Seller has sold my mate a dodgy car…
Discussion
Hi all,
So my mate bought a Ford Focus estate 2013 4 weeks ago now for £2,500. Within 4 days something went wrong, so my mate contacted the seller and he said to bring it around. The seller inspected the car, said that new injector seals as he had just put them on before she picked up the car. Seller said it was his fault, he must have not fitted them properly, he would order new ones. The car was leaking diesel into the oil. A few days later he fitted new seals and again, within two weeks the car was not right. Green flag came out and said that the seals weren’t fitted properly, he said there were multiple leaks and coolant was leaking into oil reservoir which if she drove the car more, it would mess the whole engine up. She was towed home.
Her father and her went to see the seller at his home( where she bought it from).Seller said he knew nothing about the car as it was his bosses car(when she bought the car, he said he did all the work on the car etc).
Seller then told my mate that he would only give her £1500 back if she didn’t want the car, as he would have to replace the engine, or he would pay for a new engine and she could have it fitted by someone she knew. Her father and her decided they would take the new engine and have someone fit for her.
When engine was delivered, only half of the engine was there, parts were broken off and there was no turbo lead, no coolant reservoir, and many more things wrong. Luckily for her, her mechanic friend said he would take a few bits off the old engine to make complete engine, but she would have to get a service kit from the seller…with her mechanic friends discount, he could get the service kit for £120…but she’s sank £2500 into this car and more diesel due to leak…
The seller has now blocked her as he feels he has filled his obligation as the advert stated “sold as seen”…but my question is, because he took responsibility for the issue that ultimately ****ed her engine, would he not be responsible for the whole mess and would be unable to claim “sold as seen”?
She’s a single mum of 2 under 3, she needs a car, especially with where she lives and how far her family live from her.
We have looked into getting mediation started, but we’re told if it went to court, there’s a 2.5yr waiting list…she’s stressed and feels beaten from this whole experience.
I know there are a lot of grey areas in private sellers, and even used car businesses(I fell victim to a dodgy used car seller in January this year, much like her car, my gasket started to go within 1 week of buying it. When I got it diagnosed at a garage, the seller said he wouldn’t pay anything towards it as I took it to a 3rd party garage(he didn’t have a garage) and the guarantee was 3rd party as well. He claimed the garage I took it too must have broke the gasket), but I’d like to think that by him taking responsibility and fitting those new seals(which lead to her engine needing replacement), he should be held accountable and give her all of the £2500 back so she can go find another car?
Thanks for reading, any advice would be appreciated,
Cass
So my mate bought a Ford Focus estate 2013 4 weeks ago now for £2,500. Within 4 days something went wrong, so my mate contacted the seller and he said to bring it around. The seller inspected the car, said that new injector seals as he had just put them on before she picked up the car. Seller said it was his fault, he must have not fitted them properly, he would order new ones. The car was leaking diesel into the oil. A few days later he fitted new seals and again, within two weeks the car was not right. Green flag came out and said that the seals weren’t fitted properly, he said there were multiple leaks and coolant was leaking into oil reservoir which if she drove the car more, it would mess the whole engine up. She was towed home.
Her father and her went to see the seller at his home( where she bought it from).Seller said he knew nothing about the car as it was his bosses car(when she bought the car, he said he did all the work on the car etc).
Seller then told my mate that he would only give her £1500 back if she didn’t want the car, as he would have to replace the engine, or he would pay for a new engine and she could have it fitted by someone she knew. Her father and her decided they would take the new engine and have someone fit for her.
When engine was delivered, only half of the engine was there, parts were broken off and there was no turbo lead, no coolant reservoir, and many more things wrong. Luckily for her, her mechanic friend said he would take a few bits off the old engine to make complete engine, but she would have to get a service kit from the seller…with her mechanic friends discount, he could get the service kit for £120…but she’s sank £2500 into this car and more diesel due to leak…
The seller has now blocked her as he feels he has filled his obligation as the advert stated “sold as seen”…but my question is, because he took responsibility for the issue that ultimately ****ed her engine, would he not be responsible for the whole mess and would be unable to claim “sold as seen”?
She’s a single mum of 2 under 3, she needs a car, especially with where she lives and how far her family live from her.
We have looked into getting mediation started, but we’re told if it went to court, there’s a 2.5yr waiting list…she’s stressed and feels beaten from this whole experience.
I know there are a lot of grey areas in private sellers, and even used car businesses(I fell victim to a dodgy used car seller in January this year, much like her car, my gasket started to go within 1 week of buying it. When I got it diagnosed at a garage, the seller said he wouldn’t pay anything towards it as I took it to a 3rd party garage(he didn’t have a garage) and the guarantee was 3rd party as well. He claimed the garage I took it too must have broke the gasket), but I’d like to think that by him taking responsibility and fitting those new seals(which lead to her engine needing replacement), he should be held accountable and give her all of the £2500 back so she can go find another car?
Thanks for reading, any advice would be appreciated,
Cass
mcflurry said:
Unless the seller lied, there's very little you can do with a private sale..
This, don't buy cheap cars unless you know what you are looking at and have the ability (or at least know someone) who can fix it.I run cheap cars as a preference as I just prefer something I don't care about. People think it is easy, but you have to know exactly what you are buying, how to do maintenance and to know when to throw the towel in and send it to the scrapyard.
I have nearly 30 years of running older cars and my father is a retired mechanic with 50+ years experience. I work in IT so I am quite capable of getting the required diagnostic cables and software to do this as well.
Would I recommend a single mother with little money and no knowledge or ability to fix a car do this as well? Not a chance.
Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 17th November 14:06
Joey Deacon said:
This, don't buy cheap cars unless you know what you are looking at and have the ability (or at least know someone) who can fix it.
I run cheap cars as a preference as I just prefer something I don't care about. People think it is easy, but you have to know exactly what you are buying, how to do maintenance and to know when to throw the towel in and send it to the scrapyard.
I have nearly 30 years of running older cars and my father is a retired mechanic with 50+ years experience. I work in IT so I am quite capable of getting the required diagnostic cables and software to do this as well.
Would I recommend a single mother with little money and no knowledge or ability to fix a car do this as well? Not a chance.
Did you stop to consider that maybe she couldn't afford a better car? I run cheap cars as a preference as I just prefer something I don't care about. People think it is easy, but you have to know exactly what you are buying, how to do maintenance and to know when to throw the towel in and send it to the scrapyard.
I have nearly 30 years of running older cars and my father is a retired mechanic with 50+ years experience. I work in IT so I am quite capable of getting the required diagnostic cables and software to do this as well.
Would I recommend a single mother with little money and no knowledge or ability to fix a car do this as well? Not a chance.
Given the advert stated "sold as seen" this was both her red flag and her fair warning something might be on the point of going wrong. The fact that the seller had NO obligation to fix or replace anything, and yet not only had a go at fixing it AND offered to buy it back afterwards means she got significantly more out of the seller than she was realistically due.
I appreciate the cost isn't ideal, however I think she should have accepted the offer to buy back and move on. Obviously this isn't an option now that bridge has been burnt. She isn't going to get anything more than a learning experience from here on in.
I appreciate the cost isn't ideal, however I think she should have accepted the offer to buy back and move on. Obviously this isn't an option now that bridge has been burnt. She isn't going to get anything more than a learning experience from here on in.
Animated09 said:
Hi all,
So my mate bought a Ford Focus estate 2013 4 weeks ago now for £2,500. Within 4 days something went wrong, so my mate contacted the seller and he said to bring it around. The seller inspected the car, said that new injector seals as he had just put them on before she picked up the car. Seller said it was his fault, he must have not fitted them properly, he would order new ones. The car was leaking diesel into the oil. A few days later he fitted new seals and again, within two weeks the car was not right. Green flag came out and said that the seals weren’t fitted properly, he said there were multiple leaks and coolant was leaking into oil reservoir which if she drove the car more, it would mess the whole engine up. She was towed home.
Her father and her went to see the seller at his home( where she bought it from).Seller said he knew nothing about the car as it was his bosses car(when she bought the car, he said he did all the work on the car etc).
Seller then told my mate that he would only give her £1500 back if she didn’t want the car, as he would have to replace the engine, or he would pay for a new engine and she could have it fitted by someone she knew. Her father and her decided they would take the new engine and have someone fit for her.
When engine was delivered, only half of the engine was there, parts were broken off and there was no turbo lead, no coolant reservoir, and many more things wrong. Luckily for her, her mechanic friend said he would take a few bits off the old engine to make complete engine, but she would have to get a service kit from the seller…with her mechanic friends discount, he could get the service kit for £120…but she’s sank £2500 into this car and more diesel due to leak…
The seller has now blocked her as he feels he has filled his obligation as the advert stated “sold as seen”…but my question is, because he took responsibility for the issue that ultimately ****ed her engine, would he not be responsible for the whole mess and would be unable to claim “sold as seen”?
She’s a single mum of 2 under 3, she needs a car, especially with where she lives and how far her family live from her.
We have looked into getting mediation started, but we’re told if it went to court, there’s a 2.5yr waiting list…she’s stressed and feels beaten from this whole experience.
I know there are a lot of grey areas in private sellers, and even used car businesses(I fell victim to a dodgy used car seller in January this year, much like her car, my gasket started to go within 1 week of buying it. When I got it diagnosed at a garage, the seller said he wouldn’t pay anything towards it as I took it to a 3rd party garage(he didn’t have a garage) and the guarantee was 3rd party as well. He claimed the garage I took it too must have broke the gasket), but I’d like to think that by him taking responsibility and fitting those new seals(which lead to her engine needing replacement), he should be held accountable and give her all of the £2500 back so she can go find another car?
Thanks for reading, any advice would be appreciated,
Cass
You win some you loose some. Not very useful. Apologies. So my mate bought a Ford Focus estate 2013 4 weeks ago now for £2,500. Within 4 days something went wrong, so my mate contacted the seller and he said to bring it around. The seller inspected the car, said that new injector seals as he had just put them on before she picked up the car. Seller said it was his fault, he must have not fitted them properly, he would order new ones. The car was leaking diesel into the oil. A few days later he fitted new seals and again, within two weeks the car was not right. Green flag came out and said that the seals weren’t fitted properly, he said there were multiple leaks and coolant was leaking into oil reservoir which if she drove the car more, it would mess the whole engine up. She was towed home.
Her father and her went to see the seller at his home( where she bought it from).Seller said he knew nothing about the car as it was his bosses car(when she bought the car, he said he did all the work on the car etc).
Seller then told my mate that he would only give her £1500 back if she didn’t want the car, as he would have to replace the engine, or he would pay for a new engine and she could have it fitted by someone she knew. Her father and her decided they would take the new engine and have someone fit for her.
When engine was delivered, only half of the engine was there, parts were broken off and there was no turbo lead, no coolant reservoir, and many more things wrong. Luckily for her, her mechanic friend said he would take a few bits off the old engine to make complete engine, but she would have to get a service kit from the seller…with her mechanic friends discount, he could get the service kit for £120…but she’s sank £2500 into this car and more diesel due to leak…
The seller has now blocked her as he feels he has filled his obligation as the advert stated “sold as seen”…but my question is, because he took responsibility for the issue that ultimately ****ed her engine, would he not be responsible for the whole mess and would be unable to claim “sold as seen”?
She’s a single mum of 2 under 3, she needs a car, especially with where she lives and how far her family live from her.
We have looked into getting mediation started, but we’re told if it went to court, there’s a 2.5yr waiting list…she’s stressed and feels beaten from this whole experience.
I know there are a lot of grey areas in private sellers, and even used car businesses(I fell victim to a dodgy used car seller in January this year, much like her car, my gasket started to go within 1 week of buying it. When I got it diagnosed at a garage, the seller said he wouldn’t pay anything towards it as I took it to a 3rd party garage(he didn’t have a garage) and the guarantee was 3rd party as well. He claimed the garage I took it too must have broke the gasket), but I’d like to think that by him taking responsibility and fitting those new seals(which lead to her engine needing replacement), he should be held accountable and give her all of the £2500 back so she can go find another car?
Thanks for reading, any advice would be appreciated,
Cass
The seller seems to be quite fair, that was a low price for that car and he marked it sold as seen which shows he has no faith in the car and wanted rid of it to someone who was feeling lucky. 2nd hand engines are never sold with ancillaries attached, it just doesnt happen.
Blocking her number is the advice you will find at the top of this page for anyone who has sold a car privately and is being pestered about issues by the new owner.
If she no longer wants the car, she could service it and sell it sold as seen to someone who can live with it. She got a good deal so maybe advertise it for 3k, or 2.5k if she wants a quick sale. Dont write anything but facts in the ad, no opinions (great car, runs great, new engine etc).
Blocking her number is the advice you will find at the top of this page for anyone who has sold a car privately and is being pestered about issues by the new owner.
If she no longer wants the car, she could service it and sell it sold as seen to someone who can live with it. She got a good deal so maybe advertise it for 3k, or 2.5k if she wants a quick sale. Dont write anything but facts in the ad, no opinions (great car, runs great, new engine etc).
HustleRussell said:
Did you stop to consider that maybe she couldn't afford a better car?
Ultimately buying any second hand car privately is a risk, and unfortunately for her that gamble did not pay off. The big problem here is it would appear that she doesn't have the experience or knowledge of buying old cars and didn't take someone who did with her either.Harsh as it may seem, it's nobody's fault than her own that she got herself into a situation where she didn't fully understand what she was buying. There are literally no guarantees with buying old second hand cars, even a car that seems great could grenade the engine or gearbox at any point.
It seems like she wants someone else to take responsibility for her actions, but unfortunately that is not how the world works.
HustleRussell said:
Joey Deacon said:
....
Run cheap cars
....
Would I recommend a single mother with little money and no knowledge or ability to fix a car do this as well? Not a chance.
Did you stop to consider that maybe she couldn't afford a better car? Run cheap cars
....
Would I recommend a single mother with little money and no knowledge or ability to fix a car do this as well? Not a chance.
Her options are:
- don't be poor, or
- be better at buying cheap cars - ie avoiding risks
The seller seems to have been reasonable if a private sale.
What a weird thread.
You got a spare engine and someone willing to fit it?
And just need to buy a kit for £120 to make sure essential parts are good as the swap is done (assume stuff like oil seals/gaskets you can’t reuse)
So where is the issue right now?
Wanting to now push it all back into a helpful seller because they helped a bit?
You got a spare engine and someone willing to fit it?
And just need to buy a kit for £120 to make sure essential parts are good as the swap is done (assume stuff like oil seals/gaskets you can’t reuse)
So where is the issue right now?
Wanting to now push it all back into a helpful seller because they helped a bit?
Yes, she has a friend who is working on it, but In order for it to be up and running he needs a service kit…which she cannot afford until the new year due to being a single mum and Christmas coming up.
Squishey said:
Are you saying that she just needs to get a £120 service kit and the car will be back up and running?
Edited by Animated09 on Monday 20th November 00:10
Yes, but her way of thinking was, the car is worth more than £3,000(she’s looked it up everywhere, and with the extra body work and such, this car is a bargain) so if she gave it back to the guy, she would be loosing £1,000 on what she paid, plus £1,500 isn’t really enough to buy a decent used car…her thoughts were to allow the guy to buy the engine, and have her friend swap over the engine…so then the car would be worth the £2,500 she paid for it…
Vsix and Vtec said:
Given the advert stated "sold as seen" this was both her red flag and her fair warning something might be on the point of going wrong. The fact that the seller had NO obligation to fix or replace anything, and yet not only had a go at fixing it AND offered to buy it back afterwards means she got significantly more out of the seller than she was realistically due.
I appreciate the cost isn't ideal, however I think she should have accepted the offer to buy back and move on. Obviously this isn't an option now that bridge has been burnt. She isn't going to get anything more than a learning experience from here on in.
I appreciate the cost isn't ideal, however I think she should have accepted the offer to buy back and move on. Obviously this isn't an option now that bridge has been burnt. She isn't going to get anything more than a learning experience from here on in.
Edited by Animated09 on Monday 20th November 00:10
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