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The Largest Independent Automotive Research Resource
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One in Ten Used Cars Is a Disaster Waiting to Happen

12 October 2000

Lemons and Lies; Reader's Digest Reports One in Ten Used Cars Is a Disaster Waiting to Happen

    NEW YORK - Used cars outsell new ones nearly three times over.  But an 
estimated one in ten used cars now sold has serious damage or extra mileage 
that unscrupulous sellers don't want buyers to know about.  Cosmetic repairs on 
totaled vehicles, unreported flood damage and odometer rollbacks are a few of 
the secondhand car scams that are costing some consumers their safety.  Of the 
75,000 flood damaged cars from Hurricane Floyd, 15,000 are already dangerously 
back on the road.  And the law offers little protection.

    This month, Reader's Digest offers consumer tips on how to avoid getting
stuck with a lemon, and readersdigest.com has the tools your viewers need to
protect themselves against used car fraud, including:

    *  A free odometer check on any vehicle they own -- or are about to buy.
    *  A state-by-state guide to car title laws.

    Every state has its own laws for getting a car title, and laws vary
greatly.  What's considered salvage in one state allows for a clean title in
other.  And a car's history can literally vanish by crossing state lines.
Unscrupulous sellers use these gaps to perpetuate fraud every day.  Learn what
they know by checking out this exclusive state-by-state guide on 
readersdigest.com.