Is there any way to confirm or to tell how many miles are on the chassis?

I don't think so, but just checking.

Looking at a 97 Integra. There is a "new" engine and trans, but the chassis has 220K miles.

The car looks good, clean, etc.

I know that's not a lot of details, but what do you think when you see 220K on the chassis?

Stay away? Or is this owner "honest?" Because if he said the chassis has 150K on it, there is no way to confirm that too, right?

Share your thoughts. TIA.

 

It's a federal crime to tamper with the odometer, so even with an engine swap the odometer should reflect the chassis' miles, not the engine's. There is no way to 100% verify the mileage on the odometer however. You can look at registration reports and repair paperwork (if it's available) and see whether there are any anomalies -- e.g. times when the car went many years with only a small mileage increase or times when the mileage actually went backwards. You can get this information with Carfax. However it's still possible for the owner to roll back the odometer between registration visits, as long as he "makes up" the lost miles before re-registering.

But 220k miles is a perfectly believable mileage for a 97 Integra and I see no reason to lie about that. I also see no reason to worry about the mileage -- condition is literally the only thing that matters when you're talking about a 17 year old car. There are cars with 120k that are in terrible shape and cars with 250k that have been properly maintained. Particularly Integras which are almost unbelievably reliable if they are well cared for.