I found a site where you can get vehicle history reports for $1.

While not quite as sophisticated as Carfax, the reports do provide quite a bit of useful information.

Much of the information is gleaned from the same sources as Carfax.

The report gives the basic ID information, odometer readings by date, branding, and title transfer dates.

I've run 7 reports on cars by getting VINs on the phone and being able to eliminate them without even leaving the house.

All I can do is suggest you try it.

Just make sure you don't click on the "buy" buttons below the "search vehicle history." You only need to click on the "search vehicle history" to bring you to registration and payment options.

http://www.vehiclehistory.com/index.php