Miles better

I have agreed to buy a car from a local Jaguar dealership and the last time I sat in it I perused the service history record and made a note of the mileage that differs by 10k from the advertised mileage on the sales sheet. I did not notice this until I returned home and I phoned the salesman who assured me that the advertised mileage would be correct. I assumed then that I had written down some incorrect figures. In the event of the true speedo mileage reading 10k more that the sales sheet, have you advice on how I should approach the situation when collecting the car which is likely to be as early as Wednesday this week, please?

Asked on 12 June 2010 by DM, via email

Answered by Honest John

Obviously something is wrong. The only reason I can think of for the odo reading 10k miles more than the true mileage the car has covered is that the speedo broke and was replaced by one from a car that had done 10k more. Extremely unlikely. So unless the garage can prove from the car's service record that it has done no more than the advertised mileage (and I don't see how they can conclusively prove that) my advice to you is not to touch it. And if you made any deposit get that back on grounds of breach of contract in that the car had covered 10k miles more than the advertised and contracted mileage. Also get Trading Standards involved because to sell a car with an incorrect mileage is a criminal offence.

Tags: buying mileage used cars

Dear Honest John,

Please help me choose my next car. I would like it to have:

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