Why should I get my vehicle’s odometer
inspected?

Before you buy a car one of the first things you want to be sure about
is the accuracy of the odometer reading. Vehicles that have had its odometer
tampered with could have traveled significantly more distance than the odometer
reading in the vehicle shows. A vehicle that has traveled more distance than you
believe can cause you many unexpected mechanical problems than a vehicle that has
only traveled a relatively low amount of distance as will be shown on a tampered odometer, and we all know that this can be an extremely expensive exercise if the vehicle requires further repairs that are not budgeted for.

Furthermore, when it comes time to resell you car, you may have the potential buyer question the legitimacy of the odometer reading and to show that when you bought the car that it had been inspected and certified by a qualified odometer inspection organization like AIS will not only give the potential buyer more confidence in buying your car, it will also add value to the purchase price as this is one less thing the buyer has to consider.

How can I tell if a vehicle has had its odometer tampered with?

In many cases it is extremely difficult to identify if a vehicle’s odometer has been tampered with and rewound unless you have specialist training in this area. But as a rule of thumb the average distance traveled by a motor vehicle in New Zealand in one year is about 14,000kms. Motorists could calculate the average mileage of a car by multiplying 14,000kms by the age of the vehicle. If the odometer reading is significantly less, such as half the number of kilometers estimated, the prospective buyer would be wise to enquire if the vehicle was inspected and passed by AIS.

As a dealer can I use your AIS Odometer Passed” stickers and “Odometer Inspection Certificate” to show my customers that a vehicle has undergone and passed an odometer inspection?

Absolutely! AIS is a leader in odometer inspection processes and if AIS has inspected a vehicle for odometer tampering both you and your customer can be sure that is has undergone a vigorous inspection and is free of tampering at this time it was inspected.

What kinds of vehicles are targeted for odometer tampering by criminals?

Criminals do odometer tampering to make money; it’s as simple as that. Therefore, luxury vehicles are generally targeted as the potential to make more money from rewinding the odometer is much greater. However, as the equipment required to tamper with vehicle odometers is easy to purchase and easy to use, many criminals will tamper with any type of vehicle as the financial returns are limitless.

How much mileage is usually taken off following tampering?

Criminals could take as much mileage as they want off an odometer when tampering, even 100,000’s of kilometers can be easily wiped. However, it is more likely that criminals will take off between 20,000kms – 40,000kms and AIS specialize in identifying these types of vehicles and you should feel confident that a vehicle displaying an AIS “Odometer Passed” sticker accompanied with an AIS “Odometer Inspection Certificate” has an accurate odometer reading at the time it was inspected.

How is odometer tampering usually done?

While we are not running courses on how to conduct odometer fraud it is important for us to be very familiar with the various tampering techniques as they develop and to keep as up to date as possible.

Generally there are two types of odometers, digital odometers that have there mileage recorded electronically and the older analogue odometers with a physical rolling tumbler drum inside the odometer cluster.

With digital odometers it is very easy in many cases to tamper with the odometer reading through accessing the vehicles Port Programmable Diagnostic system which is usually positioned under the vehicle’s front bonnet. The Port Programmable Diagnostic system is used by mechanics to run analysis on a vehicle to find faults and adjust settings to improve performance, this system can also be used with the correct equipment to change the odometer reading. Because of this reason AIS inspectors do not rely solely on the removal of the odometer cluster behind the dashboard and are fully trained to take many aspects of a vehicle’s overall condition into consideration, thoroughly review the vehicle’s service & maintenance history records and use the powerful NAK odometer management system as standard processes in its odometer inspection procedure.

The techniques required to rewind an analogue odometer leave evidence that can be identified by a qualified AIS inspector, such as screwdriver marks on screws around the odometer consule and signs of scratches, finger prints and marks on the actual tumbler drum itself.