How much Mileage Adjustment will a dealer adjust?

[JamesTan_166116]

My estima used for 7 yrs, mileage 197K km, later it was advertised on car mart and i saw odometer 91K km.

I bought a camry at 4th years, mileage 45K km. I replaced so many things after purchased, all wear and tear items eg. engine mounts, gasket etc,  mechanic suspected mileage at least 100k km. Now the risk is higher due to private hire car. My friend car clock 180K km in 2 yrs.

[Vinceng]

Now with private vehicles used as private hire, the adjustment of mileage may be a life threatening issue.

 

Based on 250km a day, private hire cars travel at least 90,000km annually.

 

Imagine a 5 yr old private hire car with 450,000km mileage adjusted to 110,000km.

 

If the new owner does not replace the necessary wear and tear parts, it may lead to fatality if for example, the brake cylinder leaks and results in brake failure, and a fatal accident.

 

Unfortunately in S’pore, the attitude of the relevant authorities is – don’t need to take action until something serious happens

 

My estima used for 7 yrs, mileage 197K km, later it was advertised on car mart and i saw odometer 91K km.

I bought a camry at 4th years, mileage 45K km. I replaced so many things after purchased, all wear and tear items eg. engine mounts, gasket etc,  mechanic suspected mileage at least 100k km. Now the risk is higher due to private hire car. My friend car clock 180K km in 2 yrs.

 

Rule of thumb is best to avoid used cars that are used extensively  as private hire

 

-          Honda Vezel

-          Kia Cerato Forte K3

-          Toyota Altis / Prius / Vios

-          Mazda 3

-          Mitsubishi Lancer / Attrage

Edited November 15, 2017 by Vinceng

[Solar]

haha, yeah, lady driver.

 

[Akula]

I always keep the job sheet that the AD/PI workshop (only one car was serviced at 3rd party workshop) gives out after servicing and when selling my cars, will be given to dealers.

I have never sold to individuals, always traded in via the new car affiliated second car dealer.

From what I can tell, almost none are interested.

My mileage per year is pretty low, about 12000km.

So can be really the second car dealers can always “adjust”, so they dun bother

Or the buyers themselves are not interested in the servicing records which can give a pretty good indication of the mileage and maintenance done.

As in who really insist on seeing the servicing records of the used car they are buying? Or for the matter, who really keeps (since it apparently doesn’t make a diff to the price?)

[Apple-Tree]

Aiya, everything CAN be adjusted lar ......

 

Even my brand NEW car OMV also got adjusted as the deal is simply too AWESOME lor.

 

Haha ....... garment collect LESS TAX liao .......  Not My Problem lor

 

I, as car owner is TOTALLY not involved in the Importation, Logistic, Registration, Bring up/Grooming of the car, to assessment of OMV, to pay fee/tax/duty/road tax to VITAS, to even the Car Insurance I am not involved hor. I am TOTALLY in the Dark lor ....

 

So, 1 fine day the Custom Officer go Poo and come back and figure out ........ I am a Law Abiding Citizen leh ...... haha.

 

 

  

[Ah_tee]

I would agree that this is an industry practice, not to say there aren't any honest dealers around but they are in the minority.

 

Once I test drove a car with 260,000km on the odo, since I am scrapping my car with 240,000km, it feels very strange to replace it with an even higher mileage. Two days later I saw the same car being advertised with like 76,000km on the odo. Car condition is good so it is hard to tell.

 

During the test drive I asked the dealer if they adjust the odo and they vehemently denied doing so and the naive me believed them until I saw the new odo reading days later.

 

What is even worse is that the AD are not very helpful on this issue. When I approached several ADs to retrieve the mileage based on the servicing records, they actually refuse to release. So this is indeed an "INDUSTRY PRACTICE" with both AD and dealers in it. Their practices might have changed as this is a few years back.

 

As I looked at all the similar cars on the market, I realize that more than 70% have unrealistically low mileage.

 

The car I finally bought was on consignment with the dealer so the dealer did not bother to tamper much with it and the mileage was normal to high.

It maybe "industry practice" but its up to consumers to protect consumers.

 

I shared before i traded my 4 year old car to a casetrust dealer so i asked the salesman if they do such adjustments, so they gave the usual bo la cannot be they have a 40k bond with casetrust to be part of the framework..

 

So few weeks later i went back to collect some paperwork , as the car is still there i itchy hand go ln n see see cos hear they have often clean the car until it looks so new.

 

As the key is in the ignition so i switch it in n i realised 144k km was tweaked to 88k. So i texted the salesman in order to keep some b/w

 

So the salesman deny say cannot be blah blah, he say they have a same unit with same color ( on that day there was only one) , i was very sure it was my old car cos i chged the aircon knobs to to colored ones n my speedo lights color.

 

So few days later salesman send mi a pic showing 142k km (still 2k short from 144k km) n say see see we didnt chg

[No_worries]

Now with private vehicles used as private hire, the adjustment of mileage may be a life threatening issue.

 

Based on 250km a day, private hire cars travel at least 90,000km annually.

 

Imagine a 5 yr old private hire car with 450,000km mileage adjusted to 110,000km.

 

If the new owner does not replace the necessary wear and tear parts, it may lead to fatality if for example, the brake cylinder leaks and results in brake failure, and a fatal accident.

 

Unfortunately in Sâpore, the attitude of the relevant authorities is â donât need to take action until something serious happens

 

 

 

Rule of thumb is best to avoid used cars that are used extensively as private hire

 

- Honda Vezel

- Kia Cerato Forte K3

- Toyota Altis / Prius / Vios

- Mazda 3

- Mitsubishi Lancer / Attrage

Don't worry , these are all good brands especially Honda and Toyota, these will sell itself in the second hand market.

 

Unlike conti makes, Toyota and Honda are very tolerant of missed maintenance and that's a testament of banzai land engineering prowess.

Edited November 15, 2017 by No_worries

[Brass]

They will still need maintenance

It doesn’t mean that if the cars are well engineered then it does not need any maintainence as the car will still face wear and tear problem especially to the engine as cars are machines which will and are meant to break down one day due to us being a throw away society

[Benarsenal]

So long as Govt doesn't declare this practice illegal (which is something I find utterly ridiculous TBH), this charade will continue to go on.

[Matrix0405]

Tot the mileage target has always been 88,888 km. Couple that with Female school teacher's second car to go wet market.  

[Vinceng]

It maybe "industry practice" but its up to consumers to protect consumers.

 

I shared before i traded my 4 year old car to a casetrust dealer so i asked the salesman if they do such adjustments, so they gave the usual bo la cannot be they have a 40k bond with casetrust to be part of the framework..

 

So few weeks later i went back to collect some paperwork , as the car is still there i itchy hand go ln n see see cos hear they have often clean the car until it looks so new.

 

As the key is in the ignition so i switch it in n i realised 144k km was tweaked to 88k. So i texted the salesman in order to keep some b/w

 

So the salesman deny say cannot be blah blah, he say they have a same unit with same color ( on that day there was only one) , i was very sure it was my old car cos i chged the aircon knobs to to colored ones n my speedo lights color.

 

So few days later salesman send mi a pic showing 142k km (still 2k short from 144k km) n say see see we didnt chg

 

Even a CASETRUST dealer dares tweak the mileage, simply because the relevant authorities turn a blind eye and are not taking any action.

 

All you need is just to set a precedent in a case, and send the dealer to jail with a hefty fine, and this will reap results. 

Edited November 16, 2017 by Vinceng

[Soya]

Not only high mileage car odo gets adjusted. Had a brand new Mz5 b4. Agent maintained, accident free and in top nick. Sold it after 2.5yr mark w ard 50k on the odo. Thot that itself would be easy for dealer to sell without having to cheat anyone.

 

Saw the car advertised on sgcarmart a week later by the dealer in turf city indicating mileage at 30k......

[Watwheels]

Not only high mileage car odo gets adjusted. Had a brand new Mz5 b4. Agent maintained, accident free and in top nick. Sold it after 2.5yr mark w ard 50k on the odo. Thot that itself would be easy for dealer to sell without having to cheat anyone.

 

Saw the car advertised on sgcarmart a week later by the dealer in turf city indicating mileage at 30k......

 

 

It just goes to prove what I say is true. Ppl bring their low mileage car expectations to go buy a used car. The used car dealer is just giving what these buyers want.

Edited November 16, 2017 by Watwheels

[walkofwinners]

Don't worry , these are all good brands especially Honda and Toyota, these will sell itself in the second hand market.

 

Unlike conti makes, Toyota and Honda are very tolerant of missed maintenance and that's a testament of banzai land engineering prowess.

But nowadays altis/city all made in Thailand. Simi banzai land.

[Soya]

It just goes to prove what I say is true. Ppl bring their low mileage car expectations to go buy a used car. The used car dealer is just giving what these buyers want.

Buyer wanting good n cheap is natural la. Who wants lousy and expensive? As long as the authorities close 2 eyes on this, the rave party will go on. Btw, my case was over 10 yrs ago so its probably juz SOP to tweak mileage nowadays

[andrewyewkc]

So long as Govt doesn't declare this practice illegal (which is something I find utterly ridiculous TBH), this charade will continue to go on.

If cannot collect money our government will not want to do more work.

 

http://www.sgcarmart.com/news/writeup.php?AID=141

 

Tampering with the odometer

 

An illegal practice in most countries, it is surprising that there are no specific laws guarding against this act of deceit in Singapore.

 

As such, some sellers take advantage of the situation to modify their car's odometer, to make it look younger and less used than it is.

 

While it might seem like a superficial practice to some, the truth is, winding back the clock (as the trick is known) is plain and simply cheating.

 

For the fact that cars have regular servicing intervals, having an odometer that doesn't tally with the actual usage might actually be harmful or even dangerous, as owners end up not giving the car the appropriate care as befits the car's age.

 

While it can be hard for the layman to spot odometer tampering at first glance, there are signs that one can look out for to indicate if such practices are being used.

 

On average, cars in Singapore travel about 20,000km annually. Taking that into account, one can get a rough estimate as to the proper mileage of a car being sold, using the car's age as a multiplier.

 

The condition of the car can also provide a clue. If a car with low mileage looks tatty and worn, then there is cause to raise red flags to question the validity of the claimed mileage.

 

The safest bet is of course to look for a car with all the proper records and documentation such as the mileage and servicing intervals, so that everything about the car, from whether it has been properly maintained, is noted down in black and white.

[Wt_know]

if it's too good to be true .... probably it is

just assume all car travel at least 20k-25k mileage per year

simi lady owner, doctor, drive to spa and fetch children from school ... screw it la

if you sibei sure the car is taken care by a OCD owner and low mileage ... good for you

just assume every single car is beaten up on daily usage

 

now with PHV ... 1 year 100k mileage can simply rewind to 20k

 

On average, cars in Singapore travel about 20,000km annually. Taking that into account, one can get a rough estimate as to the proper mileage of a car being sold, using the car's age as a multiplier.

 

Edited November 16, 2017 by Wt_know

[Cokiee]

So long as Govt doesn't declare this practice illegal (which is something I find utterly ridiculous TBH), this charade will continue to go on.

Quite surprised to read that it's not illegal tbh. Absolutely bullocks.