348/308 Misaligned Milometer Digits

[Petercr]

In my viewings of 308/328 cars I've noticed a few cars with misaligned milometer digits, usually the first two digits

Should I consider each to be a case of clocking or is this form of failure common ...................I see several cars have had their milometer units changed out, presumably due to failure of the original unit, but I'm not sure what form that failure takes.

Comments appreciated

[coco79]

It's called 'common clocking'..;)

[MitchT]

I've noticed this on a lot of Ferraris of that era. I understand that clocking can cause that but obviously can't comment on individual vehicles.

[silber]

The numbers can look a little misaligned by nature, especially if about to roll over a few digits, but one does have to wonder how so many cars that are fantastic to drive seem to have barely been driven for decades. At least the interiors get tatty quickly from use and can be a useful sign of actual mileage.

[4rephill]

silber said:

The numbers can look a little misaligned by nature, especially if about to roll over a few digits, but one does have to wonder how so many cars that are fantastic to drive seem to have barely been driven for decades. At least the interiors get tatty quickly from use and can be a useful sign of actual mileage.

1) I'm pretty certain the digits on Ferrari milometers (and many other old Italian cars), simply don't line up very well from normal use, and is nothing more sinister than cheap, fiat derived parts being used.

2) The British weather tends to mean that a lot of these cars are only used for @ 3 days every month, and a lot of owners don't like to put too many miles on their cars as they're worried about the effect it will have on possible future re-sale values.

3) Ferrari seem to use much softer leather than manufacturers such of "everyday cars" such as BMW, Audi, Mercedes, Ford etc., etc. As a result, they tend to wear, age, stain, crack etc., etc., etc., a lot easier.

Added to that, they tend to more awkward to get in and out of compared to "everyday cars" due to being so low, often with wide sills to get over, and high sided seats to deal with.