2012 NISSAN MURANO S VIN JN8AZ1MW6CW212020

The Nissan Murano S described here left the factory in 2012. There is an automatic gearbox, with all-wheel drive. The fuel is petrol. Details for this car come from a single data source and may differ from its documents.

The record gives the mileage as 130,473 miles. Because the clock counts miles, any figure noted in kilometres has to be converted before the two can be compared. Turning back an odometer takes little skill and leaves no visible trace, which is why earlier figures matter more than the display. Older figures usually turn up on service invoices, inspection reports and past title paperwork.

Primary damage in the record: right front. Whether the damage has been repaired since, and how well, is not something a damage entry can show. With damage to the right front on file, the inspection should start with the right front wing, the suspension on that corner and the wheel alignment.

At the time of recording, the car ran and drove. A key was there when the car was checked.

The car carries a clean title. With a clean title the car can be registered and insured in the usual way.

Every car builds up a history from the day it is first registered: owners come and go, inspections are passed or failed, and repairs are paid for. No single office holds the whole story of a car: registries, workshops, insurance companies and lenders each keep their own part. From the outside, a car with a repaired accident and a car without one can look identical.

An engine that has had its oil changed on time is far less likely to cause trouble later, and workshop invoices are the proof. Many modern petrol engines are turbocharged and direct-injected; where they are, the turbocharger and injectors belong on a specialist’s checklist. The automatic gearbox needs its fluid changed at the manufacturer’s intervals, and invoices should show that it was. With all-wheel drive, mismatched tyres can strain the centre differential or coupling, so all four should be the same make and similarly worn.

A vehicle identification number has 17 characters: the first three name the manufacturer, the next six describe the model and its specification, and the last eight identify the individual car. The record gives the VIN as JN8AZ1MW6CW212020. A VIN that differs between the documents and the car, or shows signs of tampering, is reason enough to walk away.

A VIN report gathers what different sources know about a car, such as the number of owners, mileage readings, damage and any branded title. A VIN check and a physical inspection answer different questions: the first says what happened to the car, the second what condition it is in now. The next step is to look up the history behind VIN JN8AZ1MW6CW212020.