Drive shaft fault discovered between sale and collection- what are my options

f.castle

Hello,

I finally found the car I want and as it was at distance and got the price I wanted for my PX, a deal was agreed and the finance paperwork signed electronically yesterday. The car (mercedes a200 Jan2020) was due to be picked up this Thursday. The dealer is not mercedes, but what appear to be a reputable garage, and comes with 12 month warranty.

the dealer phoned me today stating during their inspection today, they noticed grease on the driveshaft and will change the driveshaft and they will pay for this, as such, this means I can't collect the car until next week. I mentioned to them that if they are going to replace the part then I don't mind waiting, just don't rush the job.

The dealer said they have ordered the part from mercedes and their engineers are all trained change this kind of part (driveshaft).

The dealer mentioned it is a £700 cost to them. This is making me feel this is a big issue. 
- Is it too late to back out? 
- how do I know the drive shaft has been changed aside from asking for the part? Is there something I can test for in the car?
- What other things should I expect to look for drive shaft related.
- What are my options? anything from cancel the order (finance signed), ask for some money off, get mercedes to do the change rather than the car dealer, who probably could have got away with telling me about the driveshaft, not sure any lay person checks a drive shaft when buying a used car.

The car had done it's prep work, and a sales person was using it as a company car in the mean time until it was sold. 

thanks,

400ixl

Grease on the driveshaft typically means the CV boot has split. Usually changing the boot and re-packing with grease is the solution if caught early. If not then it is likely the bearings in the CV joint get corroded and the CV joint and boot get replaced.

If either of these are done then you can see a new rubber boot, and potentially a new CV joint connected to a used driveshaft.

If as they seem to be suggesting they are replacing the whole driveshaft then this will all look new and you will see the difference to the one on the other side.

Other than visual inspection there isn't much you can do to check it has been replaced.

If they were doing a botch job then they would use what is called a split boot, basically a rubber boot that has a slit down it so they can put it around the driveshaft in place and glue it together. This is the cheapest method to fix it and take 15 minutes to do.

HillStreetBlues

f.castle said:

Hello,

I finally found the car I want and as it was at distance

That has a few meanings, please expand.

GrumpyDil

As above, if the garage was trying to pull a fast one they would have used a split boot and not said anything to you.

The fact they have mentioned it is actually quite good. 

stuhse

The garage appears to have been honest  , and are fixing the problem, what more could you ask for ? Collect your car in a weeks time and enjoy.

f.castle

HillStreetBlues said:

f.castle said:

Hello,

I finally found the car I want and as it was at distance

That has a few meanings, please expand.

I did not go see the car, it was 2.5-3 hours away. I ordered it from my laptop on their website after speaking to the sales manager. The sales manager then sent me the paperwork by email.

f.castle

400ixl said:

Grease on the driveshaft typically means the CV boot has split. Usually changing the boot and re-packing with grease is the solution if caught early. If not then it is likely the bearings in the CV joint get corroded and the CV joint and boot get replaced.

If either of these are done then you can see a new rubber boot, and potentially a new CV joint connected to a used driveshaft.

If as they seem to be suggesting they are replacing the whole driveshaft then this will all look new and you will see the difference to the one on the other side.

Other than visual inspection there isn't much you can do to check it has been replaced.

If they were doing a botch job then they would use what is called a split boot, basically a rubber boot that has a slit down it so they can put it around the driveshaft in place and glue it together. This is the cheapest method to fix it and take 15 minutes to do.

GrumpyDil said:

As above, if the garage was trying to pull a fast one they would have used a split boot and not said anything to you.

The fact they have mentioned it is actually quite good. 

stuhse said:

The garage appears to have been honest  , and are fixing the problem, what more could you ask for ? Collect your car in a weeks time and enjoy.

Yes- the sales person said they are ordering a new driveshaft to install. 
Reputable- I did think, as he is being open and sounded genuinely apologetic, I thought they are honest folks!

400ixl

HillStreetBlues said:

f.castle said:

Hello,

I finally found the car I want and as it was at distance

That has a few meanings, please expand.

Took that to mean the dealer was not local.

HillStreetBlues

f.castle said:

HillStreetBlues said:

f.castle said:

Hello,

I finally found the car I want and as it was at distance

That has a few meanings, please expand.

I did not go see the car, it was 2.5-3 hours away. I ordered it from my laptop on their website after speaking to the sales manager. The sales manager then sent me the paperwork by email.

As you bought it from distance then Consumer Contracts Regulations apply

You can cancel the order up to 14 days after you receive the car.
https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/consumer-contracts-regulations-ajWHC8m21cAk

FlimFlam01

Sounds like a decent garage to be open and up front about the issue and replace it.  Inspires confidence.

Bigwheels1111

Easy to check what they have done. One they could put it on a ramp and show you.
Or ask which side, park that on the kerb and look under the car behind the wheel. 

Should see a nice clean black or grey shaft with a stepped rubber boot at each end.
The garage seem very good, if they have done the work.
look at this picture, select the car for a better picture.
https://www.buycarparts.co.uk/cv-axle/mercedes-benz/a-class-w169