1998 CHEVROLET BLAZER VIN 1GNDT13W8W2246202

This entry is for a 1998 Chevrolet Blazer. There is an automatic gearbox, with four-wheel drive. The petrol engine has six cylinders. The specification is taken from the source data.

The recorded mileage is 97,846 miles. Miles and kilometres are easy to confuse, and a distance in miles looks lower than the same distance in kilometres. 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.

The record lists front-end damage as the main problem on this car. Two cars with the same damage label can be very different: one needs a few new parts, the other major work. Damage rarely stays where it is first seen: an impact can reach the mountings and airbags behind a panel, and water or fire the wiring and electronics.

When checked, the car could be started and driven under its own power. A key was noted with the car. Months of standing can leave a car with seized brakes and perished tyres.

The record shows a salvage title. A title like this is issued when repair was judged uneconomical or unsafe. The structure and the quality of any work done deserve a thorough inspection on a car with a branded title, however sound the car looks.

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. A car’s paperwork is scattered: the registry knows about owners, the workshop about repairs and the insurance company about claims. 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. On a petrol engine, a rough idle, misfires or a warning light on the dashboard need looking into. 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. Drive to all four wheels means more to maintain: differentials and couplings have oil of their own, which some manufacturers want changed at set intervals.

The VIN is a 17-character code assigned at the factory: it identifies the manufacturer, the model and its variant, and ends with a serial number unique to the car. For this car, the VIN is 1GNDT13W8W2246202. Scratches, fresh paint or a replaced plate around the VIN markings are warning signs in their own right.

A VIN report shows what has been logged: earlier registrations, odometer figures, damage entries, branded titles and theft checks, wherever such data exists. A history report says nothing about the car’s present condition: the frame, corrosion, electrics and the quality of any repair are judged on a lift by a mechanic. The next step is to look up the history behind VIN 1GNDT13W8W2246202.