got ripped off, need help!

[blackbeast]

short story:
bought 1996 impala SS, claimed to have 88k miles, broken odometer, fixed it actual 149K miles.

long story:
recently came into some money, paid off some debt, and bought a dream car. wanted a reliable daily driver so i settled on an impala SS. located on on the impalassforum, and went over to illinois to look at it. Guy claimed it was his aunt's recently gave it to him, he's selling. Also claimed speedo recently went out, had about 81,250 when it did. car ran and drove good, but had some quarter damage. ended up paying $6,800. get it home, fix the odometer, and car has 149,xxx miles.

call seller, claims to have no idea. Later says he's not responsible, sold as is, it doesn't matter in illinois.

Now, i have the title where he wrote 88,200 i have a bill of sale 88,200, i also have a email, and have found postings on multiple BB's where he claims 88,200.

i have contacted peoria police and they say it is a civil matter. How is this not fraud? states right on the title "federal and state law requires that you state the mileage in connection with the transfer of ownership. failure to complete or providing a false statement may result in fines and or imprisonment."

anyways where do I go from here to get my money back? Thanks

-casey

[TonyL]

He's got you. You bought the car knowing the odometer was broken. So he sold you the car based on his "best guess" even though you and I know that its crap. Proving he knowingly lied is going to be your problem.

[rocketrod]

He's got you. You bought the car knowing the odometer was broken. So he sold you the car based on his "best guess" even though you and I know that its crap. Proving he knowingly lied is going to be your problem.
Unfortunately he is right.



i have contacted peoria police and they say it is a civil matter...

Thanks
-casey
I work in Peoria, IL...

[Jim Nilsen]

Call the Secretary of States office and see what they think. It may at least help you on the amount of tax you have to pay for the car to get plates?

Jim Nilsen

[cadpro]

Try the DMV (or similar) and see what they have to say...

Tough one to prove though. Maybe I'll see ya on The People's Court someday!

C-

[sam1]

Maybe you ought to pay him a visit with a baseball bat?

How big a boy is he?

[redsand]

Maybe when you break all of the windows out of his car you can just say I only thought I hit one. My swing odometer was broken

[Mr.VENGEANCE]

youre taking a L on this one..

L=loss.

[blackbeast]

bunch of negative *******s huh :) just looking for opinions/experience. at the very least i will be taking him to civil court, out some more of my time, and a few more bucks. At this point just wasting his time is enough. Too bad being a ********** wasn't a crime, that case would be easy to prove...

[BADVELLE]

More of a headache than this is worth, let it go, chalk it up to experience. Anyway, with the damage you are talking about, would of of paid less if it had that many miles?? I just don't think it is worth you frustration and time, you bought it for a reliable daily driver, why does the mileage matter? This guy could of ran the crap out of the car, regardless of the mileage!

[dropit69]

is the car still ok?..does the extra milage hurt it that bad..if it runs good drives good ..just chalk up a little loss and enjoy the car..

[Whistler]

I've seen fullsize chevy taxicabs with 400K on them, your car will probably still be good for a while at 14X,XXX. Just keep a spare opti spark in the trunk. :)

[nancejd]

What state do you live in? If he made a false claim in correspondence to you in a different state, that is a case of interstate fraud, and that would give the FBI jurisdiction. Not only that, but I thought mis-stating mileage is a federal crime, again, an FBI thing. Worth a call at any rate. If all you want is your money back, and give the car back to him, pointing out a few items like this might get you there.

[blackbeast]

thanks for the ideas guys, it just seems to me that this can't be legal, i shouldn't be the one left holding the bag w/ no recourse. I will be talking to a local attorney association to see what they can come up with.

The car seems to run fine, no smoking or anything. does need a fair bit of work, and the point is i overpaid by 2-3K for a car with this mileage. not a small sum to me.

[customcarpainter]

What color is the car?I don't think you gave too much for the car myself.

[Derek69SS]

What color is the car?I don't think you gave too much for the car myself.Me too. Even with that mileage, if it's a decent car, you still got a good buy.

Those B-bodies will last forever with some maintenance, so if the car was worth $6700 based on its merits (body condition, interior condition, and how well it drives) rather than its mileage, you have nothing to worry about. All the same things can and will go wrong with a 10-year-old 80,000 mile car as they do on a 10-year old 140,000 mile car. Most B-body owners are not really concerned about mileage from what I see on the impalassforum.com boards. Lots of guys are still sticking money into modifying their cars with 250k on them.

My '95 Caprice wagon just turned 150k last week. :) It's given me far less trouble than my previous wagon (now my parts-car) that had 85k on it... I overpaid for that junker because I was all excited about the low-mileage.

[rob07002]

Have a lawyer send a letter threatening further civil and any applicable criminal charges if he doesn't refund you $2000, or the diff of fair mkt value and what you paid.

If that doesn't work it's a lesson learned. Ido like the baseball ball choice too.

[Beegs]

Contact state AG.

IMO I think this will end up being a learning experience for you.

[68 SuperRam]

What was wrong with the odometer? How do you know that it had 149,XXX? Does it look like it was tampered with - did a shop fix it - if so, and they can prove that it was tampered with - you may have a case.

[Bad Bowtie]

Didn't you run a ****** on it before purchase:dunno: . That may have shown the discepencies in the mileage.

[Foudie]

Unfortunately the powers that be have bigger problems than the common car rippoff. Case in point, a few years back I bought a crew cab dually from a large used car dealer in Scottsdale, AZ that was advertised at 55k actual box A miles. It took over 5 months to get the title from them and when I finally did it was marked box C or True Miles Unknown. It turned out that this dealer was buying high mileage trucks, swapping out the odometer with low mileage odometers and marking them box c which in Arizona is a felony to knowingly tamper with an odometer even if you disclose it. So long story short I got involved in a class action lawsuit with close to 400 other people and got absolutely nowhere. The dealer is still in business to this day and the attorney general was no help at all. Oh and that beautiful slammed crew cab with 55k miles on it actually had closer to 255k miles. It is amazing how new a car can look with new upholstery.

[CRCRFT78]

I think you paid a fair price. Yeah it sucks that he burned you on the mileage but do you think going through all of that trouble and possibly still eating it is going to make a difference? Then your really going to hate the fact that you bought it. They go for $10,000 and under in Cali with that kind of mileage. If everything else about the car was good enough for you to pay that price, take it as a learning experience. Some a**holes just aren't worth the fight. If mileage is that big of a factor, I've got a 96 DGGM Impala SS for $18,500 with 45,000 miles on it.

[blackbeast]

thanks for the help, and to answer a few questions

ran a ******, last time it was reported, it was under the miles he quoted me

no the odometer wasn't tampered with, it simply overheated the resistors like every other 92 impy ss. i just replaced the resistors and viola odometer lights up again.

to those say i still got a good deal consider this, it really needs a new quarter, i think i'm going to have it fixed instead, has a few other dents dings that need repaired, and the tranny hesitates when going WOT into 4th.

[Steve68]

it's all fixable enjoy it, drive the hell out of it,

[BADVELLE]

thanks for the help, and to answer a few questions

ran a ******, last time it was reported, it was under the miles he quoted me

no the odometer wasn't tampered with, it simply overheated the resistors like every other 92 impy ss. i just replaced the resistors and viola odometer lights up again.

to those say i still got a good deal consider this, it really needs a new quarter, i think i'm going to have it fixed instead, has a few other dents dings that need repaired, and the tranny hesitates when going WOT into 4th.

I hope you made a mistake on the computer, but they only made the SS version 94-96! Either way, you are looking at more headaches than it is worth. Plus, I have lost $3000 on an internet deal (don't ask, long story), however this is just not worth the headaches your are going to experience dealing with a lawyer. The guy did tell you the odometer was broke, at least that is what he will say, remember, your word against his! Enjoy the car!

[Derek69SS]

...it simply overheated the resistors like every other 92 impy ss.
I hope you made a mistake on the computer, but they only made the SS version 94-96!Typo I'm sure, '91-93 caprice dashes were not digital, 94-95 had digital speedo and odo, and the '96 impala SS had analog speedo, and tach, but digital odo.

Any chance he tried replacing the odometer with a used one from a higher mileage car to make it work? I believe the "memory" is in the odo itself, and not another part of the cluster. I'm not real familiar with the '96 cluster, but I know the insides of a '95 all too well.

[surlyjoe]

Which resistors blow out? I have a 94 fleetwood parts car with that problem. I wouldn't mind knowing the mileage seller said around 300k. (bought it for body parts not mechanical)

[blackbeast]

Which resistors blow out? I have a 94 fleetwood parts car with that problem. I wouldn't mind knowing the mileage seller said around 300k. (bought it for body parts not mechanical)

if you pull the cluster you'll see 3 big resistors that the solder will be pulling away from the board, and they will be slightly discolored if they are like the 96's

[surlyjoe]

Thanks. I am home in a week so I will check it out.

[toofun]

Ok,
Based on personal experience here is what I would do. Get in touch with an attorney and have him write up a demand letter. I will cost you about 500 but it will official and will get the point across that you are serious. If you try to send a letter yourself or threaten to go to court, he will blow you off. People will act differently when they are faced with a registered mailing containing a DEMAND LETTER from an attorney. This shows you are serious about pursueing it and will in fact be LEGAL. It also will show good faith in a court of law should you go that route since you have legally tried to find an easy resolution to this problem. I KNOW IT IS 500 DOLLARS BUT THIS IS THE PRICE YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY TO SHOW THAT YOU ARE SERIOUS. You could net back 1500 if you demand restitution of 2000. Any other threats or demands are nothing but that. You will be blowing smoke otherwise.

If you dont want to go this way then I would go one other way. I wont go into details but I believe in making someone pay monetarily one way or another. JUST MY .02 CENTS..