Rejecting a second hand car (please read)
 

Hi,
Wonder if anyone can help. I purchased a WRX STI type uk 2002 on friday dealer took my car in part exhange after driving the car for the first day i noticed a loud banging from the back on closer inspection i found the rear shocks to be jamming i contacted the dealer and he said he will have a look in the week. This afternoon i decided to give the car a clean and polish, i noticed on the cloth i was using a blue paint was coming away and nearly every panel on the car has been tarted up with paint on closer inspection most of the panels have been damaged either through serve pebble dash and a lot of dents and scrapes which they have tried to polish out. It looks like i have purchased a polished turd and need to know my options to rejecting the car and getting my cash back. I paid top money for this car (13000) and am not happy with the condtion of the body work or the knocks from the suspenion now i know car are subject to stone chip damage but this car has only got 30000 on it the car i PX had done twice the mileage but was in 10 times better condition

The rear shocks are a very common problem, have a search on here.

Its unusual to see stone chips on anywhere other than the front of the car, so bonnet, bumper and front part of the wings. If its got lots of chips on the doors and boots its a good sign its been through a gravel trap or down some very rough roads. I would say the best course of action would be to speak to the dealer to see if they can do a better job of the repair. If not I would seek legal advice as the law for sales of goods can get a bit murky around used cars and its best to get some proper advice.

Thank for the reply but has anyone else had a simailar experience with a used car and any success in getting there money back ?

I'm suprised that you get paint on your polishing cloth. Almost all Subarus have a clear coat top paint layer, so no matter how hard you polish, you will not see any colour on the cloth, unless the clear coat has been polished right through to the base paint, in which case the paint will look as flat as a pancake.

The exceptions is base colour overspray from a body repair, or if somebody has previously used a coloured wax...such as Turtlewax "Colour magic" (very good stuff for for polishing turds BTW ;) ).

Dodgy/knocking rear shocks appears to be becoming a very common complaint as well.

If its from a dealer than you will have some come back, but dont forget I'm sure you checked the car over carefully before you parted with your cash?? If you can prove its un-safe then you'll have a leg to stand on but if its just cosmetic and a few minor mechanical issues then they might be happy to sort the mechanical issues but as you viewed the car before you paid the cash its down to you to make sure your happy with its cosmetic appearence.

As the above comment on clear coat, ALL metalic, pearlesent and mica paints will have a clear coat..

maybe i did not explain properly but the paint is coming from all the paint chips that they have covered up with blue paint unfortunately I did not notice the amount of damage to the car I noticed a few dents but on closer inspection it seems to be every panel is blemished, marked or dented. Has anyone got any ideas on how much to get 2 sides of a car painted?

Will cost you a fortune to get it painted, to be honest the paint finish on jap cars (and bikes) is always bit a shoddy.. If you want an immaculate car then buy new.

Its probably done all those miles at high speed.. take a look at the pedals, with that sort of mileage the rubber shouldnt be very worn, also check the seat bolsters and steering wheel if any are looking a bit worn it might have been clocked.. does all the paper work tally up?

how long ago did you buy the car?

and who did you buy it from? a Subaru dealer???


john

brought the car friday and no it was not a subaru dealer

gave my 04wrx a good polish yesterday. nearly 2yrs old + done 19k miles but i can't beleive how many stone chips there are! worst area is the front bumper with a few on bonnet too. not really any up the side as i have flaps fitted.

surely the paintwork should hold up better than this?

there isnt much scope to get your money back from a dealer.

if they arranged repairs after your first visit and you parted with it being happy....well its hard to get them to sort it.

but the rear shocks problem they have to look at it again (all cars from a dealer come with warranty - theres a law on it if you didnt take out a 3rd party policy)

basically youll take it back unhappy and they should either say ok well sort it.....or if theyre dicks you can see well ill take legal advice and wish for a refund.

hope it doesnt get messy and they dealer is an ok one

Same with most budget jap brands I'm afraid, The paint is really thin and I think they have used eco-paints for longer than european brands.

I do belive the mileage to be genuine the interior is mint and drives fine apart from the knock on the suspension which i guess the dealer will more than likley fix its is just the bodywork i am pissed about and how it had been tarted up,from a distance it looks okay but when you get up close i.e to clean it you notice all the fillins that they have done.

Same with anything really, as I said budget jap brands do suffer more than most, but I'd be more concerned if it had no stone chips what so ever :)

if you really want to reject it, you can...


but be warned, its going to be a long drawn out process.

i posted a thread to this effect a few days ago, since then, im apauled at the amount this has happened to people, but, fortunately for me, they have caused there to be alot of info and much of it very useful....


PM me if you want some pointers as to what your options are

i suppose the question i need answering is can i return the car to the dealer and ask for a refund after 3 days of ownership i am just not happy with the car (with the knocks from the suspension or paint finish) and can see that it is going to cost me a lot of money to put it right. I belive i paid good money for a good car and in my opinion i have not got it.

Subaru's are known to have paint like chocolate, i had loads of stone chips on mine, then again i did overtake a lot,lol.

Mac

here, have a read of the thread mate, theres a link posted near the bottom which is quite useful

http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=510969


john

Hi m8 im sorry to tell you but I think that you are struggling to get ur money back on this purchase

With regards to the bodywork in the eyes of the law as you have had a chance to inspect the goods before you bought the vehicle and should have seen the defect. This means that you know what you are buying before you pay for it. The legal term is Buyer beware.

With regards to the rear shocks do not listen to anyone who says that a garage has to give you a warranty there is nothing in the law that requires this.

However as he has sold you a vehicle with faulty rear shocks. You have been correct in notifying the dealer ASAP but back this up in writing. As the faults are matter of wear and tear to be expected with second hand goods you have the right to a repair so dealer must be given time to rectify this fault.

All this said you have nothing to loose by trying to reject the vehicle on the grounds that you feel that the vehicle is in an unroadworthy condition. Again by putting it in writing and sending it registered post.

for further advice you can always call your Local Friendly Trading Standards Office:D

or consumer direct on 08454 04 05 06

wouldnt bother with trading standards, its to much for them to take on, they deal with small claims up to the value of £5,500 i think it is now.... they will advise you to take a solicitor on to do the job, they will put you in touch with someone though

I would try CAB, citizens Advice, they may be able to advise you further...

With regards to the paint issue, if they have deliberatly tried to hide damage and you can PROVE it, then you have a case, hard part of that is proving they knew.

As for tha warranty, you do have one, its a 28 day one which everyone gets, just not everyone knows this, again, CAB will tell you this and send you the relavant documents for you to send them to prove it.

The shockers, well, they are a wearable part, but again, proving that they were like that when it was sold to you, being 4 days ago now should be easy with an engineers report.

like i said before, this could be a time consuming battle.

i said before i would send you some info mate, reading through my stuff, seems to relate specifcly to new purchases, but, i will dig deep and see what i can find for you.


john

any cars bought from a dealer are subject to a three month full warrenty by UK law (1978 sale of goods act)

;)

But what does that warranty cover is the question!

dunno cant be bothered reading that sale of goods act as itll be massive ha

putting it simply, the goods must be represented in a fair way and must be fit for the purpose sold....

Ie, it must be road legal, suspension not working correctly, being a vital part of the car, one would pressume it must work....


dont worry about it, in a court of law you would be covered i have no doubt...

but, i mkight add, that the dealer would never let it get that far IMO, it will cost him a fortune to defend.

also been looking at the small claims mate... It is possible for you to get the suspension sorted and take him to the small claims court should you not get a satisfactory repair. it will cost you £80 to issue the summons to him.

my guess he will fold as he will have no real defense to use

just another way forward


john

Many thanks for all the replys guys. The car is going back to the dealer tomorrow to have a look at the rear shocks i will let you know how i get on. Fingers crossed he is going to do the right thing !

UPDATE:
Took car back to dealer today for them to have a look, guess what they said.........The noise from the rear shocks is down to wear and tear and is normal for a car that has covered 30000 miles ! .After this i decided to get a second opinion i took the car to a Subaru dealer who had a look after a quick drive confirmed what i already thought, the rear shocks and top mounts need replacing. He said that he would see if subaru would fix the car F.O.C as a gesture of goodwill and i should know either way in about 7 to 10 days. If they will not im looking at a repair bill of 800+ to put right. So with this is hand i contacted the dealer who sold me the car again. after telling him the above he is still saying even if subaru will not fix the car F.O.C there is no way he is spending 800 pound on it. Any one got any opinions on what my next move should be? i have only had the car 6 days now and am possibly looking at a huge repair bill if subaru do not come through. Am i within my rights to demand my money back if he will not fix it ? the fault was reported to the dealer within 24hrs of me picking the car up

call citizens advice tomorrow without fail mate....

dont ask for speculations, if your going to get anywhere in this, you need to be alot faster and cleverer than he is.

let us know who you get on, in the mean time, on saturday im seeing a solicitor, i will run it by him, see if he knows anything off the top of his head

Having had a spot of bother with a new car in the past, I would recommend seeing a decent Solicitor as soon as possible.

This should clarify your position and he will know the best course of action to resolve the situation given your particular circumstances. A phone call or letter from a Solicitor often works wonders and it shows you mean business.

It might cost you a few quid, but surely much better than being stuck with something you are not happy with.

Ok i will call first thing tomorrow and see what they have to say, i am starting to think the best thing i can do is to try and reject this car and get my money back and look elsewhere. i had a few quotes for the paint today between 500 & 800 to put right but the subaru dealer said he had seen a lot worst and it was pretty average damage for a 3.5yr old car (maybe i being a bit picky with the paint) but have got to say my 60000 mile classic had less chips. but with spending the above the body work would be as new

i presume you get a 14 day cooling off period when you sign your name to anything, so in my eyes you have the right to demand your moneys back, and he must comply