nemesis

Hi ..... Chaps ! & Gals

My dream purchase ruined by rogue importers

My recent purchase of a dream 02 WRX from a so called professional outfit (Ha) has been dulled by catalogue of false promises & lies

What i bought was a 02 WRX (import) with full 'uk' spec 3 years warranty colour coded marreti headlamps.

What i got was a 02 WRX (import) described as full uk spec but not,
There is no body protection thus no body warranty ! no audio warranty, in fact no 3 year warranty at all only 12mths from the country of origin and that is only when it is registered with subaru uk with a copy of the original purchase invoice from the overseas dealer (yes and i'am going to see a copy of that aint i .. not) I have also been informed that with this vehicle there is no warranty at all on the clutch or brakes as a uk rex.

The vehicle is fitted as standard with height adjustable headlamps but they fitted the marreti headlamps without this option (my height adjuster switch did nout) marreti do have the option of height adjustment but these wheeler dealers took the cheap option !

They have now agreed to replace the headlamps with the correct ones also to carry out the full body protection (not just a body service) after a long and bitter battle, What about the warranty ? has anybody got any suggestions.

Once they had got there money they did not care one little bit, has anybody had any similar problems ???

nemesis

nemesis

And another-thing they said with this being a 02my it would be on the new 10k 12mth service schedule with the t/belt changed at 50k or 60mth but oh no it's not, we are still on the old 7,500m 6mth schedule with the t/belt at 45k or 36mth (only uk cars are on the new schedule)

What next ??

Harry_Boy

Completely 100% opposite to most of us MY02 import buyers, Mate. Huge sympathies, but did you buy from a reputable importer? Are you going to name & shame?

It's normal to have to register the warranty with IM so you can get the first year's pan-European stuff, but the 2nd and 3rd year are usual for a new MY02 from Holland or Belgium.

As for underseal, the Belgian etc ones have a six year corrosion warranty anyway, but IM add extra stuff in the Uk to combat our obsession with salt.

Harry_Boy

You're right - only the UK supplied cars are on the 10k intervals, as it's a unilateral decision by IM. Sounds like they misrepresented the sale to you Mate. But, if it's a proper European car (not a Cypriot import), it's otherwise the same as a Uk supplied vehicle.

Jon1T

You should name and shame - so other buyers can be aware of these guys. Equally we should praise good service.

Elvis Presley

Name and Shame.

zoog

lets hear it - who are these fokers?

Disco

Sorry to hear this mate...

But, dont name and shame just yet, once you've burnt your bridges you no longer have any ammo to negotiate. Offer the company 14 days to come up with a solution that suits you, if they fail to do so then you should go on to name and shame them. Anywhere and everywhere you can too!

Disco

Toerag

Isn't there anything you can do with the trade descriptions act? Or am I wrong?

Sideways

I totally agree NAME AND SHAME people should be told so they don't make the same mistake.
It puts the whole industry in doubt.

[Edited by Sideways - 3/20/2002 12:14:32 PM]

nemesis

Hi .... Chaps, thankyou for your help
I do'nt want to name & shame just yet i'am taking them to task at the moment,

All i can say is beware of Steel City Supermarkets !!!!!!!!

All froth & no beer !!

nemesis

Harry_Boy

So Sheffield it is Mate..... Is it definitely a European import, or is there a hint of Cypriot in there? Don't forget, all of us that have a Euro import have still had to register with IM for the first year's warranty.

mutant_matt

...and I believe that as of Jan this year, you now get 2 years Pan-Euro warranty anyway (new EU law).

Matt

nemesis

HI HARRY,
THIS BABY IS A EUROPEAN,THE SERVICE BOOK IS STAMPED BY THE SUPPLING
DEALER (NEATHERLANDS). BUT THERE IS NO P.D.I STAMP ???.THIS EXPLAINS THE OVER INFLATED TYRE PRESSURES (38 PSI, INTERSTING HANDLING).

yoza

I bought a my01 second hand 4 months old at the time,the page in the warranty booklet that you send away to keep your warranty up was missing presumed sent away by the pre owner,now i dont know what to do to get warranty up to date.Dont know where to write to?Also if yours is a Belgian import or parrallel import as i think its phrased check youve got an alarm i was told it did have but it didnt so drove around for 3 months with void insurance not happy.Since had a TOAD C5T2 and passed the bill on to the dealer.

WRXBOB

NEMESIS,

Can you contact me via the email address in my profile as soon as possible mate.

Cheers,
BOB

Harry_Boy

Mmmm - interesting, Nemesis, Mate. As far as I know, all Dutch origin cars now come with a three year warranty, as from January 2002 onwards. Reason being, they are from the same importer as the Belgian cars - and I've just got a Belgian import, and that's got a 3 year warranty. The first year is pan-European, and the remaining two are from the importer.

Are you sure there's no underseal? Mine's got some sort of 'flexible' plasticised coating to the underbody. And, the handbook and supplying dealer confirm that the anti-corrosion guarantee is six years. This should be the same for a Dutch origin car.

Otherwise Mate, is it a full UK spec, from what you can gather?

There's been a lot of confusion recently about MY02 service intervals. As I mentioned before, IM unilaterally extended theirs to 10k miles - the irony being that, for a completely identical European-sourced car, the intervals are only 7.5k.

My only worry for you Mate is that the supplying dealer might claim they acted in good faith, as UK service intervals were under review at the time.

But, apart from this, it seems like you have something that's effectively identical to all our European imports on Scoobynet. So, if I were you, I wouldn't worry about the car, or indeed enjoying it. My view (subject to what the supplying dealer tells you) is that you've bought what we've all got (well the European guys, anyway). it's just that the dealer was either ignorant or negligent....

Don't worry about it - it seems like they are just the 'usual' inconsistencies that we are all experiencing.

Enjoy the car - I'm confident that you've still got a bargain (subject to what you paid, of course....)

Take care! Harry.

Dave T-S

Nemesis
I'm afraid this is what you get when you buy imports not UK dealer supplied cars. Imports are cheaper, but there's no such thing as a free lunch. Not having a pop, just stating that there are downsides.

Harry_Boy

True Dave - but I guess we can live with them for the £5-6,000 saving.

Anyway, I was going to ask you - which version of the pink badge have you got on the new STi? Is it the 'stars' one, or the 'i'? I'm thinking about emulating the D T-S look. Well, as much as you can with a MY02 WRX 5 door (in WR Blue!).....

mole

Harry_Boy

Hi Mole - why the blue face Mate?

nemesis

Hi Bob

Sorry it has took so long to get back to you, bizzy polishing the Rex!

Whats the problem ???

Gregarious

I think WRXBOB purchased his motor from the same place

I have also placed an order with them
any further update
how is the car

Gregarious

Dave T-S

Harry
Grille badges - mine's got stars (and I put it on the right way up), Carolyn's is the "i" one

nemesis

Gregarious

I'am not going to name names but 2 + 2 often works!!

If it is the same outfit just watch out, they will promise the world but once you have paid "it's on ya bike pal"

Get everything in writing, & do'nt fall for any cheap performance packages !!!???

Nemesis

chiark

Nemesis, sorry to hear your troubles, hope you get it sorted.

Dave, I'm gonna have to take you to task about "this is what you expect".

It isn't what you should expect at all!!! Just speak to any of Gertjan van der Velde's customers, or Iain Litchfield's customers, or ...

Unfortunately, it's damn easy to set up an import business and there's no controls on whether a dealer is reputable or not.

Always use someone who comes with a good reputation. Hope you get it sorted, and I hope that others can learn from your experience!

Nick
(ps - my import came with extras, a full tank of super unleaded, and a huge bunch of flowers for the missus!)

Bajie

Don't name and shame them on the BBS .. you'll get sued!
Use Top Gear. They were shouting quite loudly about the benefits of imports. Let them know your grief and you may get further.
In the meantime, use word of mouth at meets and suchlike.
It does seem as though you're being sensible about trying to find the right solution to your problem and I wish you good luck.

Harry_Boy

Hi Nemesis - Hope you get it sorted mate, but it still sounds to me as though the deler in question (I know who they are!) just failed to tell you about what we all know here. Rest assured that there's nothing at all wrong with your Rex - it's still a brilliant car! In fact, these are issues that affect us all, whether we've bought from Holland or Belgium.

Dave - trust you and Carolyn to have both!!! Still undecided which to go for though. Without publicly favouring your's or Carolyn's, which do you think might 'truly benefit' the front of the MY02 WR Blue wagon?