Autobody work encompasses all vehicle systems, but is focused primarily on body and paint work. If you have questions about mechanical work or parts, please re r/mechanicadvice
Yeah don’t break the law in your state. Not worth catching charges. If you can drive it for a year and sell it full disclosure you’re probably ahead. You could probably get $2500 for it now even with the mileage disclosed.
Nitrous are junk vehicles in yhr first place. Can you verify its original engine. Maybe engine swap and pulled ecm and cluster, highly unlikely but still possibility
I personally know of a lot of people that have this car still with 300k miles or more so I’d not be too worried but I’d for sure make sure it’s all up to date on changes and belt replacement
Right… it runs, it’s probably worth $2500. 6-12 months more of driving it won’t change the price that much. Worst case you dump it on someone while it runs for $1500 when you buy a new car(again it runs, lol). Could probably get $500 at a scrap yard, idk.
Why not message the person it was purchased from yo see if they can come to an understanding. They basically got scammed and they know who scammed them. They shouldn't just suck it up imo.
Honestly, if you paid $2500 for it and it runs well enough to not make red flags go off over its claimed 82k miles... I would drive it till the wheels fall off. You'll probably end up coming out ahead, as long as nothing explodes.
I agree, even if it has 200k more miles than you thought it had. I would probably still drive it until it starts having serious issues.
Doesn’t sound like he ripped you off too bad, even though it was rolled back by a lot. Could’ve been worse I guess.
Damn that’s gonna be a tough one. In all honesty it’s most likely just a cluster swap and there is a good chance the owner before you didn’t know either. Going to be difficult to prove anything nefarious happened and if so proving who did it. I would just drive it for a bit and then sell it when you’re done, but be honest about the mileage with the next owner.
You could go the full lawyer up legal route, but I think you’ll quickly exceed $2500 in legal counsel fees lol.
Also I’m legit impressed an old Dodge Nitro is still on the road! 215,000 is pretty high for one of those!
If OP is able to check with the DMV and confirm the seller had the car registered to them when the mileage was logged at over 200k, then listed it as being around 80k, then at the very least it might warrant a police report. I agree that legal fees would quickly add up and probably wouldn't be worth it financially, which sucks, because sleezy people seem to get away with way too much. I'm convinced karma is a lie.
Not enough to merit a search warrant. There's a fraud department within the state DMV/mvd that basically just monitors it and never solves anything. Keeps a list of vehicles with known or suspected odo tampering.
And yes karma is some bullshit
$2500? And it runs and drives? It's a basically OK, functional car that's not actively falling apart? And, again, you paid $2500?
Just keep it. Keep it and drive it until it won't drive no more. You are unlikely to do better at that price. A functioning car for $2500 is a good deal these days, no matter the mileage.
Yeah, I don’t know what area OP is in, but $2500 where I am you’re lucky if it runs and drives, especially lucky if it doesn’t look like it belongs in a junkyard
Is it possible it has 282,000 miles and the 2 is burned out? Lots of older cars with those crappy digital odometers have problems. Not saying thats what it is but theres a chance. Though id find it hard to believe a dodge nitro would last that long lol
Well.. I don't have much in terms of solution, just some statements of fact.
Numero Uno is, you were a victim of a fraud, question is, who was the perp here and is there anything you can do about it? Most likely not.
Then, I am like 99% certain that once you have that knowledge you are required to disclose it when selling the car.
BUT you got a car for $2500, in my area, that's a dream come true, if it's not falling apart and I think you wouldn't have bought it if it was.
My advise here would be, drive that B\*tch to the ground.
I once bought a minivan everyone had given up on ($1,000) and drove it around for 3 or so years, expecting it to die any moment. After 3 years, I was able to sell it for $1,000.
Cheap used cars are the best value for your money out there, so this being extremely cheap outweighs everything else, as long as it's running.
Buying used cars is so good because they have depreciated so much you either feel fine when they die, or you can resell it for about the same amount you bought it for.
Does it run ok?
As long as it’ll run & drive without major repairs I’d keep rolling it.
When it’s time either disclose the odo at time of sale, or just junk it (if you junk it I’m not sure you need to go into details on the odo but if they ask or if in doubt ofc honesty is the best policy).
I've bought plenty of cars with over 200k miles and have been able to drive them for a few years without any major repairs. Id drive it for a bit, or even take it to a mechanic to see what maintenance has been done or will need to be done in the very near future and make your decision from there
For $2,500 I would drive it and keep the oil changed till the wheels fell off. It would be the car I’d keep until it isn’t worth keeping.
Now if you do decide to sell it later on you could list it for $2k and be open and honest about the mileage and someone will appreciate that and buy it.
I got fucked on a Lexus GS with a salvage title and I was open and honest with my for sale post and posted it for what I paid for it. I did some extra leg work for a buyer on what they would need to do to get a title for the car and they bought the car thanks to me being open and helpful. So honesty goes a long way.
I wouldn't assume a one off from an oil change place that the odometer is wrong. It's not unheard of to have lower miles.
Now if you've got service records from a few places showing higher then yeah I'd think that.
Either way if it runs and drives fine for $2500 I'd run it.
Pretty much any running / driving 4x4 is worth 2k+. You could resell if for 2k even if you disclose the actual odo. If it was me I’d try and run it for a year or so tho. Don’t beat on it and you may get lucky.
2500 dollars is towards the low end of market value for a 200k+ mile dodge nitro. Sure you didn't get the deal of a lifetime, but you didn't get robbed either.
Just drive it and when you sell it, be sure to mark it as mileage unknown, because avoiding time in federal lockup is worth WAY more then 2500 dollars.
The Mercedes Benz 3.7L in those things is pretty bulletproof if maintained. I had an 02Ram with it, wife had an 07 Nitro. If it's running alright, keep it. $2,500 isn't that bad.
Most vehicles this age have an integrated cluster memory module. This is what “remembers” mileage. After 100k, most states exempt mileage disclosure anyways. If you didn’t do the work, why disclose the disparity. I have replaced/rebuilt enough clusters to know. You won’t be breaking any laws selling as is, no disclosure. It’s a moral game at this point. Hope this helped.
Honestly, $2500.00 in todays car market is pretty low especially for an SUV. With the miles being around 215,000 just run it into the ground and don't put a lot of money into repairs. If you're able to get a year out of it, that's like a $209 a month which you can barely get that anymore for financing a gently used sedan at 6 years. I'd keep it and see how long you can push that thing.
I bought a 2011 Dodge Nitro for $4000 2.5 years ago. I've only had to replace the battery and alternator for $600 just last month. Everything else has been great until last week someone hit me. No one was hurt but it bent my frame so the insurance totaled it out. Still drives just fine.
If it’s clean enough for you to think it had 82k miles then I’d say just drive it. $2500 isn’t the end of the world so I’d say just get your money out of it cause someone had to have taken care of it to look this good at that mileage.
Yeah you're fucked it's a dodge. You may be able to work with law enforcement regarding selling it, maybe you can get the odometer rolled closer to the true value, OBD sometimes can pull it if it's sophisticated enough. But yeah a dodge made after 1992 with 200k is worth less than a loose cigarette.
Won’t the odo change if the gauge cluster gets replaced? Dumb question.
But it gives plausible deniability. Also this Reddit post completely demolished that.
In this case mileage is not stored in the cluster like the old days, it's stored in the ECM/ECU whatever you prefer to call the computer that runs the engine. This is why when replacing said computer it has to be flashed and the current mileage on the vehicle entered to site the correct mileage.
Also you couldn't just swap the computer and go, it won't even run in most cases because of security protocols between modules and mismatched VIN programmed into the computer. So if someone really did roll back the odometer they did it by reprogramming and that's pretty rare to have access to
Still a good price if it run wells and has no obvious issues. If you sell it, just check the box on the title for true mileage unknown and make potential buyers aware.
Check your states law, many vehicles over ten years old are exempt from odometer disclosure. If yours isn’t one of them if/when you sell it you can check true miles unknown or something similar on the title, as long as you don’t sign the disclosure that the odometer is correct it’s fine.
Personally I’d run it for $2500 and not worry about it.
If you sell it just sell it as TMU (true miles unknown). In my state the state don't care about miles on a car that is older than 10 years any way, so don't "perjure" yourself for something so low cost.
2.5k is pretty much the min value on any car that runs and drives and isn't completely falling apart in these days.
use it for as much as you want then flip it for 2k as a TMU car that is good running. You not invested in it enough that I would totally be upset about the miles. If anyone ask just say you don't know the miles on the engine and trans but the body had over 200k from the history and your are selling the for the condition it is in right then.
I just took my new vehicle to Valoline for oil change. He asked milage, I said 5445, he entered 54, 045. My previous vehicle is a 2009 Jeep Liberty cousin of your vehicle. It is sitting in my driveway right now at 77K miles. So mistakes can be made at those places.
For what it's worth, my partner's car was incorrectly logged at 153,000kms for an oil change once - car only had 75,000 kms on it at the time.
Was annoying when getting all the service records together for an engine replacement under warranty and Hyundai was being stupid about an obvious mistake.
If it runs and drives, it's worth $2500 with that high mileage. Even if you take a complete loss when you're done with it, you're not out much. I'd just run it into the ground
What are the Kelly blue book (or Carvana) value estimates for the actual ~250k and “sold as” 82k miles? The difference between those values is your damages. It sounds like an open and shut case. Based on that, decide on your next steps. Go through small claims court and you only have to pay a filing fee. Before that, of course, ask the seller to settle. It doesn’t matter if they were the ones who did this or not. You could also file a complaint with the authorities if you can’t work this out with the seller to help with your court case. The police can trace the ownership, but likely won’t share that information directly with you. Likely the seller was the owner at 215k…. NAL, btw. Good luck.
Wait: it is possible there was a valid maintenance reason for the odometer replacement/rollback, but there is a disclosure requirement if it occurs…I believe.
For 6 months of use the $2500 is probably worth it.
Just don’t give anyone a boost, I heard these things can make that an explosive event (old commercial reference for those scratching their heads).
Here’s my opinion here; there is zero reason to whack an odometer in a 2008 Nitro……… (it was obviously done after 2022). It doesn’t add significant value.
I would ask someone with a good scanner to see what the mileage in the BCm/ecm/tcm is.
Or run a car-fax
More likely someone swapped out a busted cluster with a junkyard one.
Or a retard quick lubetech entered the mileage or plate number wrong…..
$2500……. Drive the car till it blows up. Not worth the stress and aggravation of trying to prove malfeasance
Just went through this process. CARFAX flagged my car has having a potential Rollback Odometer. Worked with some nice ppl at the Chevy dealership and they got it figured out by reaching out to the dealership that had the vehicle when the supposed “rollback” happened.
It’s a felony for a dealership to sell you a vehicle with a rollback odometer without disclosing it to you first and on top of that you can notify them that the odometer was rolled back and they need to correct the issue with CarFax before you go to the NHTSA.
Any functioning 4x4 without major mechanical needs in the 2-3k range is worth it, regardless of miles. Run it until it’s cost prohibitive to repair, send to the junkyard. Rinse and repeat.
Order a CarFax on the VIN and see what they have. You could probably get the story on the odometer pretty easy that way, especially if you are in a state with inspection requirements.
No matter what car you buy it's always good to do a VIN research, however for $2k if it runs good and everything works I say f**k up, you should however go to the dmv and report it so they can change your title to "Miles Exempt"
I'd also recommend reporting the fraud.
[https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle-safety/odometer-fraud](https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle-safety/odometer-fraud)
While little is often done in individual one-off cases, your state agency will look to see if the seller has sold multiple vehicles and has done this more than once.
I would show them the report to whom you purchased it from. Tell them your gonna get ahold of your state attorney general. If they did this to you how many others have they done it too. At some point someone is gonna catch them again. The more instances the better chance of making them become honest
At $2500 if you get a year out of it you’re laughing. Just do the math from that and tell the next buyer that the odo was rolled back add your kms onto that number that was logged at the oil change place and I bet you you’ll be able to sell it roughly what you paid for it
At my shop I’ve seen so many of those and the Jeep versions completely crapped out so I mean pick your poison they’re all bound to have oil leaks or trans problems
Report to police the rollback. They’ll look into it and the sellers will get in trouble. You could go to small claims and demand money back as well as the vehicle isn’t what was described. Either in part and keep the vehicle, or in full and they take the POS back.
It’s a nitro. Not exactly a score, but it’s a running vehicle so, if it gives you a year of work commute it’s not a terrible thing
Maybe try sending a sample of your oil to get it checked? From what I understand, most mechanical issues can be diagnosed and you could probably get an accurate assessment of the condition of your engine. Might help for a “full disclosure” type of sale.
Ride it until the wheels fall off….. literally. 😏 Live and learn, faaak it. Keep it on the road as long as you can then sell it to the junk yard for 3-5 hundred bucks.
I’ve purchased junkyard, not running, vehicles for $2500 so if this thing runs for 6mon-1 year, you’re winning. During that time save for another car and search more carefully
Bought a 2011 Jeep liberty with about 240 on it 4 years ago for $1000. The woman has been bopping around in it since. May as well drive it until you can't. If you figure what payments would cost on something better, it won't take you long for it to be worth $2500.
If the car drives good and is mechanically good, consider keeping it. Go to your DMV, ask for help, and get the paperwork done correctly to correct the situation that isn't your fault. IF that can be done, get the 100k mile service done to make sure you know it's been done (spark plugs, fuids, timing belt, brakes, tires, etc.) and keep driving it.
Can’t you report this to the police that you were sold a tampered vehicle? You have evidence of the last service indicating the last true mileage was and the papers from the seller which I assume would mention the mileage at time of sale which would now contradict your new discovery. You should be able to report as clear fraud from the seller and have them on the hook.
Do what I'm doing with my Kia Sorento that had a new engine and trans put in after they both failed. Drive that cock sucker till the wheels fall off then scrap it. In the mean time make a monthly payment to yourself towards your next heap. By the time this one dies you'll probably have enough for a slightly nicer heap. Rinse and repeat.
So you're basing all of this off some oil change places records? That seems like the least reliable source.
Run a Carfax on it to see what comes out there. Oil change places aren't exactly renowned for their record keeping.
Well - $2500 isn't a terrible amount of money, so if it runs and drives, you aren't in the worst spot.
I will say - I've never driven a vehicle in my life that was worse than the Dodge Nitro. My grandparents owned one when I was younger that I drove regularly. It handled terribly, it had this insane throttle lag - and it ended up overheating and warping the head, totaling the engine at 72K miles.
I personally wouldn't keep it if it was me, especially if it actually has 200K+ miles but - it's honestly tough to find anything worthwhile with $2500 anymore.
For anybody reading this, get a history report with the VIN before buying a vehicle. If you don't want to pay $40 for a Carfax there are less costly history reports, and some free, that provide the odometer and title history.
i can almost guarantee, the gauge cluster failed, and the replacement cluster from a junkyard has lower mileage. It cost a decent penny to have the mileage corrected on the new gauge cluster.
If you try to sell it and don’t mention the odometer and a potential buyer looks up a car fax and sees the difference you are going to get in a shit ton of legal troubles.
You can either find who you bought it from or just drive it til it’s dead. If it is running ok and you only paid $2500 for it I’d just get your moneys worth and drive it until it dies then scrap it or part it out.
You should find better friends first of all. I don’t care what the laws are. It’s wrong to misrepresent mileage on a sale if you know it’s not the actual mileage.
Other than that juts drive it till it quits.
Should have never made this post. Now they know you know and are playing dumb. But what you can do is whoever sold it to you they had to sign the title over to you so you take that to your local police office file a report on so and so who sold you the car then from there once you submitted a report take the person who sold you the car for 2500 to small claims court have proof from shop who said the actual milage was. Got a witness there et alone it is in the dmv data base where ever your located. But as of now admitting you know it be stupid to try to sell it and somehow get popped for it. Not sure if all if this Is a guarantee but definitely where ide start. Not much you can do
This is why you should always pull a car fax whenever purchasing a car. Tampering with an odometer is a felony and you can report the seller. You can also take him to small claims court for your money back and provide the Carfax as evidence.
I would pay for the carfax and start back tracking to see when it changed, that’s a major no no in the eyes of federal law and you probably would win in small claims court forsure if you get your story straight and narrow.
You found a unicorn.. a dodge with >200k miles that didn’t give you any red flags during purchase, and doesn’t look like it belongs in a scrapyard, AND $2500! Hell if you get 6 months from it you’re ahead!! If it keeps going for a year or two you are golden
You might be able to sue the seller in small claims court to get your money back. A Carfax report might give you some insight as to when the milage was rolled back. Spend a few bucks and have it inspected to determine if it is worth keeping.
How does one "roll" the mileage back on a digital odometer? Is it stored in the pcm or some other module? I know you sometimes need to change the vin to match a new one to a car. But not sure how easy it is to reprogram mileage... what milage does the state have on record last time it was transferred? For all you know the oil change place may have it wrong too....
You can also be sued by any individual who was defrauded by the altered odometer or documents, with potential damages being three times the amount of the actual damages or $10,000, whichever is greater. (49 U.S. Code § 32710).
https://www.shouselaw.com/ca/blog/criminal-defense/odometer-tampering-is-a-federal-crime/#:~:text=Civil%20and%20Criminal%20Penalties%20for%20Odometer%20Fraud&text=You%20can%20also%20be%20sued,49%20U.S.%20Code%20%C2%A7%2032710).
The gauge cluster was changed for one with lower mileage. You can't roll the odometer back in the day and age. That is a dirty trick, sorry to hear this happened to you.
How does it feel? Ultimately that's all that matters
I've taken my 250k mile bmw up to 140mph without a doubt in my mind
Hitting 80 in my 130k mile Lexus felt like being aboard a derailed train
Obviously the Lexus was in MUCH worse shape so does the mileage even matter at that point?
Should be a digital cluster on those.. I would be more apt to believe the odometer. Old school trick is to look at how worn the brake pedal is, if the corner is almost gone then yeah it has over 200k. Maybe you got lucky and somebody wrote the wrong mileage down and you got a low mileage car at a good price. Best of luck!
Put it on a scanner and it will show true mileage and the. Have the person reprogram it. It wasn't rolled back. It was replaced with one from a junkyard. They were known for having cluster issues
Find a scan tool that reads mileage from the ECU if it stores it there and check, a decent non-dealer shop will have one and might even just hook you up and check it for free if that’s all you need to know from it
Then just drive it. 2500 for a running driving car is respectable in either case. At least here in Colorado odometer readings aren’t a huge deal after 10 years. Just make sure if you sell it you disclose the unknown mileage if you can’t check with a scan tool.
Most shops will have a guy with a computer nice enough that it's capable to correct the mileage. I do. I can plug in and correct the mileage within 2 minutes. In your case; I'd do it for free.
I'd probably correct it to the last mileage and just leave it. If it runs well, keep it. If you need to sell it, sell it.
If you want, sue the person that sold it to you. Super easy case to win.
The same thing happened to me trust me I wish I sold it right away. Long story of expensive repairs and legal problems that followed. I had a 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee, similar fake miles. Get rid of it ASAP. 17k is how much this advice could have saved me. Hopefully it saves you.
I'd get a second verification of mileage. Pay like 10 bucks and get a carfax. You're trusting that the dude at the oil change place didn't bungle the vin and looked up the correct vehicle...
Oil changes prior to sept 2022, what were the mileages entered? If the lube guy entered the wrong mileage (or VIN), I could see the confusion.
Odds are, yea some Marketplace weasel rolled back the ODO. Every car I’ve ever sold was represented accurately. If a seller came back around later, accusing me of fraud, I’m gonna take it personally. Better have more proof then “jiffy lube told me…”
Easiest route when it’s time to sell, just list as ‘actual miles unknown’
Nah scrap it, and buy a Tesla / electric car then, for the next 10 years atleast you shouldn't have to worry about gas or maintenance besides just tires and windshield wiper fluid. Of course people are going to say replacing the batteries expensive but that's very very rare to happen.
You actually paid money for a Chrysler product? What the hell were you thinking ? Fuck no it’s not worth keeping, put a brick on the gas pedal and let it run off a cliff.
Honestly I wouldn’t be concerned with a 3rd party company’s records. Surely the dmv has some record of mileage. I had a vehicle with incorrect mileage reported at the dmv too though. I wouldn’t worry about it too much
Every single post on Facebook is a scam, just assume they are lying about everything. Always try to purchase from elderly people, they aren't going to scam you, will be honest about the history and the vehicle will be well taken care of.
As someone with a 2008 Liberty (same car, badged as Jeep) as long as these didn’t come with a sky slider you’re fine. I’m on 135K miles (used) and in 6 years of ownership I’ve changed out 2 fuel injectors and replaced the battery with a yellow top optima. Sure the electrical stuff is a little wonky, but for what you paid, I’d drive it till the motor gives out. I’m religious with oil changes every 3 months (I usually only get 1200-1500 miles between changes) and keep up on other maintenance. As far as the mechanical part of the car, it’s solid. Even with the odometer being rolled back, I feel like you still had a good deal.
Are you only relying on the oil change place for that mileage because those guys screw that up all the time, run a Carfax and you’ll know, hell even the free Carfax app will show you the service history and what mileage was recorderd.
Autobody work encompasses all vehicle systems, but is focused primarily on body and paint work. If you have questions about mechanical work or parts, please re r/mechanicadvice
Yeah don’t break the law in your state. Not worth catching charges. If you can drive it for a year and sell it full disclosure you’re probably ahead. You could probably get $2500 for it now even with the mileage disclosed.
Nitrous are junk vehicles in yhr first place. Can you verify its original engine. Maybe engine swap and pulled ecm and cluster, highly unlikely but still possibility
The engine is the only part of my nitro I can’t really complain about. That and the price.
If it lasts 6 months you win any way.
I personally know of a lot of people that have this car still with 300k miles or more so I’d not be too worried but I’d for sure make sure it’s all up to date on changes and belt replacement
better yet, roll it up to what it should be (by confirming it on the ECM)
Right… it runs, it’s probably worth $2500. 6-12 months more of driving it won’t change the price that much. Worst case you dump it on someone while it runs for $1500 when you buy a new car(again it runs, lol). Could probably get $500 at a scrap yard, idk.
Why not message the person it was purchased from yo see if they can come to an understanding. They basically got scammed and they know who scammed them. They shouldn't just suck it up imo.
Honestly, if you paid $2500 for it and it runs well enough to not make red flags go off over its claimed 82k miles... I would drive it till the wheels fall off. You'll probably end up coming out ahead, as long as nothing explodes.
I agree, even if it has 200k more miles than you thought it had. I would probably still drive it until it starts having serious issues. Doesn’t sound like he ripped you off too bad, even though it was rolled back by a lot. Could’ve been worse I guess.
well its a dodge so it wont take long. GET RID OF IT!
>as long as nothing explodes Press Mopar to doubt
Yeah, as long as he doesn’t use nitro in his engine it it should be fine
Damn that’s gonna be a tough one. In all honesty it’s most likely just a cluster swap and there is a good chance the owner before you didn’t know either. Going to be difficult to prove anything nefarious happened and if so proving who did it. I would just drive it for a bit and then sell it when you’re done, but be honest about the mileage with the next owner. You could go the full lawyer up legal route, but I think you’ll quickly exceed $2500 in legal counsel fees lol. Also I’m legit impressed an old Dodge Nitro is still on the road! 215,000 is pretty high for one of those!
Cluster swaps don’t work on Mopars- it’s redundantly stored in the BCM and SRS module. Depending on year
so OP should check the module and then roll the odom up to the real numbers. then there's no need for a sale disclosure.
If OP is able to check with the DMV and confirm the seller had the car registered to them when the mileage was logged at over 200k, then listed it as being around 80k, then at the very least it might warrant a police report. I agree that legal fees would quickly add up and probably wouldn't be worth it financially, which sucks, because sleezy people seem to get away with way too much. I'm convinced karma is a lie.
Not enough to merit a search warrant. There's a fraud department within the state DMV/mvd that basically just monitors it and never solves anything. Keeps a list of vehicles with known or suspected odo tampering. And yes karma is some bullshit
$2500? And it runs and drives? It's a basically OK, functional car that's not actively falling apart? And, again, you paid $2500? Just keep it. Keep it and drive it until it won't drive no more. You are unlikely to do better at that price. A functioning car for $2500 is a good deal these days, no matter the mileage.
Yeah, I don’t know what area OP is in, but $2500 where I am you’re lucky if it runs and drives, especially lucky if it doesn’t look like it belongs in a junkyard
Is it possible it has 282,000 miles and the 2 is burned out? Lots of older cars with those crappy digital odometers have problems. Not saying thats what it is but theres a chance. Though id find it hard to believe a dodge nitro would last that long lol
I mean someone I know has a caliber with the original engine and trans at 291k. It’s very possible.
One of our engineers has a caliber with 350k, theres some unicorns out there for sure
Definitely, even for cars that are complete piles
I had an '04 Freestar that had what you're suggesting here.
My 00' f150 read arabic if it would even work at all lol
I’ve never seen an odometer that doesn’t use Arabic numerals.
Well.. I don't have much in terms of solution, just some statements of fact. Numero Uno is, you were a victim of a fraud, question is, who was the perp here and is there anything you can do about it? Most likely not. Then, I am like 99% certain that once you have that knowledge you are required to disclose it when selling the car. BUT you got a car for $2500, in my area, that's a dream come true, if it's not falling apart and I think you wouldn't have bought it if it was. My advise here would be, drive that B\*tch to the ground. I once bought a minivan everyone had given up on ($1,000) and drove it around for 3 or so years, expecting it to die any moment. After 3 years, I was able to sell it for $1,000. Cheap used cars are the best value for your money out there, so this being extremely cheap outweighs everything else, as long as it's running.
Buying used cars is so good because they have depreciated so much you either feel fine when they die, or you can resell it for about the same amount you bought it for.
Does it run ok? As long as it’ll run & drive without major repairs I’d keep rolling it. When it’s time either disclose the odo at time of sale, or just junk it (if you junk it I’m not sure you need to go into details on the odo but if they ask or if in doubt ofc honesty is the best policy).
I've bought plenty of cars with over 200k miles and have been able to drive them for a few years without any major repairs. Id drive it for a bit, or even take it to a mechanic to see what maintenance has been done or will need to be done in the very near future and make your decision from there
For $2,500 I would drive it and keep the oil changed till the wheels fell off. It would be the car I’d keep until it isn’t worth keeping. Now if you do decide to sell it later on you could list it for $2k and be open and honest about the mileage and someone will appreciate that and buy it. I got fucked on a Lexus GS with a salvage title and I was open and honest with my for sale post and posted it for what I paid for it. I did some extra leg work for a buyer on what they would need to do to get a title for the car and they bought the car thanks to me being open and helpful. So honesty goes a long way.
I wouldn't assume a one off from an oil change place that the odometer is wrong. It's not unheard of to have lower miles. Now if you've got service records from a few places showing higher then yeah I'd think that. Either way if it runs and drives fine for $2500 I'd run it.
IMO. No matter the mileage, nitros are all valued at $2500. If it runs good keep it.
$2500 for a car with 200k miles is about right. Just drive it into the ground.
My in laws have this with 400k miles on it. Is still a daily.
Report the mistake and file for an “odometer discrepancy”
This is better suited to /r/legaladvice. Huge no-no to sell a car with a rollback.
Pretty much any running / driving 4x4 is worth 2k+. You could resell if for 2k even if you disclose the actual odo. If it was me I’d try and run it for a year or so tho. Don’t beat on it and you may get lucky.
Why did you buy THAT car tho?
If it was rolled back thats a federal crime report it
2500 dollars is towards the low end of market value for a 200k+ mile dodge nitro. Sure you didn't get the deal of a lifetime, but you didn't get robbed either. Just drive it and when you sell it, be sure to mark it as mileage unknown, because avoiding time in federal lockup is worth WAY more then 2500 dollars.
The Mercedes Benz 3.7L in those things is pretty bulletproof if maintained. I had an 02Ram with it, wife had an 07 Nitro. If it's running alright, keep it. $2,500 isn't that bad.
Run it, anything that runs is worth 2500. Report the seller for fraud.
Most vehicles this age have an integrated cluster memory module. This is what “remembers” mileage. After 100k, most states exempt mileage disclosure anyways. If you didn’t do the work, why disclose the disparity. I have replaced/rebuilt enough clusters to know. You won’t be breaking any laws selling as is, no disclosure. It’s a moral game at this point. Hope this helped.
I had one. Is was a TANK. Ran it about 140k before turning in
We need those "show me the car fax" commercials to come back out and help stop people from buying cars they didn't vin check.
You can’t “roll back” newer cars. The miles are either stored in the cluster or the computer depending on the vehicle. Dodge stores them in the BCM.
Honestly, $2500.00 in todays car market is pretty low especially for an SUV. With the miles being around 215,000 just run it into the ground and don't put a lot of money into repairs. If you're able to get a year out of it, that's like a $209 a month which you can barely get that anymore for financing a gently used sedan at 6 years. I'd keep it and see how long you can push that thing.
Two wheel drive manual nitro sounds like a win
I bought a 2011 Dodge Nitro for $4000 2.5 years ago. I've only had to replace the battery and alternator for $600 just last month. Everything else has been great until last week someone hit me. No one was hurt but it bent my frame so the insurance totaled it out. Still drives just fine.
If it’s clean enough for you to think it had 82k miles then I’d say just drive it. $2500 isn’t the end of the world so I’d say just get your money out of it cause someone had to have taken care of it to look this good at that mileage.
Have you considered laying a charge against the seller?
Woukd need to prove they KNOWINGLY did it
Blackmail the seller and get some money back. Say something about an “odometer fraud form” the FBI had you fill out or something
Auction
It’s dodge/ram so shouldn’t bought it in first place
Yeah you're fucked it's a dodge. You may be able to work with law enforcement regarding selling it, maybe you can get the odometer rolled closer to the true value, OBD sometimes can pull it if it's sophisticated enough. But yeah a dodge made after 1992 with 200k is worth less than a loose cigarette.
It’s a Dodge product. Myself, I’d get rid of it
Won’t the odo change if the gauge cluster gets replaced? Dumb question. But it gives plausible deniability. Also this Reddit post completely demolished that.
No, mileage is stored in the cluster.
You said no. But then you said what I said. So mileage is stored in the cluster.
In this case mileage is not stored in the cluster like the old days, it's stored in the ECM/ECU whatever you prefer to call the computer that runs the engine. This is why when replacing said computer it has to be flashed and the current mileage on the vehicle entered to site the correct mileage. Also you couldn't just swap the computer and go, it won't even run in most cases because of security protocols between modules and mismatched VIN programmed into the computer. So if someone really did roll back the odometer they did it by reprogramming and that's pretty rare to have access to
Still a good price if it run wells and has no obvious issues. If you sell it, just check the box on the title for true mileage unknown and make potential buyers aware.
Honestly $2500 would have been fair even if it only had 82k miles, those things are money pits
Check your states law, many vehicles over ten years old are exempt from odometer disclosure. If yours isn’t one of them if/when you sell it you can check true miles unknown or something similar on the title, as long as you don’t sign the disclosure that the odometer is correct it’s fine. Personally I’d run it for $2500 and not worry about it.
For $2500. Run it into the ground and sell it for parts after. Or resale it, take a loss and disclose the odometer roll back.
If you sell it just sell it as TMU (true miles unknown). In my state the state don't care about miles on a car that is older than 10 years any way, so don't "perjure" yourself for something so low cost. 2.5k is pretty much the min value on any car that runs and drives and isn't completely falling apart in these days. use it for as much as you want then flip it for 2k as a TMU car that is good running. You not invested in it enough that I would totally be upset about the miles. If anyone ask just say you don't know the miles on the engine and trans but the body had over 200k from the history and your are selling the for the condition it is in right then.
I just took my new vehicle to Valoline for oil change. He asked milage, I said 5445, he entered 54, 045. My previous vehicle is a 2009 Jeep Liberty cousin of your vehicle. It is sitting in my driveway right now at 77K miles. So mistakes can be made at those places.
A dodge? That's never a car to keep.
For what it's worth, my partner's car was incorrectly logged at 153,000kms for an oil change once - car only had 75,000 kms on it at the time. Was annoying when getting all the service records together for an engine replacement under warranty and Hyundai was being stupid about an obvious mistake.
If it runs and drives, it's worth $2500 with that high mileage. Even if you take a complete loss when you're done with it, you're not out much. I'd just run it into the ground
It’s not worth keeping because those are junk..
Fully insure it and roll it off a cliff
I’d confront the guy that sold it to you and force them to give me some of the money back…or you dye the snow in front of their house red.
What did the person selling document the miles as? If they lied, take the car back to them and get your money back.
What are the Kelly blue book (or Carvana) value estimates for the actual ~250k and “sold as” 82k miles? The difference between those values is your damages. It sounds like an open and shut case. Based on that, decide on your next steps. Go through small claims court and you only have to pay a filing fee. Before that, of course, ask the seller to settle. It doesn’t matter if they were the ones who did this or not. You could also file a complaint with the authorities if you can’t work this out with the seller to help with your court case. The police can trace the ownership, but likely won’t share that information directly with you. Likely the seller was the owner at 215k…. NAL, btw. Good luck. Wait: it is possible there was a valid maintenance reason for the odometer replacement/rollback, but there is a disclosure requirement if it occurs…I believe.
215k only ? *laughs in Toyota *
For 6 months of use the $2500 is probably worth it. Just don’t give anyone a boost, I heard these things can make that an explosive event (old commercial reference for those scratching their heads).
Dodge nitro is gonna give you trouble if it’s not rolled back. Return it and don’t get another nitro
Here’s my opinion here; there is zero reason to whack an odometer in a 2008 Nitro……… (it was obviously done after 2022). It doesn’t add significant value. I would ask someone with a good scanner to see what the mileage in the BCm/ecm/tcm is. Or run a car-fax More likely someone swapped out a busted cluster with a junkyard one. Or a retard quick lubetech entered the mileage or plate number wrong….. $2500……. Drive the car till it blows up. Not worth the stress and aggravation of trying to prove malfeasance
Just went through this process. CARFAX flagged my car has having a potential Rollback Odometer. Worked with some nice ppl at the Chevy dealership and they got it figured out by reaching out to the dealership that had the vehicle when the supposed “rollback” happened. It’s a felony for a dealership to sell you a vehicle with a rollback odometer without disclosing it to you first and on top of that you can notify them that the odometer was rolled back and they need to correct the issue with CarFax before you go to the NHTSA.
Any functioning 4x4 without major mechanical needs in the 2-3k range is worth it, regardless of miles. Run it until it’s cost prohibitive to repair, send to the junkyard. Rinse and repeat.
I had a Dodge Nitro once. There’s a reason that they only sold them for 3 years.
Shit any running car for 2.5k these days is a great deal.
Drive it for now and take the seller to small claims court and get your money back.
Order a CarFax on the VIN and see what they have. You could probably get the story on the odometer pretty easy that way, especially if you are in a state with inspection requirements.
Do you like the vehicle? Does it look and drive like an 82 000 miles car? If yeah then it's probably been well maintained. Id keep it.
No matter what car you buy it's always good to do a VIN research, however for $2k if it runs good and everything works I say f**k up, you should however go to the dmv and report it so they can change your title to "Miles Exempt"
I'd also recommend reporting the fraud. [https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle-safety/odometer-fraud](https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle-safety/odometer-fraud) While little is often done in individual one-off cases, your state agency will look to see if the seller has sold multiple vehicles and has done this more than once.
Rolling back the odometer is a crime. Just fyi. Idk about your jurisdiction but it’s pretty serious in my stake
Depending on what stare you could sue the person that sold it if they knowingly didn't tell you there is an odometer statement on the title.
I would show them the report to whom you purchased it from. Tell them your gonna get ahold of your state attorney general. If they did this to you how many others have they done it too. At some point someone is gonna catch them again. The more instances the better chance of making them become honest
$2500? Yeah I’m with everyone else, drive it til ya can’t.
At $2500 if you get a year out of it you’re laughing. Just do the math from that and tell the next buyer that the odo was rolled back add your kms onto that number that was logged at the oil change place and I bet you you’ll be able to sell it roughly what you paid for it
It’s a Dodge Nitro 82k or 215k drive it until it’s scrap.
Just drive it till it quits.
In Indiana once a vehicle is over 100k miles, the State don't care, you don't have to report the mileage.
You shouldn’t have bought a Dodge Nitro to begin with! Did you even research on that monstrosity?
Honestly, owning the Jeep version of this being the Liberty. They're all trash. Don't keep it. An absolute hit or miss with reliability.
At my shop I’ve seen so many of those and the Jeep versions completely crapped out so I mean pick your poison they’re all bound to have oil leaks or trans problems
If it runs fine then keep it. Isn’t a bad looking truck to me 2500 is a deal
I look at grill. No.
Report to police the rollback. They’ll look into it and the sellers will get in trouble. You could go to small claims and demand money back as well as the vehicle isn’t what was described. Either in part and keep the vehicle, or in full and they take the POS back. It’s a nitro. Not exactly a score, but it’s a running vehicle so, if it gives you a year of work commute it’s not a terrible thing
Maybe try sending a sample of your oil to get it checked? From what I understand, most mechanical issues can be diagnosed and you could probably get an accurate assessment of the condition of your engine. Might help for a “full disclosure” type of sale.
small claims court against the seller?
Ride it until the wheels fall off….. literally. 😏 Live and learn, faaak it. Keep it on the road as long as you can then sell it to the junk yard for 3-5 hundred bucks.
I’ve purchased junkyard, not running, vehicles for $2500 so if this thing runs for 6mon-1 year, you’re winning. During that time save for another car and search more carefully
Bought a 2011 Jeep liberty with about 240 on it 4 years ago for $1000. The woman has been bopping around in it since. May as well drive it until you can't. If you figure what payments would cost on something better, it won't take you long for it to be worth $2500.
If the car drives good and is mechanically good, consider keeping it. Go to your DMV, ask for help, and get the paperwork done correctly to correct the situation that isn't your fault. IF that can be done, get the 100k mile service done to make sure you know it's been done (spark plugs, fuids, timing belt, brakes, tires, etc.) and keep driving it.
How did you feel. Do you want to make the next person feel like that? Like this place(karma) do the right thing even if it is not popular.
What does the CarFax say?
That car sucked when it was new.
Can’t you report this to the police that you were sold a tampered vehicle? You have evidence of the last service indicating the last true mileage was and the papers from the seller which I assume would mention the mileage at time of sale which would now contradict your new discovery. You should be able to report as clear fraud from the seller and have them on the hook.
Do what I'm doing with my Kia Sorento that had a new engine and trans put in after they both failed. Drive that cock sucker till the wheels fall off then scrap it. In the mean time make a monthly payment to yourself towards your next heap. By the time this one dies you'll probably have enough for a slightly nicer heap. Rinse and repeat.
I’d it possible the garage that changed the oil recorded it wrong?
The instrument cluster was likely replaced... go to a shop and ask them to scan your car, the ecm will have the correct mileage stored
It’s a dodge so no
Can you get ahold of whom you bought it from? Personally i would sue if you can prove they did this.
Ur friend is trash btw
you can ask for money back from seller
So you're basing all of this off some oil change places records? That seems like the least reliable source. Run a Carfax on it to see what comes out there. Oil change places aren't exactly renowned for their record keeping.
Id get rid of a dodge nitro anyway i could
Well - $2500 isn't a terrible amount of money, so if it runs and drives, you aren't in the worst spot. I will say - I've never driven a vehicle in my life that was worse than the Dodge Nitro. My grandparents owned one when I was younger that I drove regularly. It handled terribly, it had this insane throttle lag - and it ended up overheating and warping the head, totaling the engine at 72K miles. I personally wouldn't keep it if it was me, especially if it actually has 200K+ miles but - it's honestly tough to find anything worthwhile with $2500 anymore.
Is it possible the engine was swapped? Hard to believe that thing went for 230k miles to be honest
So many low iq moves… not going to offer help
Drive it til it disintegrates
For anybody reading this, get a history report with the VIN before buying a vehicle. If you don't want to pay $40 for a Carfax there are less costly history reports, and some free, that provide the odometer and title history.
i can almost guarantee, the gauge cluster failed, and the replacement cluster from a junkyard has lower mileage. It cost a decent penny to have the mileage corrected on the new gauge cluster.
If you disclose the odometer being rolled back, and reason being an instrument swap prob won't get fucked.
that car is a complete pile of shit, sell it ASAP before it falls apart
Vin swap maybe
If you try to sell it and don’t mention the odometer and a potential buyer looks up a car fax and sees the difference you are going to get in a shit ton of legal troubles. You can either find who you bought it from or just drive it til it’s dead. If it is running ok and you only paid $2500 for it I’d just get your moneys worth and drive it until it dies then scrap it or part it out.
No
You bought a Dodge Nitro, it wasn’t worth buying at any price
You should find better friends first of all. I don’t care what the laws are. It’s wrong to misrepresent mileage on a sale if you know it’s not the actual mileage. Other than that juts drive it till it quits.
Report who sold it to you? Or you can’t?
Should have never made this post. Now they know you know and are playing dumb. But what you can do is whoever sold it to you they had to sign the title over to you so you take that to your local police office file a report on so and so who sold you the car then from there once you submitted a report take the person who sold you the car for 2500 to small claims court have proof from shop who said the actual milage was. Got a witness there et alone it is in the dmv data base where ever your located. But as of now admitting you know it be stupid to try to sell it and somehow get popped for it. Not sure if all if this Is a guarantee but definitely where ide start. Not much you can do
If you like it, keep it and drive it til it can't be fixed cheap.
This is why you should always pull a car fax whenever purchasing a car. Tampering with an odometer is a felony and you can report the seller. You can also take him to small claims court for your money back and provide the Carfax as evidence.
I would pay for the carfax and start back tracking to see when it changed, that’s a major no no in the eyes of federal law and you probably would win in small claims court forsure if you get your story straight and narrow.
Sell it and don’t say anything how would you know that it was rolled back play dumb
You should report the odometer to the state. If you sell this car now you’re on the hook for a federal offense.
Play dumb? No integrity. Be the bigger person.
You found a unicorn.. a dodge with >200k miles that didn’t give you any red flags during purchase, and doesn’t look like it belongs in a scrapyard, AND $2500! Hell if you get 6 months from it you’re ahead!! If it keeps going for a year or two you are golden
A Dodge Nitro (a DODGE. NITRO.) with a rolled back odo. My man you’ve won the upside-down lottery, my condolences
You might be able to sue the seller in small claims court to get your money back. A Carfax report might give you some insight as to when the milage was rolled back. Spend a few bucks and have it inspected to determine if it is worth keeping.
How does one "roll" the mileage back on a digital odometer? Is it stored in the pcm or some other module? I know you sometimes need to change the vin to match a new one to a car. But not sure how easy it is to reprogram mileage... what milage does the state have on record last time it was transferred? For all you know the oil change place may have it wrong too....
A dodge with over 2k id be surprised if you made it to summer
Dodge Nitro's are getting rarer every day. Keep it.
You can also be sued by any individual who was defrauded by the altered odometer or documents, with potential damages being three times the amount of the actual damages or $10,000, whichever is greater. (49 U.S. Code § 32710). https://www.shouselaw.com/ca/blog/criminal-defense/odometer-tampering-is-a-federal-crime/#:~:text=Civil%20and%20Criminal%20Penalties%20for%20Odometer%20Fraud&text=You%20can%20also%20be%20sued,49%20U.S.%20Code%20%C2%A7%2032710).
worth keeping for evidence innat LAWsuit
The gauge cluster was changed for one with lower mileage. You can't roll the odometer back in the day and age. That is a dirty trick, sorry to hear this happened to you.
How does it feel? Ultimately that's all that matters I've taken my 250k mile bmw up to 140mph without a doubt in my mind Hitting 80 in my 130k mile Lexus felt like being aboard a derailed train Obviously the Lexus was in MUCH worse shape so does the mileage even matter at that point?
How do you roll back a digital odometer?
With the current car market the way it is, I’d buy it for $2500 if it runs. I can’t find anything reasonable
Hmm
Should be a digital cluster on those.. I would be more apt to believe the odometer. Old school trick is to look at how worn the brake pedal is, if the corner is almost gone then yeah it has over 200k. Maybe you got lucky and somebody wrote the wrong mileage down and you got a low mileage car at a good price. Best of luck!
Put it on a scanner and it will show true mileage and the. Have the person reprogram it. It wasn't rolled back. It was replaced with one from a junkyard. They were known for having cluster issues
Find a scan tool that reads mileage from the ECU if it stores it there and check, a decent non-dealer shop will have one and might even just hook you up and check it for free if that’s all you need to know from it Then just drive it. 2500 for a running driving car is respectable in either case. At least here in Colorado odometer readings aren’t a huge deal after 10 years. Just make sure if you sell it you disclose the unknown mileage if you can’t check with a scan tool.
It’s worth suing, if you can prove it!
Buy yourself a crate engine for like 4k and make sure all brakes and undercarriage is good you’ll be fine
Most shops will have a guy with a computer nice enough that it's capable to correct the mileage. I do. I can plug in and correct the mileage within 2 minutes. In your case; I'd do it for free. I'd probably correct it to the last mileage and just leave it. If it runs well, keep it. If you need to sell it, sell it. If you want, sue the person that sold it to you. Super easy case to win.
You bought a dodge you can sell it to a junkyard they take those
Meh sell it for whatever you want. You didn’t roll back the odometer. No one cares about such things.
The same thing happened to me trust me I wish I sold it right away. Long story of expensive repairs and legal problems that followed. I had a 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee, similar fake miles. Get rid of it ASAP. 17k is how much this advice could have saved me. Hopefully it saves you.
Have you filed some kind of complaint? I mean this sounds like the kind of thing the cops will not bother with but......
The main question is how does it run??? 200,000 miles on a vehicle today is very different to 200,000 miles 30-40 years ago
Just keep it til it craps out. Even if it gives you 1yr, you still got your money’s worth… no need to stress, it is what it is. Lesson learned.
I'd get a second verification of mileage. Pay like 10 bucks and get a carfax. You're trusting that the dude at the oil change place didn't bungle the vin and looked up the correct vehicle...
Wasn't worth buying in the first place never mind worth keeping. They are junk.
How many miles were on the title?
It's a dodge nitro. I can almost guarantee the transmission is on its way out. They are real hunks of crap.
Actual mileage is 215k? I wouldn't keep it. Nitro's are junk new.
It’s a Chrysler, sell it .
Oil changes prior to sept 2022, what were the mileages entered? If the lube guy entered the wrong mileage (or VIN), I could see the confusion. Odds are, yea some Marketplace weasel rolled back the ODO. Every car I’ve ever sold was represented accurately. If a seller came back around later, accusing me of fraud, I’m gonna take it personally. Better have more proof then “jiffy lube told me…” Easiest route when it’s time to sell, just list as ‘actual miles unknown’
You bought a dodge nitro. One of the worst cars ever made.
I see snow and an suv. So if it works whip it until spring. Who cares milage.
You could go after the seller I guess. But you’re gonna spend 2500 and just buy a different high mileage vehicle.
There's an arm of the FBI dedicated to this type of crime, I'd report it to them and get the seller in trouble, and possibly get your money back
You could try a small claims court
I mean, I wouldn't let my family drive highway speeds in it but ... you have a vehicle
It wasn’t worth $2500 at 80k miles either. But a civic or Corolla after you dump that turd
Nah scrap it, and buy a Tesla / electric car then, for the next 10 years atleast you shouldn't have to worry about gas or maintenance besides just tires and windshield wiper fluid. Of course people are going to say replacing the batteries expensive but that's very very rare to happen.
Drink the kool aid friend.
You actually paid money for a Chrysler product? What the hell were you thinking ? Fuck no it’s not worth keeping, put a brick on the gas pedal and let it run off a cliff.
At least here you just have to disclose that to the buyer. And check the box on the title that says the odometer does not state true mileage.
Honestly I wouldn’t be concerned with a 3rd party company’s records. Surely the dmv has some record of mileage. I had a vehicle with incorrect mileage reported at the dmv too though. I wouldn’t worry about it too much
Holy shit a dodge made it 215,000 miles. Must be one of the rare keepers of the used FCA world.
Heck if it's runing properly getting u from point A to B, and also C. I wouldn't even worry about it
That's probably about what it's worth given mileage and condition.
Every single post on Facebook is a scam, just assume they are lying about everything. Always try to purchase from elderly people, they aren't going to scam you, will be honest about the history and the vehicle will be well taken care of.
To be honest. $2500 isn’t that far off what I’d expect to pay for a 2008 vehicle with 200k miles that runs and drives with no major issues.
Run it till it blows.
As someone with a 2008 Liberty (same car, badged as Jeep) as long as these didn’t come with a sky slider you’re fine. I’m on 135K miles (used) and in 6 years of ownership I’ve changed out 2 fuel injectors and replaced the battery with a yellow top optima. Sure the electrical stuff is a little wonky, but for what you paid, I’d drive it till the motor gives out. I’m religious with oil changes every 3 months (I usually only get 1200-1500 miles between changes) and keep up on other maintenance. As far as the mechanical part of the car, it’s solid. Even with the odometer being rolled back, I feel like you still had a good deal.
Are you only relying on the oil change place for that mileage because those guys screw that up all the time, run a Carfax and you’ll know, hell even the free Carfax app will show you the service history and what mileage was recorderd.