Audi A3 Head Gasket
Discussion
Hi All!
i hate to have to ask this on here as its not really meant for it, but i bought a 2002 Audi A3 SE 1.6, 89000miles from a car dealership who assured me the car was good to go. All safety checks done etc.
I did 170miles then the car was on a ferry for 8 hours then did another 170 miles when the engine overheated and the head gasket blew. The garage have told me that there may be a lot more damage but they cant see until they take it apart.
Now I am trying to figure out if I could have avoided this in anyway. Most people are telling me that the dealer should be held responsible, but wanted to get some advice of some guys who know their stuff before I go any further. Could it suddenly go with absolutely no tell signs the garage would have not picked up on?
Hope it makes sense and thanks a lot
i hate to have to ask this on here as its not really meant for it, but i bought a 2002 Audi A3 SE 1.6, 89000miles from a car dealership who assured me the car was good to go. All safety checks done etc.
I did 170miles then the car was on a ferry for 8 hours then did another 170 miles when the engine overheated and the head gasket blew. The garage have told me that there may be a lot more damage but they cant see until they take it apart.
Now I am trying to figure out if I could have avoided this in anyway. Most people are telling me that the dealer should be held responsible, but wanted to get some advice of some guys who know their stuff before I go any further. Could it suddenly go with absolutely no tell signs the garage would have not picked up on?
Hope it makes sense and thanks a lot
Edited by lucygray on Sunday 16th November 17:24
Well firstly it's a 12 year old used car. So it may have faults. Without being flippant. You want perfect with a cast iron warranty. Get a new one. So with that in mind you may struggle to prove in small claims etc that the dealer knew there was a fault. And I;m not convinced they could have known either way anyway. Most cars on a site somewhere never get driven logn enough to get to temperature.
Secondly. HGs don't "just fail" The car will have been overheating for a while before hand. So why didn't you stop when the gauge went to hot?
Secondly. HGs don't "just fail" The car will have been overheating for a while before hand. So why didn't you stop when the gauge went to hot?
Rich W
Under the sale of goods act (as amended) the onus is on the garage to prove the car was of reasonable quality when sold, not the other way round. I have successfully claimed the cost of a new engine from an Audi 'specialist' three months after purchase.
OP, it's a long road (24 months in my case) but from what you describe (assuming you paid a sensible price for it) you stand a good chance of being successful. Talk to your local trading standards office, mine were superb, and write a without prejudice letter to the dealer explaining what action you will take and mention trading standards are assisting. You may well find a compromise is forthcoming.
Good luck.
LD
Under the sale of goods act (as amended) the onus is on the garage to prove the car was of reasonable quality when sold, not the other way round. I have successfully claimed the cost of a new engine from an Audi 'specialist' three months after purchase.
OP, it's a long road (24 months in my case) but from what you describe (assuming you paid a sensible price for it) you stand a good chance of being successful. Talk to your local trading standards office, mine were superb, and write a without prejudice letter to the dealer explaining what action you will take and mention trading standards are assisting. You may well find a compromise is forthcoming.
Good luck.
LD
Rich W, I appreciate your comments and thank you for your valued input!
Danger thanks heaps!. I luckily in the last few days have found a compromise with the garage which is brilliant. I did contact trading standards and asked citizen advice and others too to find out what my position was. appreciate your time and efforts thank you so much
Lucy
Danger thanks heaps!. I luckily in the last few days have found a compromise with the garage which is brilliant. I did contact trading standards and asked citizen advice and others too to find out what my position was. appreciate your time and efforts thank you so much
Lucy
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