I'm in Massachusetts. I'm ignorant of our odometer laws but I doubt our laws are written as yours in California. I don't think they would want to give the swindlers another chance at tampering with odometers.I know a guy that used to do them for the dealerships in the area.....and I mean the big three not just the little ones. He'd get a call when they had 5 or 6 to do.
I think the mileage is uploaded during inspection now also.....not sure.
The only time I would consider a car that was zeroed out is the case of a frame off fully restored classic.
I really see no reason to zero an odometer. I keep a record of maintenance on each of my cars and I hand that over to the next owner. An engine or transmission change would be documented there with date and mileage of the vehicle and mileage of the replacement.
That's a good point. I always keep a record of maintenance for my cars.
This car came from e-Bay with no records of any kind.
I was checking the instrument bulbs and fiddled with the speedometer/odometer.
I accidently switched the mileage and could not get it back to what it was, so I set it to zero, which was easier.
I also thought it was a way to track the mileage from when I put it on the road, after being in my garage for repair for 8 months.
I do have the original mileage and can just add that to whatever the odometer reads, to get an accurate total.
I have no idea how to do the electronic versions.
The DMV accepted 000000 as the mileage on the odometer for registration and the smog test station today accepted 111 miles as the amount for the test.
It passed the emission test and now I can get the little stickers for the license plate.
The car is insured, registered and smog tested. Legal in California.