2014 NISSAN PATHFINDER S VIN 5N1AR2MNXEC615328

This Nissan Pathfinder S was built in 2014. The gearbox is automatic, with front-wheel drive. Under the bonnet is a 3.5-litre petrol engine producing 260 hp. The specification is taken from the source data.

The source data puts the mileage at 170,532 miles. The figure is in miles and needs converting before it is compared with kilometres: one mile is about 1.6 km. Services and inspections note the distance covered, so a car with an ordinary past builds up a trail of figures that climb year after year. Figures carry most weight when they come from independent sources: workshops, inspection stations and past title paperwork.

This Nissan Pathfinder S is recorded with underbody damage. A damage entry is a starting point for the inspection, telling the mechanic where to look first. Given the kind of damage entered, a mechanic should look first at the floor pan, the fuel and brake lines and the exhaust.

When it was checked, the car could not be driven. The engine could be started. A key is on file for the car. 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.

According to the source data, the car has a salvage title. A title like this is issued when repair was judged uneconomical or unsafe.

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 past rarely shows on the paintwork: a well-repaired accident or water damage that was dried out is easy to miss.

Many modern petrol engines are turbocharged and direct-injected; where they are, the turbocharger and injectors belong on a specialist’s checklist. With no test drive possible, the automatic gearbox has to be assessed on a lift and with diagnostic equipment.

The ninth character of the VIN is a check digit calculated from the other sixteen, so a mistyped or invented number does not add up. This car’s identification number is 5N1AR2MNXEC615328.

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 past is on file; the car’s condition today is a job for a mechanic, who can check the structure, underbody, electrics and any repairs on a lift. The next step is to look up the history behind VIN 5N1AR2MNXEC615328.