2016 FORD FOCUS SE VIN 1FADP3F27GL274639

The Ford Focus SE described here left the factory in 2016. The drivetrain combines an automatic gearbox with front-wheel drive. The engine is a 2.0-litre petrol unit with four cylinders. Every figure for this car is given as it appears in the source data.

The clock stood at 117,467 miles when the data was entered. 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.

In the source data, the main issue is front-end damage. Whether the damage has been repaired since, and how well, is not something a damage entry can show. Some damage shows its consequences only later: corroded connectors and electrical faults can surface months afterwards.

A note in the source data says the car did not run. The engine started, but that says nothing yet about the gearbox or the drive to the wheels. 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.

Title status in the record: salvage. 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 everything logged against it since it left the factory: registrations and owners, inspections, repairs and insurance claims. 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.

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. 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.

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. This Ford Focus SE has the VIN 1FADP3F27GL274639. 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.

What a history report can list depends on what has been documented about the car: registrations, mileage readings, damage, branded titles and theft reports. The absence of an entry is not proof that nothing happened; it may only mean that nobody wrote it down. A professional inspection makes sense whatever the paperwork shows, because no report measures corrosion, worn bushes or a poor repair. With this 2016 Ford Focus SE, the first step is a look at the history behind VIN 1FADP3F27GL274639.