Used 93 E36 with possible mileage rollback...please advise

[4whatitsworth]

Hi...I just bought a 93 E36 with approx 140,000 on the odometer, or so I thought...i bought it two weeks ago...but did not get an autocheck report before buying...there were small dents and scratches...acceptable for being 15 years old...interior clean...and engine in good condition...i got curious about the cars history and decided to get a report...and to also give me peace of mind...I know the rule of thumb is to always do your homework before buying...but I thought the price I paid was not dirt cheap...but reasonable for the year and condition...I saw that the last odometer reading was at 189,699 back in 2006!!! I read some posts and found out that to roll back miles on a bmw was possible...but a tamper light will come on next to the miles on the cluster...which mine do not??? I included a copy page below and would appreciate it if you could answer some questions...I'm thinking the cars mileage was rolled back in 2/06 with almost 190,000...but why would someone do that to a car that has been driven for 13 years?...i wouldn't think they would get that much more money? I bought the car because the mileage was acceptable and the condition of the car good...i can't imagine the car being over 200,000 miles...

1. How come the mileage doesn't show up when the car was inspected for emission...it was done two times after 06...once in 7/07...and once in 2/08...doesn't the mileage get reported to DMV as did the previous inspections...

2. Also the registration renewals were done twice after 06...and title changed also...but both times no odometer reading shows up...is that possible...there is no report of mileages after 2/06

3. I have the title with me...and it shows no mileage reported on the title...don't you have to disclose mileage when transferring title and shouldn't it be on the title...

4. Could there possibly be a mistake with autocheck and the 189xxx should be 139xxx...

Any feedback and insight will be greatly appreciated...thank you!!!


10/09/2002 CA
96,777
Motor Vehicle Dept. ODOMETER READING FROM DMV
01/29/2003 LA CRESCENTA, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE (Lien Reported)
02/06/2003 LA CRESCENTA, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
01/31/2004 CA
134,642
State Agency PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
03/16/2004 LA CRESCENTA, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
12/12/2004 BURBANK, CA
Police Report ACCIDENT REPORTED (Case #:04-13384)
01/28/2006 CA
188,339
State Agency FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
02/04/2006 CA
188,710
State Agency EMISSION INSPECTION
02/14/2006 CA
State Agency ACCIDENT REPORTED, Event Date is date reported to AutoCheck
02/22/2006 CA
189,665
189,669
State Agency FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
02/23/2006 CA
State Agency FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
02/24/2006 CA
189,688
189,693
189,699
State Agency FAILED EMISSION INSPECTION
PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
07/30/2007 CA
State Agency PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
08/10/2007 ENCINO, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
08/22/2007 ENCINO, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
02/20/2008 CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
02/21/2008 SAN PEDRO, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
03/02/2008 SAN PEDRO, CA
Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE

[marti5]

Did you buy it from a dealer or private?, Over here in the UK its an offence big time and dealers and private people have ended up with big fines and or prison, I would have thought it should be easy to track down who done it.

Over here we have the DVLA, who know everything about any vehicle, mileages through its life, all the owners from new etc etc., so very easy to track down the bad boy!!

[johnnyBgood]

My brother recently purchased a 2000 328i with 39,000 miles, or so he thought, off of ebay from a guy who said he was selling cars for people & if he gets them the selling price, he makes about $400.00 to $500.00 a vehicle. He would always purchase 1 owner cars, so when you do a car fax the mileage would come up as zero......he also would detail the interior & exterior, take care of all basic maintenance issues, brakes, fluids, etc. in the garage of his million dollar home......I went with my brother to pick this car up & this car was immaculate....looked like a 40,000 mile vehicle. 3 months later, my brother's 2000 328i was rear ended with mild damage......after the vehicle was repaired.......he did another car fax and the mileage came up as 125,000, we also found out that this guy continued to buy 1 owner upscale cars.....BMW....LEXUS.....HONDA......TOYOTA.....et c. So my brother watched every sale he made & then contacted the new owners to warn them & then they found out, that they too, were being done over with odometer fraud......
My brother & the other victims found out the true mileage by contacting their local car dealer & checking the service records using their vin # 's. They just said they were inquiring about when their last service was done.....
So, maybe you can find out the actual mileage through your local BMW Dealer....
johnny,

p.s. this guy was actually making $4000.00 to $5000.00 a car, my brother threatened to bring him to court, & he suprisingly offered & refunded my brother $4,500.00 & blamed some other guy for turning the mileage back.......

[4whatitsworth]

thanks for the advice...