Crash repaired Scirocco
Discussion
In October we purchased a beautiful Candy White 2012 (12 plate) VW Scirocco from a main VW dealer in Surrey. It was supplied with fully clear HPI/Experian checks and only 2,025 miles.
After a couple of washes we noticed that the front bumper was actually a badly resprayed Viper Green one as the white paint could be just wiped off the inside surface visible in the wheel arches.
This got us thinking and we discovered the following issues (remember this was sold as a 'nearly new' car)
Headlights were set too low - MOT failure in fact
Battery had been replaced with a Ford one.
Engine headshield was loose
Fuse box mounting was cracked leaving it 'floating'
Dashboard mounting screws were loose
We also had the radio shutdown for 30 minutes and then come back on its own. On another occasion the front wipers refused to come on for 20 minutes !
So, back the car went to the dealer who sorted all the mechanical issues and made this comment "the car has had a light front end repair, however the actual repair carried out was of a Volkswagen Standard".
So, I managed to contact the original owner who was a bit amazed that the car was even on the road as it had been in a serious front end collision in June. He even supplied me with photographs of the car.
VW have confirmed that second hand parts and Ford batteries do not constitute a repair to their standards and are currently trying to resolve the issue. The dealer has offered us our money back, but that isn't good enough as we would be left trying to locate a similar vehicle without a car as they had it as a trade-in.
When you look at the picture you will see that this vehicle should have been written off and marked as Cat C or Cat D, both airbags had been deployed and the doors were jammed, but some how it managed to get badly repaired and into a VW dealer.
The motto to this tale is be warned, a clear HPI/Experian check does not mean that the car has not actually been seriously damaged - even if it appears to be 'nearly new' and supplied by an approved dealer.
After a couple of washes we noticed that the front bumper was actually a badly resprayed Viper Green one as the white paint could be just wiped off the inside surface visible in the wheel arches.
This got us thinking and we discovered the following issues (remember this was sold as a 'nearly new' car)
Headlights were set too low - MOT failure in fact
Battery had been replaced with a Ford one.
Engine headshield was loose
Fuse box mounting was cracked leaving it 'floating'
Dashboard mounting screws were loose
We also had the radio shutdown for 30 minutes and then come back on its own. On another occasion the front wipers refused to come on for 20 minutes !
So, back the car went to the dealer who sorted all the mechanical issues and made this comment "the car has had a light front end repair, however the actual repair carried out was of a Volkswagen Standard".
So, I managed to contact the original owner who was a bit amazed that the car was even on the road as it had been in a serious front end collision in June. He even supplied me with photographs of the car.
VW have confirmed that second hand parts and Ford batteries do not constitute a repair to their standards and are currently trying to resolve the issue. The dealer has offered us our money back, but that isn't good enough as we would be left trying to locate a similar vehicle without a car as they had it as a trade-in.
When you look at the picture you will see that this vehicle should have been written off and marked as Cat C or Cat D, both airbags had been deployed and the doors were jammed, but some how it managed to get badly repaired and into a VW dealer.
The motto to this tale is be warned, a clear HPI/Experian check does not mean that the car has not actually been seriously damaged - even if it appears to be 'nearly new' and supplied by an approved dealer.
illmonkey - my thoughts exactly - but at least they hadn't been refitted.
DG - they say they have no suitable vehicles in their 'group' and can only offer a full refund. Bearing in mind the low trade-in price we accepted for an 08 plate Seat Ibiza we would be well out of pocket accepting that. We also want to ensure that it does not get back on any other forecourt as 'nearly new' with clear checks.
Alan
DG - they say they have no suitable vehicles in their 'group' and can only offer a full refund. Bearing in mind the low trade-in price we accepted for an 08 plate Seat Ibiza we would be well out of pocket accepting that. We also want to ensure that it does not get back on any other forecourt as 'nearly new' with clear checks.
Alan
Lunablack - the car was originally a Motability car, the registered keeper got a new Scirocco from them. We have yet to discover the exact route that the car took - although we already know it went to a car auction company but the auction was cancelled and the car was returned at the end of June to either Motability or RSA Motability (the insurer), not sure which.
So the issue of full payout is very muddy at this point.
An interesting issue is that the VW dealer told us the reason the car was for sale was that Motability no longer allowed 3 door cars - a fact we now know is untrue.
The car was re-taxed as a normal vehicle before we collected it.
So the issue of full payout is very muddy at this point.
An interesting issue is that the VW dealer told us the reason the car was for sale was that Motability no longer allowed 3 door cars - a fact we now know is untrue.
The car was re-taxed as a normal vehicle before we collected it.
80quattro - the vehicle did go to the company you mentioned but was withdrawn from sale before the auction and returned to RSAM or Motability (we don't know which). The 'registered keeper' got a new Scirocco.
We just want the dealer to supply the vehicle he was contracted to supply - ie a 'nearly new' approved used VW Scirocco in Candy White. Not a vehicle that someone has fraudulently hidden a Cat C / Cat D status from HPI.
VW had promised to call me back yesterday morning - but I'm now about to call them !
We just want the dealer to supply the vehicle he was contracted to supply - ie a 'nearly new' approved used VW Scirocco in Candy White. Not a vehicle that someone has fraudulently hidden a Cat C / Cat D status from HPI.
VW had promised to call me back yesterday morning - but I'm now about to call them !
Update to this saga.
At the moment everyone is trying to close ranks. RSA (the insurers) say they can't tell us who they sold the car to. The dealer has yet to tell us how they acquired it.
VW having promised to call the dealer on the 20th November are now only just getting around to it (23rd) and say the matter is between us and the dealer, so they want to wipe their hands of the issue.
Someone somewhere has something to hide here and no one wants to reveal who that is.
Is this just the tip of an iceberg ? Are hundreds of 'written off' cars getting back into the dealer networks without Cat C or Cat D notifications ? Is this a great scam run by the insurance companies ?
How many unsuspecting members of the public are driving around in potentially lethal cars ?
At the moment everyone is trying to close ranks. RSA (the insurers) say they can't tell us who they sold the car to. The dealer has yet to tell us how they acquired it.
VW having promised to call the dealer on the 20th November are now only just getting around to it (23rd) and say the matter is between us and the dealer, so they want to wipe their hands of the issue.
Someone somewhere has something to hide here and no one wants to reveal who that is.
Is this just the tip of an iceberg ? Are hundreds of 'written off' cars getting back into the dealer networks without Cat C or Cat D notifications ? Is this a great scam run by the insurance companies ?
How many unsuspecting members of the public are driving around in potentially lethal cars ?
VW customer services have now washed their hands of this case, saying the contract was between ourselves and the dealer. Great, thanks guys !
They did however confirm that RSA Motability (the insurer) had the car repaired themselves having pulled it back from being auctioned. RSA then sold it to an unnamed trader. The Surrey based VW dealer then bought the car from that trader and sold it to us as nearly new.
If this car should have been Cat C'd (look at the picture on my first post and decide yourself) then it should not have been sold to a trader without it being correctly flagged on the insurance databases.
At the very least the inspection that the dealer made should have discovered some of the tell tale signs that we found and raised their suspicions.
At the moment the only offer on the table is cash back, leaving us without a car. This does not 'undo' the contract.
I can see this story getting some further press soon.
They did however confirm that RSA Motability (the insurer) had the car repaired themselves having pulled it back from being auctioned. RSA then sold it to an unnamed trader. The Surrey based VW dealer then bought the car from that trader and sold it to us as nearly new.
If this car should have been Cat C'd (look at the picture on my first post and decide yourself) then it should not have been sold to a trader without it being correctly flagged on the insurance databases.
At the very least the inspection that the dealer made should have discovered some of the tell tale signs that we found and raised their suspicions.
At the moment the only offer on the table is cash back, leaving us without a car. This does not 'undo' the contract.
I can see this story getting some further press soon.
Davie - the problem is that there are now no 1.4's with satnav, low mileage, 12 plate anywhere near what we paid. So getting money back means we can't just find another one within the budget. Hence why I want the dealer to honour the original contract and supply a 'straight' equivalent car themselves.
Oldnbold - original owner got a brand new Scirocco from Motability.
This has highlighted an issue whereby insurance companies can write off a car with one hand but then repair it 'themselves' not declare it Cat C and sell it to the trade 'clean' with the other hand. Something surely stinks here.
Oldnbold - original owner got a brand new Scirocco from Motability.
This has highlighted an issue whereby insurance companies can write off a car with one hand but then repair it 'themselves' not declare it Cat C and sell it to the trade 'clean' with the other hand. Something surely stinks here.
Hi
Many thanks for all your recent replies.
va1o - you are correct about the dealer.
I can now confirm that on Saturday they provided another low mileage ex-motability Candy White Scirocco, to the same spec. After a more vigorous showroom examination it appears to be perfectly 'straight' and certainly drives better, engine sounds better and there are no internal rattles.
So, we have now had a satisfactory conclusion to this matter. I will obviously contact the previous owner of the replacement car to ascertain why it was sold - hopefully not for the same reason
Everyone should be very cautious of buying low mileage cars - they might not be what they seem to be.
Alan
Many thanks for all your recent replies.
va1o - you are correct about the dealer.
I can now confirm that on Saturday they provided another low mileage ex-motability Candy White Scirocco, to the same spec. After a more vigorous showroom examination it appears to be perfectly 'straight' and certainly drives better, engine sounds better and there are no internal rattles.
So, we have now had a satisfactory conclusion to this matter. I will obviously contact the previous owner of the replacement car to ascertain why it was sold - hopefully not for the same reason
Everyone should be very cautious of buying low mileage cars - they might not be what they seem to be.
Alan
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