Dealer Houston: Flooded 2016 LC? (1 Viewer)

Location

United States

I'm anxious about buying a Houston car since hundreds of thousands were flooded by Harvey. There are tell-tale signs of flood damage, but I figure an unscrupulous owner would be willing to spend $10k or more in parts/labor to remove all signs to avoid taking a $50k bath.

What are the chances this one's a Harvey makeover? Keep in mind (Harvey was Aug-Sept 2017)

2016 LC Carfax History - Carfax says one-owner (personal lease)
5/27/2016 - Sold and Titled by Sterling McCall Toyota (Houston Dealer)
8/24/2016 - Oil Change (6574miles)
1/30/2017 - 10k Mile Service at Dealer (10,400 miles)
xxx Harvey hits late Aug 2017
12/20/2017 - 20k Mile Service at Dealer (18,286 miles)
5/4/2018 - TX Inspection (20,204 miles)
10/25/2018 - Tires Rotated (23,121 miles)
5/2/2019 - Vehicle Sold (25,700 miles)
5/23/2019 - Dealer inspection and offer for sale by high-end used car dealer near San Antonio (25,818 miles)

Looks like a 3y lease with no problems. Since it was sold to a dealer, I doubt I can talk to the owner.

The timing and mileage between the 10k and 20k service looks right. The dealer service record just contains boilerplate...no remarks about rust, water, etc.
I assume it would be fully insured if it was a lease-vehicle, but it's not clear how carfax identifies personal leases. And if it was insured, then it would be totaled or branded as a flood vehicle.

What else can be done to eliminate the risk it was damaged?

 

[1HaytchZed]

Wouldn't it clearly show up on the carfax? Any insurance payout would.

 

[yehudimenuhin]

2016 Land Cruiser

This might be helpful.

 

[yehudimenuhin]

Wouldn't it clearly show up on the carfax? Any insurance payout would.

If it was insured, I guess it would. I guess odds of it being uninsured and/or Carfax not having all the details are low. They say not to trust Carfax 100% but I"m not sure how to verify.

National Insurance Crime Bureau site says no theft or salvage is associated with the VIN.
Vehiclehistory.com has no additonal info.

It's just off warranty, but that's not the immediate concern.

 

[Chocolate]

What else can be done to eliminate the risk it was damaged?

Thorough inspection.
Any unusual rust underneath.

 

[reddog90]

You are smart to be careful, but there were plenty of vehicles in Houston that did not flood in Harvey. FWIW I used passenger car rooftops to navigate my boat on streets that week. I would think vehicles like that were beyond repair. There are still gutted houses on the market here though.

 

[Dustin Ridgway]

If there was an insurance buyout it would of went to an auction pool and you could find that by running the VIN. There certainly could of been a repair covered by insurance that does not show up on car fax. One of our cars was hit in the rear when it still had the new dealer tags on it. Was a 7K repair at the dealer with the at fault drivers insurance paying for the repair. When I was selling it years later I told the buyer about it and he showed me a clean Carfax. I have questioned Carfax since that incident, but I do not think they would miss a total loss claim.

 

[Luke111]

Take a look at his inventory... I HIGHLY doubt this company would risk their reputation selling a Land Cruiser considering most of their inventory is north of $100K. Dealers at this level would run from a flood damaged car.

 

[aj74]

Seems a little sketch in some of the pics. But if you look at that dealer's pics of other cars they're absolutely the worst pictures I've ever seen. I looked at the Ferrari and the Rolls. The pics for those two cars are absolutely terrible. Anyone with basic photographical knowledge would do better. That alone makes me wonder about the dealership that's selling $300k cars but won't provide high quality pics. But I wouldn't judge flood damage from those pictures. You would need to check out the car in person. Check to make sure all electrics work and pull apart a few wire harnesses to check for corrosion.

 

[musthave]

Link to this cruiser?

 

[Luke111]

Post #3 has the link

 

[Tex68w]

The photos are horrible. That said, I would take the time to go look at it in person if you are serious.