2014 MAZDA MAZDA3 I TOURING VIN 3MZBM1V75EM111685

The Mazda MAZDA3 I Touring described here left the factory in 2014. Under the bonnet is a 2.0-litre petrol engine. There is an automatic gearbox, with front-wheel drive. Details for this car come from a single data source and may differ from its documents.

The source data puts the mileage at 120,715 miles. Miles and kilometres are easy to confuse, and a distance in miles looks lower than the same distance in kilometres. Turning back an odometer takes little skill and leaves no visible trace, which is why earlier figures matter more than the display.

The record lists front-end damage as the main problem on this car. 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 front-end damage on file, the inspection should start with the radiator support, the headlamp mountings and the front crash structure.

A key was present.

A salvage title is on file for this car. A title like this is issued when repair was judged uneconomical or unsafe. If any work has been done on the car since, photos and invoices should show what was replaced.

A car’s history is everything logged against it since it left the factory: registrations and owners, inspections, repairs and insurance claims. A car’s paperwork is scattered: the registry knows about owners, the workshop about repairs and the insurance company about claims. What a car has been through is seldom visible at first glance, and a respray can make even a badly damaged car look sound.

For the engine, the service history matters most: oil changes, filters and the timing belt or chain are the entries to look for. On a petrol engine, a rough idle, misfires or a warning light on the dashboard need looking into. The automatic gearbox needs its fluid changed at the manufacturer’s intervals, and invoices should show that it was.

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. For this car, the VIN is 3MZBM1V75EM111685. The VIN usually appears at the base of the windscreen, on a door pillar and stamped into the body, and all of them should match the documents.

Depending on what is on file, a VIN report may include past registrations, mileage readings, damage entries, branded titles and theft checks. A professional inspection makes sense whatever the paperwork shows, because no report measures corrosion, worn bushes or a poor repair. With this 2014 Mazda MAZDA3 I Touring, the first step is a look at the history behind VIN 3MZBM1V75EM111685.