Question regarding an OPC Pre-purchase inspection
Discussion
Simply question I hope...
Before I bought my 928GT, I had a pre-purchase inspection from an OPC. Basically, everything was OK except for the A/C which the OPC wrote on the report "Regas required?".
I talked to them, they said there wasn't anything major wrong and the car just needed a regas and a 6k service. Based upon their professional advice, I negotiated a final price with the vendor.
Move forward a month, the car is in at JZM for a service and a regas and I discover:
1) The car cannot be re-gassed as it is still using R12 and needs converting to R134!!!!
2) The AC has a leaky condenser which needs replacing along with a drier. Total cost to repair A/C approx £900 plus VAT...
Based upon the OPC advice I was prepared to pay for a regas, but not a conversion to R134 or A/C repairs.
Have I any recourse against the OPC?
Before I bought my 928GT, I had a pre-purchase inspection from an OPC. Basically, everything was OK except for the A/C which the OPC wrote on the report "Regas required?".
I talked to them, they said there wasn't anything major wrong and the car just needed a regas and a 6k service. Based upon their professional advice, I negotiated a final price with the vendor.
Move forward a month, the car is in at JZM for a service and a regas and I discover:
1) The car cannot be re-gassed as it is still using R12 and needs converting to R134!!!!
2) The AC has a leaky condenser which needs replacing along with a drier. Total cost to repair A/C approx £900 plus VAT...
Based upon the OPC advice I was prepared to pay for a regas, but not a conversion to R134 or A/C repairs.
Have I any recourse against the OPC?
Check the inspection small print... probably not.
However, legally you can still cause hassle for them if they are unreasonable or negligent.
Re: R134 situation, when a previous car of mine was swapped over, they had stickers everywhere saying that it had the new gas in. The OPC may have been negligent in failing to notice the lack of these stickers, and that a change to a new gas is more complicated and expensive (all seals etc.) than normal.
Re: where the leak is coming from, I would suggest they are not being unreasonable. It is difficult for them to spot at an inspection stage, and the fact the gas had gone should have been a warning that there may have been a leak in the system.
To be honest, I would only moan about R134 to them. Also, they DID spot the duff aircon. A regas could be pretty cheap, or it could be pretty expensive (as it is in your case). You could have negotiated for the worst case scenario with the old owner, ie 'what if I need a new compressor?'. The R134 situation is a niggle - it is more expensive than a straight regas, but not THAT much more expensive. The compressor was the bit that diddled you.
So have a little moan, see if they offer you 10% off next service... I wouldn't go to court over it tho'
However, legally you can still cause hassle for them if they are unreasonable or negligent.
Re: R134 situation, when a previous car of mine was swapped over, they had stickers everywhere saying that it had the new gas in. The OPC may have been negligent in failing to notice the lack of these stickers, and that a change to a new gas is more complicated and expensive (all seals etc.) than normal.
Re: where the leak is coming from, I would suggest they are not being unreasonable. It is difficult for them to spot at an inspection stage, and the fact the gas had gone should have been a warning that there may have been a leak in the system.
To be honest, I would only moan about R134 to them. Also, they DID spot the duff aircon. A regas could be pretty cheap, or it could be pretty expensive (as it is in your case). You could have negotiated for the worst case scenario with the old owner, ie 'what if I need a new compressor?'. The R134 situation is a niggle - it is more expensive than a straight regas, but not THAT much more expensive. The compressor was the bit that diddled you.
So have a little moan, see if they offer you 10% off next service... I wouldn't go to court over it tho'
You can use an intermediate gas which will work in both systems....its a bit dearer but will save loads of aggro...........
Have the air con sorted by a dedicated air conditioning specialist rather than main dealer etc, will work out cheaper....dont know where you are but if in the grim north (yorkshire) I know a bit of an expert
I too have used www.airconone.co.uk and fully recommend him. There is no need to pay ££££s for a conversion to 134. He uses a fully legal gas that is fully compatible with the the older R12 and charged me £70 to regass mine 18 months ago and it's still running strong.
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