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Odometer Fraud ?

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MrandMrsSeeley

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? South Carolina
My husband and I purchased a used car from a dealership in Gastonia, NC before we moved here four months ago to start our life together. Very recently the car broke down and we had it towed to a dealership nearby. It is a 2002 Kia Optima and was bought on October 3, 2005. The Kia dealership explained to us that it was the timing belt that had broken and that it had damamged the engine and it was now going to have to be replaced. Well we turned to our warranty that we had purchased and they told us it was a service issue. Well as we looked through all of our paperwork we found that the dealership had changed the mileage on the car on the Odometer disclosure statement. It is a 382 mile difference which put the car just under 60,000 miles. Kia told us that it is standard maintenance to have the timing belt changed at that exact mileage. It even says it in the owners manual. Well we have the window sticker from the car as well as a carfax report that says the mileage was 60,227 when the dealership received the car. According to a service technician at our local Nissan they make sure that all of the standard maintenance is done on their pre-owned inventory before it is sold. It is even written on the contract for our warranty that was signed by the dealer that the vehicle is in accordance to factory standards precedent to the signing of the document. Basically we want to know what to do, and if this is considered odometer fraud. We already called the dealership and they said they will not do anything. We only paid a little over 6,000 for our car ( it is financed however ) and it is going to cost over 5,000 to be fixed.
Please Help.
 


Look, let's start with the easy stuff. Spending $5,000 to fix a car that is probably worth less than that is a bad idea.

I'm doing some checking and will get back to you later...
 
Look, let's start with the easy stuff. Spending $5,000 to fix a car that is probably worth less than that is a bad idea. Let's see if we can get kia to pay...

Look at your contract. It will have the (supposedly) exact miles at the time of sale listed.

Then ask the dealer how many miles it had when they acquired it. If there is an issue of possible odo fraud, they could be in big trouble. Let us know, if you'd like...
 
MrandMrsSeeley...

Alot of people mistake a "dealership" for a "car lot". Did you buy your car from an actual authorized Kia dealership?

Regardless if it was a car lot or dealership, then your various paperwork is what's going to matter here. Does it specifically say that all factory maintanance was performed on the vehicle before you purchasing it.

There were laws passed against the used car industry from using the whole "certified" term as a sales gimmick to sell used vehicles. Many (like yourself) were duped into thinking these cars were completely gone thru before being resold again... when many times it wasn't the case.

So...which paperwork states what milage was listed? Does the "entended warranty contract" show the higher mileage of 60227? What does the "Odometer disclosure statement" state as far as milage say? What does the window sticker say? Please be specific.

If the odo disclosure statements says it had less than 60K on it when you bought it, but it actually had more, then the dealership is in violation of state and odometer reporting laws.

Take a look at this.....
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2003/pdf/16cfr455.1.pdf

Look at 455.1 where it says that "misrepresentation" is a no no.

Here's the Federal Trade Commissions rules in regards to used vehicles.

http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr455_03.html
 
I've gotta agree with js, "problems" with correct odo disclosure are a serious matter, as in FEDERAL. These can be intentional or unintentional, but they are not taken lightly

What does your contract etc say about the miles when purchased? What should have happened is that someone from the car lot or dealer visually confirm the exact reading on the odo at the time of sale.
 

Mike228

Junior Member
This is probably bad...

I live in California. I just bought a car from a guy with Arizona plates. I later saw that this guy had a New Jersey Dr. Lic. I have the Bill of Sale and the title is on the way. I was washing my 1999 Cadillac I just bought when I noticed the Vin # was off. I knew what the one was he said it was because I ran the Carfax on it. It came back clean. So I ran the VIN number I found on the car. It too said not a salvage title, but that it was a 2000 Cadillac with about 100,000 miles more than the digital read out in the car says. I ran the plates with the local police department who said the car was NOT reported stolen, but was registered to some guy in Arizona. They could not tell me the name of course. I WAS able to get ahold of the guy I bought it from, and he said, "I must have mixed up the titles. I have another Cadillac here as well." When asked about the mileage errors he stated, "I know. I bought it like that off this one guy." He NEVER told me of the mileage being "tampered" with on THIS car. As a matter of fact up until about 20mins ago I thought it was a 99' with low mileage. What can I do? If this car truly has 200,000 on it I don't want it. NOT for what I paid for the "other" car at least. According to Blue Book I i over paid by $1000... LUCKLY I financed it in house with this guy. He has only received HALF of the money so far.
What do I do if this car turns up stolen?
What can I do if I have purchased a car that was not for sale by the original owner?
Avoiding a long drawn out civil suit, how can I get my money back and return this car?
If I HAVE to sue him, what are the chances of me losing my money AND the car since it is not even registered to him? (I know how even in small claims, the defendant doesn't always pay the court ordered settlement, and the courts don't really care or do anything about it.
What are my options?

THANKS IN ADVANCE FOR ALL YOUR HELP!!!
 

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