What questions do you usually have in mind when you step out to buy a used car? While some of us go for the car’s current condition, others simply look for how it has been used in the past. The first parameter by which we can judge how the car has been used in the past is the odometer reading. While every customer in the used car market looks out for less driven cars, meter tampering has become a really common habit in the market. As an attentive customer, you should stay clear of the odometer frauds. In today’s featured, we talk about signs that indicate an odometer fraud.
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Service Record
The simplest way to judge an odometer fraud is to obtain the service record associated with the particular car. Even if the record is not up to date, it can give you a fair hint of the car odometer being tampered. For example, if you are buying a 3-year-old car which shows 70k kms on the odo and you find out that a 2-year-old service record shows the reading to be 65k kms, this can be a case of odometer fraud.
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Body Condition
Avoid Cars with Rusted Panels Another way to determine an odometer fraud is to have a careful check at the bodyline. If a car has been on the roads for long, it is more likely to have scratches or dents in comparison to a car which has been lying stationary in the garage. If you see the paint fading or the car has got too many scratches, dents or rust on the surface, you can suspect an odometer rollback.
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Check the Pedals
Toyota Accelerator Pedal An odometer can lie but pedals can’t (unless they have been changed). Have a careful look at the pedals and evaluate how the pedals have worn out during their journey. Generally, it takes around 1 Lakh kilometres for the pedal to lose its grooves considerably. If you find the pedals in such a condition while the odometer shows less reading, you are definitely being subjected to odometer fraud.
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Check Carpets & Mats
Check the Mats Usually, people in India buy seat covers and mats as an extra accessory for their car. If you come across a car that has been used without seat covers or mats, you can carefully inspect the seats and the mats (especially under the pedals) for signs of wear.
Pro Tip- You should always start your inspection from the driver’s seat because it is the most used seat in the vehicle for obvious reasons! -
Check the Tyres
Carefully Inspect the Tyres This one is really simple. If the car has been used less, the owner should not have changed the tyres. If a particular car has got new tyres and the odometer shows 30k kms, there is definitely a rollback. Alternatively, if there are no new tyres, you can check the depth of the grip using a coin and judge the condition of the tyre thereby roughly estimating the range of the vehicle.
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Judge the dashboard fitting and screws
This is another one you can try out by yourself to judge if you are being subjected to odometer fraud. One needs to open up the screws in order to get access to the odometer. If the screws have not been put back in place well, you can very well judge that there is something fishy with the odometer. If you find some missing screws or improper fitment of the dashboard, the seller owes you an explanation for sure!
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Let the experts handle
Let the experts handle it This is the simplest thing you can do to check an odometer fraud is to let the experts handle it for you. Simply drive into a GoMechanic workshop near you where we can scan the car’s digital odometer for any rollbacks. We have advanced machinery which can detect these rollbacks even if it has been done with the utmost perfection. In case of an analogue odometer too, we can have a detailed inspection and help you stay clear from such frauds.
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These were the 7 ways by which you can detect an odometer fraud. For buying a used car, considering the odometer fraud should be on your priority list because this is a really common practice nowadays which sellers use to lure customers and offer them cars at a price which is definitely low but the car isn’t worth it!
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