Discussion
Looking for some views on this as I’m now at the point of deciding whether to go formal over it.
I agreed to buy a car fom a specialist importer. The advertised price was £16,450, but we agreed £15,950 with some bits discussed around the deal.
The advert described it as:
Grade 4
just arrived in 2025
with service history
I paid a total deposit of £1,197.50. The invoice says this was a 5% deposit “to hold until customer can collect”. It also mentions:
recolour alloys to anthracite = £400
fit nav pod in dash
exchange steering wheel for standard
service & cambelt “price to be confirmed”
The steering wheel and nav pod were things I wanted from a car I was looking for and so I was initially not going to buy the car, but they were being folded into the overall agreed deal on the car at cost to the dealer. The only clearly priced extra on the invoice was the £400 wheel refurb. Cambelt and service cost TBC.
Later on, I was sent the Japanese auction sheet, which showed the car as Grade 3.5, not Grade 4 as advertised. Around the same time, the story on when it arrived in the UK also shifted. I’d originally been told it had recently arrived in late 2025, but when I got the reg and checked, it had been MOT’d in June 2025 and the dealer then said he’d actually had it since then and it had been sat in storage.
I also asked a few times for service history and cambelt history. No firm cambelt history was given. The dealer said it wouldn't take much to take the cover off and check the cambelt, they then decided to do a cambelt, water pump, oil and filters, but no fixed price for that was ever agreed with me it was always a TBC. In messages afterwards he even said the cambelt that was on it was in very good order and wasn’t actually necessary, it was done for “peace of mind”.
I was due to collect in a weeks time but I decided today that I am not comfortable with the inaccuracies.
I said I would accept losing the £400 for the wheel refurbishment, because that was clearly discussed and priced. I asked for the balance of the deposit back.
The dealer has refused and says the whole deposit has been absorbed by:
steering wheel change
nav pod/dashboard binnacle
cambelt/water pump/service
wheel refurb
His position is basically that these were works done specifically for me before collection, so he keeps the lot.
My issue is:
the advert said Grade 4, the auction sheet says 3.5
the import/UK timeline changed
the steering wheel/nav pod were part of the overall package, not separately priced extras
the cambelt/service work was never given a fixed agreed price in advance
he still has the car, the parts, and is now remarketing it
Has anyone got any advice? they just keep saying I agreed to the works and that the timeline, I learnt about it being a G3.5 on the 17th March means I am contractually commited to the deposit.
I agreed to buy a car fom a specialist importer. The advertised price was £16,450, but we agreed £15,950 with some bits discussed around the deal.
The advert described it as:
Grade 4
just arrived in 2025
with service history
I paid a total deposit of £1,197.50. The invoice says this was a 5% deposit “to hold until customer can collect”. It also mentions:
recolour alloys to anthracite = £400
fit nav pod in dash
exchange steering wheel for standard
service & cambelt “price to be confirmed”
The steering wheel and nav pod were things I wanted from a car I was looking for and so I was initially not going to buy the car, but they were being folded into the overall agreed deal on the car at cost to the dealer. The only clearly priced extra on the invoice was the £400 wheel refurb. Cambelt and service cost TBC.
Later on, I was sent the Japanese auction sheet, which showed the car as Grade 3.5, not Grade 4 as advertised. Around the same time, the story on when it arrived in the UK also shifted. I’d originally been told it had recently arrived in late 2025, but when I got the reg and checked, it had been MOT’d in June 2025 and the dealer then said he’d actually had it since then and it had been sat in storage.
I also asked a few times for service history and cambelt history. No firm cambelt history was given. The dealer said it wouldn't take much to take the cover off and check the cambelt, they then decided to do a cambelt, water pump, oil and filters, but no fixed price for that was ever agreed with me it was always a TBC. In messages afterwards he even said the cambelt that was on it was in very good order and wasn’t actually necessary, it was done for “peace of mind”.
I was due to collect in a weeks time but I decided today that I am not comfortable with the inaccuracies.
I said I would accept losing the £400 for the wheel refurbishment, because that was clearly discussed and priced. I asked for the balance of the deposit back.
The dealer has refused and says the whole deposit has been absorbed by:
steering wheel change
nav pod/dashboard binnacle
cambelt/water pump/service
wheel refurb
His position is basically that these were works done specifically for me before collection, so he keeps the lot.
My issue is:
the advert said Grade 4, the auction sheet says 3.5
the import/UK timeline changed
the steering wheel/nav pod were part of the overall package, not separately priced extras
the cambelt/service work was never given a fixed agreed price in advance
he still has the car, the parts, and is now remarketing it
Has anyone got any advice? they just keep saying I agreed to the works and that the timeline, I learnt about it being a G3.5 on the 17th March means I am contractually commited to the deposit.
17th of March would have been the time when you'd have stood a better chance of getting your deposit back, when you learnt of the grade 3.5 instead of the advert that said grade 4.
You stuck with the deal, and allowed them to continue prepping it for you?
So I can understand the dealer wanting to withold at least some of the deposit.
Nothing to stop you going for it, money claim online, but not sure you'd win all of your deposit back.
Might be different if you went to take delivery, then found something wrong, and refused to complete the purchase.
But you're pulling out before that.
Only my opinion that, I'm sure one of the legal eagles will be along in a minute.
You stuck with the deal, and allowed them to continue prepping it for you?
So I can understand the dealer wanting to withold at least some of the deposit.
Nothing to stop you going for it, money claim online, but not sure you'd win all of your deposit back.
Might be different if you went to take delivery, then found something wrong, and refused to complete the purchase.
But you're pulling out before that.
Only my opinion that, I'm sure one of the legal eagles will be along in a minute.
My view for what it’s worth:
The dealer has incurred costs in swapping a steering wheel and doing the infotainment pod along with the wheels and cam belt. The prices were TBC and part of the overall cost to you to purchase but the dealer has still incurred those costs
I’m not too sure on when the car arrived in the UK is really an issue for you?
The only valid point in my view is the auction grade listing but in the end the car should in my view be considered on its own merits, have you seen the car in person?
It does sound like you are having second thoughts and looking for reasons to pull out rather than genuine concerns over the condition of the specific car.
The dealer has incurred costs in swapping a steering wheel and doing the infotainment pod along with the wheels and cam belt. The prices were TBC and part of the overall cost to you to purchase but the dealer has still incurred those costs
I’m not too sure on when the car arrived in the UK is really an issue for you?
The only valid point in my view is the auction grade listing but in the end the car should in my view be considered on its own merits, have you seen the car in person?
It does sound like you are having second thoughts and looking for reasons to pull out rather than genuine concerns over the condition of the specific car.
Jamescrs said:
My view for what it s worth:
The dealer has incurred costs in swapping a steering wheel and doing the infotainment pod along with the wheels and cam belt. The prices were TBC and part of the overall cost to you to purchase but the dealer has still incurred those costs
I m not too sure on when the car arrived in the UK is really an issue for you?
The only valid point in my view is the auction grade listing but in the end the car should in my view be considered on its own merits, have you seen the car in person?
It does sound like you are having second thoughts and looking for reasons to pull out rather than genuine concerns over the condition of the specific car.
No I haven’t been to see it yet but the nature of it is that I was looking for the specific grading of vehicle. It might not mean much to some but to me it was something I wanted. After all it was advertised at that so I shouldn’t expect anything les in my opinion. The dealer has incurred costs in swapping a steering wheel and doing the infotainment pod along with the wheels and cam belt. The prices were TBC and part of the overall cost to you to purchase but the dealer has still incurred those costs
I m not too sure on when the car arrived in the UK is really an issue for you?
The only valid point in my view is the auction grade listing but in the end the car should in my view be considered on its own merits, have you seen the car in person?
It does sound like you are having second thoughts and looking for reasons to pull out rather than genuine concerns over the condition of the specific car.
The reason the arrival date is important is because I want to trust the person selling the vehicle. The date is pretty redundant. But the fact it was said to be the latter part of 2025 but it was early 2025 is a lie. Weeks of chasing paperwork and history.
These things niggled at me and led to me making my decision to cancel the purchase. I should have done it sooner but had that underlying FOMO factor.
A expensive lesson I’ll put to experience
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