2019 NISSAN ROGUE SV VIN KNMAT2MV8KP524973

This record covers a 2019 Nissan Rogue SV, finished in black. Under the bonnet is a 2.5-litre petrol engine producing 170 hp. Power reaches the wheels through an automatic gearbox. Every figure for this car is given as it appears in the source data.

The record gives the mileage as 66,156 miles. Because the clock counts miles, any figure noted in kilometres has to be converted before the two can be compared. Gaps of several years between logged figures deserve attention, as does any reading lower than the one before it. Service invoices and inspection reports each carry a mileage figure, and lined up in order they show whether the clock tells the truth.

When the car was recorded, it showed rear-end damage. A damage entry is a starting point for the inspection, telling the mechanic where to look first. With rear-end damage on file, the inspection should start with the boot floor, the rear panel and the chassis rails.

The car is recorded as running and driving. A key is on file for the car. 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.

A salvage title is on file for this car. Titles of this type are issued to cars declared a total loss. Once issued, a branded title stays with the VIN for good, and it affects registration and insurance for every later owner.

A car’s history answers three questions: who kept it, how it was looked after and what went wrong along the way. The paperwork is kept by different bodies – registries, workshops, insurance companies and lenders – so the history of one car is spread across many places. A clean, polished car can still hide a serious accident, a flood or years of hard use.

Regular oil changes and timely work on the timing belt or chain decide how well an engine copes with age. Many modern petrol engines are turbocharged and direct-injected; where they are, the turbocharger and injectors belong on a specialist’s checklist. Automatic transmissions, CVTs included, are expensive to repair, so the test drive should include pulling away from a standstill and a stretch at motorway speed. A car with four-wheel drive has extra differentials and often a transfer case, which an inspection should cover alongside the engine and gearbox.

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. The VIN on file for this car is KNMAT2MV8KP524973. Scratches, fresh paint or a replaced plate around the VIN markings are warning signs in their own right.

Where entries exist, a VIN check can show changes of owner, past mileage readings, reported damage and whether the car is listed as stolen. A repair paid for in cash at a small workshop leaves no trace in any database, so no report can list it. A professional inspection makes sense whatever the paperwork shows, because no report measures corrosion, worn bushes or a poor repair. Before making a decision about this Nissan Rogue SV, check the history behind VIN KNMAT2MV8KP524973.