AutoNet TV

Odometer Rollback On Your Lawrence Kansas Auto

How do you know if an odometer is telling the truth?

Well, back in '86, Congress passed the Truth-in-Mileage Act to protect Kansas consumers against mileage fraud. It says a Kansas seller must certify the mileage reported is the Actual Mileage.

To have your odometer checked in Lawrence Kansas, stop by Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics:

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics
2858 Four Wheel Drive
Lawrence, Kansas 66047
785-842-8665

If it isn't, the seller must say why; like maybe the odometer is past its mechanical limits. Some older odometers only go to 99,999 miles and then start over at 0. Or, the odometer has been tampered with, broken or replaced.

If the seller tells you the mileage isn’t accurate, there’s not much chance of putting a good number to it; And there’s the unscrupulous seller who claims the reading is true, but it’s not so. What can you do?

First, you can go to www.CarFax.com, where for a small fee, they’ll give you a comprehensive vehicle history search on your sedan, showing local Lawrence Kansas ownership history, accident reports, total-loss events, Manufacturer buybacks, Lemon reports and warranty status.

You can get a mileage history by checking with the local Lawrence Kansas DMV (or wherever you happen to be) and other verified sources looking for inconsistencies in the mileage reported when the car’s bought and sold. If there are signs odometer rollback, now you’ll now.

If so, proceed with caution. Or, negotiate a lower price. Or just walk away. There’s always another.

What To Do After You Buy a Used Vehicle in Lawrence

So you’ve bought a used car in the Lawrence area. How do you know what you’re getting? It is hard to know what you’re getting because people in the Lawrence area sell cars for different reasons. Think about why you’ve sold cars. Did you just want something new or were there problems that you wanted to run away from. Maybe it was a little of both.

Used cars with 25,000 to 35,000 miles on them are often lease returns, corporate program cars or vehicles that have done duty in rental fleets. We feel pretty confident because they’re newer and may still be under warranty. But how well have they been maintained?

If you plan on owning a car for a long time, you’ll keep up on the maintenance so that you can avoid expensive repairs down the road. But, if you know you’re only going to have the car for two or three years, you may not be so committed to maintenance. It would be easy to think that skipping an oil change here and there wouldn’t ruin a brand new engine. Then it’ll be someone else’s problem when it comes time to pay for the damage.

It would be very tempting to skip the 30,000 mile service if you knew you’d be turning in your leased vehicle in a couple of months.

If the vehicle didn’t come with maintenance records, you need to assume the worst. Most likely the coolant system and transmission have never been serviced. The cabin air filter has probably not been changed and a fuel system cleaning may be in order.

You’ll want Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics to check the air conditioning, battery, engine air filter, serpentine belt and hoses. An inspection at Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics is well worth the cost.

And if your “new” used vehicle has more miles on it, an inspection is even more important. Check your owner’s manual or talk with your service advisor at Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics (call 785-842-8665) about what should have been done. Please don’t forget the timing belt; that can be very expensive if it fails.

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics will help you with a plan to take care of critical services and get the rest caught up. If your budget won’t allow you to take care of everything right away, we can help you prioritize your needs and get it taken care of over the next several months. And remember to keep your maintenance records. They’ll help you get top dollar when it’s time for you to sell.

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics
2858 Four Wheel Drive
Lawrence, Kansas 66047
785-842-8665

Odometer Rollback On Your Lawrence Kansas Auto

How do you know if an odometer is telling the truth?

Well, back in '86, Congress passed the Truth-in-Mileage Act to protect Kansas consumers against mileage fraud. It says a Kansas seller must certify the mileage reported is the Actual Mileage.

To have your odometer checked in Lawrence Kansas, stop by Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics:

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics
2858 Four Wheel Drive
Lawrence, Kansas 66047
785-842-8665

If it isn't, the seller must say why; like maybe the odometer is past its mechanical limits. Some older odometers only go to 99,999 miles and then start over at 0. Or, the odometer has been tampered with, broken or replaced.

If the seller tells you the mileage isn’t accurate, there’s not much chance of putting a good number to it; And there’s the unscrupulous seller who claims the reading is true, but it’s not so. What can you do?

First, you can go to www.CarFax.com, where for a small fee, they’ll give you a comprehensive vehicle history search on your minivan, showing local Lawrence Kansas ownership history, accident reports, total-loss events, Manufacturer buybacks, Lemon reports and warranty status.

You can get a mileage history by checking with the local Lawrence Kansas DMV (or wherever you happen to be) and other verified sources looking for inconsistencies in the mileage reported when the car’s bought and sold. If there are signs odometer rollback, now you’ll now.

If so, proceed with caution. Or, negotiate a lower price. Or just walk away. There’s always another.

My Dealer In Lawrence Closed: What Do I Do?

New car dealership closings are all over the news. Nearly 800 Chrysler dealerships canceled. About 1,100 GM dealers’ contracts will not be renewed after October 2010. And record numbers are just shutting down because they aren’t selling enough cars and trucks to stay in business.

It’s estimated that some 40,000 dealership service bays could be taken out of service in the next year or so.

Of course, this is a tragedy for those who work at our local Lawrence dealerships and the owners that risk losing much of their life’s work. Our Lawrence communities will lose some of our best corporate citizens. Think of all the youth sports team, service clubs and Lawrence community events that have been sponsored by our local new car dealers.

One question we hear a lot at AutoNetTV is, 'Who will service my car?' Lawrence folks are concerned that they will not get the care and attention they need. They're wondering where they will find trained technicians in the Lawrence area. Will they be able to get quality replacement parts for their vehicles?

Fortunately, the Lawrence automotive aftermarket is ready to fill the need. As one of over 200,000 independent service and repair facilities in North America, Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics is here to help. Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics has been the backbone of the automotive service and repair industry for Lawrence and will continue to provide this vital role.

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics has the latest diagnostic and repair equipment, access to parts and repair databases, and a commitment to the highest standards of technician training. The reality is that our independent service center in Lawrence is ready to service all your vehicle’s needs – and we always have been. We don’t have to 'step up' to the task – we're ready now.

Many consumers in Lawrence have known this about the local Lawrence independent service and repair industry and have used it for all their non-warranty work. And they have enjoyed greater convenience and have saved quite a bit of money along the way: The average independent service and repair center in Lawrence costs 34% less than the dealership.

And of course, Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics has access to the very same replacement parts as the dealership as well as a selection of superior parts for greater reliability and enhanced performance. And we can source parts that may help with a tight budget as well.

So in the midst of uncertainty surrounding dealership closings, know you can turn to your local Lawrence independent service center to take care of your family’s safety and to keep your vehicles performing well. You’ll save some money too. And that’s good news in these times.

Lawrence Automotive Diagnostics
2858 Four Wheel Drive
Lawrence, Kansas 66047
785-842-8665