Think we've been sold a flood-damaged car

meanstreak

An update. Here is the actual text from the advert:

5 Doors, Manual, Hatchback, Petrol, 80,000 miles, Blue, MOT-03-2014, 4 Owners. FULL MOT, TAXED, READY TO GO. JUST FITTED NEW CLUTCH. NICE CLEAN CAR. cat c, ABS, Air conditioning, Alloy wheels, Folding rear seats, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Radio/Cassette, Radio/CD, Rear headrests, Body coloured bumpers, Drivers airbag, Front head restraints, Full size spare wheel, PAS, Rear wiper, Trip computer, Audio remote control, Electric door mirrors, Front electric windows, Heated door mirrors, Height adjustable drivers seat, Remote central locking, Steering wheel rake adjustment, Alarm, Front fog lights. Insurance Group:5, Price:. £1,494 p/x considered

So he did mention it was a Category C write-off in the advert, but I hadn't noticed it (and didn't have a clue what 'cat c' could have meant up until last weekend). I still believe we were misled, plus the other problems with the vehicle mean that hopefully we still have a case here. I am quite annoyed with myself for not noticing 'cat c' in small letters, even after re-reading the advert several times.

fannyadams

call your insurance company and ask to speak to their legal department - I've assumed you've taken legal cover out with your vehicle insurance. failing that call the legal helpline that you got with your house insurance. can you get the car taken to the dealers by your breakdown organisation? can you contact THEIR legal department to ask them what you can do?
hoping you get it resolved in your favour.

Chopper_Read

vaio wrote: »

the cat C is a slam dunk, the rest of the issues fall into the "what do you expect on a £1500 car/should have been spotted on pre sale inspection" category

meanstreak wrote: »

An update. Here is the actual text from the advert:



So he did mention it was a Category C write-off in the advert, but I hadn't noticed it (and didn't have a clue what 'cat c' could have meant up until last weekend). I still believe we were misled, plus the other problems with the vehicle mean that hopefully we still have a case here. I am quite annoyed with myself for not noticing 'cat c' in small letters, even after re-reading the advert several times.

That changes things now.

It was clearly advertised as a write off, you missed it. It can be argued you had chance to inspect the car and were happy with its conviction and later changed your mind.

Cat C in the advert is better for the seller than in not being and him claiming he told you.

tesuhoha

It says in the ad that it has a full MOT. I am just wondering when the MOT was carried out if it has a faulty speedometer.

mcjordi

tesuhoha wrote: »

It says in the ad that it has a full MOT. I am just wondering when the MOT was carried out if it has a faulty speedometer.

prior to march 28th iirc when the new changes came in

tesuhoha

Makes you laugh. The Cat C is the only thing in the ad that doesn't have a capital letter.

tonyh66

its clever use of words, he could have said that cat c stood for catalytic convertor, also 'nice clean car' yeah its been dipped in water.

vaio

vaio wrote: »

[STRIKE]the cat C is a slam dunk[/STRIKE], the rest of the issues fall into the "what do you expect on a £1500 car/should have been spotted on pre sale inspection" category

Spoken to the previous owners yet?

natlol

A 2003 Fiesta is an MK6 isn't it? I have an early 2002 MK6 and have had a small oil leak and the speedo dropping to zero is a common issue that is very intermittent - mine was like it and went through 3 MOTS like it. It is usually the speed sensor on the gear box which is a cheap fix.

I have seen a few that have been damp inside - one was accident damage at the back where the boot was misaligned. A few others were just the doors filling with water due to blocked drainage holes. A more unusual one was the rear lights being caked in mud from being parked under trees which was causing the water to back track into the boot via the light screws.

The whine from the gearbox is unusual though as the boxes are pretty tough. The rust inside the car unless it is excessive I wouldnt be concerned about. Mine has surface rust inside under the dash which I put down to it sitting about for long periods of time not being used - months at a time.

Have you had a look underneath to see if there is an unusual amount of surface rust?

Forgot to say, and I may be totally wrong but some of these are written off for daft things like minor panel damage but for it to be a CAT C I would want to know why before I bought but it wouldn't put me off providing it had been repaired to a reasonable standard.

forgotmyname

Its probably just got leaks when it rais not been flood damaged.

They would have cleaned out the bootwell after a flood. But its probably still leaking.

Door or boot seals or the light seals. Washer around the rear wiper or spray nozzle.