2017 TESLA MODEL S 60/75 VIN 5YJSA1E12HF226406

This record covers a 2017 Tesla Model S, finished in grey. The drivetrain is fully electric. In place of a gearbox there is a single-speed reduction gear, and the car has rear-wheel drive. Details for this car come from a single data source and may differ from its documents.

At the time of recording, the car had covered 152,171 miles. A clock converted from miles to kilometres should be documented, since the swap can hide the true mileage. Averaged over the car’s age, the mileage works out well above the usual annual distance, and wear on the suspension, brakes and interior should be judged with that in mind. Gaps of several years between logged figures deserve attention, as does any reading lower than the one before it. A service book or a folder of workshop invoices is the simplest place to find past readings.

Primary damage in the record: left rear. A damage entry is a starting point for the inspection, telling the mechanic where to look first. 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.

No key was available with the car. Months of standing can leave a car with seized brakes and perished tyres.

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. The paperwork is kept by different bodies – registries, workshops, insurance companies and lenders – so the history of one car is spread across many places. A car’s past rarely shows on the paintwork: a well-repaired accident or water damage that was dried out is easy to miss.

The battery is the most expensive part of an electric car, so the share of its original capacity still available should be measured. On a damaged electric car, the battery pack and its mountings under the floor deserve a close look on a lift.

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 5YJSA1E12HF226406.

Where entries exist, a VIN check can show changes of owner, past mileage readings, reported damage and whether the car is listed as stolen. The absence of an entry is not proof that nothing happened; it may only mean that nobody wrote it down. A VIN check and a physical inspection answer different questions: the first says what happened to the car, the second what condition it is in now. The history behind VIN 5YJSA1E12HF226406 is the natural starting point before any decision about this Tesla Model S.