Will GM dealers enter repairs in carfax??

[Caligirl]

Husband and I are still chasing the elusive misfire, rough idle, P0300 & CEL (and now intermittent stabilitrac service light) on my 2007 Tahoe. He's going to either do some more troubleshooting himself (or his mechanic friend) to continue to try to chase it down. We have a list of potential "fixes." It's loooong

Since we bought it from a daughter of the deceased owner, was not able to ask questions about maintenance/repairs. Looking at how clean the interior and the engine was, I'd have to assume that he took good care of it.

Of course the 1st thought is I'm having the dreaded lifter failure, but we're not getting any sounds/power issues that indicate a lifter failure.

I would love to know what, if anything, was done to it before I bought it (including the known issues that were put out in bulletins that we all now know about).

If this vehicle was serviced at a GM dealership, would any of those fixes (if they were done) likely show up on a carfax report? Maybe I can at least start with some sort of knowledge of what has been done before I purchased it without having to have anyone tear everything apart to find the cause of this dang misfire(s)? Husband hasn't worked on this vehicle before and he thought he could just pop off the spark plugs and wires and change them around to check to see if any were bad haha nope! Doesn't have the fancy boot remover.

 

[Myfirstz71]

There are over 250,000 auto businesses that report to carfax by VIN. Some are more detailed than others, but generally you can get a pretty good snapshot of what was done, and how often. Even from jiffy lube.

If you PM me the VIN and an email address I will see about getting you a PDF of the VHR (vehicle history report) when I’m at work tomorrow.

 

[Geotrash]

Husband and I are still chasing the elusive misfire, rough idle, P0300 & CEL (and now intermittent stabilitrac service light) on my 2007 Tahoe. He's going to either do some more troubleshooting himself (or his mechanic friend) to continue to try to chase it down. We have a list of potential "fixes." It's loooong

Since we bought it from a daughter of the deceased owner, was not able to ask questions about maintenance/repairs. Looking at how clean the interior and the engine was, I'd have to assume that he took good care of it.

Of course the 1st thought is I'm having the dreaded lifter failure, but we're not getting any sounds/power issues that indicate a lifter failure.

I would love to know what, if anything, was done to it before I bought it (including the known issues that were put out in bulletins that we all now know about).

If this vehicle was serviced at a GM dealership, would any of those fixes (if they were done) likely show up on a carfax report? Maybe I can at least start with some sort of knowledge of what has been done before I purchased it without having to have anyone tear everything apart to find the cause of this dang misfire(s)? Husband hasn't worked on this vehicle before and he thought he could just pop off the spark plugs and wires and change them around to check to see if any were bad haha nope! Doesn't have the fancy boot remover.

I’m not 100% sure, but I believe that GM can also provide you with the maintenance history of repairs if they were done at any of their dealers.

 

[Caligirl]

I’m not 100% sure, but I believe that GM can also provide you with the maintenance history of repairs if they were done at any of their dealers.

That's the thing... I called probably 5 or 6 of them in the greater area near where the owner lived and none of them had records. Daughter said he was meticulous about taking it in and getting the oil changes and maintenance at the dealer. And the vehicle on the inside and outside looks virtually new besides for a few gravel chips on windshield and front hood (he lived on a ranch), minor bumper front bumper dings and some now-repaired interior dog chew damage lol. Doesn't even have the nefarious dash crack. I think he kept it garaged because there's no heat damage to anything and for someone who takes that good of care of the inside of the vehicle (besides doggy "love") you'd think there would be records somewhere of what he had done under the hood.

 

[BADRIDES]

We do not report to carfax at the dealership I work at and the only records I would have of a particular vehicle is any warranty work done to it or customer pay work done at my dealership. Our computers are not synced up with other Chevy dealerships to access info.

 

[Caligirl]

We do not report to carfax at the dealership I work at and the only records I would have of a particular vehicle is any warranty work done to it or customer pay work done at my dealership. Our computers are not synced up with other Chevy dealerships to access info.

That's what I suspected and was afraid of...but it is worth a shot. I believe he bought it new and was original owner so maybe some of the problems with that year may have been fixed under warranty? Just grasping at straws at this point. Money fixing it (on the CORRECT issue) is not the issue, it's just the time and anxiety about wondering if it's gonna break down when I'm driving it and have no backup vehicle. Live in a rural area with no bus or uber and too far to walk. We're kind of hoping that it would just take a c*** altogether so that we could figure out what it is.

 

[91RS]

I’m not 100% sure, but I believe that GM can also provide you with the maintenance history of repairs if they were done at any of their dealers.

GM only keeps a record of warranty repairs. The GM report will not show any CP work done.

Carfax only shows information voluntarily reported to it. Carfax is always a good place to start but never ever trust it completely. There are many municipalities and shops in this country that do not report to Carfax and most body shops do not report to Carfax either. When Carfax does have maintenance records, it is generally very vague because it is only as good as the person entering in the information who is usually not a car person.

 

[Geotrash]

GM only keeps a record of warranty repairs. The GM report will not show any CP work done.

Carfax only shows information voluntarily reported to it. Carfax is always a good place to start but never ever trust it completely. There are many municipalities and shops in this country that do not report to Carfax and most body shops do not report to Carfax either. When Carfax does have maintenance records, it is generally very vague because it is only as good as the person entering in the information who is usually not a car person.

Very helpful, thank you.

 

[Caligirl]

GM only keeps a record of warranty repairs. The GM report will not show any CP work done.

Carfax only shows information voluntarily reported to it. Carfax is always a good place to start but never ever trust it completely. There are many municipalities and shops in this country that do not report to Carfax and most body shops do not report to Carfax either. When Carfax does have maintenance records, it is generally very vague because it is only as good as the person entering in the information who is usually not a car person.

Thanks for the info...too bad they don't enter more. What is Carfax good for then? Accident reports to DMV or local authorities?

 

[swathdiver]

Husband and I are still chasing the elusive misfire, rough idle, P0300 & CEL (and now intermittent stabilitrac service light) on my 2007 Tahoe. He's going to either do some more troubleshooting himself (or his mechanic friend) to continue to try to chase it down. We have a list of potential "fixes." It's loooong

Since we bought it from a daughter of the deceased owner, was not able to ask questions about maintenance/repairs. Looking at how clean the interior and the engine was, I'd have to assume that he took good care of it.

Of course the 1st thought is I'm having the dreaded lifter failure, but we're not getting any sounds/power issues that indicate a lifter failure.

I would love to know what, if anything, was done to it before I bought it (including the known issues that were put out in bulletins that we all now know about).

If this vehicle was serviced at a GM dealership, would any of those fixes (if they were done) likely show up on a carfax report? Maybe I can at least start with some sort of knowledge of what has been done before I purchased it without having to have anyone tear everything apart to find the cause of this dang misfire(s)? Husband hasn't worked on this vehicle before and he thought he could just pop off the spark plugs and wires and change them around to check to see if any were bad haha nope! Doesn't have the fancy boot remover.

I used the CarFax for my vehicle to determine which businesses did work to it. Then they were each contacted and they kindly sent me pdfs of the receipts for the work performed. I reckon it's not complete but it sure did answer some questions and provided a good maintenance history.

Now back to the Tahoe, does your husband have a Tech-2 or bi-directional scan tool? A cheap little code reader is not up to the task of properly diagnosing these problems. Do y'all live near Stockton? There's a guy on here with one.

 

[91RS]

Thanks for the info...too bad they don't enter more. What is Carfax good for then? Accident reports to DMV or local authorities?

Yes. That’s the biggest reason to use Carfax. I’ll never buy a vehicle that has been in an accident again. Carfax is a good place to start but it always pays to get a PPI in my opinion.

 

[Just Fishing]

Good topic.
I wondered of my original engine had afm failure at one point, and had the camshaft replaced.

Reason was a weird cam bearing failure that i blamed on engine sludge and my attempt to clean the engine.
Tiny little filter bypassed and wiped out the first thing in the oil path, the rear cam bearing...

But some of that doesn't make sense since i would expect trash in the rear main as well.

Other thought was a damaged bearing due to a rushed or sloppy camshaft replacement.

My lifters and camshaft looked really good for having nearly 180k on it...

Nothing on the carfax about any sort of internal engine work...

But the prior owners did buy it from a dealership.
Possible they took it on trade with the taps.
Fixed it for cheap and then sold it off.

The people i got it from,
They had it for less than a year.
When i went to look at it, it was parked and the registration was expired...

I suspect they realized some serious damage and opted to just replace the tahoe with the xl gmc that was currently in use.

I might try the dealership where they bought it from, it's very close to me...

Not that it matters at this point, but i am curious.

 

[Caligirl]

I used the CarFax for my vehicle to determine which businesses did work to it. Then they were each contacted and they kindly sent me pdfs of the receipts for the work performed. I reckon it's not complete but it sure did answer some questions and provided a good maintenance history.

Now back to the Tahoe, does your husband have a Tech-2 or bi-directional scan tool? A cheap little code reader is not up to the task of properly diagnosing these problems. Do y'all live near Stockton? There's a guy on here with one.

His mechanic friend at work has the higher end Tech readers and nothing popped besides P0300. Husband also borrowed a midline one that still just shows the P0300. The problem is knowing how to use them properly. I think that we will try to buy a new or used one if this continues or for future fun haha

 

[Myfirstz71]

Husband and I are still chasing the elusive misfire, rough idle, P0300 & CEL (and now intermittent stabilitrac service light) on my 2007 Tahoe. He's going to either do some more troubleshooting himself (or his mechanic friend) to continue to try to chase it down. We have a list of potential "fixes." It's loooong

Since we bought it from a daughter of the deceased owner, was not able to ask questions about maintenance/repairs. Looking at how clean the interior and the engine was, I'd have to assume that he took good care of it.

Of course the 1st thought is I'm having the dreaded lifter failure, but we're not getting any sounds/power issues that indicate a lifter failure.

I would love to know what, if anything, was done to it before I bought it (including the known issues that were put out in bulletins that we all now know about).

If this vehicle was serviced at a GM dealership, would any of those fixes (if they were done) likely show up on a carfax report? Maybe I can at least start with some sort of knowledge of what has been done before I purchased it without having to have anyone tear everything apart to find the cause of this dang misfire(s)? Husband hasn't worked on this vehicle before and he thought he could just pop off the spark plugs and wires and change them around to check to see if any were bad haha nope! Doesn't have the fancy boot remover.

Here you go Caligirl

 

[Myfirstz71]

Last one

 

[Caligirl]

Woohoo, thanks! At least I can confirm regular maintenance thru 2014, but sadly no info shown about replacements/preventative fixes for those reported known issues. I suspect that during the 2014-2021 period before we bought it (only another 20000 miles) if pattern holds, probably started taking it to a dealership that didn't report. But definitely shows good history of maintenance. And daughter took it in at 86k for a 90k check up/maintenance at dealer and spent $1500 plus, including all new iridium plugs and wires etc. We now have 94k on it, so thinking this is a new problem. First accident was probably what caused the crease on bumper. That last accident listed was after we owned it for about 6 months and while it was parked in a parking lot, someone backed into it grrrrr. But the body shop fixed it right up and looks brand spanking new. At least we know oil kept clean, which sounds like for this engine is paramount to good engine health

Thanks Myfirstz71

 

[swathdiver]

His mechanic friend at work has the higher end Tech readers and nothing popped besides P0300. Husband also borrowed a midline one that still just shows the P0300. The problem is knowing how to use them properly. I think that we will try to buy a new or used one if this continues or for future fun haha

There is something called "Failure Record" that the computer takes a snapshot of what was going on when the code first appeared. A bi-directional scan tool can retrieve this. These tools can also graph and record different things and in this case, it can also test the injectors, coils and de-ac lifters which is what I would do.

We cannot effectively work on these vehicles without them and the shop manual.

Performance Chevrolet did a lot of work on that truck, that's who I'd call and ask for the service records. Often times descriptions like "checked computer" are code for major repairs.

 

[Caligirl]

There is something called "Failure Record" that the computer takes a snapshot of what was going on when the code first appeared. A bi-directional scan tool can retrieve this. These tools can also graph and record different things and in this case, it can also test the injectors, coils and de-ac lifters which is what I would do.

We cannot effectively work on these vehicles without them and the shop manual.

Performance Chevrolet did a lot of work on that truck, that's who I'd call and ask for the service records. Often times descriptions like "checked computer" are code for major repairs.

So "checked computer" wouldn't be listed on this report, too? Such a mess trying to track down history. Seems like the newer vehicles are much more of a risk to buy without complete history than older ones. Yeah I know, I know the newer ones have better performance and better gas mileage yada yada, but the old ones just seem to just be like the Energizer Bunny!

 

[swathdiver]

So "checked computer" wouldn't be listed on this report, too? Such a mess trying to track down history. Seems like the newer vehicles are much more of a risk to buy without complete history than older ones. Yeah I know, I know the newer ones have better performance and better gas mileage yada yada, but the old ones just seem to just be like the Energizer Bunny!

I meant that as an example of how to "read between the lines". Even when poorly maintained, these trucks last a lot longer than their ancestors. When I was a young man, a car or truck was considered wore out at 80-100K miles.