1989 BUICK SKYLARK CUSTOM VIN 1G4NC54U8KM020365

The Buick Skylark Custom described here left the factory in 1989. The petrol engine has four cylinders. The drivetrain combines an automatic gearbox with front-wheel drive.

At the time of recording, the car had covered 24,318 miles. A clock converted from miles to kilometres should be documented, since the swap can hide the true mileage. The mileage is modest for the car’s age, but long spells of standing bring their own wear, from seized brakes to dried-out seals. A later figure lower than an earlier one points to a replaced instrument cluster or an odometer that has been wound back. Figures carry most weight when they come from independent sources: workshops, inspection stations and past title paperwork.

When the car was recorded, it showed damage to the left front. A damage type says what kind of damage the car had, not how serious it was or whether it has been repaired since. Whatever the cause, a diagnostic scan of the car’s electronics shows fault codes that a visual check misses.

The car is recorded as running and driving. 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.

The car carries a salvage title. Titles of this type are issued to cars declared a total loss.

A car’s history answers three questions: who kept it, how it was looked after and what went wrong along the way. Pieces of a car’s history sit with registries, dealers, workshops and insurance companies, and none of them sees the whole picture. A car’s past rarely shows on the paintwork: a well-repaired accident or water damage that was dried out is easy to miss.

A petrol engine in good order starts cleanly, idles evenly and pulls without hesitation. The automatic gearbox should respond smoothly and without delay; jerks, slipping or hesitation on a test drive need investigating.

Every modern car carries a 17-character VIN, its identity for life, and no two cars share one. This car’s identification number is 1G4NC54U8KM020365. A VIN that differs between the documents and the car, or shows signs of tampering, is reason enough to walk away.

A VIN report shows what has been logged: earlier registrations, odometer figures, damage entries, branded titles and theft checks, wherever such data exists. The absence of an entry is not proof that nothing happened; it may only mean that nobody wrote it down. However complete the paperwork, only an inspection shows the condition of the body, suspension, brakes and electrics today. A history check on VIN 1G4NC54U8KM020365 is the place to start.