Purchased 2000 Land Cruiser from Odometer Fraud seller. NEED HELP.

[jsphaguirre]

I am reaching out to seek advice from anyone who has experience with their Land Cruiser because I am in a hole.

I just purchased a 2000 Land Cruiser in CA that was advertised as a single owner with 70,000 miles for $16,000. The ODO on the vehicle reads 70,000. But after purchasing we found a car fax report that says the vehicle has 281,264 miles and 3 owners. The seller had a carfax report and invoices from Toyota that showed the mileage that he advertised but it seems to be fake after pulling our own carfax (we effd up by not looking at this before purchasing..I know).

I am now in a dilemma.. I have a truck with significantly more miles than I thought it would have and repairs may be 10fold. Do I sell the truck and try to get back some money and take a loss? Or do I keep the truck?

I plan to take it to Toyota to get a full inspection on it so that I have a list of said repairs/ maintenance. At what expense is too much to continue on with the truck that has 281,264 miles on it? What are red flag repairs?

I was under the impression that the vehicle was well maintained but now I feel violated not knowing if it was taken care of.

The s*** thing is, the truck is in beautiful shape inside and out. Yet, didn’t catch the fraudulent odometer and falsifying the amount of owners.

I bought this vehicle as a family car to have daily for my 10 month child. I thought I was buying a well maintained machine because I need reliability. I sold my 2009 access cab Tacoma for this to upgrade to a 4 door and now I feel absolutely effd.

Can anyone offer any sort of advice so that I can think clearly on what do next in this situation? Do I continue with maintenance/ repairs for the truck with high mileage or do I sell now and cut my losses?

Thank you,

Joseph

 

[rexington14]

Odometer fraud is a federal crime. What happens next I am not sure but I would for sure consider legal counsel and look into the appropriate means to report this to your state's DMV

 

[BullElk]

Pause just a bit and take a deep breath. First of all, if there is a vehicle on the planet that can still be in excellent condition inside and out with legit 281k miles.....it IS the species of vehicle you have bought. So the mileage on 100 series Land Cruisers is only a digital numeral and usually says nothing about the reality of the condition.

Allowing a full inspection should give you more legit answers and put your mind at ease temporarily at least.

Btw, My daily driver 2000 LX has 456k miles and my wife's 04 has 378k miles.

 

[jsphaguirre]

Odometer fraud is a federal crime. What happens next I am not sure but I would for sure consider legal counsel and look into the appropriate means to report this to your state's DMV

Thanks for the reply, I am seeking out ways to report this through the dmv and the civil court.

 

[TahoeZ]

Yeah; two different questions.

1- Report the fraudulent/criminal activity at the state and federal level. Call your local law enforcement as a start and ask for guidance.

2- That's not a terrible price for a vehicle that's incredibly clean, and 281k isn't anything to worry about. You will likely face some baselining and repair costs, but a lot of work needs to be done just because of age and isn't necessarily solely a mileage issue. Personally, I would keep it and do whatever maintenance/repairs are necessary to start, then drive it until something breaks.

 

[Sean9421]

While there are plenty of land cruisers rolling around with high miles, and that one looks like it's in great shape, it was misrepresented and you should definitely contact a lawyer. If there is any possibility of keeping it after, make sure you get a VERY thorough inspection. Most states are "as is" and there is very little you can do to after exchanging money and ownership, but being as it was obviously misrepresented and there is odometer tampering, you may get your money back. If you choose to keep it, you may get the difference of repairs needed to make you whole on the transaction.

 

[CSteppe82]

Do you think you have the sellers real info ?

His real name ?

 

[Manhattan]

Have you notified the seller that you:

1. Discovered the fraud?
2. Intend to purse both criminal and then civil action?
3. Would like him to purchase the 100 back from you (for what you paid + reasonable expenses) in an effort to mitigate the #%@ storm he's facing?

As mentioned, this is a great time to talk with an attorney.

 

[jsphaguirre]

Odometer fraud is a federal crime. What happens next I am not sure but I would for sure consider legal counsel and look into the appropriate means to report this to your state's DMV

Going to report to DMV and civil court. The price for an attorney is a concern.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

What you've got is a clear case of fraud, with all the evidence you need in the fake carfax report the seller provided you. Without that, he could at least claim ignorance/being misled himself, but having intentionally created a fake carfax, he's on the hook big time. Get a Lawyer and go after him. This may even end up being criminal, not just civic crime.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

Going to report to DMV and civil court. The price for an attorney is a concern.

File a police report, too.

 

[jsphaguirre]

Pause just a bit and take a deep breath. First of all, if there is a vehicle on the planet that can still be in excellent condition inside and out with legit 281k miles.....it IS the species of vehicle you have bought. So the mileage on 100 series Land Cruisers is only a digital numeral and usually says nothing about the reality of the condition.

Allowing a full inspection should give you more legit answers and put your mind at ease temporarily at least.

Btw, My daily driver 2000 LX has 456k miles and my wife's 04 has 378k miles.

That’s the other side of the dilemma.. I feel like it could still have life but that also feels like a gamble. Not knowing its condition at the moment is causing a ton of stress. My mechanic ran a diagnostic on the computer during the visit and he said it was clean but now we’re not sure if that’s also been tampered.
The toughest part is that my kiddo is involved in making this decision and his safety is the highest priority. We bought the vehicle hoping it would hold us off for some time.

What would be a repair that would cause you to think it is not worth keeping? And do you think this vehicle can be sold knowing this incident?

 

[97 AZ LC]

Spend an hour with an attorney if you wish but there's not enough money on the line for an attorney and a lawsuit. You're going to be stuck with small claims court. I presume this is an individual and not a dealer. Did the title show one owner, purchased in 2000? And you made your check out to that one owner? Even small claims court will be a huge investment of time. Obviously you should win but collecting on the judgment is often difficult. You're not dealing with the salt of the earth here.

 

[jsphaguirre]

Do you think you have the sellers real info ?

His real name ?

That’s the thing.. I don’t know if it’s real or not. His name is Joshua Bailey and the address on the pink slip is a strip mall in San Diego.
He fudged a carfax report and even created fake Toyota service invoices from dealerships with the advertised odometer.

 

[Sean9421]

Going to report to DMV and civil court. The price for an attorney is a concern.

Don't worry about the price of an attorney. You may have to pay a retainer, but if it's an open and shut case, you'd be suing for reimbursement plus legal fees. His fraud is the reason you need to take it to court, he pays the legal and court fees. I'm sure there are lawyers salivating to take a case like this to add billable hours on his expense. Some probably have free consultations and won't charge until the case is closed.

 

[jsphaguirre]

Have you notified the seller that you:

1. Discovered the fraud?
2. Intend to purse both criminal and then civil action?
3. Would like him to purchase the 100 back from you (for what you paid + reasonable expenses) in an effort to mitigate the #%@ storm he's facing?

As mentioned, this is a great time to talk with an attorney.

I tried contacting him and I am not getting through. He blocked me or he used a burner..

 

[baltistyle]

I’ll also chime in that you absolutely need to press charges against this person for fraud. Even if you don’t get any money back, you can make sure this person spend some time in jail. And pays restitution.

Second and this is not to rub salt in a wound but that vehicle in the condition you thought you were trying to buy it would have been worth at least $30-$40,000. Always beware when you think you’re getting a deal that is too good to be true.

I will also secondly above sentiments that mileage doesn’t matter in the end if the truck is rust free, everything can be made perfect. I’m at 265,000 miles or so and the car drives and feels as new.

Low miles does not necessarily mean it didn’t need anything, at this age many bushings are dry and should be replaced regardless of mileage. Check for leaks, rust and do a timing belt inspection and really everything should be good. The only issue now is that your Carfax will show odometer fraud… which is not an issue if you’re not selling the vehicle down the road but had this been a 70,000 mile vehicle that you were going to drive for 100,000 miles and then settle down the road for the same price, that’s not gonna happen.

 

[baltistyle]

That’s the thing.. I don’t know if it’s real or not. His name is Joshua Bailey and the address on the pink slip is a strip mall in San Diego.
He fudged a carfax report and even created fake Toyota service invoices from dealerships with the advertised odometer.

How did you pay him?

 

[jsloden]

The bigger issue here is that if the seller is that shady then are you sure the car isn't stolen? If the guys address is a strip mall then you're probably going to find out all sorts of things if try to register it.

 

[BullElk]

That’s the other side of the dilemma.. I feel like it could still have life but that also feels like a gamble. Not knowing its condition at the moment is causing a ton of stress. My mechanic ran a diagnostic on the computer during the visit and he said it was clean but now we’re not sure if that’s also been tampered.
The toughest part is that my kiddo is involved in making this decision and his safety is the highest priority. We bought the vehicle hoping it would hold us off for some time.

What would be a repair that would cause you to think it is not worth keeping? And do you think this vehicle can be sold knowing this incident?

If the fluids look good and smell good …. If engine runs good and transmission and transfer case shift good and brakes brake good…. There’s not much more important things to worry about.

Perhaps contact the seller with attorney letterhead ( from an attorney) and tell him you know what’s up with his federal crime shannigans and either he comes off the price refunding 10 grand from his office or he’ll spend 50 gs on a defense attorney only to give a full refund from the clink.