Bought a used car from a dealer with a major fault. Where do I stand?

BelfastGuy123

Hello everyone. I’m not one to post on forums however I don’t know what else to do other than ask for some advice before I seek legal advice.

Currently I live in Belfast in Northern Ireland. Around 2 weeks ago I began the hunt to find a used car to replace my old one. I found the exact car I was looking for advertised online by an extremely reputable car supermarket dealer (won’t mention any names... yet). The car was a 2011 Mini Cooper S. The car even had the benefit of a few extra goodies which I hadn’t expected as well. Sat nav, panoramic sun roof, climate control, full leather interior and low miles. The car was advertised at £6,300. I had £4,000 cash deposit and finance was arranged by myself online to pay the remaining £2,300.

The car was advertised online by the dealer, which is located in England (I live in Northern Ireland for anyone who missed it). I immediately got on the phone and enquired about the vehicle. I was sent a personalised video tour of the car and was happy with what I saw/was told. I put down a small deposit for the car over the phone and signed the finance agreement online before I went to collect the car 5 days later.

After travelling from Northern Ireland to England to collect the car I fell in love as soon as I laid eyes on it. I couldn’t wait to take it for a test drive... unfortunately everything went downhill from there .

I drove the car less than a mile up the road when suddenly the engine management light and a reduced power warning light came on. I was immediatly instructed by the car salesman to return to the showroom to have the car inspected by one of their mechanics, which I did.

I sat in the dealers showroom for... wait for it.... 5 and a half hours with my partner in front of a desk with the salesman who said he “might as well do some paperwork while we’re waiting”. Honestly the most boring 5 hours of my life.

Eventually the mechanic came to fill myself and my partner in on what was wrong. The wastegate on the turbo wasn’t working properly and they didn’t have the part in stock to fix the car. I was devastated as I knew I needed a car to get home (time was running out as well to catch the ferry home!!!). I rang up and changed the ferry time which I had to foot the bill for as I knew I was never going to make it to the ferry in time to get home due to how long we had to sit and wait in the showroom for the car to be looked at.

Just as I was about to leave without purchasing the car the dealer had came to an agreement with me to have the car repaired by my local mini dealership in Belfast and they would pay for the work (to save hassle from travelling back to England to have my car repaired). I felt I was stuck without the car so I paid the remaining £4,000 for the car and left with the plan to take it to my mini dealership the next day.

When I got home I did a little research and found that the problem was much bigger than they made it out to be. The car needs a whole new turbo. Price for the turbo and labour by Mini? Just shy of £3,000!!! My heart sank.

I got straight onto the phone to the dealer who told me if the price was that big they “obviously wouldn’t be paying for it”. I was disgusted at the promise they had given me when I purchased the vehicle.

The car was sold with a 60 day compulsory warranty (by law that’s the minimum they have to give you), however the dealer has offered for me to return the car to them to be repaired at no cost, however I feel I shouldn’t have to pay to get the car to the dealer on the ferry and a flight home, the same again to collect the car which will cost me £500 of my own money, which is why the offer to take it to my local mini dealer was created.

I have a few questions. I feel betrayed and ripped off as they sold me a car knowing it was faulty with the promise to get it fixed for me, as soon as they got my money they’re not that interested in helping me!

- Do I have to have the car repaired by them or am I still entitled to take it to my mini dealership as planned and send them the bill?
- Am I entitled to ask them to cover the costs of travel to take the car back to them for repair or get them to arrange to collect the car?

It’s getting to the stage where I’m considering rejecting the car, however I just want it fixed more than anything as I still love my car and want to keep it!

The only mistake I made was not getting the promise in writing from the dealership about getting the car repaired at my local garage. Only a verbal agreement was made to myself and my partner which I took their word on (so nieve, I know).

We’re talking about a massive car chain here who the sales rep even said “they’ll just pay for the cost to fix it no matter what it is. It’s nothing to them”. Them being head office I guess.

Sorry for the long read. Any help would be massively appreciated. Thank you!

neilmcl

BelfastGuy123 wrote: »

Hello everyone. I’m not one to post on forums however I don’t know what else to do other than ask for some advice before I seek legal advice.

Currently I live in Belfast in Northern Ireland. Around 2 weeks ago I began the hunt to find a used car to replace my old one. I found the exact car I was looking for advertised online by an extremely reputable car supermarket dealer (won’t mention any names... yet). The car was a 2011 Mini Cooper S. The car even had the benefit of a few extra goodies which I hadn’t expected as well. Sat nav, panoramic sun roof, climate control, full leather interior and low miles. The car was advertised at £6,300. I had £4,000 cash deposit and finance was arranged by myself online to pay the remaining £2,300.

The car was advertised online by the dealer, which is located in England (I live in Northern Ireland for anyone who missed it). I immediately got on the phone and enquired about the vehicle. I was sent a personalised video tour of the car and was happy with what I saw/was told. I put down a small deposit for the car over the phone and signed the finance agreement online before I went to collect the car 5 days later.

After travelling from Northern Ireland to England to collect the car I fell in love as soon as I laid eyes on it. I couldn’t wait to take it for a test drive... unfortunately everything went downhill from there .

I drove the car less than a mile up the road when suddenly the engine management light and a reduced power warning light came on. I was immediatly instructed by the car salesman to return to the showroom to have the car inspected by one of their mechanics, which I did.

I sat in the dealers showroom for... wait for it.... 5 and a half hours with my partner in front of a desk with the salesman who said he “might as well do some paperwork while we’re waiting”. Honestly the most boring 5 hours of my life.

Eventually the mechanic came to fill myself and my partner in on what was wrong. The wastegate on the turbo wasn’t working properly and they didn’t have the part in stock to fix the car. I was devastated as I knew I needed a car to get home (time was running out as well to catch the ferry home!!!). I rang up and changed the ferry time which I had to foot the bill for as I knew I was never going to make it to the ferry in time to get home due to how long we had to sit and wait in the showroom for the car to be looked at.

Just as I was about to leave without purchasing the car the dealer had came to an agreement with me to have the car repaired by my local mini dealership in Belfast and they would pay for the work (to save hassle from travelling back to England to have my car repaired). I felt I was stuck without the car so I paid the remaining £4,000 for the car and left with the plan to take it to my mini dealership the next day.

When I got home I did a little research and found that the problem was much bigger than they made it out to be. The car needs a whole new turbo. Price for the turbo and labour by Mini? Just shy of £3,000!!! My heart sank.

I got straight onto the phone to the dealer who told me if the price was that big they “obviously wouldn’t be paying for it”. I was disgusted at the promise they had given me when I purchased the vehicle.

The car was sold with a 60 day compulsory warranty (by law that’s the minimum they have to give you), however the dealer has offered for me to return the car to them to be repaired at no cost, however I feel I shouldn’t have to pay to get the car to the dealer on the ferry and a flight home, the same again to collect the car which will cost me £500 of my own money, which is why the offer to take it to my local mini dealer was created.

I have a few questions. I feel betrayed and ripped off as they sold me a car knowing it was faulty with the promise to get it fixed for me, as soon as they got my money they’re not that interested in helping me!

- Do I have to have the car repaired by them or am I still entitled to take it to my mini dealership as planned and send them the bill?
- Am I entitled to ask them to cover the costs of travel to take the car back to them for repair or get them to arrange to collect the car?

It’s getting to the stage where I’m considering rejecting the car, however I just want it fixed more than anything as I still love my car and want to keep it!

The only mistake I made was not getting the promise in writing from the dealership about getting the car repaired at my local garage. Only a verbal agreement was made to myself and my partner which I took their word on (so nieve, I know).

We’re talking about a massive car chain here who the sales rep even said “they’ll just pay for the cost to fix it no matter what it is. It’s nothing to them”. Them being head office I guess.

Sorry for the long read. Any help would be massively appreciated. Thank you!

What exactly has this entailed, have you actually taken it to your local Mini dealer for them to take a look or have you just been using the power of Google and jumped to the assumption that this is what the problem and subsequent cost is?

How did you "finance" the purchase, you may be able to pursue a Section 75 claim against the finance provider as well.

jk0

I think it's 'reject the car' time. Don't mess about arguing about who pays the ferry back to England. Book it now and argue later.


BTW, I think you were rather foolish to agree to drive back to NI with the car in that state, weren't you?

Kes1992

hi Mate wish you the best of luck I am in the same situation under 30 days car went back for repairs to the dealer. 3 days later caught a small fire in the engine. Car is on finance first payment went out 18/2/19. Devastated. Interested in a message to discuss with you what your entitled too.

parking_question_chap

BelfastGuy123 wrote: »

Hello everyone. I’m not one to post on forums however I don’t know what else to do other than ask for some advice before I seek legal advice.

Currently I live in Belfast in Northern Ireland. Around 2 weeks ago I began the hunt to find a used car to replace my old one. I found the exact car I was looking for advertised online by an extremely reputable car supermarket dealer (won’t mention any names... yet). The car was a 2011 Mini Cooper S. The car even had the benefit of a few extra goodies which I hadn’t expected as well. Sat nav, panoramic sun roof, climate control, full leather interior and low miles. The car was advertised at £6,300. I had £4,000 cash deposit and finance was arranged by myself online to pay the remaining £2,300.

The car was advertised online by the dealer, which is located in England (I live in Northern Ireland for anyone who missed it). I immediately got on the phone and enquired about the vehicle. I was sent a personalised video tour of the car and was happy with what I saw/was told. I put down a small deposit for the car over the phone and signed the finance agreement online before I went to collect the car 5 days later.

After travelling from Northern Ireland to England to collect the car I fell in love as soon as I laid eyes on it. I couldn’t wait to take it for a test drive... unfortunately everything went downhill from there .

I drove the car less than a mile up the road when suddenly the engine management light and a reduced power warning light came on. I was immediatly instructed by the car salesman to return to the showroom to have the car inspected by one of their mechanics, which I did.

I sat in the dealers showroom for... wait for it.... 5 and a half hours with my partner in front of a desk with the salesman who said he “might as well do some paperwork while we’re waiting”. Honestly the most boring 5 hours of my life.

Eventually the mechanic came to fill myself and my partner in on what was wrong. The wastegate on the turbo wasn’t working properly and they didn’t have the part in stock to fix the car. I was devastated as I knew I needed a car to get home (time was running out as well to catch the ferry home!!!). I rang up and changed the ferry time which I had to foot the bill for as I knew I was never going to make it to the ferry in time to get home due to how long we had to sit and wait in the showroom for the car to be looked at.

Just as I was about to leave without purchasing the car the dealer had came to an agreement with me to have the car repaired by my local mini dealership in Belfast and they would pay for the work (to save hassle from travelling back to England to have my car repaired). I felt I was stuck without the car so I paid the remaining £4,000 for the car and left with the plan to take it to my mini dealership the next day.

When I got home I did a little research and found that the problem was much bigger than they made it out to be. The car needs a whole new turbo. Price for the turbo and labour by Mini? Just shy of £3,000!!! My heart sank.

I got straight onto the phone to the dealer who told me if the price was that big they “obviously wouldn’t be paying for it”. I was disgusted at the promise they had given me when I purchased the vehicle.

The car was sold with a 60 day compulsory warranty (by law that’s the minimum they have to give you), however the dealer has offered for me to return the car to them to be repaired at no cost, however I feel I shouldn’t have to pay to get the car to the dealer on the ferry and a flight home, the same again to collect the car which will cost me £500 of my own money, which is why the offer to take it to my local mini dealer was created.

I have a few questions. I feel betrayed and ripped off as they sold me a car knowing it was faulty with the promise to get it fixed for me, as soon as they got my money they’re not that interested in helping me!

- Do I have to have the car repaired by them or am I still entitled to take it to my mini dealership as planned and send them the bill?
- Am I entitled to ask them to cover the costs of travel to take the car back to them for repair or get them to arrange to collect the car?

It’s getting to the stage where I’m considering rejecting the car, however I just want it fixed more than anything as I still love my car and want to keep it!

The only mistake I made was not getting the promise in writing from the dealership about getting the car repaired at my local garage. Only a verbal agreement was made to myself and my partner which I took their word on (so nieve, I know).

We’re talking about a massive car chain here who the sales rep even said “they’ll just pay for the cost to fix it no matter what it is. It’s nothing to them”. Them being head office I guess.

Sorry for the long read. Any help would be massively appreciated. Thank you!

I can suggest four more

1) Buying a car so far away from where you live
2) Buying a car that was known to be broken
3) Going to look at a car knowing that you needed to buy the car to get home.
4) Putting down a deposit on an 8 year old car that you had not test driven.

BelfastGuy123

neilmcl wrote: »

What exactly has this entailed, have you actually taken it to your local Mini dealer for them to take a look or have you just been using the power of Google and jumped to the assumption that this is what the problem and subsequent cost is?

How did you "finance" the purchase, you may be able to pursue a Section 75 claim against the finance provider as well.

I didn’t think to explain this in great detail. The car was fault code checked by the dealership before I left which gave me the suspected diagnosis. I didn’t realise the small part which has failed cannot be replaced on its own and the whole turbo unit has to be replaced. I’m not that mechanically minded to know. The car has also been checked by my brother who is a mechanic though who gave me the same diagnosis. The problem is very common with this make and model of car. If the turbo needs replaced there’s plenty of people online who have had to have the same repair work carried out so it’s not difficult to get a quote. The car was financed online by an online broker

BelfastGuy123

jk0 wrote: »

I think it's 'reject the car' time. Don't mess about arguing about who pays the ferry back to England. Book it now and argue later.


BTW, I think you were rather foolish to agree to drive back to NI with the car in that state, weren't you?

Yes I agree, my head just wasn’t in the right place at the time. I still really want to keep this car though because besides the fact the turbo needs replaced I still love everything about it. Rejecting the car would be an absolute last resort. The car doesn’t feel dangerous to drive. I would never put myself in a position like that. It still drives fine, just not as fast as it is supposed to be.

BelfastGuy123

parking_question_chap wrote: »

I can suggest four more

1) Buying a car so far away from where you live
2) Buying a car that was known to be broken
3) Going to look at a car knowing that you needed to buy the car to get home.
4) Putting down a deposit on an 8 year old car that you had not test driven.

What difference does it make how far away the car is? The car is from a very reputable company with dealerships all over the UK. Granted, I probably shouldn’t have trusted them the way I did however they’re such a big well known company I thought I was in safe hands. The car also came with a 2 month warranty as well which I thought was going to make it a safe buy.

jk0

BelfastGuy123 wrote: »

Yes I agree, my head just wasn’t in the right place at the time. I still really want to keep this car though because besides the fact the turbo needs replaced I still love everything about it. Rejecting the car would be an absolute last resort. The car doesn’t feel dangerous to drive. I would never put myself in a position like that. It still drives fine, just not as fast as it is supposed to be.

If you won't take my advice to reject, you have two choices, neither of which are very palatable:


1.) Accept the garage repair, hope they do a proper job, and pay the cost of two more flights & ferry journeys.


2.) Get it repaired in NI, and sue the firm for the repair cost. (This will also likely require you to attend court in England.)


With those two choices, I'd reject the car.

Aylesbury_Duck

BelfastGuy123 wrote: »

What difference does it make how far away the car is?

As you’re discovering, it makes situations like this one more costly and trickier to deal with. There are a lot of people on here who have problems and begrudge the costs of returning the car to its previous owner, wanting to claim that cost. They can’t. If you choose to buy a car a long way from home, you are responsible for the costs to get it back there if it’s rejected or needs to go back for repair.

parking_question_chap

BelfastGuy123 wrote: »

What difference does it make how far away the car is? The car is from a very reputable company with dealerships all over the UK. Granted, I probably shouldn’t have trusted them the way I did however they’re such a big well known company I thought I was in safe hands. The car also came with a 2 month warranty as well which I thought was going to make it a safe buy.

The further you travel the more likely you are to buy the car, irrespective of any problems you find with the vehicle and it makes dealing with these problems a lot more difficult.

And from how you have described your treatment, they dont sound like very reputable outfit me. I think you meant to say "the car is from a very big company".