Uncovers more than any other report in Australia
Most car checks stop at the PPSR certificate. MotorRegistry Comprehensive Plus keeps going.
- Service records from verified sources
- Every odometer reading we can find
- Repaired accidents that were never written off
- Where the car has lived
- How it was advertised the last time it changed hands
Often we uncover history the seller never knew about either.
What's inside a Comprehensive Plus report
Seven kinds of history that a PPSR certificate doesn't include, and most car history checks don't either. Jump to whichever one matters for the car you're looking at.
Service & maintenance history: how well has the car been looked after?
You can't tell a well-maintained car from a neglected one by walking around it. The seller says it's been serviced on time, there are some stamps in the logbook, and that's about all you get to go on. Logbooks get lost, and they're not hard to fake.
Comprehensive Plus pulls together the service records we can find for the vehicle: logbook entries, dealership servicing, workshop invoices. You'll see when it was serviced, roughly what was done and at what odometer reading, and whether there are long gaps that don't match the story you're being told.
In your report
- Dated service and repair entries in chronological order
- Odometer readings recorded at each service, where captured
- What was done, and in many cases what it cost
Gaps in the records? Every report has a button to request service history from the seller. They get a link by email or text, photograph the logbook, receipts or windscreen service stickers on their phone, and we read the entries and add them to the vehicle's history, clearly marked as owner-supplied. Owners can add their own records the same way before they sell.
Odometer history: has it been wound back?
Odometer fraud hasn't gone away. If anything, digital clusters made it easier, because the right tool changes the reading in a few minutes and leaves no scratches behind. On its own, the number on the dash proves nothing.
So we list every reading we have on record for the vehicle, in date order, gathered from verified sources. If a later reading is lower than an earlier one, the report flags it. The example below is real: 177,729 km in 2019, then 98,001 km four years later.
In your report
- Every recorded odometer reading, charted and in date order
- Automatic flagging when a reading goes backwards
- The expected kilometres for the vehicle's age, for comparison
Damage assessments: the accidents that never made the write-off register
The write-off register only lists cars an insurer gave up on. A car can be crashed, repaired at a cost of $10,000 and sold to you without ever appearing on it. That describes most accident damage in Australia, and a PPSR check will report all of it as clean.
Comprehensive Plus includes damage assessment records where they exist, so repaired damage shows up too. You'll see when the vehicle was assessed, the estimated cost of the damage and which areas of the car were affected. What you do with that is up to you, but at least you'll be negotiating with the same information the seller has.
In your report
- Damage assessments, including non-write-off damage
- Assessment dates and estimated damage values
- The national WOVR write-off check, in every tier
One car, two checks
A real car checked on MotorRegistry. Its official PPSR certificate came back with three clear results. The Comprehensive Plus report for the same car found an odometer that had gone backwards by about 60,000 km and two damage assessments, one of them structural and estimated at up to $12,000.
Location history: where has it spent its life?
A car that's lived a street back from the beach has been quietly rusting from underneath. One that sat in a postcode that flooded a few years ago may have been underwater. Sellers don't tend to bring these things up, and there's nothing about them on any certificate.
The report maps where the vehicle has lived over its life. Check the suburbs against the seller's story, look up whether any of them flooded, and if the car has moved around a lot, ask why.
Registration history: every plate, every state
Shuffling a car between states is an old trick for tidying up its history. Each new registration is a fresh start, and a rego check in one state won't see the others. That's how rebirthed and interstate-flipped cars keep finding buyers.
We list the plates and states the vehicle has been registered under, with dates where we have them. Three states in two years deserves an explanation. So does a plate the seller never mentioned.
Recall verification: was the recall work actually done?
The Takata airbag saga made the point well enough: knowing a recall exists is not the same as knowing it's been fixed. Plenty of recalled cars are still on the road with the work never carried out, and the current owner often has no idea.
Your report shows the recalls that apply to this vehicle's build, not just every recall ever issued for the model. And where records exist, it shows whether the repair has been done. The recall in the example here was resolved in 2019. That's the kind of thing you want to know before you buy, not after.
In your report
- Recalls that apply to this vehicle's specific build
- Repair and rectification status, where records exist
- The full recall description, in plain English
Past sales & auction listings: how the car was advertised the last time it sold
Old ads are hard evidence. If the car was listed by a dealer last year with different kilometres, or the auction photos show damage the current ad doesn't, you've just learned something important without leaving the couch.
We search auction results, classifieds and dealer listings for the vehicle's past appearances, and where we can, we include the photos, descriptions and asking prices from those listings. Compare them with the car in front of you and see whether the stories line up.
And everything from the Comprehensive report, built in
Comprehensive Plus sits on top of our Comprehensive report, so all of this comes with it. Every tier includes the official PPSR & NEVDIS finance, written-off and stolen checks.
Independent market valuation
What the car is actually worth, built from real Australian market data. Handy when the asking price needs a second opinion.
Theft risk rating
Some models get stolen at many times the national average. Worth knowing before you sort insurance.
Common problems for this model
The documented weak points for the exact model you're considering, and the warning signs to look for.
Custom pre-purchase guide
An inspection checklist written for your specific vehicle. Take it along on the test drive.
Factory build & specifications
Original engine, transmission, colour and compliance details, so you can confirm the car is what the seller says it is.
Free 14-day finance re-check
Finance status can change between reading the report and handing over the money. We re-check it free for 14 days.
How Comprehensive Plus works
Plus records vary from car to car, so we check what actually exists for your vehicle before you pay for any of it.
Enter the rego or VIN
Start a report with the registration plate and state, or the 17-character VIN.
We confirm what's available
We check which Plus records exist for your specific vehicle: service history, damage assessments, past listings and the rest.
Upgrade only if it's worth it
We only offer the Comprehensive Plus upgrade when those records are available. If there's nothing useful to show, we won't sell it to you.
Comprehensive Plus FAQ
The questions buyers ask us most about service history, odometers and hidden damage. Something we haven't covered? Get in touch.
Can I check a car's service history in Australia?
Yes. A MotorRegistry Comprehensive Plus report includes the vehicle's service and maintenance history wherever records are available - logbook services, dealership records and workshop invoices. A PPSR certificate contains no service history at all, so this is data you cannot get from a standard PPSR or REVS check.
How can I tell if a car's odometer has been wound back?
Compare the current reading against the vehicle's recorded odometer history. A Comprehensive Plus report lists every odometer reading we have on record for the vehicle in date order and automatically flags a rollback if a later reading is lower than an earlier one. Every Comprehensive report also shows the expected reading for the vehicle's age, so an implausible number stands out immediately.
Does a PPSR check show accident or damage history?
No. A PPSR check only shows write-offs recorded on the national Written-Off Vehicle Register. Most damaged vehicles are repaired and resold without ever being written off, so they come back 'clean' on the PPSR. A Comprehensive Plus report also includes damage assessment records, so even repaired, non-write-off damage shows up.
What is vehicle location history and why does it matter?
Location history shows where the vehicle has lived over its life. It helps you spot cars from coastal corrosion zones or flood-prone postcodes, and frequent interstate moves that can indicate an interstate flip or rebirthing. Combined with previous registration history across states, it reveals patterns a single-state rego check will never catch.
How do I know if a safety recall has actually been fixed?
A recall list alone only tells you a recall exists. A Comprehensive Plus report includes recall repair and rectification status, so you can see whether outstanding safety recalls, such as the Takata airbag recalls, have actually been actioned on the specific vehicle.
What's the difference between Comprehensive and Comprehensive Plus?
Comprehensive covers the official PPSR and NEVDIS checks plus valuation, expected odometer, theft risk rating, common model problems, a custom pre-purchase inspection guide and a free 14-day finance re-check. Comprehensive Plus adds the vehicle's hidden history: service and maintenance records, full odometer history with rollback detection, location and registration history, damage assessments including non-write-off damage, recall rectification status, and past sales and auction listings with historic photos.
Is Comprehensive Plus available for every vehicle?
Availability of Plus records varies by vehicle. We confirm what's available for your specific vehicle first, and only offer the Comprehensive Plus upgrade when those records actually exist. If there's nothing useful to show, we won't sell you the upgrade.
Is a MotorRegistry report an official PPSR check?
Yes. Every MotorRegistry report includes the official PPSR certificate data sourced directly from the Australian Government's Personal Property Securities Register, plus the additional history a certificate alone doesn't cover.
Get the full story before you buy
Every MotorRegistry report starts with the official PPSR & NEVDIS checks and arrives in minutes. Comprehensive Plus adds the history everyone else leaves out.
Run a vehicle check now
