Sold a car and now the head gasket has gone

Money_Grabber13579

From what I remember from my law module at university, the fact that you said it was a good runner doesn't mean a thing. You aren't a mechanic or someone who could reasonably be expected to know if there was a fault, so your opinion can't be relied on by the other party. If you had a mechanic's report and offered that as proof that the car was in good running order, then there would be a comeback against that mechanic as they have the necessary expertise.

They can't rely on your statements, so never worry. Personally, I wouldn't know what the symptoms of a head gasket going were either, so the buyer can't do a thing IMO.

iolanthe07

One of the reasons why you pay a lot less when buying from a private person rather than from a dealer is that there is no comeback if things go pear shaped. It's a chance she took when buying privately. It is tough for her, and I can understand why she is upset, but she really has no claim on you. She probably knows this.

speedbird1973

justcat wrote: »

I guess I don't have to worry then?

For crying out loud Justcat.... Just tell the buyer to f*ck off and forget about it!!!

justcat

speedbird1973 wrote: »

For crying out loud Justcat.... Just tell the buyer to f*ck off and forget about it!!!

Lol! Nuff said!

LandyAndy

LandyAndy wrote: »

You are not an expert in the field of vehicle condition and so cannot offer an opinion that the buyer could expect to rely on.

If you had lied about a matter of fact that would have been different but, as far as I can see, you have not.

As (almost) everyone has told you the buyer has no come back.

Money_Grabber13579 wrote: »

From what I remember from my law module at university, the fact that you said it was a good runner doesn't mean a thing. You aren't a mechanic or someone who could reasonably be expected to know if there was a fault, so your opinion can't be relied on by the other party. If you had a mechanic's report and offered that as proof that the car was in good running order, then there would be a comeback against that mechanic as they have the necessary expertise.

They can't rely on your statements, so never worry. Personally, I wouldn't know what the symptoms of a head gasket going were either, so the buyer can't do a thing IMO.

Just say no.

2_litre

£580 for a head gasket change :eek:

Millionaire

As others have said, dont give her a penny.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

justcat wrote: »

I guess I don't have to worry then?

No. She's obviously a silly cow who doesn't understand the law. Tell her to swivel.

Oneday77

You informed her of previous problems that you had and she still bought.
The water pump quite probably was the issue initially and was then fixed.
If the car had overheated at some point then HGF could have resulted. Anyone with a clue would have thought about this. She idn't, you didn't say the car no longer used water. She didn't test drive it, check levels or anything, she is up chute creek without a paddle.
You were above board, when the car went for an MOT the tester should have checked levels for the emmissions test, just to ensure it didn't blow up during the high reving of the engine.
Cut Short your in the clear .
Maybe next time she will inspect her cars more carefully not your issue. What ever you do don't be pressured into paying anything back. She may well have 17 kids, a one legged dog and a blind cat. With 17 kids surely one of the dads knows about cars to have gone with her

michaelvintner

justcat wrote: »

That's everyone for the help on this so far!
I've heard back from the buyer and she says that the car is now fixed at a cost of £580. She says that her mechanic said it had been gone for a while and I definately must have known about it (I really did not).
She wants to come to some sort of arrangement but what do I do? This has gotten me overly stressed and worried again!

What has it got to do with you. She should have taken it for a test drive and done a few basic checks. Just googling it will bring up a list of things to check on a second hand car as a buyer.

The following link took me less than 15 second to find

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/CARS/buying/vehicle_checks.jsp

If I had come to you and you mentioned it was loosing coolant I would have wondered why. I probably would have then said bye and walked off keeping hold of my money.

As has been said before, buyer beware.