When Your Old Car Pops on Marketplace (Update)

"Long_Voyager94" (yourenotavalidusername)
07/15/2020 at 07:37 • Filed to: unnecessary car shopping with Long-Voyager

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And it makes you extremely sad.

1. Because it’s clearly been let go to hell.

2. Because you clearly can’t buy it back.

This is how she looked when I traded her:

Also, that cluster has been swapped, it was well over 200k miles when we traded it.

Update:

I messaged the seller about the odometer reading, she had no idea and had bought it off a local mechanic whom I know personally ( he built a trans for me ), so it had been changed before he acquired the car.

I made her aware of the discrepancy and she was blown away to learn there are likely over 300k miles on it.

DISCUSSION (18)

shop-teacher > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 08:33

Ouch.

Long_Voyager94 > shop-teacher
07/14/2020 at 08:34

I mean for a likely 300k mile Dodge Stratus, it still looks very good in reality, but nothing like what it was.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 08:38

Never. Look. Back.

atfsgeoff > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 08:40

If you're feeling vindictive, you could tip off the authorities about the odometer fraud. That's a federal crime that carries a not-insignificant prison sentence and massive fine.

Long_Voyager94 > atfsgeoff
07/14/2020 at 08:44

Eh, I figure it was a case of something failed in the cluster, so it got replaced with what they could find. Or it was done before they got it and they have no idea.

My van shows 142k on the odo because I swapped clusters when I swapped driveline, so the cluster matches the driveline. The body however has around 270k.

Not one to get others in trouble over something trivial.

Long_Voyager94 > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
07/14/2020 at 08:45

If you don’t look back, how do you remember how you got where you are?

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 09:02

You can remember something without ever looking back...given the fact that most of my old shitboxes of 20 years ago would now be on their second run through as a tin can or, perhaps, a steel beam...this is a good thing!

facw > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 09:08

This is the last I found of my old car after I turned the title over to GEICO:

Kinja'd!!!

Seems very likely it went from the auction to the scrapyard.

MKULTRA1982(ConCrustyBrick) > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 09:51

I don’t think that’s trivial, and even if it was done as a fix the next owner should know. There’s a reason not disclosing it is fraud. I play it pretty loose with what has to be disclosed to the new owner, but the car having 50,000 more miles than what it’s listed as is important.

The fact that they showed a photo of the odo without listing the mileage suggests they know it’s wrong, but they want to advertise the lower mileage without stating it. That way if someone calls them on it they can backpedal.

I would send them a message and let them know that the cluster is inaccurate. If they don’t change the ad then you know it’s malicious.

Long_Voyager94 > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
07/14/2020 at 09:59

My cars are always meticulously maintained, so generally they serve their new owners for many years to come.

This instance is still going strong 9 years and who knows how many miles later, that to me is something to look fondly upon.

Long_Voyager94 > MKULTRA1982(ConCrustyBrick)
07/14/2020 at 10:02

If this was a pricey car I would care. On a $1200 beater, who really cares so long as it runs and drives?

I know I’m likely an outlier, but mileage means very little to me, 100k, 200k, 300k, I don’t care, how it’s been taken care of to that point is what’s important to me.

MKULTRA1982(ConCrustyBrick) > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 10:08

I agree that mileage matters less than maintenance, but 150K vs your estimated 250K is huge. Someone might want it for the powertrain at that low of mileage, but finding out it’s 250+ would change their mind. If they’re willing to lie about the mileage they might lie about a low more. If they are innocent and were sold the car under the impression it had mileage that low then they deserve to know they’ve been ripped off.

Ultimately it’s up to you, but even for something so cheap I don’t think odometer fraud is okay. I understand not wanting to get involved.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Long_Voyager94
07/14/2020 at 10:11

My old cars were also meticulously maintained but given the fact they were either Land Rovers or Lada Nivas and the last I saw of any of them was in 2002... it didn’t seem to count!!

Long_Voyager94 > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
07/14/2020 at 10:26

I’ve been seeing my old vehicles pop up for sale quite often lately.

My 1995 Sport Wagon comes up again I won’t pass it up.

CalzoneGolem > Long_Voyager94
07/15/2020 at 07:48

Move like a Dodge Stratus Me inside a stick-shift be the baddest.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
07/15/2020 at 08:31

Never.

nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul > Long_Voyager94
07/15/2020 at 09:51

2.4 or 2.7? I know on the 2.7 the odometer is stored in the trans/ECU as I've had to swap out many a dash cluster on mine and the odometer follows.

Long_Voyager94 > nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul
07/15/2020 at 10:04

Its a 2.7L, had 217k miles when we traded it, so something got swapped between me trading it in and her acquiring it to only read 155k now.