble free Buell on the market. But, if they were a service record nazi they'd have missed out on a 100% problem free bike. They'd likely think it was a POS instead of, "All the wrinkles have been ironed out"....

[Homeslice]

Originally Posted by Flexin

Forget saving time. How about saving money? Ask your questions by email or by phone and decide which ones to go look at. Don't go by a piece of paper. Any papers that make the car look bad can be tossed in the garbage. Now the car looks like a great car that was well taking care of.

Look at the car yourself and decide. Going in knowing what things cost can also help when your deciding what to pay.

James

I narrow it down to people who appear professional and well-written. Saying they know what's been done to it and have all the documentation helps. Maybe it sounds elitist, but I'll skip the ads written by people who have problems with English. 9 times out of 10 it's some 19-yr old punk who abused the car. I also avoid ads that only have a 1 line description, with tiny low-res photos. That just forces me to ask more questions about what kind of options it has, etc. And then when they reply I have to try and match up their email with the right car. Sometimes you can't, because the link to the ad isn't in their email.

[Flexin]

Originally Posted by Homeslice

I narrow it down to people who appear professional and well-written. Saying they know what's been done to it and have all the documentation helps. Maybe it sounds elitist, but I'll skip the ads written by people who have problems with English. 9 times out of 10 it's some 19-yr old punk who abused the car. I also avoid ads that only have a 1 line description, with tiny low-res photos. That just forces me to ask more questions about what kind of options it has, etc. And then when they reply I have to try and match up their email with the right car. Sometimes you can't, because the link to the ad isn't in their email.

I would think most would do that. But the bottom line is how does the car run, drive, feel and look? Because I'm not buying a piece of paper I'm buying a car. For you it might help ease your mind. For me I don't trust the paper work and want to focus on the car itself. If someone was pushing the paper work a lot I think I would walk. To me it would seem like they are hiding something. If they just happened to have the paper work and mention it then thats fine. Chances are I'm not even going to look at the paper work. I would ask what was done but in most cases I don't even think I would look at it.

James

[101lifts2]

Originally Posted by OneSickPsycho

....I've interviewed, managed, and sold enough people over the years to tell with freakishly good accuracy, when someone is lying... ...

I'm Jesus Christ. Wanna buy a bridge?

[Rangerscott]

Originally Posted by 101lifts2

I'm Jesus Christ. Wanna buy a bridge?

As long as it's made of toothpicks.


I refill the gas tank when it gets low. Isn't that maintenance enough?