[N/B]

Been wondering if my '96 OB has been a California car all its life - the condition of the body would suggest that it could have been, but I'd like to find out the car's registration history.
Is there an online facility for doing this?

(Sorry if this seems like a daft question but I only moved to the US 9 months ago, and know little to nothing about the deeper workings of the DMV, etc).

 

[fatabbot]

Sometimes Carfax, Autocheck, etc. reflect ownership history.

 

[H_Doug]

Carfax should do it, but I've got a question about it. In my recent car search I carfax'd an OBXT and there was an accident reported against it. The private owner said that was not true. I bought a different car than that one, but I notice it's still up on craigslist and ist specifically says no accidents. So, after that long winded intro, does Carfax get it wrong very often?

 

[Storkiln]

That is a dilemma. Carfax is a bit of a gamble when it comes to accident / service history. If there was an accident that was not reported to insurance or DMV, then that accident would likely not make it onto the vehicle's official record. On the other hand, I remember reading consumer horror stories about how Carfax had an erroneous record on their cars that was almost impossible to expunge. Remember that Carfax is a private company and simply pulls your car's vehicle history from the DMV, the dealership, and insurance companies.

As far as when and where the car was first purchased and registered, that should be pretty reliable on the Carfax report, along with all the other times its changed owners or changed States of registration.