Faulty Car - 2nd Hand

Midlands Minnie

Hi

3 months ago I got a 2nd hand Ford KA on a 5 year finance from a fairly big car dealership in our local towm
The day I got it the engine light came on so we sent it back. We noticed that It wasnt even serviced when we got it off the originally. This was fixed then the ligt came on again and acceloration went a couple of weeks later.

I wasnt happy at this stage so rang guy who was very unhelpful, rude and basically a prick. We got the car sorted again. Now, on the actual day the 3 month warrenty ends, my brakes went. Awful metal on metal sound and a local garage took it off me as it too dangerous to drive.

I couldnt believe it. At this stage I am so angry. I dont want the car now because god knows what will go wrong next and I dont want to deal with this asshole again, but he put me in a very dangerous position with not checking the brakes went they were made to service the car after the first time we sent it back The last time we spoke to him, he threatened legal action if we defamed him in any way.

(I swear to god we just spoke to him and although we were annoyed we were never angry, used swear words or threatened him in amy way). We dont have a lot of money and the thought of what else can go wrong is weighting heavily on my mind.

Can you return a car on finance to the garage who sold it as I really dont want it anymore or am I stuck with it for 5 years? Thanks

edburg

Wrong section.

But from similar threads there's 2 things,

1, brakes are wear n tear and your Responsibility and don't come under any warranty stuff.

Sounds bit ****ty sorry, but they are what's called a consumable in jargon talk.

2, if your that pee'd off with it all and its still causing issue's talk to the finance providers they will have bigger pull regarding getting sorted as it kind of is there property.

You should not go all guns blazing at the garage and giving them stick, it will just cause distaste and put them off dealing with you and threatening you with this n that.

Lurching

Service and consumables are up to you to either check or ask about upon purchase. Unless they sold it to you while at the same time stating that all of the consumables had been changed and it had been serviced, it's not their fault. Did you check the service book when you purchased?
The engine light is a genuine issue, but it sounds like they rectified the problem each time it occurred.

Sometimes you get unlucky, but in this instance, it sounds like the garage has held up their side of the deal.

What year is the car?

edburg

Lurching wrote: »

.

What year is the car?

Be guessing no older than 3 maybe 4 years old. Most finance seem to not like cars older than 8 year by end of finance agreement.

Midlands Minnie

Thank you for feedback and I am an easy going person who hates confrontation, I just said we were not happy, no shouting or anything like that but I think if you are a bit shouty things get done much quicker and that if you are laid back like me, they take advantage.
The car is an 09 and has 1 owner and the lady drove it around town so thought it was a good deal. My main point is that the car was in their owner ship while it being sold and that they sold it to me without checking whether is was roadworthy or not. And to be honest I think that should be a fair point when dealing with things like this. Brakes are a serious issue, what if they had failed while I was on the motorway and this is what is making me so angry. Maybe I am in the wrong like someone has said for not checking the log book, but why should I be.
I am paying money every month on a car which I am worried about.

I like the idea of talking with the finance company, I might try and see what they have to say.

Anyway, thanks again for feedback.

Apologies that I put it on the wrong thread, I honestly didne know where to start some thing liek this.

Midlands Minnie

edburg wrote: »

Wrong section.

But from similar threads there's 2 things,

1, brakes are wear n tear and your Responsibility and don't come under any warranty stuff.

(Wear and tear on brakes after 3 Months though! I drive 10 minutes to work and back every day! I could understand if it was a massive commute but not this)

Sounds bit ****ty sorry, but they are what's called a consumable in jargon talk.

2, if your that pee'd off with it all and its still causing issue's talk to the finance providers they will have bigger pull regarding getting sorted as it kind of is there property.

You should not go all guns blazing at the garage and giving them stick, it will just cause distaste and put them off dealing with you and threatening you with this n that.

I'm not the type to do that so no worries there!

Midlands Minnie

edburg wrote: »

Be guessing no older than 3 maybe 4 years old. Most finance seem to not like cars older than 8 year by end of finance agreement.

its an 09 Ford Ka.

CiniO

Midlands Minnie wrote: »

Thank you for feedback and I am an easy going person who hates confrontation, I just said we were not happy, no shouting or anything like that but I think if you are a bit shouty things get done much quicker and that if you are laid back like me, they take advantage.
The car is an 09 and has 1 owner and the lady drove it around town so thought it was a good deal. My main point is that the car was in their owner ship while it being sold and that they sold it to me without checking whether is was roadworthy or not. And to be honest I think that should be a fair point when dealing with things like this. Brakes are a serious issue, what if they had failed while I was on the motorway and this is what is making me so angry. Maybe I am in the wrong like someone has said for not checking the log book, but why should I be.
I am paying money every month on a car which I am worried about.

I like the idea of talking with the finance company, I might try and see what they have to say.

Anyway, thanks again for feedback.

Apologies that I put it on the wrong thread, I honestly didne know where to start some thing liek this.

Breaks consist of discs and pads which friction between each other to produce braking force.
Both of those (discs and pads) wear down and need replacing from time to time.
When you bought the car, brakes were working good, so you can't say he sold you car which was not roadworthy.
Now probably pads has worn down completely, so they need to be replaced. It's none of his business now.

In general - you'd be much better off buying privately, as there's very little advantages of buying from the garage, and warranty they provide is usually not worth much.

Guy:Incognito

Midlands Minnie wrote: »

Thank you for feedback and I am an easy going person who hates confrontation, I just said we were not happy, no shouting or anything like that but I think if you are a bit shouty things get done much quicker and that if you are laid back like me, they take advantage.
The car is an 09 and has 1 owner and the lady drove it around town so thought it was a good deal. My main point is that the car was in their owner ship while it being sold and that they sold it to me without checking whether is was roadworthy or not. And to be honest I think that should be a fair point when dealing with things like this. Brakes are a serious issue, what if they had failed while I was on the motorway and this is what is making me so angry. Maybe I am in the wrong like someone has said for not checking the log book, but why should I be.
I am paying money every month on a car which I am worried about.

I like the idea of talking with the finance company, I might try and see what they have to say.

Anyway, thanks again for feedback.

Apologies that I put it on the wrong thread, I honestly didne know where to start some thing liek this.

From your post I assume the pads were worn? In that case there isnt any sudden failure. You get plenty of warning and a good bit of time from when the noise starts (and a dash light if its fitted with wear sensors). Unless they shedded the friction material in one go (which wouldnt be the dealers fault anyway) then to get to bare metal there would have had to be warning for a while. If it was the first sign of noise from them then, while the certainly needed to be changed, you werent about to be planted in to a wall.

Del2005

Midlands Minnie wrote: »

The car is an 09 and has 1 owner and the lady drove it around town so thought it was a good deal.

One lady owner on a car driven around town sounds like the worst type of car you can buy.

Midlands Minnie wrote: »

My main point is that the car was in their owner ship while it being sold and that they sold it to me without checking whether is was roadworthy or not. And to be honest I think that should be a fair point when dealing with things like this. Brakes are a serious issue, what if they had failed while I was on the motorway and this is what is making me so angry.

The brakes where good for 3 months, that means that car was sold in a roadworthy condition. It depends on the driver how long pads will last, some can gets years from pads others can do a set in a few months.

Midlands Minnie wrote: »

Maybe I am in the wrong like someone has said for not checking the log book, but why should I be.

You've invested a lot of money into an item and didn't do the basic checks before purchasing. Yes there are safety nets when purchasing from a dealer but all 2nd hand cars should be checked over by a mechanic before you sign for it.

Atlantic Dawn

What service history was with it? What came up on the history check?

CiniO

Del2005 wrote: »

One lady owner on a car driven around town sounds like the worst type of car you can buy.

Exactly my thought as well.
I don't know why people keep saying that in car adverts "careful lady owner".
For me it's very discouraging towards the car.

The brakes where good for 3 months, that means that car was sold in a roadworthy condition. It depends on the driver how long pads will last, some can gets years from pads others can do a set in a few months.

I strongly doubt that OP would have driving style which would cause set of new brake pads to wear down in 3 months.
Probably there must have been not much left on them when car was sold. But not much doesn't mean it's not roadworthy. Brake pads work perfectly fine until very last moment when they are gone.

You've invested a lot of money into an item and didn't do the basic checks before purchasing. Yes there are safety nets when purchasing from a dealer but all 2nd hand cars should be checked over by a mechanic before you sign for it.

Many people (including OP) seems to think, that buying second hand car from dealer (often reputable) means that car will be like new.
All servicing done, all wearable parts new, and generally no investments for couple of years.

That's obviously very far from being true, and generally only difference buying from a dealer to buying privately is that price is much higher.

Del2005

CiniO wrote: »

I strongly doubt that OP would have driving style which would cause set of new brake pads to wear down in 3 months.
Probably there must have been not much left on them when car was sold. But not much doesn't mean it's not roadworthy. Brake pads work perfectly fine until very last moment when they are gone.

We already know that the car wasn't serviced so the chances of the it having new brake pads are slim. Most pads have rattles built in so they don't just go, there'll be a noise for at least a few weeks before they just go.

savagethegoat

How can you tell the car wasn't serviced? Was a service specifically included in the deal?

Usually a service will entail an oil and filter change, it isn't a guarantee the car will be good to go for a few years.

If you buy a used car every bit of it will be worn between 1% and 99% and the warranty usually only covers the engine and gearbox. You might be lucky and get months of trouble free motoring but you should buy a secondhand car expecting bills sooner or later. In this case sooner.

OK so the Dealer wasn't too pleasant, I can understand that when someone comes back three months later complaining that a consumable item needs attention.

colm_mcm

Car is 7 years old and they did a 5 year finance deal on it? Seems odd.

Midlands Minnie

Ok guys, thanks again and its great seeing comments from people who are in the know. I guess its on me this time, I didnt check anything so I'll mark it down as learning experience for the next time. We are still €161 down due to getting it fixed which we can barely afford so I think that also was one of the reasons I was so mad. I'll watch out next time and bring a mechanic with me.

pablo128

savagethegoat wrote: »

How can you tell the car wasn't serviced? Was a service specifically included in the deal?

Usually a service will entail an oil and filter change, it isn't a guarantee the car will be good to go for a few years.

If you buy a used car every bit of it will be worn between 1% and 99% and the warranty usually only covers the engine and gearbox. You might be lucky and get months of trouble free motoring but you should buy a secondhand car expecting bills sooner or later. In this case sooner.

OK so the Dealer wasn't too pleasant, I can understand that when someone comes back three months later complaining that a consumable item needs attention.

I agree with most of your post, but a service is not just an oil or filter change. The car should be checked from top to bottom, especially the brakes. If they were worn the customer should have been informed and given the option to have new ones fitted.

savagethegoat

a service is what is specified , the equivalent of how long is a piece of string.

CiniO

pablo128 wrote: »

I agree with most of your post, but a service is not just an oil or filter change. The car should be checked from top to bottom, especially the brakes. If they were worn the customer should have been informed and given the option to have new ones fitted.

The problem is there isn't any global definition of word "service"...

You might thing service should include all regular maintenance that car needs, but unfortunately in vast majority of cases cars sold by dealers marked as "comes fully serviced" usually means that just oil + oil filter were changed and possibly air filter if you are lucky.
That's the reality.

Duke O Smiley

pablo128 wrote: »

I agree with most of your post, but a service is not just an oil or filter change. The car should be checked from top to bottom, especially the brakes. If they were worn the customer should have been informed and given the option to have new ones fitted.

I would agree with you there pablo - but from what I gather the OP had been driving the car for three months before the brakes failed and the service was carried out early into the ownership. I don't think it would be entirely fair to say the garage are at fault here for that.

pablo128

CiniO wrote: »

The problem is there isn't any global definition of word "service"...

You might thing service should include all regular maintenance that car needs, but unfortunately in vast majority of cases cars sold by dealers marked as "comes fully serviced" usually means that just oil + oil filter were changed and possibly air filter if you are lucky.
That's the reality.

Well in any garage I worked in, I would have been sacked on the spot if I was asked to service a car but only changed the oil and filters and plugs if applicable. Anyone even half capable could do that on their driveway. To service a car properly it needs to be inspected all round the car, suspension, brakes etc.

Maybe car dealers are different, in which case it is beyond me why people go to them.

pablo128

Duke O Smiley wrote: »

I would agree with you there pablo - but from what I gather the OP had been driving the car for three months before the brakes failed and the service was carried out early into the ownership. I don't think it would be entirely fair to say the garage are at fault here for that.

We both know if the pads were down to metal after 3 months on a small car, they were very worn when the car was sold. You can argue otherwise, but you know I'm right.

eisenberg1

OP, it's an 09 Ka, but just as a matter of interest, whats the mileage?

If there was only one previous owner, and was "just driven around town" it should only be circa 100000km or less.

CiniO

pablo128 wrote: »

Well in any garage I worked in, I would have been sacked on the spot if I was asked to service a car but only changed the oil and filters and plugs if applicable. Anyone even half capable could do that on their driveway. To service a car properly it needs to be inspected all round the car, suspension, brakes etc.

Around last month I started thread about it - you might look up that.
Car I bought privately recently was purchased by previous owner just over a year ago as fully serviced from main dealer.
When I serviced it, it turned out that pollen filter or spark plugs definitely were not changed during the service at main dealer's, and I have doubts if oil filter was changed.

Maybe car dealers are different, in which case it is beyond me why people go to them.

It's beyond me as well.

Del2005

pablo128 wrote: »

Well in any garage I worked in, I would have been sacked on the spot if I was asked to service a car but only changed the oil and filters and plugs if applicable. Anyone even half capable could do that on their driveway. To service a car properly it needs to be inspected all round the car, suspension, brakes etc.

Maybe car dealers are different, in which case it is beyond me why people go to them.

People thinking that you can get a full service for <€100 is the problem. There's no way that a full check and correctly speced parts can be gotten for that money, but that's all people are willing to pay so corners are cut.

savagethegoat

pablo128 wrote: »

Well in any garage I worked in, I would have been sacked on the spot if I was asked to service a car but only changed the oil and filters and plugs if applicable. Anyone even half capable could do that on their driveway. To service a car properly it needs to be inspected all round the car, suspension, brakes etc.

Maybe car dealers are different, in which case it is beyond me why people go to them.

well of course, there's a difference between your boss wanting to do the maximum work for the maximum bill and a dealer wanting to pay out the least possible to be able to knock out the car to a punter.

Midlands Minnie

eisenberg1 wrote: »

OP, it's an 09 Ka, but just as a matter of interest, whats the mileage?

If there was only one previous owner, and was "just driven around town" it should only be circa 100000km or less.

It was around the 75000 mark so it wasnt that bad.

Minnie, I can't help, obviously, but just wanted to throw in a heads up that you're probably one of thousands of people who buy cars and never check a thing. Asking on a motors forum, you're gonna get replies from people who are 'into' cars in general and will know what to be looking at.

So don't feel bad for not checking anything. It's just unlucky that you've had a few issues.


On the plus side, though, try to take an optimistic viewpoint: Your car had brake problems, but now you're aware of them (unsure if you've had it fixed yet or not), but now you don't have to worry about them again for a while. At least now when you go for a drive you've the peace of mind of the brakes working as they should, and you know they won't be an upcoming item that'll cost you money in a few days/weeks/months as you've just done them.

Obviously it's a bitter taste in the mouth now, as it caught you off guard, but in a couple of days you'll probably be thankful to have had them sorted. And if, on reflection, the dealers really were that difficult to deal with, take great joy in sharing your story to everyone you know. If they're a SIMI dealer, let SIMI know. If they're a branded dealer (ie, an actual Ford dealer) let Ford Ireland know, or whatever main office you can find know (don't know the hierarchy of dealerships, but I know they all answer to someone above them).


But you picked the car for a reason, so you must like it. Give it a wash tomorrow if the weather's good and enjoy it. Don't let a sour-faced car dealer ruin it for you.

Midlands Minnie

Deleted User wrote: »

Minnie, I can't help, obviously, but just wanted to throw in a heads up that you're probably one of thousands of people who buy cars and never check a thing. Asking on a motors forum, you're gonna get replies from people who are 'into' cars in general and will know what to be looking at.

So don't feel bad for not checking anything. It's just unlucky that you've had a few issues.


On the plus side, though, try to take an optimistic viewpoint: Your car had brake problems, but now you're aware of them (unsure if you've had it fixed yet or not), but now you don't have to worry about them again for a while. At least now when you go for a drive you've the peace of mind of the brakes working as they should, and you know they won't be an upcoming item that'll cost you money in a few days/weeks/months as you've just done them.

Obviously it's a bitter taste in the mouth now, as it caught you off guard, but in a couple of days you'll probably be thankful to have had them sorted. And if, on reflection, the dealers really were that difficult to deal with, take great joy in sharing your story to everyone you know. If they're a SIMI dealer, let SIMI know. If they're a branded dealer (ie, an actual Ford dealer) let Ford Ireland know, or whatever main office you can find know (don't know the hierarchy of dealerships, but I know they all answer to someone above them).


But you picked the car for a reason, so you must like it. Give it a wash tomorrow if the weather's good and enjoy it. Don't let a sour-faced car dealer ruin it for you.

Well, do you know what this has cheered me right up! Thank you so much for pointing out the obvious that the car is cute and people do stop and look when I drive by and also to contact the Ford as well. There is no need to be rude when dealing with customers, they bring in the business so as a former customer service admin, this pisses me right off. I did buy it for a reason and I am happy driving it and the anger with the garage took my mind of that main thing. This was a lovely post so thank you again and I will indeed give it a wash tomorrow and it drives lovly now the brakes have been fixed.