Where every number comes from.
One live sheet, then the six answers behind it.
- The repair to ask about
- Turbocharger. Reported 14.4 times more often than similar cars (39 owner reports). $1,280 to $3,040 at your rate.
- What to check on the lift
- Blue or white smoke on startup after sitting
- Oil in the intercooler piping or charge pipe
- Shaft play at the compressor wheel with the intake off
- Whine or boost drop under load
- Ask the seller
- Has the turbo been replaced, and with what?
- How long between oil changes, and was it driven hard?
- Factory coverage to check
- 2 factory programs this car may still qualify for
- Open recalls to check
- 18 campaigns; run the VIN
- Repair budget for the note
- $2,550
Live from the production engine. 36-month, 36,000-mile note, Pennsylvania labor rate, $130/hr. Your sheets run at your state’s rate and your term.
Six answers
Where does the repair come from?
Owner reports filed with the federal government, matched to a repair by keyword. A repair needs 5 or more reports carrying an odometer reading before it appears at all.
What makes it a flag?
Reports per 100,000 units built, against cars of the same size class within two model years. A repair flags at twice the peer rate, adjusted for sample size, and the car still goes on a lift.
How do you know how many were built?
The manufacturer reports production to the government each quarter. A recall population or a sales release fills a gap, and the sheet always says which one it used. Unknown means no rate and no flag.
Where do the dollars come from?
Typical parts plus hours, the hours at a labor rate scaled to your state from federal wage data, across 26 repair categories checked against published shop ranges. Typical for the repair, not a quote for this car.
What about recalls and factory coverage?
Every campaign on file for the model year with the completion the manufacturer last reported, plus warranty extensions and service programs by name. Inside a term is a question for a franchised dealer, not coverage.
What does the data not say?
Owner complaints are self-selected and the odometer is what the owner typed. A pattern belongs to the model year, never to the car in front of you. No AI writes a dollar figure, and nothing is scraped.
We keep score on ourselves.
Every sheet is stamped as a prediction: engine version, mileage, date, flags and budget. The outcomes dealers log are scored against those sheets monthly, and no accuracy claim appears here before 200 outcomes are on file.
What we know about your cars
51 makes, 1,019 models and 5,850 model years with enough odometer readings to draw a window. Cars and light trucks only.
Know the repair before you buy.
Pick three cars on your lot, with miles. The sheets come back the same day.