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  • 2 weeks later...

When you see a 15yr old import with less kms than a 5 year old camry you start to wonder

Odometer tampering has always been around, since the start of the automotive industry.

When I bought my car it said it had 125xxx no freaking way it did, more like 325xxx to 4xxxxx but as long as you take it for what it is knowing the real condition of it then happy days.

Even luxury cars at dealers are the same, moral of the story buy based on condition not kms

  • Like 1

Different Slant >

Hypothetical:-

* So a man allows his son on his upgraded black licence to purchase an EVO.

* The odometer has been falsified but the pair don't know that.

* A mechanical check is done on the car and other than wear and tear, the car is 'clear'.

* A year after purchase, running gear failure is responsible for a serious accident leading to the young man becoming paraplegic

* Accident Investigation believes that such a failure is incongruous with the number of Kms that the car has 'done'

* The importer is investigated and charged of one count of fraud.

Q. What other charge/s should the importer have to answer for?

  • Like 3

then the stupid importer will blame it happened at the Japanese docks (like they all do)...

And.. we all know Japan's culture isn't even like that. Even during the horrific tsunami - smashed atm, cash was floating about.. Not a single case of looting... even at their lowest they're still honest humble people... why on earth would they even tamper with an odometer?

#truestory

  • Like 2

Possibly they were occupied with the tsunami that just crushed their town and looking for their family and loved ones to bother looting #truestory

And.. we all know Japan's culture isn't even like that. Even during the horrific tsunami - smashed atm, cash was floating about.. Not a single case of looting... ?

#truestory

As for Terry ' s hypothetical, if a car is well maintained, regardless of kilometers travelled, the car isn't likely to have a catastrophic failure leading to a crash.

What part braking are you concerned about?

  • Like 1

All dirty dealers, regardless of prestige, JDM, rice, shit box Honda lawn mowers will wind back odometers.. it's part of their business...

Low KM = happy buyer

Even a thrashed up car with the odometer wound back vs. a well maintained leased car that has high kms on the highway would always be more appealing to your normal buyer.

Just like breasts, all men like good breasts..

  • Like 1

Different Slant >

Hypothetical:-

* So a man allows his son on his upgraded black licence to purchase an EVO.

* The odometer has been falsified but the pair don't know that.

* A mechanical check is done on the car and other than wear and tear, the car is 'clear'.

* A year after purchase, running gear failure is responsible for a serious accident leading to the young man becoming paraplegic

* Accident Investigation believes that such a failure is incongruous with the number of Kms that the car has 'done'

* The importer is investigated and charged of one count of fraud.

Q. What other charge/s should the importer have to answer for?

The critique I have of this hypothesis is that in the case of a "licensed" 3rd party mechanic who gave the car the all clear, you would not be able to pin this on the importer, regardless of true KM or not. A car is a consumable item, it has moving parts that wear out.

It would be more likely the 'mechanic' would be charged under the grounds of professional negligence, not the importer....

That said, if it was the Importer's 'own' mechanic, different story :-)

Just wondering at this point how a mechanic is to know (beyond his own suspicion) that the odo has had a haircut?

Then again I know where you're coming from, because a responsible mechanic would relay that suspicion.

  • Like 1

I would say the mechanic would be in the clear, I've seen lots of 1 year old cars that are thrashed, interiors torn up and paint destroyed that look much older than they are which will most likely fall apart and be in the wreckers in another year.

Its the way people drive and look after their cars, these new disposable cars are built to minimum standards no matter how much you love your brand or model.

Hitting speed humps at speed, hitting gutters and lack of maintenance are more of a issue I believe.

Hell, even bashing the curbs at the track and doubling the power isn't the best thing for your car and its undercarriage or chassis.

As for the dodgy salesmen, well how can you prove who did it, the company may be liable but they may say the speedo was faulty so the replaced it, AND, what about me when I wanted a NISMO 300kph dash, the boat went from 170k to 60k.

I told the guy its got a new dash but that was a few owners ago, is it my responsibility to search for new owners and inform them.

What happens when the cluster fails and you get a new one, is it then your responsibility to inform every owner.

I suppose the moral of the story is a high klm car that has been maintained is worth more that a low klm car that has been neglected or abused.

What also p!sses me off is that some buyers of a certain persuasion really don't mind buying a car with an odo haircut > they know that they'll on-sell the thing as 'low Kms'.

Some savvy parents out there refuse to allow their sons to buy a grey import for that very reason > warped logic - but logic all the same!

I'll bet Sports Auto Group are still laughing with great relief about how well they minimized the damage on this story. With only two of ten checked identified as being wound back, it gives people the impression they sell legit cars 8/10 times... Hell, they even offer "Japanese De registration papers" advertised with all their cars these days.

Once again they've managed to pull the wool over the eyes of all involved.

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