odometer issue

Come on & give the salesperson a break. If you're talking of a car with

38K miles, then that's a horse of another color. But with 138K, what difference would it make if it had actually 158K? I'd tell an inquisitive friend seeking advice that he should expect to buy the 158K for 30 cents less than the138K one!!! Really, I think one should look at the total mileage as being negligible. One of the best trucks I've owned (and I've owned quite a few!) had 135K when I bought it & 185K when I sold it--and for the same price I had paid over 2 years earlier!!! And, the reluctant buyer bought himself a good vehicle--he stopped by my place periodically for several years to brag on how good it was. Smile & enjoy your vehicle! sdlomi2

I'm in agreement with SD. I was on Kbb.com and was checking the value of my car. I wondered how much it would be if it were mint and it came up to be a couple hundred dollars more if I put in 100 miles on the odometer. Then I put in some ridiculous number like 1 million miles and it came up with maybe $100 less than what I had on it then 150 thousand miles. At 138 thousand, I think you're worrying over five or ten bucks.

-Bruce

I don't agree. This depends on the laws in your state, but odometer laws are a bit special. I would if I were you, call the local attourney general's office and at least ask what the state laws require.

If this was a private sale then those are legally considered as-is and yes, your on your own. But car dealers are held to a different set of regulations.

You didn't say what kind of car it is and what year, etc. Most modern cars yes, you can have the dealer plug in a scan tool and check this. In fact in many of them the speedo head isn't even connected mechanically to anything.

This is something that you really want to get checked out because if it's a failed speed sensor then you can have some unwanted side effects. You also should have the car VIN run to make sure it's had any recalls serviced on it.

Your probably wasting your time and money here. Assuming the car was sold like most of them without any warranty, your not going to get anything from the dealer. And you have waited too long to get a criminal charge of odometer tampering to stick. If it was the same day you drove the car off the lot that would be different - you could go to a mechanic and have him certify that the odometer wasn't functioning, then go to the attorney general and he would have a strong enough case to charge the dealer with failing to disclose a non-functioning odometer which I believe is an offense for a dealer to do that. But now, even with such a statement, the dealer could argue that you had enough time to break the odometer yourself, there's not good enough evidence to get her convicted of anything.

Unfortunately this sort of story illustrates that anyone who is buying a used car needs to carry a checklist with them. There are tons of them out there in books and the Internet has plenty of them as well, and checking for proper function of the odometer is one of the checks that a buyer should make during a test drive.

Ted

I disagree, it may be easy. Get the state inspection records for the car. The odometer readings are listed in a lot of states. Also, get a copy of the title surrendered to the dealer. See what it says. The previous owner usually lists the odometer setting and signs that it is correct. See what it says. You might also be able to use carfax.com. Some states record mileage readings there too and accidents (insurance) claims often trigger a record too. Likewise, any previous sale should be recorded with miles including the sale to the dealer (or the auction he bought it from). Won't cost you more than an hour's time and only $30 for carfax. If there's been any fraud then those records are the only way to prove it.

Someone might have been playing with the speedo and that's what caused it to fail - but they do fail for other reasons.

If one wants to pursue such, this odometer issue, being under Federal guidelines, is just as binding on an individual seller as on a dealer who sells it. The Federal law states that the odom. disclosure MUST be supplied/completed EACH TIME the car is sold. I've seen more dealers in trouble than individuals, but I have seen some individuals with their feet held to the fire by the Feds as well. Although I've never seen an indiv. serve time for it, whereas I have seen several dealers serve, the law provides for "individual-housing" as well. Another thing to keep in mind: cars 10 or more years old are "exempt" from this law. Simple solution: Don't f*** (fool) with the odometers! sdlomi2