Car purchased in last five months from dealer - gearbox faulty

powerful_Rogue

med_tech3 said:

I am going to send the following message to the garage. Is it any good? What next steps can I take if they either ignore the message or say no? 
I would like the car repaired under warranty please. The start of the issue was there from when I purchased the car. It made a 'wub wub' sound while driving and I did query this. I was told that is a normal noise for the Nissan auto gearbox but subsequently I have been in contact with an auto gearbox specialist who said those gearboxes should be silent and the noise is the sound of worn bearings. I cannot drive the car as I don't want to cause any extra damage and I also don't know if it will suddenly fail on me.

Why did you say warranty when people said any claim you may have would be under the consumer rights act? Two totally different things.

sheslookinhot

Alderbank said:

sheslookinhot said:

Ectophile said:

sheslookinhot said:

It’s a 10 year old car with a high mileage. Good luck getting any contribution to the repair.

You might be better getting a box from a car dismantler.

That's irrelevant.  The Consumer Rights Act still applies.

What bit is irrelevant ?

All of it.

If nothing specific is said about the gearbox there is an implied contract term that it is in reasonable condition for its age and mileage.
If on investigation it turns out that it wasn't at the point of sale then the trader is in breach of the Consumer Rights Act and must repair or refund.

It will be irrelevant if the OP gets a gearbox repaired or replaced. 

med_tech3

Update - I took it to a gearbox specialist who diagnosed the cooling pipes had corroded and were leaking so not supplying enough oil to the gearbox. They said this had been happening for a while and definitely from before I purchased the car. The diagnosis cost me £118 and the estimate was for £3434. I forwarded the estimate and the invoice for the diagnosis to the garage I purchased the car from and they said they will talk to their warranty company and get back to me. Today they sent me a message saying they will pay £1000 towards it. I need to pay, forward them the invoice and then they will send me the £1000. I think they should pay the full amount. Am I right? Should I reply to them saying I am seeking legal advice? Should I say I expect them to fix it under the consumer rights act?

Aylesbury_Duck

med_tech3 said:

Update - I took it to a gearbox specialist who diagnosed the cooling pipes had corroded and were leaking so not supplying enough oil to the gearbox. They said this had been happening for a while and definitely from before I purchased the car. The diagnosis cost me £118 and the estimate was for £3434. I forwarded the estimate and the invoice for the diagnosis to the garage I purchased the car from and they said they will talk to their warranty company and get back to me. Today they sent me a message saying they will pay £1000 towards it. I need to pay, forward them the invoice and then they will send me the £1000. I think they should pay the full amount. Am I right? Should I reply to them saying I am seeking legal advice? Should I say I expect them to fix it under the consumer rights act?

This question from 14th August is pertinent:

powerful_Rogue said:

med_tech3 said:

I am going to send the following message to the garage. Is it any good? What next steps can I take if they either ignore the message or say no? 
I would like the car repaired under warranty please. The start of the issue was there from when I purchased the car. It made a 'wub wub' sound while driving and I did query this. I was told that is a normal noise for the Nissan auto gearbox but subsequently I have been in contact with an auto gearbox specialist who said those gearboxes should be silent and the noise is the sound of worn bearings. I cannot drive the car as I don't want to cause any extra damage and I also don't know if it will suddenly fail on me.

Why did you say warranty when people said any claim you may have would be under the consumer rights act? Two totally different things.

What they've offered is reasonable in response to your request that they repair the car under warranty.  You have no warranty rights because the warranty had already expired when you reported the fault, so what they're offering is a gesture of goodwill, as they have said.  

You haven't asked them to repair it under your consumer rights.  I suggest you do so, because referring to the warranty is only ever going to get you a contribution at best.

There is an element of risk here, though.  If you try and enforce your consumer right to a repair and the dealer plays hardball, you're in for the long haul (court action would take many months) and they'd presumably withdraw their goodwill offer of £1000.  You'll need to weigh up whether to take what's been offered, or go for the full cost with the possibility you get nothing.  I agree with others here that the fault was almost certainly present at purchase and therefore that you're entitled to more than a goodwill gesture, but go into it with your eyes open and aware of the potential risk.

med_tech3

Thanks. I realised my mistake soon after sending the message. They have sort of admitted guilt by offering £1000. I am thinking of replying to them saying 'I am seeking legal advice as the car was sold with a major issue and under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 you are required to repair the car'. It is a risk as I don't know if I can get them to pay it and they may retract their offer of the £1000. If I accept the £1000 I have still spent over £3000 on the repair. I can threaten to take them to court but not sure if I can follow it through. 

med_tech3

Also I only have their word they will pay. I have to pay the bill then send them the invoice. They will transfer the money after they receive it.

caprikid1

"It is a 2014 Juke (64 reg) with 80000 miles."

I would suggest that the age and mileage of the vehicle at nearly 6 months after purchase might see the dealer fight quite hard on this one.

I am not sure there is a 100% guaranteed outcome if you take this to court. I would genuinely do your research. I do appreciate though that it looks like the fault was there at time of purchase but a 11 year old car with relatively high mileage might be considered in acceptable condition given it lasted 5 months.

med_tech3

The noise started in early July so that was only four months after purchase. I am in a difficult place here. I purchased the car for £6300, have already spent £700 on the problem (Nissan were useless and fleeced me out of almost £600) and now need to spend another £2343 on it if I take the £1000 offer. If I push for the garage to pay the whole lot it could backfire and I will have to pay out even more. 

Alderbank

No, a goodwill payment isn't admitting liability, and CRA2015 is not as simple as 'you are required to repair the car'.

The aim of the Act is to be fair to both parties. Sections 23 and 24 discuss circumstances where the repair costs are disproportionate in comparison with the cost and value of the goods.
You need to read those parts carefully.
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/23

I don't think you have shared the price you paid for the car but round where I live there are 2014 Jukes on sale in the region of £2,500-£3,000. Paying out £3,500 for a repair, although it would leave you with a much better car, might be seen as disproportionate.

They're looking for a deal now and they have opened the bidding with £1,000. I think @Aylesbury_Duck has given you good advice.

How good are your negotiating skills?

Aylesbury_Duck

I wonder what the car is worth in its current condition?  You can't sell it without declaring the fault, so it's a "spares or repair" sale at best.  Have a look at what it might be worth.  AI tells me it may be worth £2-3k.

Your current outlay is £7k for which you've had 5 months' value.  You might have expected the car to last about 5 years before selling it at maybe £2k?  That's roughly £1k per annum of depreciation, so maybe it's depreciated £500 in your ownership, so if you sell it now (faulty), your loss is c.£4k and you don't have the car.

You have a current offer of £1k towards the repair, which would leave you with a £6k car having spent £9.3k, so your loss would be £3.3k but you'd still have the car.

It's late and my arithmetic and logic may be a little flawed, but given the sums involved I'd be inclined to constructively and firmly seek a full or improved contribution to the repair.  If you decided to take it to court, polite attempts at negotiation would count in your favour.