How easy would it be for an unsavory character to roll back an odometer on a 97 digital odometer? The odo says 70k but steering wheel(slick), clutch/brake,and vinyl seat show heavy wear. Exterior of truck looks like 50k. Truck was worked HARD as evidenced by the inside bed. What else should I look for? My mechanic says mechanically 70k looks about right, maybe I'm just paranoid. Thanks for the input

 

I do not beleive you can roll a digital odometer backwards, you can run it forwards though.

 

He's right, you cannot roll the odometer, so it is not fraudulant



Primary rig is:
95' F-150 EB 300/6 5 spd with 4" Superlift, MSD, Ram Air, Gibson Exhaust, 32" BFG Muds
NEW PICS IN MY GALLERY!! :-)


Then theres:
88' F-250 Superduty 351 + c6
95' Mercury Cougar 4.6L V-8
80' E-350 300/6 and a
3 spd column shifter baby. Top speed, 65mph, Go Baby Go!

The newest addition to the Ford family is a 99' Mustang GT 4.6L

 

What happens if you roll the odo all the way forward? Does it go past one million or roll over?

 

depending on how many digits there are..i don't know..but if its in the millions place..it would go to 9,999,999 and go back to zero would think i'm not sure..its really impossible to do this, unless he drove a billion and 70k miles.




Primary rig is:
95' F-150 EB 300/6 5 spd with 4" Superlift, MSD, Ram Air, Gibson Exhaust, 32" BFG Muds
NEW PICS IN MY GALLERY!! :-)


Then theres:
88' F-250 Superduty 351 + c6
95' Mercury Cougar 4.6L V-8
80' E-350 300/6 and a
3 spd column shifter baby. Top speed, 65mph, Go Baby Go!

The newest addition to the Ford family is a 99' Mustang GT 4.6L

 

the "billion" is an exaggeration...i just realised that it made me look dumb so i wanted to explain.


Primary rig is:
95' F-150 EB 300/6 5 spd with 4" Superlift, MSD, Ram Air, Gibson Exhaust, 32" BFG Muds
NEW PICS IN MY GALLERY!! :-)


Then theres:
88' F-250 Superduty 351 + c6
95' Mercury Cougar 4.6L V-8
80' E-350 300/6 and a
3 spd column shifter baby. Top speed, 65mph, Go Baby Go!

The newest addition to the Ford family is a 99' Mustang GT 4.6L

 

First, I really think I've heard of rollbacks even with the electronic system. They may not actually go backwards, but reprogramming or forward-to-rollover amounts to the same thing.

Second, if you truck was really used for a work truck the whole time, it is certainly possible it would drive like crap and have other problems. At 84,500 my truck's front end was crappy by the time I got it, and I don't think the guy used the truck for much more than a highway vehicle. I'm under the impression the Ford front ends just weren't the strongest. Look to change out the radius arm bushings with polyurethane ones, and get new shocks & steering components.

"
Jack Gillis / Author The Car Book: "People mistakenly think digital odometers can't be rolled back, but the fact is, there are products sold over the Internet that would allow anyone who would want to rollback even a digital odometer."

Rolling back odometers is illegal in every state in the U.S., but it's a scam that's been increasing.

Because of mileage caps on leased cars, more and more dishonest mechanics are rolling back odometers, falsely inflating the value of a used car. It also increases the chance you'll have to pay for expensive repairs.

Jack Gillis / Author The Car Book: "The process is not unlike hacking into a computer. You know, if they can hack into a mainframe they can certainly hack into the computer and the odometer system on the average automobile. It's pretty basic."
"

 

Ive been told by a few people on here that it can't be rolled back. But i obviously could be wrong.


Primary rig is:
95' F-150 EB 300/6 5 spd with 4" Superlift, MSD, Ram Air, Gibson Exhaust, 32" BFG Muds
NEW PICS IN MY GALLERY!! :-)


Then theres:
88' F-250 Superduty 351 + c6
95' Mercury Cougar 4.6L V-8
80' E-350 300/6 and a
3 spd column shifter baby. Top speed, 65mph, Go Baby Go!

The newest addition to the Ford family is a 99' Mustang GT 4.6L

 

Seeing this thread, I looked on Ebay, and sure enough there is a guy selling an electronic device to set the miles on any Ford or ch*** digital odometer. Hurry, it closes in only 2 days!!! ;-}
-greg

 

If man can make it, man can break it.

I would guess that the truck odometer is probably correct. Short trips in heavy traffic by a 'clutz' for a driver can result in excessive wear in those areas you mentioned.

On the other hand my 88 f150 had 122K when I bought it and the dash looks new. Not even a scratch mark behind the a/c heater controls. People are different in the way they use or take care of equipment.

Winford

 

Order a Carfax report on it if you want to buy, but don't trust the mileage and/or title. You give them the VIN number and out pops a title history report with mileages reported everytime the truck was transferred or smog/safety checked, depending upon state. It's well worth a few bucks to know for sure. www.carfax.com

No. I don't work for them.

 

I believe you could also hit the salvage yard and take the digital odometer out of the same type wrecked vehicle and install it in a different vehicle.
My father in law had the odometer quit working on his Mystique after about 2500 miles. He drove it for another 6 months before taking it to the dealer and then they put a new odoneter in and he started over at zero.

 

Wouldn't it be possible to jumper a couple wires on the tranny to make it go and flip or go backwards. On the 93's I'f seen the first diget can only go up to "3". It shows when you first turn the key on.
I also saw one that malfunctioned before the tranny crapped out and it lost miles somewhere (no kidding, I couldn't believe it either)

 

3? Mine says "G" backwards.



'93 F-150 loaded and modified!
Check my Gallery

 

I heard you can roll the odometers back. Ford can do it for you if you need to change your gague cluster. But if one had the computer to do it, they could do it as well. Whose to say you do not pull the fuse on the on the odo. I thinks thats why they have gone away from the digital odometers.


Dan