HELP! private party faked passing smog test

[aijeric]

Sorry guys. I went to a Toyota dealership and they gave me a hardcopy carfax that says previous owner has altered the odometer. The actual mileage is 264k+ but it said 144k. I will be taking legal action

[aijeric]

If you see a darkish Indian guy with a bright orange turban and a thick Indian beard around the Hayward/Union City area in SF Bay Area, DO NOT TRUST HIM! He goes by the name Harman. This is a big generalization of all Indians but buyer beware

[DontH8Me]

Sorry but, how exactly did you find this used car? Was it a craigslist fly-by-night regular?

[manda777]

Originally Posted by Mack Knife

How are you going to sell it without passing smog?

.......

Not in 100 years. Get it fixed, then sell it.

When you visit a service dealer and they tell you it will cost X to fix it, make them give you a diagnosis in writing BEFORE they do the work. They are licensed and fixing a car is a science, not an art. A proper diagnosis can determine why something in a car fails. Many shops are unwilling to do a proper diagnosis and make the customer pay for parts swapping and guessing.

A friend of mine has gotten into the same situation but not by the private seller but by an unlicensed used car dealer. She bought the car during a visit to LA and does not have any proof that she bought the car from him. She got Smog Test paper work and the Car Title signed by the actual previous owner, with no signature on the buyer spot. She did NOT know that she was aiding that unlicensed dealer to evade sale tax. Her excuse to me was "my friends were coming with me to *our city* and so we saved money not flying. One of the friends she was coming back did the purchase for her from his cousin, an unlicensed dealer. He's a silly man too. He was probably used by his cousin though he was probably paid for the sale.

Anyway, when my friend couldn't sell the car because no one would buy it with the car title signed by only the previous owner, she put the car in her name and the car was driving fine EXCEPT that in 2 minutes after rolling, not 2 minutes after the engine is turned on, a check engine light comes on saying "Emission Workshop". This 2000 Volkswagen Passat V6 even display "2 minutes" in that "Emission Workshop" display.

The silly one didn't need to buy that car as the family had given her a brand new SUV and so now she tried to sell this car. She went to get the Smog Test and it failed due to Functional Check. Emission Test passed; Visual Inspection passed.

Here are the OBD codes:
P1423 Manufacturer code
P0442 EVAP Ctrl System Small Leak Detected
P0117 ECT CKT Low Input

P1411 Manufacturer Specific code
P0154 O2sensor CKT INACTIVE (Bank 2 Sensor 1)

A mechanically-inclined friend of mine said that he could replace the oxygen sensor.

I know a reliable mechanic place. Should she spend money to diagnose and see how much it would cost to fix it? How do we know that that Check Engine light "Emission Workshop" would go away for sure? What if something else shows up that will fail Smog Test after spending money for the repair.

She wanted to give me the car instead of putting more money in it. I can send the car to "Clunker" program and take the money for doing all kinds of crap for her. Yeah..that friend is a distant relative of mine. who never listens to news or reads anything and is completely unformed about everything. Her family takes care of her. She is my age and they provides her so that she can competes with me in silly ways

I am broke - I have no immediate family - and currently am low income though I have potential because of my high level education.

I would rather see that the car can be sold and she recovers her money. Any advice based on the codes? Thanks.

[manda777]

Originally Posted by Mack Knife

How are you going to sell it without passing smog?

.......

Not in 100 years. Get it fixed, then sell it.

When you visit a service dealer and they tell you it will cost X to fix it, make them give you a diagnosis in writing BEFORE they do the work. They are licensed and fixing a car is a science, not an art. A proper diagnosis can determine why something in a car fails. Many shops are unwilling to do a proper diagnosis and make the customer pay for parts swapping and guessing.

A friend of mine has gotten into the same situation but not by the private seller but by an unlicensed used car dealer. She bought the car during a visit to LA and does not have any proof that she bought the car from him. She got Smog Test paper work and the Car Title signed by the actual previous owner, with no signature on the buyer spot. She did NOT know that she was aiding that unlicensed dealer to evade sale tax. Her excuse to me was "my friends were coming with me to *our city* and so we saved money not flying. One of the friends she was coming back did the purchase for her from his cousin, an unlicensed dealer. He's a silly man too. He was probably used by his cousin though he was probably paid for the sale.

Anyway, when my friend couldn't sell the car because no one would buy it with the car title signed by only the previous owner, she put the car in her name and the car was driving fine EXCEPT that in 2 minutes after rolling, not 2 minutes after the engine is turned on, a check engine light comes on saying "Emission Workshop". This 2000 Volkswagen Passat V6 even display "2 minutes" in that "Emission Workshop" display.

The silly one didn't need to buy that car as the family had given her a brand new SUV and so now she tried to sell this car. She went to get the Smog Test and it failed due to Functional Check. Emission Test passed; Visual Inspection passed.

Here are the OBD codes:
P1423 Manufacturer code
P0442 EVAP Ctrl System Small Leak Detected
P0117 ECT CKT Low Input

P1411 Manufacturer Specific code
P0154 O2sensor CKT INACTIVE (Bank 2 Sensor 1)

A mechanically-inclined friend of mine said that he could replace the oxygen sensor.

I know a reliable mechanic place. Should she spend money to diagnose and see how much it would cost to fix it? How do we know that that Check Engine light "Emission Workshop" would go away for sure? What if something else shows up that will fail Smog Test after spending money for the repair.

She wanted to give me the car instead of putting more money in it. I can send the car to "Clunker" program and take the money for doing all kinds of crap for her. Yeah..that friend is a distant relative of mine. who never listens to news or reads anything and is completely unformed about everything. Her family takes care of her. She is my age and they provides her so that she can competes with me in silly ways

I am broke - I have no immediate family - and currently am low income though I have potential because of my high level education.

I would rather see that the car can be sold and she recovers her money. Any advice based on the codes? Thanks.

[manda777]

Originally Posted by manda777

A friend of mine has gotten into the same situation but not by the private seller but by an unlicensed used car dealer.

Here are the OBD codes:
P1423 Manufacturer code
P0442 EVAP Ctrl System Small Leak Detected
P0117 ECT CKT Low Input

P1411 Manufacturer Specific code
P0154 O2sensor CKT INACTIVE (Bank 2 Sensor 1)

A mechanically-inclined friend of mine said that he could replace the oxygen sensor.

I ordered a carfax report and know for sure that the odometer reading was not altered.

The previous ACTUAL owner seemed to have bought the car at Auction.