Used car issue, what can I expect?
Discussion
I bought a used MX5 about two months ago from a small garage, which is a few hours drive away from where I live. It's an old car (2006), mileage is decent for the age but not low (70k~), and it came with a 28 day warranty (with conditions that any warranty work is carried out by them).
About 3 weeks in to ownership, the car started intermittently misfiring, and I started to notice just how high the oil consumption is (it had dropped from max on the dipstick to min within a couple of weeks of light driving). At this point I contacted the garage and notified of them of the issues, and said that I was logging it with them within the warranty period, and so would look to go down the warranty route pending further diagnosis by a local garage (rather than go through the hassle of taking the car back to them straight away).
Since then, it hasn't misfired again but I've been keeping a closer eye on the oil levels. It's really guzzling it- about a litre of oil per 200 miles! I've had the car looked at by a local garage, who have done a compression and leak down test, and have told me that compression is good, but there is air escaping from one of the cylinders and that it's likely the oil scraper rings that have gone. Further opinions from other trustworthy garages have all said the same thing: Either a rebuild or a replacement engine- both costing circa £2k (difference in split of parts and labour costs, but both add up to roughly that).
I passed this information on to the garage I bought the car from, and there's been some delayed back-and-forth (hence why it's now been 2 months since purchase), and essentially they've said they won't cover it under warranty as although I logged it with them within the 28 days, I've done more than 1,000 miles and that is also a condition of the warranty. The mileage limit was never mentioned during the sale, just the time limit. Secondly, they've only now asked for the mileage (2 months after the sale), and not when I reported the issue. It could have been below 1k miles when I reported it, but I just can't say for certain.
Despite not covering the issue under warranty, they have offered to make a "small goodwill contribution" if I send them a quote for the repair. Currently waiting to hear back about just how small this contribution will be...
So, my question... Can I have any real expectation of pushing the garage to fix this under warranty, or am I going to get lumped with the cost of fixing the engine? Are there other options?
About 3 weeks in to ownership, the car started intermittently misfiring, and I started to notice just how high the oil consumption is (it had dropped from max on the dipstick to min within a couple of weeks of light driving). At this point I contacted the garage and notified of them of the issues, and said that I was logging it with them within the warranty period, and so would look to go down the warranty route pending further diagnosis by a local garage (rather than go through the hassle of taking the car back to them straight away).
Since then, it hasn't misfired again but I've been keeping a closer eye on the oil levels. It's really guzzling it- about a litre of oil per 200 miles! I've had the car looked at by a local garage, who have done a compression and leak down test, and have told me that compression is good, but there is air escaping from one of the cylinders and that it's likely the oil scraper rings that have gone. Further opinions from other trustworthy garages have all said the same thing: Either a rebuild or a replacement engine- both costing circa £2k (difference in split of parts and labour costs, but both add up to roughly that).
I passed this information on to the garage I bought the car from, and there's been some delayed back-and-forth (hence why it's now been 2 months since purchase), and essentially they've said they won't cover it under warranty as although I logged it with them within the 28 days, I've done more than 1,000 miles and that is also a condition of the warranty. The mileage limit was never mentioned during the sale, just the time limit. Secondly, they've only now asked for the mileage (2 months after the sale), and not when I reported the issue. It could have been below 1k miles when I reported it, but I just can't say for certain.
Despite not covering the issue under warranty, they have offered to make a "small goodwill contribution" if I send them a quote for the repair. Currently waiting to hear back about just how small this contribution will be...
So, my question... Can I have any real expectation of pushing the garage to fix this under warranty, or am I going to get lumped with the cost of fixing the engine? Are there other options?
There's your statutory rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 - and since you reported this issue (definitely beyond what would be reasonable to expect for the age/mileage/apparent condition) within 30 days, then you have an absolute right to a refund.
If they won't accept it, then you need to put the car outside of your use - physically return it - and take them to court for the money.
If they won't accept it, then you need to put the car outside of your use - physically return it - and take them to court for the money.
Fuel (and oil?) receipts would help confirm the mileage when you reported it. If it's using a litre every 200 miles, that would have meant 5 litres in the first 1K miles...
A rebuilt engine should give significant "betterment". If you return it to them for repair they could just replace the oil control rings and leave everything else half-shagged. And you've got the hassle of getting it there, getting it back, etc.
If you go for a refund they can make a deduction for 'fair use' based on the mileage you've done. If the "goodwill contribution" is half serious and you're happy with the car apart from the oil issue I'd be tempted to go for that and get the work done locally by someone trustworthy.
A rebuilt engine should give significant "betterment". If you return it to them for repair they could just replace the oil control rings and leave everything else half-shagged. And you've got the hassle of getting it there, getting it back, etc.
If you go for a refund they can make a deduction for 'fair use' based on the mileage you've done. If the "goodwill contribution" is half serious and you're happy with the car apart from the oil issue I'd be tempted to go for that and get the work done locally by someone trustworthy.
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