Bought a car that has broken down. Where do I stand???
Discussion
Hi everyone,
So bought a Vauxhall Astra 2011 automatic model about a month ago from an Indy dealer. Car seemed fine, had a service history (non-vauxhall) but all seemed well. I am the third owner. 2 weeks after I bought it, took it for a full dealer service. That, plus apparently needing a new timing belt, cost me about £1k. Fair enough I thought. They did advise that gears felt a bit crunchy and that going into reverse was a bit off. They told me to monitor on the written report.
Another 2 weeks later, car went into limp mode during my commute and wouldn't shift above 3rd gear. Made it to work and wouldn't engage into reverse. When the car was in reverse, I'd gas it and the car just wouldn't move. Had it recovered to Vauxhall and now they're looking into it. It hasn't come back yet with a full diagnostic but the guy in service said 'just from driving it, feels like a gearbox replacement at this point'.
I've contacted the original dealer I bought it from, it's now just gone past 30 days. He's suggesting I should recover the car to a gearbox repair specialist dealer that he knows who can look at it and he'll 'take it from there'.
Here's the thing, this car has already cost me money with the timing belt. At the moment, I'm without a car and I'm having to get taxis to work as trains and buses don't have a straight route from my home. The cost and inconvenience alone is proving too much and I just want a refund. Where do I stand with this?
I was reading on the citizens advice website that past 30 days you aren't entitled to an outright refund but the dealer can repair it and hand it back to you at his cost. If Vauxhall comes back and confirms a gearbox replacement, he still wants me to send it to his guy. How can I trust this guy he's sending it to? The place he's suggested has a google page which has a load of negative 1 star reviews (admittedly from a few years ago) calling them crooks and not repairing things properly. The citizens advice website also states if it breaks down a second time, you can then get a 'partial' refund. I feel like the hassle is too much. I'm eagerly waiting for the Vauxhall report to come back. If they confirm gearbox replacement I may just say to the dealer to give me a refund and he can come and get it. If the main dealer confirms a gearbox replacement, there's no need to get his mate to give me a second opinion. The car was purchased for £6.5k. I don't know what mates rates he'll be getting from this guy but the hassle and worry of whether the car is going to be okay seems too much at the moment. The repair centre may even come back and suggest the repair is a lot smaller, but I'm just waiting to hear from them. In which case I'll pay for it and ask the dealer for a contribution. But, at this time, the inconvenience alone is costing me.
Does anybody have any advice for me at this point? What would you all do if this was your car?
So bought a Vauxhall Astra 2011 automatic model about a month ago from an Indy dealer. Car seemed fine, had a service history (non-vauxhall) but all seemed well. I am the third owner. 2 weeks after I bought it, took it for a full dealer service. That, plus apparently needing a new timing belt, cost me about £1k. Fair enough I thought. They did advise that gears felt a bit crunchy and that going into reverse was a bit off. They told me to monitor on the written report.
Another 2 weeks later, car went into limp mode during my commute and wouldn't shift above 3rd gear. Made it to work and wouldn't engage into reverse. When the car was in reverse, I'd gas it and the car just wouldn't move. Had it recovered to Vauxhall and now they're looking into it. It hasn't come back yet with a full diagnostic but the guy in service said 'just from driving it, feels like a gearbox replacement at this point'.
I've contacted the original dealer I bought it from, it's now just gone past 30 days. He's suggesting I should recover the car to a gearbox repair specialist dealer that he knows who can look at it and he'll 'take it from there'.
Here's the thing, this car has already cost me money with the timing belt. At the moment, I'm without a car and I'm having to get taxis to work as trains and buses don't have a straight route from my home. The cost and inconvenience alone is proving too much and I just want a refund. Where do I stand with this?
I was reading on the citizens advice website that past 30 days you aren't entitled to an outright refund but the dealer can repair it and hand it back to you at his cost. If Vauxhall comes back and confirms a gearbox replacement, he still wants me to send it to his guy. How can I trust this guy he's sending it to? The place he's suggested has a google page which has a load of negative 1 star reviews (admittedly from a few years ago) calling them crooks and not repairing things properly. The citizens advice website also states if it breaks down a second time, you can then get a 'partial' refund. I feel like the hassle is too much. I'm eagerly waiting for the Vauxhall report to come back. If they confirm gearbox replacement I may just say to the dealer to give me a refund and he can come and get it. If the main dealer confirms a gearbox replacement, there's no need to get his mate to give me a second opinion. The car was purchased for £6.5k. I don't know what mates rates he'll be getting from this guy but the hassle and worry of whether the car is going to be okay seems too much at the moment. The repair centre may even come back and suggest the repair is a lot smaller, but I'm just waiting to hear from them. In which case I'll pay for it and ask the dealer for a contribution. But, at this time, the inconvenience alone is costing me.
Does anybody have any advice for me at this point? What would you all do if this was your car?
It's an 11 year old car, you pays your money you take your chances. Under consumer law the dealer should be allowed to attempt to repair it and it sounds like he's said he will, i don't think you have much of a choice over who repairs it though as long as the repair is satisfactory. But that being said its not the dealers fault that the gearbox is 11 years old and probably beyond its life expectancy, if you end up with a replaced gearbox out of them for no cost i'd say you'd have done very well out of this...
How did you pay for the car? Debit card ? Cash? Credit card?
The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
Mineral1 said:
It's an 11 year old car, you pays your money you take your chances. Under consumer law the dealer should be allowed to attempt to repair it and it sounds like he's said he will, i don't think you have much of a choice over who repairs it though as long as the repair is satisfactory. But that being said its not the dealers fault that the gearbox is 11 years old and probably beyond its life expectancy so i would expect them to fight back.
Yeah of course, the car is old and I appreciate age and wear and tear. The mileage on the car is only £33k so just surprised the gearbox has knocked out so quick. My concern comes from the company he wants me to send it to. Their google page is full of reviews saying they’re gearbox and clutch replacement work is shoddy and not satisfactory. So that’s where most of the concern liesMineral1 said:
It's an 11 year old car, you pays your money you take your chances. Under consumer law the dealer should be allowed to attempt to repair it and it sounds like he's said he will, i don't think you have much of a choice over who repairs it though as long as the repair is satisfactory. But that being said its not the dealers fault that the gearbox is 11 years old and probably beyond its life expectancy so i would expect them to fight back.
Yeah, not really how it works nowadays.The OP has only bought it a month ago so the fault will likely be deemed to have been present when he bought it. That gives him rights of rejection.
The dealer will unlikely fork out for a new gearbox, so the OP will likely get a refund and the dealer will punt it on through an auction.
cts1975 said:
How did you pay for the car? Debit card ? Cash? Credit card?
The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
£1k cash deposit and £5.5k on card. I’m not expecting compensation for train fares or anything. The dealer I bought from said to me he wants it sent to the gearbox specialist he knows and he’d cover repair costs. But as I said the reviews on that place are bad so don’t know if I’m going to get a shoddy repair on the cheap as the dealer is paying The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
Muzzer79 said:
Mineral1 said:
It's an 11 year old car, you pays your money you take your chances. Under consumer law the dealer should be allowed to attempt to repair it and it sounds like he's said he will, i don't think you have much of a choice over who repairs it though as long as the repair is satisfactory. But that being said its not the dealers fault that the gearbox is 11 years old and probably beyond its life expectancy so i would expect them to fight back.
Yeah, not really how it works nowadays.The OP has only bought it a month ago so the fault will likely be deemed to have been present when he bought it. That gives him rights of rejection.
The dealer will unlikely fork out for a new gearbox, so the OP will likely get a refund and the dealer will punt it on through an auction.
Mdotlife said:
Muzzer79 said:
Mineral1 said:
It's an 11 year old car, you pays your money you take your chances. Under consumer law the dealer should be allowed to attempt to repair it and it sounds like he's said he will, i don't think you have much of a choice over who repairs it though as long as the repair is satisfactory. But that being said its not the dealers fault that the gearbox is 11 years old and probably beyond its life expectancy so i would expect them to fight back.
Yeah, not really how it works nowadays.The OP has only bought it a month ago so the fault will likely be deemed to have been present when he bought it. That gives him rights of rejection.
The dealer will unlikely fork out for a new gearbox, so the OP will likely get a refund and the dealer will punt it on through an auction.
But you can still reject the car if the dealer doesn't repair it.
There's not much you can do to dictate how the dealer repairs it, other than having the work inspected after it's done.
I mean, it sounds as if he's willing to get it looked at, I'm not sure what more you can expect at this stage. It is an inconvenience, but ultimately it's a used vehicle. So far, he's upholding his end of CRA, which he's entitled to do after 30 days. Transportation is a ball ache, I know. I've just paid £100 to move a car 21 miles to get a sensor fitted for the best part of £500. I've had the car 4 months and it was near £11k. I moped about angrily for a couple of hours then got over it.
See what the specialist says, go from there.
See what the specialist says, go from there.
Mdotlife said:
cts1975 said:
How did you pay for the car? Debit card ? Cash? Credit card?
The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
£1k cash deposit and £5.5k on card. I’m not expecting compensation for train fares or anything. The dealer I bought from said to me he wants it sent to the gearbox specialist he knows and he’d cover repair costs. But as I said the reviews on that place are bad so don’t know if I’m going to get a shoddy repair on the cheap as the dealer is paying The dealer has the right to attempt to repair the car if they choose. The opinion of a vauxhall dealer is just that.
You will not be able to recover consequential losses for train fares etc.
Ultimatley the dealer is unlikely to just pay for a new gearbox on a 2011 car so don't let Vauxhall fit one!
123DWA said:
I think I'd be letting the dealer replace the gearbox OP as you'll actually be in a better position. You could get a refund and buy another 11yo car only to find the gearbox lets go after 12 months and then you're the one footing the bill.
Yeah I agree. As I’ve said, the place the dealer wants it sent to has terrible online reviews, all complaining how the gearbox or clutch or flywheel that’s been replaced has issues so my concern is a crappy repair to cut down the dealer bill. Then, if the repair gives out after 6 months, where do I stand after that? That’s my main concern…Mdotlife said:
Yeah I agree. As I’ve said, the place the dealer wants it sent to has terrible online reviews, all complaining how the gearbox or clutch or flywheel that’s been replaced has issues so my concern is a crappy repair to cut down the dealer bill. Then, if the repair gives out after 6 months, where do I stand after that? That’s my main concern…
I think you need to trust the dealer on this one (not easy I know!) Tbh if they do a shoddy repair it should be obvious immediately, there isn't anything you can do to that gearbox to make it work for a while then give up after a few months. Have you asked if there is any warranty on the work? 123DWA said:
Mdotlife said:
Yeah I agree. As I’ve said, the place the dealer wants it sent to has terrible online reviews, all complaining how the gearbox or clutch or flywheel that’s been replaced has issues so my concern is a crappy repair to cut down the dealer bill. Then, if the repair gives out after 6 months, where do I stand after that? That’s my main concern…
I think you need to trust the dealer on this one (not easy I know!) Tbh if they do a shoddy repair it should be obvious immediately, there isn't anything you can do to that gearbox to make it work for a while then give up after a few months. Have you asked if there is any warranty on the work? The dealer is a bit strange. He’s given me the address, name and phone number of the repair specialist. Is he expecting me to call him and organise the repair? I’m gonna ask him to confirm over text that any repair will be covered by him. He said that he would over the phone but I really need that in writing before I send the car anywhere.
Mdotlife said:
£1k cash deposit and £5.5k on card. I’m not expecting compensation for train fares or anything. The dealer I bought from said to me he wants it sent to the gearbox specialist he knows and he’d cover repair costs. But as I said the reviews on that place are bad so don’t know if I’m going to get a shoddy repair on the cheap as the dealer is paying
Credit card or debit card?cts1975 said:
Mdotlife said:
£1k cash deposit and £5.5k on card. I’m not expecting compensation for train fares or anything. The dealer I bought from said to me he wants it sent to the gearbox specialist he knows and he’d cover repair costs. But as I said the reviews on that place are bad so don’t know if I’m going to get a shoddy repair on the cheap as the dealer is paying
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