AutoQuake 2nd hand car sale - any one brought from?

ban520

Hi,


I would like to write about my experience with Autoquake(Birmingham)

Late November 08 I purchased a 2 year old Honda Accord with 79600 miles on the clock (not too bad for these cars) - immaculate outside and inside and a great price.

Some of the phone staff are prone to give misinformation. one said that weekends are not counted on reserve dates so basically if you reserve Friday it will be in your name till about Tuesday, another said it was wrong. Also the road tax issue is a problem, I picked my car up on Sunday and was informed by one staff member that a local post office was open, another member said it was not and it was OK to drive without for a day. Let me point out that it is NOT. If you get caught without tax - you can face a hefty fine.

They state on their site that each is given a good 120 point mechanical check before sale. This should mean that the major mechanical areas on the car should be fine however this is where I have the problem. The clutch on my car has always had a vibration since I picked it up, I just put it down to not actually being driven since July. Recently I booked the car in with Honda and was given the BAD news. The clutch is on its way out and will cost circa £800 to replace. Note that I have only covered 1500 miles since purchase so I am sure it nothing to do with me as the issue has been there since day 1 but to any non mechanic, the car seems ok to drive.

Honda said that if the car was actually inspected this would have shown up as points on the master cylinder (related to clutch) assembly were dry and any mechanic worth his salt would have known there was an issue when driving the car by feeling the clutch even without the engne on. So I find it hard to believe that any checks are performed on cars as it seems like they are taken in, cleaned up and thrown out asap.

I have yet to contact Autoquake about this but will post my findings on their response.

I have recommended them to people up to now, but doubt I will from now on. This is supposed to be one step up from an auction (as Autoquake claim they vet the cars for quality), but it seems like they still carry the same risks.

Nordictat2

What is this doing in travel???

ban520

Not sure, is it possible to move?

Pssst

Oh dear....I had been browsing the Autoquake site for a few weeks looking at a possible purchase but now I'm not so sure.

One thing that does need clarifying...Are Autoquake actually a motor trader within the meaning of the law or are they simply acting as selling agents for companies who have fleets to dispose of? It seems that you are expected to buy a car with NO warranty at all on 7 days approval or pay extra for warranty.

Which is it to be Autoquake ? Are you a trader or an agent?

I dont expect to see plush offices and showrooms but what i would expect is maybe a warehouse unit with a decent small office and staff who actually know your their,deal with you promptly and fairly and dont lie to you.

I'll hold off my purchase for now..

ban520

Autoquake are legally a motor trader(as far as I know) but they do not actually buy the cars themselves. The leasing firms who supply basically give them the cars for sale, if sold they take the cut and the money to close the lease is passed on the company who write the car off the books. If they are not sold, they are handed back.

Just to elaborate on my experience, the staff on site were quite good, polite, friendly and straight talking. The handover was smooth and there was no hard sell of the extras etc.

My issue is that they make a song and dance on how good the cars are, the 120 point check which misleads you into thinking these wont have mechanical gremlins lurking underneath. Another point which should have rang alarm bells was that about a week after buying the car I checked the tyre pressures - shockingly the lowest was at 18psi when the recommended was 38psi for all tyres! Surely if the car was given the once over they would at least check these!

If they are sold as seen - they should just state that but I guess a lot fewer people would buy from them. As for Autoquake responding on these issues - lets wait and see!

Pssst

I dont think its good enough for a licensed motors trader to sell a vehicle as "sold as seen" which is whats happening here.

Amys

It is amazing how many 'new people' have had positive responses, this does not bode well. This alone makes me very suspitious, I don't think I would deal with them.

ban520

Just an update on the issues I have been having.

I received a call from a gentleman at Autoquake late yesterday afternoon. Basically was informed that my complaint is being looked into and that they are seeking to come to a resolution. I am pleased about the response, and I am expecting to hear further news from them today.

eddy556

Why don't you check out their ebay score? http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/autoquake

Looks good to me? Surely this can't be fabricated....

PocoLoco

an ebay feeback score of 91% over less than 90 transactions in 12 months. Would have thought that was quite poor.

A competitor at:http://stores.ebay.co.uk/UKAutosite-All-cars-RAC-inspected has a 100% feeback on 100 transactions over 12 months.