Does anyone know how easy or otherwise it is for a non-Lexus dealer (ie a used car dealer) to adjust the displayed odometer mileage or is it something that would throw up red flags in the cars electronic systems and not worth doing?

 

odo can be turned back with the right software and your laptop,takes seconds to do and there is no red flags.

 

when living in Dubai I was in the used car market, shopping for the LX470 at the time. Way too many samples had 50 to 60k miles on them, this for 10 yr old vehicles. Almost all of these cars were imported from the US. I thought it was suspicious and asked one of the salesman on the lot....he just smiled and that told me all I needed to know.
It just reconfirmed a belief---when shopping for a used car, pay particular attention to the details. Maintenance history, receipts, condition of the upholstery, bushings, etc......true 60k vehicles, esp Lexus, still have these things in very good condition. A beat up "60k" car is likely a fraud....

 

It's actually scary how easy it is to change the mileage on some cars.

If you come across a used car with really low miles, I would definitely make sure the condition matches the miles.

Also, one tool that helps is looking at something like a CarFax. When the car's emissions are tested, usually the mileage is recorded and you can see some history to make sure it lines up with the odometer. Also when it changes owners. I wouldn't put all my trust in a CarFax, but I think it's a good resource for something like that.

 

Thanks for the replies confirming my fears!

 

its too easy ,,actually club lexus has a vendor on here that openly will change your odometer for you , without any questions asked.

Just ship it to him, tell him what mileage u want to show, and he will ship it back.

I spoke out about it and ended up in a big argument by a bunch of losers who were hoping to roll back their mileage on their old SC's to raise the value.

Very recently a guy on KIJIJI was selling a 93 SC400 with like 50 000 miles , I asked him to drop by and let me check it out ,,,it was an old beat up piece of crap , ripped seats, filthy , rough running engine , clearly a 200 000+ mile car ,,but of course the odometer said otherwise.

Look at things like the steering wheel and leather seats , arm rests, although they can all be refinished to look like new, most times they wont take the time or money to do it.

 

what people dont know is it is legal to roll back your odo.however you must state on your title when you sell it that mileage is unknown.most all titles have this statement on them and must be checked if its been rolled back.

 

scum bag move.....cant really think of a legit reason why someone would want to do that

 

It is fraud a day totally unethical.

 

Is this something that you are trying to do? If so, why?

 

In BMW E38s it's very common to get your instrument cluster to burn out the pixels in the BC screen on the bottom (similar to the display 1/2 in the LS430). You could pry open the existing cluster and change the ribbon for the LCD display, which was by no means an easy feat. I fixed a couple of MIDs (radio head unit for non-nav cars) a couple of times each for my car, and getting it right with the stupid ribbon can be a pain. So many people just bought a new cluster.

If the odo reading on the cluster did not match the odo value stored in the ECU the cluster would show the "tamper dot"



So you would use a gadget to change the reading to the correct one.



Obviously there are many people that are going to abuse that, in the same way locksmith tools are abused for B&Es.
With nuclear technology you can cure a cancer patient or make an H-bomb. Same principle (albeit lesser stakes) I guess


And yes, people rolling back odos are scumbags that deserve a special place for hell, and people buying low mileage old cars as an alleged "new-old-stock" kinda deal are dumb.

 

Did you actually read my post? If not, why not?

It's perfectly clear from my question, and my first response, what I was trying to find out.

 

[QUOTE=DonMolina;8721632]In BMW E38s it's very common to get your instrument cluster to burn out the pixels in the BC screen on the bottom (similar to the display 1/2 in the LS430). You could pry open the existing cluster and change the ribbon for the LCD display, which was by no means an easy feat. I fixed a couple of MIDs (radio head unit for non-nav cars) a couple of times each for my car, and getting it right with the stupid ribbon can be a pain. So many people just bought a new cluster.

If the odo reading on the cluster did not match the odo value stored in the ECU the cluster would show the "tamper dot"




"If the odo reading on the cluster did not match the odo value stored in the ECU the cluster would show the "tamper dot"

Thanks for your response, I was hoping Lexus incorporated something similar in their displays.

 

The thing is, the BMW system is not doing anything if you actually change the value in the ECU to a lower number and then code the cluster to match the new fake lower number as well.

Professional scum will probably have ways to do that properly and then no tamper dot on the dash.

 

When someone purchases a replacement cluster from us we program it to their vehicle mileage. We do not change odometer mileage "without any questions asked".

Many times dealers will contact us for our services. The dealer cannot perform these services for you. Usually they are required to install a new speedometer with 0 miles and document accordingly.

We have an odometer form that needs to be completed by the buyer with a legitimate reason. We also have the ability to verify the VIN with carfax and will deny any suspicious requests. It is on the buyer to comply with federal law and odometer / title compliance.

With that said, we can do nearly every make and model. If you have specific questions regarding a specific model then call or email us and we can assist you.