Found a 22 M3 LR .... Something is up.

[FeddyWap]

So there is this 2022 M3LR. White on white. No fsd or AB. At one of those "buy here pay here" dealers. On the computer, the car shows 88 miles I think. But, when I google the vin, it says 1052 or something. The dealer guy told me they got it at auction, and showed me a picture that looks like there was a fire or something on the passenger side mirror ? Autocheck shows that it has a clean title, no accidents, one owner. I'm trying to figure out if somehow the title could be salvage and autocheck is wrong ? or if Tesla warranty is still good ?Couldnt get a carfax because they dont use carfax. It is weird tho that the car sayts 52 miles but Autocheck says 1000-something. Car looks great at the dealer, its dirty, but i checke all the lines and what not. I cant tell if there was any actual physical damage. Any way to check with Tesla if its under warranty still ? And, on the Info Screen, there is no "upgrades" tab where I can add premium or FSD subscription. Is that because there is no credit card connected to the account? Or because the car has no account active?

Thanks for any help !

 

[jjrandorin]

I'm trying to figure out if somehow the title could be salvage and autocheck is wrong ?

Sure, Its possible. Sometimes those things take a while to shake out, or people wash the title. From your post, its pretty obvious that you are wary of the car. Listen to your gut. You are describing a car with (supposedly) 88 miles or 1052 miles, at a "buy here pay here" car lot, that they bought at auction.

Why would a "perfectly fine" tesla with 1052 miles be at auction (with pictures of fire damage, and the picture being from "IAA auctions" which is "insurance auto auctions" for vehicles insurance companies own and are selling?

 

[Red Ryder 3]

Run, Forrest, run...

 

[dusty22]

The dealer guy told me they got it at auction, and showed me a picture that looks like there was a fire or something on the passenger side mirror ?

Perhaps a very large bird with digestive issues flew over?

 

[SteveM3Perf]

Maybe a dragon burped on it and accidentally burnt it with their fire breath?
Run for the hills!

 

[CDennis100]

You left out the most important detail….price. I’d buy it, for about 35k. Worth the risk at THAT price.

 

[TBrownTX]

That'll buff out.

 

[PACEMD]

I'd probably just go with whatever the car salesman says. I mean what are the odds of a car salesman being deceptive?

 

[SalisburySam]

You left out the most important detail….price. I’d buy it, for about 35k. Worth the risk at THAT price.

Er, no. Maybe at $15k though…but nowhere near the $30’s.

 

[ODWms]

For the right price, I’d jump on it in a heartbeat.

 

[FeddyWap]

Yeah no, i get it. I'm just confused because it says clean title on autocheck. I dont know how easy it is to have a salvage/rebuilt, and then get it cleaned. Figured it if was that easy everyone would do it. The sales manager was the one who called the owner (the one that bought the car at the auction) and asked if it was a clean title, he said yes. Then he googled the vin and found that picture to show me.

All I'm thinking, is if its got a clear title, and is covered under Tesla factory warranty, then i shouldnt have to worry because if anything goes wrong, its under warranty.....right ? Trying to contact tesla thru the chat on their site but that's not working, seeing if they can tell me if the car is under warranty or if a flag comes up in their system

 

[3sr+buyer]

View attachment 893508

See the "IAA Inc." at the bottom of the photo?

IAAI is a place where insurance companies auction off cars that they bought through total loss settlements.

Here is a web page with some more information about the car and the same photo:

https://bid.cars/en/lot/0-33440375/2022-Tesla-Model-3-5YJ3E1EB7NF228522

The sales history on that page says that it was sold at the IAAI auction on 2022-08-19 with 8 miles, and the seller was Tesla. It also claims that the damage was a front end collision. If true, that suggests a new car that was damaged during transport or some such. Of course, it also means that Tesla knows about this car's history, and will likely consider it to be "salvage".

Here is another page on the car:

https://en.bidfax.info/tesla/model-3/14590378-tesla-model-3-long-range-2022-white-dual-vin-5yj3e1eb7nf228522.html

 

[jjrandorin]

All I'm thinking, is if its got a clear title, and is covered under Tesla factory warranty, then i shouldnt have to worry because if anything goes wrong, its under warranty.....right ?

TL ; DR - "Wrong, because there is virtually zero chance a car sold by IAA auctions actually has a fully clean title. It just hasnt caught up with the car yet".

 

[FeddyWap]

Ahh okay. So if it was sold at this auction then it had to have a salvage title, but somehow it hasnt been updated in the system. So I would have ended up buying the car, registering it, and at some point finding out it was salvaged? Man that would have sucked! Thanks! And the search continues !

 

[T4M3]

I would stay away. Just my personal 2 cents.

 

[davewill]

I don't understand the part about "they don't use CarFax". Do you mean they won't provide one for free? You should always be able to order your CarFax report.

 

[3sr+buyer]

One of the photos on https://bid.cars/en/lot/0-33440375/2022-Tesla-Model-3-5YJ3E1EB7NF228522 has a 360 degree view. In that, you can see that the right side mirror housing looks melted. Looks like the stuff splattered onto the car was some hot material.

Note also that the door seal on the front passenger side was no longer attached to the door frame.

 

[XPsionic]

One of the photos on https://bid.cars/en/lot/0-33440375/2022-Tesla-Model-3-5YJ3E1EB7NF228522 has a 360 degree view. In that, you can see that the right side mirror housing looks melted. Looks like the stuff splattered onto the car was some hot material.

Note also that the door seal on the front passenger side was no longer attached to the door frame.

If it's just the fire damage, looks like it'd cost at least $3000 to fix. Need new paint on fender, door, bottom sill, new mirror, door seal. Plus the car probably smells like smoke.

More than likely it'd cost more than that to fix up properly. Looks like it sold for $45000? Seem like a pretty high price for something that could eventually have a salvage title attached.

 

[evrepair]

It was sold as clean title for 45K plus fees. Unless carfax has words “salvage” or “totaled” on it it will be a clean title. Doesn’t matter that it sold at an auction.

 

[TBrownTX]

I'm going to guess that's transport damage. Car above could have burned. I doubt it's it's "wrecked" in the sense of being in an accident, but there's seemingly paint damage on other areas of the car as well. I'd stay away unless you have means to fix that on your own, if not, I doubt you will come out ahead after repair costs.