My car was stolen and I need some advice.

[Fazfaz]

Hey Folks,

My 2000 Honda Accord was stolen 2 days ago and it was recovered. The trouble - The gauge cluster was smashed and I have no insurance to cover the damage to the steering column and cluster.

Fortunately, there is no other damage.

My question:

Can I get another gauge cluster from the automobile recylcler and have it show the same mileage that should be on my car, or do I have to get one and get it reprogrammed? Any advice here would be great. I have found a guy to do the work on the column, so all that I have to worry about is the cluster.

Thanks.

Faz

[blacknight]

Well, the problem is if you buy another gauge cluster, you'll get the miles that was on that car. Not the miles on your car. The problem is that the cluster is digital and not analog like the older models are. If it was analog then the miles can be set. There's probably someone who can set a digital cluster but it may be expensive because it's so complicated. Although you have a legitimate excuse, it's still a federal offense to tamper with the mileage on a vehicle.

So with that said, I really don't know how you would get a new gauge cluster to read You cars actual mileage. I'm sure a technician at your Honda Dealership or your insurance agent should have some sort of answer for that.

[Fazfaz]

Thanks for your reply Blacknight.

I talked to Honda and they told me the same thing as you did. So they tole me the cheapest, most reliable route is to go to a automobile recycler and buy a gauge cluster and have them note the milage on the receipt. Then, I have to keep the milage on the old odometer in a picture, or something (I'm keeping the complete cluster). When I sell the car, I have to tell the purchaser about this, and let them know about the milage on the odometer before and after, so they can figure out total kilometers driven.

Honda was charging over 800 for the service, but they would have it on a honda dealer's reciept, which they believed was more legitimate than a registered auto shop's reciept. I called my local automoblile registry office and they said to go to a registered auto shop to make everything legal, and skip Honda. Total cost to me = $300 and my registry office said that with a picture, receipt, and licensed mechanic's invoice, I'd be fine.

Take care and thanks again,

Faz