Hour meter tampering?

[Hillbillybee]

I'm looking at a 580SL. 1997

Guy claims it's got 4300hrs on it but the cab base is rotted real bad, doors are gone. Used it for snow plowing.

How easy is it to unhook the hour meter....is it possable that this machine has way more on it than 4300 and the meter was unplugged:beatsme?

 

[Phil]

I can't speak for an L , never even sat in one. The C through K models are a breeze to tamper with, or reset to a nice figure when ready to sell, say 4900. I don't pay too much attention to the hour reading on an older hoe, for that reason. Phil

 

[diggerdave1958]

Well the machine is "only" around 13 years old so that would mean that she only has put on about 330 hours a year or 6 - 7 hours a week is the guy that owns the machine the only owner of it ?? and if so is he a contractor ? is there a paper trail on the machine like maintance history ?? i have a 1986 Case 580SE and i keep a detail history of every penny i put into my machine and i am the second owner of it and she has about 9300 hours on her.

 

[Hillbillybee]

I did contact the local service dealer, and he said he can give me service history too. Good advice Dave, he also mentioned the module could be changed ...i guess bottom line buyer beware and do your homework.

 

[Phil]

Also, rotted out cabs in the K models will devalue them considerably, maybe $7-$9K, sometimes by half if they are really bad. Putting a new floor in is not impossible, but with it comes rotten fenders and door bottoms, maybe other damage from the salt. Phil

 

[mikeshoe]

Similar situation here, i'm looking at a 96 580SL and the cab is rotting at the base. around 6000 hours. He's asking $21,000. If i can't get a maintenance history, isn't there a way to evaluate the machine to determine functional condition. Isn't there a checklist? Like iron planet, but just key areas.

For instance, If i look at the hydraulic fluid, how should it look or smell. Can you use that like you would if you were checking out a car with automatic tranny?

I looked underneath and the various hydraulic tubing down under is rusted pretty bad, like how brake lines under cars get. Welcome to New England!

Wht should i do if when i operate it it feels good, smooth, whatever. Anyone care to provide insights. Is there a sticky on how to do this? Just wondering.

Any thoughts would be great!!

 

[alrman]

I had a customer here who worked his hoes through shifts - 2 x operators, about 20hrs a day x 6 days a week! His hourmeters were only connected 2 days a week - just so the hourmeter were showing use - he was still getting warranty repairs on them till his 4 years were up - do the sums - 6000hrs a year!

 

[Phil]

Man, that's scary alrman.

Speaking of rust, I almost went to look at a 580K 4x4 for $10K until I got pictures of it. Here's the worst picture, one could only imagine what the floor is like. Phil

 

[bobcatmechanic]

electrical problems come with machines run in salt also so consider that in your buy. we had a bobcat come in and all it did was load salt started to repair a bad wire took out about half of that wire until i got to a place where there was good gold wire and not green corroded wire. not to mention sensors bolts and any other piece you may want to take off with out spending hours getting broken bolts out

 

[John C.]

Hour meters are for setting up maintenance programs. They are not and have never been indicators of how many total hours the machine has operated.

Condition is the only thing one should be concerned with when evaluating a machine for purchase. The thought processes by Diggerdave and Airman are spot on. Ask yourself who would spend many tens of thousands of dollars on a machine and then not operate it.

 

[Hillbillybee]

Phil,

Is that the one in Kinburn?

 

[Phil]

Not that I know of, it's off the 417, east of Ottawa. I've been noticing the prices really coming down on K's and L's, so one has to be careful when buying one that needs a lot of work. I believe the fenders are available for about $8-900 each, but this one needed other work also, better for parts. Phil

 

[turbotech]

Hi,
I am new here and have been looking for a used Case backhoe. I have come across a few machines with meters that were either tampered with or just plain rolled over. I quickly learned to ignore the meter and just judge the machine by its wear and appearance.

One thing I am unsure of is where the Case model and year and vin tags are located. I am looking at a 580D and 580K this weekend. Where would the tags be located. I have read here that the machines are very different. The 580K has the cummins engine. The 580D needs the engine rebuilt and is apart. Since it is the Case D207 and is apart is there anything I should specifically look for like certain cracks in the block in certain places.

I can weld and repair engines so rusted floors and broken stuff isn't bad, but I don't want to have to nickel weld an engine block internally to make a working machine. I guess if it isn't in a too difficult spot then I would try it.

Overall, I need to check the model and year tags first