Rebuilt or New Engine

[BobsShelbyDakota]

I was wondering when I rebuild the 5.2 engine in my S/Dak it means that it is a brand new engine, so I should get a new speedo/odometer that has 0 miles on it, right? As I understand it the miles on a car or truck are actually for the engine as a way to determine how old and how long the engine has been operating. Even though the past records will show the original mileage I think I should reset to 0 with a new odometer. Sound right? I am not trying to make people think that it is a low mileage original engine or cheat anyone, but a new or rebuilt means just that.

 

Bob

[Phatnlow]

Hey Bob, this is a excellant post and from what i've heard about in the past 20+ years is debateable. Some people i've met would rebuild their engines in camaros, mustangs,chevelles, ect. and write down the mileage of the odometer. when they put their new engines in and keep track of it that way. Because the chasis still has the wear and mileage on it. I don't want to steer you wrong because I'm not certain but you can do it any way you wish. If you ever sell this muscle truck you can tell the buyer it's got whatever mileage you put on the new engine (example) 34,876 but the chasis has 225,789 miles plus the 34,876. for a total of 260,665. miles . I'm sure someone else will chime in on this post and hopefully clear up any confusions you and i have about this topic. If it was me i would zero out the odometer and just write down the mileage just so you would know exactly how many miles are on the chasis and engine as a total.

Great post again i wish i had a better answer for you sorry.

[hwhunter]

If I were doing a restoration, I would definitely set it back to zero.

[shelbymotorsports]

It's always been my experience and one that I agree with that the odometer should never be reset to zero. The odometer tally's the mileage not just on the engine but the complete car. Most enthusiasts look at resetting the odometer as the owner trying to hide something so that they can get a higher selling price.

 

Speaking of selling, say you reset the odometer and then sell the truck in two years. Of course you will tell the buyer that the "actual mileage" is much more because you reset the odometer back in April 2010. Now what happens when that buyer decides to sell the truck what guarantee do you have that he will tell the next buyer the mileage showing is incorrect? The answer is you don't have any guarantee and there the problem is off and running.

 

You also have to consider that the CarFax and Experian reports for your Dakota will get red flagged as a possible odometer rollback vehicle the next time the mileage is entered. I don't know if you have smog checks in your area but you can't just tell the tech that the mileage is really this amount and have him enter the correct amount, it just doesn't work that way.

 

About the only time I've seen it acceptable to turn back the odometer to zero is on a pre 1970 car that has been restored from the ground up. From the ground up means every nut, bolt and part of the car has been replaced or refurbished. In some sense you are starting with a new car because the percentage of new parts used in the full ground up restoration.

 

Keep in mind that it is illegal for a dealer to rollback the odometer so there may be a good chance that same law applies to individuals. Something you'll need to research if you decide to do this rollback.

 

Steve

[ilmor]

It's always been my experience and one that I agree with that the odometer should never be reset to zero. The odometer tally's the mileage not just on the engine but the complete car. Most enthusiasts look at resetting the odometer as the owner trying to hide something so that they can get a higher selling price.

 

Speaking of selling, say you reset the odometer and then sell the truck in two years. Of course you will tell the buyer that the "actual mileage" is much more because you reset the odometer back in April 2010. Now what happens when that buyer decides to sell the truck what guarantee do you have that he will tell the next buyer the mileage showing is incorrect? The answer is you don't have any guarantee and there the problem is off and running.

 

You also have to consider that the CarFax and Experian reports for your Dakota will get red flagged as a possible odometer rollback vehicle the next time the mileage is entered. I don't know if you have smog checks in your area but you can't just tell the tech that the mileage is really this amount and have him enter the correct amount, it just doesn't work that way.

 

About the only time I've seen it acceptable to turn back the odometer to zero is on a pre 1970 car that has been restored from the ground up. From the ground up means every nut, bolt and part of the car has been replaced or refurbished. In some sense you are starting with a new car because the percentage of new parts used in the full ground up restoration.

 

Keep in mind that it is illegal for a dealer to rollback the odometer so there may be a good chance that same law applies to individuals. Something you'll need to research if you decide to do this rollback.

 

Steve

 

 

I totally agree. The mileage goes w/ the VIN and the overall vehicle, not just one component. In this way, along with something like "new engine installed at 50K miles", future prospective owners have the complete and true picture. If I were a buyer I would be very suspect of a vehicle where the owner told me that he reset the mileage to 0 when he installed a new engine.

[BobsShelbyDakota]

Here in Nevada they do check the mileage when a smog test is done. My Daytona Shelby Z had a digital dash that went out and I got another one from the boneyard which had around 90K miles on the new cluster but the car actually has over 200K. They did not say anything to me about the mileage all of a sudden dropping. It would be flagged in carfax so nothing to hide here. All I have to do is run a carfax and the original mileage would be on it. Again, the statement is not to cheat anyone, I was just wondering if a truck or car that has a brand new engine should the odometer be 0. Why would you be suspect in telling a buyer that a new engine was installed and the odometer was set to 0 if you also state that the mileage in the cluster is for the new engine? The carfax will tell the truth and I would tell the prospective buyer the truth anyway. The carfax on my Shelby Dakota shows 175K miles on it at the last time of inspection in 2007, I can't and would not dispute it. Just wondering about it all, no dastardly deeds being given, just thought that the odometer should reflect the new engine.

 

Bob

[shelbymotorsports]

Here in Nevada they do check the mileage when a smog test is done. My Daytona Shelby Z had a digital dash that went out and I got another one from the boneyard which had around 90K miles on the new cluster but the car actually has over 200K. They did not say anything to me about the mileage all of a sudden dropping. It would be flagged in carfax so nothing to hide here. All I have to do is run a carfax and the original mileage would be on it. Again, the statement is not to cheat anyone, I was just wondering if a truck or car that has a brand new engine should the odometer be 0. Why would you be suspect in telling a buyer that a new engine was installed and the odometer was set to 0 if you also state that the mileage in the cluster is for the new engine? The carfax will tell the truth and I would tell the prospective buyer the truth anyway. The carfax on my Shelby Dakota shows 175K miles on it at the last time of inspection in 2007, I can't and would not dispute it. Just wondering about it all, no dastardly deeds being given, just thought that the odometer should reflect the new engine.

 

Bob

 

Bob

 

I understand your intentions and your reasoning. Perhaps you haven't seen it lately but the car report companies are starting to give a score number on the reports just like your credit report. Things like odometer rollback and accidents reduce this number greatly. I also believe CarFax cancels their CarFax buyers guarantee for issues like this.

 

I have to repeat that how do you know that future sellers of your truck will be as honest and tell people that the odometer was reset especially if we're talking 10-15 years from now? And I would bet that the majority of Shelby Dodge's are purchased without viewing a CarFax.

 

It's your truck to do as you wish but to me the negative aspects outweigh any positives for the rollback.

 

Steve

[check6]

I agree with Steve on this one... as a buyer, a negative CarFax would turn me off and everything else he said is right on the money...I would not do it...

[BobsShelbyDakota]

Bob

 

I understand your intentions and your reasoning. Perhaps you haven't seen it lately but the car report companies are starting to give a score number on the reports just like your credit report. Things like odometer rollback and accidents reduce this number greatly. I also believe CarFax cancels their CarFax buyers guarantee for issues like this.

 

I have to repeat that how do you know that future sellers of your truck will be as honest and tell people that the odometer was reset especially if we're talking 10-15 years from now? And I would bet that the majority of Shelby Dodge's are purchased without viewing a CarFax.

 

It's your truck to do as you wish but to me the negative aspects outweigh any positives for the rollback.

 

Steve

 

Steve,

I agree that not everyone is honest, that is for sure. I have not done anything yet with it, I was just wondering about it.

 

Bob

[BobsShelbyDakota]

I agree with Steve on this one... as a buyer, a negative CarFax would turn me off and everything else he said is right on the money...I would not do it...

 

Leann,

I am also USAF retired back in 2005.

 

Bob

[sdac guy]

Just a couple more thoughts on this.

 

Whether you know or represent the truck honestly to a potential buyer isn't the only time the truck may be misrepresented. Suppose you take your truck to a car show, and folks stick their head in and look at the odometer and see the truck has only a few hundred miles. If you are not there to tell everyone that notices it, that you rolled back the odometer when you rebuilt the motor, then it is a misrepresentation of the vehicle. Not only that but then they look at rest of your truck and see clues that it really has higher mileage, then your truck gets a bad rep for having a rolled back odometer. People talk, and later your truck will always be referred to as "that truck with the phony mileage."

 

Additionally, our club has a newsletter with classified ads. In the 10+ years I've run the club and edited the newsletter, I have always seen new drivetrains noted as something like "only 20K on the engine" when the total vehicle mileage has already been stated accurately. I have never seen an ad that states something like "the odometer reads a couple thousand since the engine rebuild but the total mileage for the vehicle is actually 220K." To me as a potential buyer, this would be a red flag (as others have noted here).

 

To tell the truth I was surprised at your original post as I have never heard of anyone referring to the odometer as being an indicator of only engine mileage. Transmissions, axles & and axle bearings, brake calipers, even e-brake hardware all age with mileage and use. To me the odometer should be the indicator of the actual mileage of all these pieces. The most common way to note new items is to say "only 2K miles since the engine was rebuilt."

 

just my .02. No offense intended.

[moabman]

Thanks for your service in the Air Force!

 

I am an inactive pilot and I know that airframe hours are not the same as engine hours. Just having a major overhaul on the engine does not mean that the airframe has a new lease on life. Using this logic, I agree that I would leave the odometer alone and just note at what mileage the engine was rebuilt. That seems like a more accurate representation.

[shelbymotorsports]

It appears that it is against Federal Law for anyone to rollback an odometer including a private owner of the vehicle.

 

A quick look says that if an odometer needs to be replaced then a notice (a tag of some sort) must be placed on the drivers door jamb stating the previous mileage and the new corrected mileage. The statue also goes into detail on all the disclosure forms that one must submit when selling the vehicle.

 

Doesn't appear to be worth it.

 

Steve

 

49 U.S.C. §§ 32701-32711 (Formerly 15 U.S.C. §§ 1981-1991)

[BobsShelbyDakota]

It appears that it is against Federal Law for anyone to rollback an odometer including a private owner of the vehicle.

 

A quick look says that if an odometer needs to be replaced then a notice (a tag of some sort) must be placed on the drivers door jamb stating the previous mileage and the new corrected mileage. The statue also goes into detail on all the disclosure forms that one must submit when selling the vehicle.

 

Doesn't appear to be worth it.

 

Steve

 

49 U.S.C. §§ 32701-32711 (Formerly 15 U.S.C. §§ 1981-1991)

 

That pretty much answers my question. Thanks, Bob

[BobsShelbyDakota]

Just a couple more thoughts on this.

 

Whether you know or represent the truck honestly to a potential buyer isn't the only time the truck may be misrepresented. Suppose you take your truck to a car show, and folks stick their head in and look at the odometer and see the truck has only a few hundred miles. If you are not there to tell everyone that notices it, that you rolled back the odometer when you rebuilt the motor, then it is a misrepresentation of the vehicle. Not only that but then they look at rest of your truck and see clues that it really has higher mileage, then your truck gets a bad rep for having a rolled back odometer. People talk, and later your truck will always be referred to as "that truck with the phony mileage."

 

Additionally, our club has a newsletter with classified ads. In the 10+ years I've run the club and edited the newsletter, I have always seen new drivetrains noted as something like "only 20K on the engine" when the total vehicle mileage has already been stated accurately. I have never seen an ad that states something like "the odometer reads a couple thousand since the engine rebuild but the total mileage for the vehicle is actually 220K." To me as a potential buyer, this would be a red flag (as others have noted here).

 

To tell the truth I was surprised at your original post as I have never heard of anyone referring to the odometer as being an indicator of only engine mileage. Transmissions, axles & and axle bearings, brake calipers, even e-brake hardware all age with mileage and use. To me the odometer should be the indicator of the actual mileage of all these pieces. The most common way to note new items is to say "only 2K miles since the engine was rebuilt."

 

just my .02. No offense intended.

 

No offense taken. Ever since High School (Many years ago) my friends and I have always thought of the odometer as an engine status for oil changes, etc. The other parts you mentioned were more of a yearly check regardless of miles driven. Once a year I check the brakes, Tranny fluid, axle bearings, etc, I would replace them as needed but not based on mileage, just time. Of course every 3K miles I change the engine oil and of course look for leaks and such for problems.

 

Bob

[greaser]

an hour meter would be a more accurate way to measure the motor wear and tear. i work in the trucks at work here crusing the perimeter we rarely get over 5 mph and idle a LOT. so when we get new rigs the old ones have under 20k miles but 100s of thousands of hours i feel for the first person that takes one out on the freeway. (sweet i got a deal on this truck vroooooom booom ah darn)

[glhs0075]

Good thread:

 

I don't think the odometer should be touched. I agree that it represents the mileage of more than just engine. As Steve pointed out, it is illegal to tamper with it. And for resale, a carfax flag could certainly scare off potential buyers. Documentation stating that the engine was rebuilt at XXXX miles is what I usually see around here, and the best way to go for all parties.

[cafox]

Our vehicle's odometer was reading it's max at 299,999 when the engine blew a few days ago. Last year it got a new transmission and now I am buying it a brand new OEM/warrantied engine. It also has had just about every important part replaced in it the past few years. I would want if buying this vehicle to know how many new miles were on the engine. It won't keep track otherwise. So I agree with making note of the changes to everything and setting back to zero. Just wanted to know how the law requires it be done?