2014 JEEP CHEROKEE LIMITED VIN 1C4PJLDS9EW186697

This record covers a 2014 Jeep Cherokee Limited. Under the bonnet is a 3.2-litre petrol engine. There is an automatic gearbox, with front-wheel drive.

The source data puts the mileage at 139,494 miles. The instruments count in miles; the same distance in kilometres is about 1.6 times the figure. The number on the clock proves little by itself; earlier figures logged at services and inspections are what make it believable. Figures carry most weight when they come from independent sources: workshops, inspection stations and past title paperwork.

Primary damage in the record: underbody. The damage type is a short label: the extent of the damage and the quality of any repair still have to be judged on the car. With underbody damage on file, the inspection should start with the floor pan, the fuel and brake lines and the exhaust.

A car that does not run has to be moved on a trailer, and its real condition is known only after a thorough assessment. The engine started, although the car is not confirmed as drivable. A key was noted with the car. Running condition describes a single moment, and standing or work done since can change it.

A salvage title is on file for this car. A title of this kind usually means the car was written off as a total loss after damage. The structure and the quality of any work done deserve a thorough inspection on a car with a branded title.

A car’s history is the sum of what has happened to it since it was new, and most of it has left a trace on paper somewhere. 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 car’s past rarely shows on the paintwork: a well-repaired accident or water damage that was dried out is easy to miss.

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. While the car does not run, stored fault codes and a look at the fluid are the only early evidence of how the automatic gearbox has fared.

The tenth character of the VIN stands for the model year, and the eleventh for the plant that built the car. For this car, the VIN is 1C4PJLDS9EW186697. The number in the car’s documents should match the one stamped into the body and the one on the plate at the base of the windscreen.

A VIN report shows what has been logged: earlier registrations, odometer figures, damage entries, branded titles and theft checks, wherever such data exists. No report is complete: a repair done privately and never claimed on insurance leaves nothing to find. 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. Look up the history of VIN 1C4PJLDS9EW186697 first, and let what it shows guide the inspection.