2016 DODGE DURANGO R/T VIN 1C4SDJCTXGC486219

This record covers a 2016 Dodge Durango. There is an automatic gearbox, with all-wheel drive. The fuel is petrol. The specification is taken from the source data and has not been checked against other documents.

Gaps of several years between logged figures deserve attention, as does any reading lower than the one before it.

The main issue noted for this car is damage to the left side. A damage type says what kind of damage the car had, not how serious it was or whether it has been repaired since. Given the kind of damage entered, a mechanic should look first at the pillars, sills and doors on the left side.

The record notes that the car ran and drove. A key was present. A condition note describes the car at one moment; months of standing or later work on the car can change the picture in either direction.

According to the source data, the car has a salvage title. A title like this is issued when repair was judged uneconomical or unsafe. Once issued, a branded title stays with the VIN for good, and it affects registration and insurance for every later owner.

Registrations, changes of owner, inspection results and accident claims together make up what is called a car’s history. No single office holds the whole story of a car: registries, workshops, insurance companies and lenders each keep their own part. Much of a car’s past cannot be seen: a good body repair leaves no obvious mark, and neither do years of hard driving.

An engine that has had its oil changed on time is far less likely to cause trouble later, and workshop invoices are the proof. On a petrol engine, spark plugs, ignition coils and the cooling system are the routine items a service history should cover. The automatic gearbox needs its fluid changed at the manufacturer’s intervals, and invoices should show that it was. Drive to all four wheels means more to maintain: differentials and couplings have oil of their own, which some manufacturers want changed at set intervals.

A VIN never contains the letters I, O or Q, which could be mistaken for digits; its 17 characters identify the maker, the model and the individual car. This Dodge Durango has the VIN 1C4SDJCTXGC486219. The VIN usually appears at the base of the windscreen, on a door pillar and stamped into the body, and all of them should match the documents.

Where entries exist, a VIN check can show changes of owner, past mileage readings, reported damage and whether the car is listed as stolen. Paperwork is only as complete as the people who kept it, so a report with few entries lowers the risk without removing it. However complete the paperwork, only an inspection shows the condition of the body, suspension, brakes and electrics today. Before making a decision about this Dodge Durango, check the history behind VIN 1C4SDJCTXGC486219.