What are my rights? Used car dealer drama
Discussion
I bought a £20k used BMW X5 from a dealer (independent). The car has a knackered transfer box and they want to collect it and take it away to fix (which is good -ish)
This leaves me with no car (which is bad) and I am going to have to rent one (even worse).
I have two children in gigantic car seats and live on a farm so I can't rent a small cheap one as we won't fit in it.
The dealer say they have no idea the car will be gone for.
I am going to be several £hundred out of pocket renting a replacement.
Do I have any right to insist they pay for a hire car? They don't have a courtesy car, I asked.
This leaves me with no car (which is bad) and I am going to have to rent one (even worse).
I have two children in gigantic car seats and live on a farm so I can't rent a small cheap one as we won't fit in it.
The dealer say they have no idea the car will be gone for.
I am going to be several £hundred out of pocket renting a replacement.
Do I have any right to insist they pay for a hire car? They don't have a courtesy car, I asked.
lostkiwi said:
No. Their liability extends only to the vehicle they sold not to consequential damages.
This. If it is the transfer box it is likely inconsistently worn tyres- x series beemers are notorious for this. Make sure you immediately replace all 4 tyres after repair, I would say get him to do it but he'll put any old junk on. Better still make it the Pirelli zero bmw spec - some will say that devanti are fine but I've never had an issue with the oem so why risk it 
t happens. Be glad its happeend now whilst under warranty and its getting fixed at someone elses cost ,rather than out of warranty at your cost. Turn it into a positive, and move on with life. 
bluepony said:
lostkiwi said:
Ermmm.... aren't they permanent 4WD?
BMW said no - drive gets shifted front/rear or something as needed. Early permanent 4WD systems (Land Rover Defender for example) drive all four wheels through three differentials with a mechanism to lock the centre one when on slippery terrain but modern systems will do that automatically as required.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkT5vCiudw0
bluepony said:
It got stuck in 4wd and won't come out and had buggered itself. Tyres are all wearing evenly (checked) and 4 runflats would be £1600! 
I have just had to rent a car for at least a week. Not sure what lessons can be learnt here!
What tyres are on it? I have just had to rent a car for at least a week. Not sure what lessons can be learnt here!
Are they the BMW star marked ones?
And definitely the same tyre front and rear?
bluepony said:
Not sure what lessons can be learnt here!
Buy a new car if you don't want to take the risks involved with buying a part worn / fully worn item.£20k will get you a jockey shorts spec Hyundai Tuscon 1.7 with a tarmac ripping, tyre shredding 116 bhp. Used cars are cheaper than new cars for many reasons, one of which you are currently exploring.
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