2014 BMW X3 XDRIVE35I VIN 5UXWX7C55E0E75710

This BMW X3 XDRIVE35I was built in 2014. The engine is a 3.0-litre petrol unit with six cylinders. The gearbox is automatic. Details for this car come from a single data source and may differ from its documents.

The number on the clock proves little by itself; earlier figures logged at services and inspections are what make it believable. A service book or a folder of workshop invoices is the simplest place to find past readings.

The record lists front-end damage as the main problem on this car. Whether the damage has been repaired since, and how well, is not something a damage entry can show. A lift and a diagnostic check show what photos cannot: bent brackets behind a panel, chafed wiring or deployed airbags.

No key was available with 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.

Title status in the record: salvage. A title of this kind usually means the car was written off as a total loss after damage. A branded title follows the car through every change of owner, so it remains part of its history.

A car’s history answers three questions: who kept it, how it was looked after and what went wrong along the way. A car’s paperwork is scattered: the registry knows about owners, the workshop about repairs and the insurance company about claims. Much of a car’s past cannot be seen: a good body repair leaves no obvious mark, and neither do years of hard driving.

A cold start, the colour of the exhaust smoke and any oil leaks tell a mechanic a good deal about how an engine has been treated. A petrol engine in good order starts cleanly, idles evenly and pulls without hesitation. 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. The VIN on file for this car is 5UXWX7C55E0E75710.

A VIN report gathers what different sources know about a car, such as the number of owners, mileage readings, damage and any branded title. A repair paid for in cash at a small workshop leaves no trace in any database, so no report can list it. A professional inspection makes sense whatever the paperwork shows, because no report measures corrosion, worn bushes or a poor repair. The next step is to look up the history behind VIN 5UXWX7C55E0E75710.