How can I tell if it's been 'mileage corrected'?
Discussion
I'm looking for a diesel Merc S Class sS400 2018-2020 for almost silent wafting purposes. I will be driving myself.
I think £25-30k gets me something decent.
However, so many have been used for chauffeuring, and they hide their miles so well. Other than the obvious signs of wear on the driver's seat, pedals and steering wheel and the service history, what advice do you have to help me spot a 'mileage corrected' car?
I think £25-30k gets me something decent.
However, so many have been used for chauffeuring, and they hide their miles so well. Other than the obvious signs of wear on the driver's seat, pedals and steering wheel and the service history, what advice do you have to help me spot a 'mileage corrected' car?
I usually route this out via the service history.
Get a dealer to check online entries, and call up any dubious looking stamps in a service book.
If there's non main dealer history in the first thre years it's worth calling the supplying dealer to see if they saw the car. (servicing, or warranty visits)
Most vehicle clocking is done just before the car's first MOT.
But you're right, cars condition can defy their mileage.
Recently bought a 7 series for a dealer with just over 100k, and it looked more like 30k, even underneath.
Also, have a good look underneath, subframe corrosion can point towards higher use, as can the general corrosion on the engine bay.
If a vehicle has been clocked, there's often a quick keeper change, this can hide the culprit.
So beware any car that had a quick keeper change just before it's three years old.
Taxi firms running high value vehicles often clock them by a year's estimated usage the moment they buy them. Then again the following year.
I recently collected two Ex lease Merc V Class's, both very obviously driven more than 6,000 & 9,000 miles.
Get a dealer to check online entries, and call up any dubious looking stamps in a service book.
If there's non main dealer history in the first thre years it's worth calling the supplying dealer to see if they saw the car. (servicing, or warranty visits)
Most vehicle clocking is done just before the car's first MOT.
But you're right, cars condition can defy their mileage.
Recently bought a 7 series for a dealer with just over 100k, and it looked more like 30k, even underneath.
Also, have a good look underneath, subframe corrosion can point towards higher use, as can the general corrosion on the engine bay.
If a vehicle has been clocked, there's often a quick keeper change, this can hide the culprit.
So beware any car that had a quick keeper change just before it's three years old.
Taxi firms running high value vehicles often clock them by a year's estimated usage the moment they buy them. Then again the following year.
I recently collected two Ex lease Merc V Class's, both very obviously driven more than 6,000 & 9,000 miles.
Edited by Trevor555 on Thursday 28th May 12:45
Edited by Trevor555 on Thursday 28th May 12:45
I spoke to a chauffeur in Knightsbridge yesterday who was waiting in his S class. We spoke about the car and he said it was super comfortable and calming.
We spoke about the mileage blocker/correction issues and he said that many have been altered by colleagues in the same trade.
He did say that chauffeured S Class were not allowed to be blue at his company, so he suggested a blue one, followed by silver.
We spoke about the mileage blocker/correction issues and he said that many have been altered by colleagues in the same trade.
He did say that chauffeured S Class were not allowed to be blue at his company, so he suggested a blue one, followed by silver.
Ryan_T said:
Won t many cars when plugged give you a mileage readout from the transmission ecu which often doesn t get corrected and displays true mileage.
I guess that depends on how clever the "adjuster software" is nowdays.Bmw's used to show a little dot after the mileage reading to indicate mileages stored in different bit's of the car didn't tally.
Next time I'm at my local specialist I'll ask him about Mercs.
AIUI there's 2 distinct products/services: 1) mileage correction, which is where they alter the mileage; 2) "mileage blocker", which is a device plugged into a car so it doesn't properly record the mileage. I don't know if the latter also doesn't show the speed properly, or also blocks it to the other module(s) which also record mileage in addition to the dashboard display.
Sadly you will struggle to prove the miles on any of these. The problem is they get leased to various companies then sublet etc to airport transfer companies.
They don’t have service books, only online history and the entries can potentially be manipulated by independent garages.
MOT history is irrelevant as anyone adjusting mileage does it before MOT tests.
Mileage blockers reduce all mileage readings to the vehicle including ECU’s. In some circumstances Mercedes can assist with mileage manipulation checks but they generally don’t want to get involved.
As the person above has said, lot at every car and judge for yourself.
They don’t have service books, only online history and the entries can potentially be manipulated by independent garages.
MOT history is irrelevant as anyone adjusting mileage does it before MOT tests.
Mileage blockers reduce all mileage readings to the vehicle including ECU’s. In some circumstances Mercedes can assist with mileage manipulation checks but they generally don’t want to get involved.
As the person above has said, lot at every car and judge for yourself.
It's not as clear cut as that though, there are often errors caused by fat fingers and / or a misread at the MoT test centre.
I had a Boxster once where the MoT tester put two digits the wrong way round. I noticed the next day checking online and went back for them to correct it. Which they can, but after 28 days, they can't. Cars have replacement odometers due to failure or replacement in a restoration now we're talking about cars over 20 years old.
The digital online mileage database was created in 2005 but not all MoT centres went onto it straight away. It was late in 2006 before all MoT mileages were recorded this way.
I had a Boxster once where the MoT tester put two digits the wrong way round. I noticed the next day checking online and went back for them to correct it. Which they can, but after 28 days, they can't. Cars have replacement odometers due to failure or replacement in a restoration now we're talking about cars over 20 years old.
The digital online mileage database was created in 2005 but not all MoT centres went onto it straight away. It was late in 2006 before all MoT mileages were recorded this way.
You can’t. Buy on condition.
Very few people clock cars like these any more in the conventional way of “correcting” the mileage. Instead they use mileage blockers which connect to the car’s CANBUS system and intercept the mileage data at source so it doesn’t get recorded in any of the ECUs.
They’re everywhere and available for many different cars.
Very few people clock cars like these any more in the conventional way of “correcting” the mileage. Instead they use mileage blockers which connect to the car’s CANBUS system and intercept the mileage data at source so it doesn’t get recorded in any of the ECUs.
They’re everywhere and available for many different cars.
Buy the seller not the car. Find one that is being sold privately from a 1st owner. It'll narrow down your choices but significantly reduce your chances of getting a clocked one.
As others have said, avoid black ones, LWB ones and ones that have obviously been in the executive cab trade.
As others have said, avoid black ones, LWB ones and ones that have obviously been in the executive cab trade.
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