Diesel car sold to me as petrol car

pete9804

Last week I bought a used car from a well-known chain of used car dealers. It was listed as petrol on all the documentation from the dealer; however yesterday when I refilled for the first time (with petrol, natch), I started having engine problems until eventually it conked out on the motorway (car and I now safe back home). Usually when I'm doing that particular journey I have my toddler in the car; thankfully not this time.


This morning, when trying to sort out insurance cover (I had previously been driving on the 7-day free cover that comes with the vehicle) I discover that the vehicle is listed as diesel, which would explain a lot. I'm waiting for a call back from the dealer to sort this out but I'm not sure what my stance should be. I don't want a diesel car so I guess it will have to go back but I'm angry that I was needlessly put in a dangerous situation so not sure if "money back and call it quits" really suffices. I appreciate that breakdowns happen sometimes but this was caused specifically by negligence on the part of the dealer.


Thoughts welcomed. Thanks.

kmb500

I doubt you will be able to get anything more from the dealer unless you want to sue them or something.. if they give you your money back then what else can you expect them to do for you?


I don't know how a dealer manages to screw that up though. Interesting that you couldn't notice from the way it drives. When you paid your road tax did you not notice that the website tells you the car's a diesel? It asks you to confirm if the vehicle details are correct and one of those details is fuel type. If the dealer had a V5 certificate then that states the fuel type as well.

pete9804 wrote: »

Usually when I'm doing that particular journey I have my toddler in the car; thankfully not this time.

I love this line, why does everyone always say this on this forum? Even when its not relevant given that there was no danger only breaking down which is inconvenient.

tho_2

Never broke down on a motorway then kmb?

BeenThroughItAll

What kind of car is it? What do the badges on the back say? Is there a sticker inside the filler cap which says what fuel it takes? What about the plastic cover over the engine under the bonnet?

I find it almost impossible to believe that anyone wouldn't be able to actually detect that a car was a diesel not a petrol via one means or another.

What did the V5 say under 'fuel type' when you checked it prior to handing over payment?


Presumably the car was insured when you filled it with fuel yesterday, prior to 'sorting out insurance cover' today?

BeenThroughItAll

tho wrote: »

Never broke down on a motorway then kmb?

They don't have motorways in 'the countryside'.

Car_54

This a serious problem. One might even say a dark matter.

Inner_Zone

pete9804 wrote: »

Last week I bought a used car from a well-known chain of used car dealers. It was listed as petrol on all the documentation from the dealer; however yesterday when I refilled for the first time (with petrol, natch), I started having engine problems until eventually it conked out on the motorway (car and I now safe back home). Usually when I'm doing that particular journey I have my toddler in the car; thankfully not this time.


This morning, when trying to sort out insurance cover (I had previously been driving on the 7-day free cover that comes with the vehicle) I discover that the vehicle is listed as diesel, which would explain a lot. I'm waiting for a call back from the dealer to sort this out but I'm not sure what my stance should be. I don't want a diesel car so I guess it will have to go back but I'm angry that I was needlessly put in a dangerous situation so not sure if "money back and call it quits" really suffices. I appreciate that breakdowns happen sometimes but this was caused specifically by negligence on the part of the dealer.


Thoughts welcomed. Thanks.

Disagree, you had the car a week and did not realise it was a diesel. Surly the diesel clatter, possible a label on or inside the filler cap, as the rest as already stated above.

Mercdriver

Did you not do your own checks on the vehicle at all? £3 SMS HPI checks would tell you it was a diesel. i'd be staggered and expect photographic evidence if the filler cap didn't have DIESEL on it in capital letters.

I can't imagine the worst 'stealer' selling you a diesel by calling it petrol. Too much risk of comeback if all the paperwork bar the V5 stated petrol and it was diesel. Why did you not check the v5? Surely at start up in a test drive (you did test drive it, didn't you?) you would have noticed the diesel clatter. Diesels are quieter than they used to be, but at low speeds you can tell.

pete9804

Thank you for the - mostly - unpleasant "your an idiot" responses. No, the filler cap doesn't say "diesel"; no, actually I couldn't necessarily tell the difference between a diesel and a petrol engine; no, I didn't expect to have to verify all the sales paperwork by opening the bonnet and inspecting the engine; road tax payment was arranged by the dealership so no, I didn't have the opportunity to verify that; yes I was driving insured under 7-day cover as I stated and the issue didn't arise when arranging that either.

Dealership has accepted responsibility for the error and its getting rectified.

You live and learn I guess, I certainly won't be caught out by this again; but seriously why do some of you have to be so rude to someone who knows less about something than you? Are you like that in real life or just online?

d0nkeyk0ng

It's quite easy IMO for something like this to screw up.

I once had a hire car. I was told it was diesel and not to fill up with petrol. The paperwork said diesel. The keyring with the info on it said diesel. I drove the car. It felt pretty smooth for a diesel. Didn't think anything of it. Had it for three days. Went to fill up before returning the car. Diesel nozzle wouldn't fit. Fuel filler had a green ring around it so I looked at the filler flap - sticker says it's petrol!

You've been sold something that does not fit the description. Return the car to the dealer, explain the problem and either get a complete refund, or negotiate a discount on another car (this time checking whether petrol/diesel), or negotiate some sort of discount (provided the diesel version of the car was cheaper than petrol, which I imagine it would have been in the the current anti-diesel climate).

BeenThroughItAll

pete9804 wrote: »

Thank you for the - mostly - unpleasant "your an idiot" responses. No, the filler cap doesn't say "diesel"; no, actually I couldn't necessarily tell the difference between a diesel and a petrol engine; no, I didn't expect to have to verify all the sales paperwork by opening the bonnet and inspecting the engine; road tax payment was arranged by the dealership so no, I didn't have the opportunity to verify that; yes I was driving insured under 7-day cover as I stated and the issue didn't arise when arranging that either.

Dealership has accepted responsibility for the error and its getting rectified.

You live and learn I guess, I certainly won't be caught out by this again; but seriously why do some of you have to be so rude to someone who knows less about something than you? Are you like that in real life or just online?

For my own part, if you were sat in the office with me or I'd just met you in a pub and told me the story as you did in your OP, I'd ask exactly the same questions as I did here.


You conveniently didn't answer my question about the V5. What did that say when you checked it before handing over the money? Nor did you mention what the car is, or what the badges on the back say. If you want good advice, then it's important to give all the facts, not drip feed them whilst getting indignant when others don't tell you what you want to hear.