2nd hand car advise

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the-norseman

Original Poster:

13,352 posts

178 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
Hi all,

I bought a car from a dealer on 27th April, Exact spec I wanted, they dont come up very often in this spec, colour etc.

on the drive home I noticed a few issues with the car that hadn't appeared on the quick test drive.

1. noise at 70mph which sounded like a wheel bearing
2. handbrake light kept coming on and noticed the handbrake leaver didnt go down fully
3. creaky front suspension
4. DAB didnt work

I took the car to a specialist of the marque (Alfa) and paid £120 for an inspection, The car came with 6 months warranty but the warranty company will only cover £50 p/h labour and the Alfa specialist was £90+ VAT so I emailed the dealer which is 1.5 hours away and told them either they fix it or I want to return it, they agreed to collect the car and took it away, on the 14th May I collected it from them with an invoice for £600 worth of parts and labour, new rear pads and discs, a new rear drivers side caliper, new DAB aerial. The invoice was of course claimed through the warranty so I had £0 to pay.

Drove the car for two/three weeks and the squeaky front suspension started again and now its started knocking on the rear as well, so I thought ill put up with it for a few weeks and get them bits sorted myself, but this morning when parking up the drivers side handbrake cable has snapped, I pushed the button in on the handbrake and pulled up like normal and I felt it snap. This is the side that had the new caliper. I have checked the warranty booklet and handbrake items arent covered...

So am I going to have to threaten the dealer again with repair it or have it back? I've had it 74 days from date of original collection excluding the days they had it back. Whats the "law"? I want to know the facts before I send them an email.

Thanks.

lancslad58

1,102 posts

15 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
What does the warranty document say ?

OutInTheShed

9,316 posts

33 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
Some grey areas about 'wear and tear' consumable items which you should not expect to be perfect on a used car.

A certain amount of maintenance being required can be the buyer's problem.
Consumer rights is not a 'free pass' for 6 months.

What level of 'service items' you should expect to pay for may vary with the age and price of the car.

No ideas for a name

2,401 posts

93 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
the-norseman said:
The invoice was of course claimed through the warranty so I had £0 to pay.
Nice. Not your problem, but the dealer committed fraud.... Unless all those item failed minutes after the vehicle was sold and first showed immediately during your drive home. Surprised the warranty company isn't wise to that.

Again, not your problem.

the-norseman

Original Poster:

13,352 posts

178 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
No ideas for a name said:
Nice. Not your problem, but the dealer committed fraud.... Unless all those item failed minutes after the vehicle was sold and first showed immediately during your drive home. Surprised the warranty company isn't wise to that.

Again, not your problem.
I get the feeling the dealer and warranty company are mates, one of these warranty companies that doesn't have good reviews.

the-norseman

Original Poster:

13,352 posts

178 months

Tuesday 9th July
quotequote all
OutInTheShed said:
Some grey areas about 'wear and tear' consumable items which you should not expect to be perfect on a used car.

A certain amount of maintenance being required can be the buyer's problem.
Consumer rights is not a 'free pass' for 6 months.

What level of 'service items' you should expect to pay for may vary with the age and price of the car.
Yep fully expect that, but wasn't really expecting the handbrake cable to snap, its a 2017 car with 67k on the clock.