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Thread: Legal stuff around second hand car from a dealer.

  1. #1
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    Legal stuff around second hand car from a dealer.

    So,

    A college bought a fiesta from a garage 2 months ago and now the head gasket has gone pop.

    How much does the trades and goods act “fit for purpose” stuff cover you ?

    I seem to recall the dealer has to have 2 or 3 attempts at fixing a car before you can demand a refund but more importantly what kind of time limit is put on taking a car back to a dealer?

    Cheers Dears.

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    Guest Zeldoz's Avatar
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    Isn't 60 days too long?

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    Guest R3K1355's Avatar
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    Depends on why the head gasket went I imagine.

    It's not something that you can inspect when you service the car, but if it was clearly leaking, creating mayo in the oil cap, pressurising the coolant and stuff then you might have a case.

    When the HG went on my 306 it took ages for it to actually go properly, the signs of a bust headgasket were there for months beforehand.

    but on the other hand, if a rouge stone ripped a hole in the radiator while your mate was on the motorway then it's nothing to do with the garage.

  5. #5
    Guest Si's Avatar
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    How old is the car?
    If it's new and done a few thousand then you'd have more chance than if it's 10 years old and done 100k.

    Unfortunately these things happen, can't always be predicted.

    I've had a HG go with no warning signs whatsoever - 1 minute fine, next minute I was rivalling the Red Arrows.
    I'd say your colleague has very little chance of any recourse unless the car is pretty much brand new.


    Rejecting a car is far harder than you'd think, and based around the fact that the dealer knew there was something up with the car when it was being sold.

    My immediate thought was 'they've been driving the car for 2 months, then the HG went, sh!t happens, it's a risk you take buying a second hand car'.
    Last edited by Si; 29-04-2015 at 07:21.

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    Engine Builder Mark's Avatar
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    Surely most cars come with a 3 month warranty these days unless it was a £500 shed?
    Quote Originally Posted by silverzx View Post
    I like Mark, he seems fair.
    Quote Originally Posted by Slip_n_slide View Post
    Mark is right.

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    Guest Si's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark View Post
    Surely most cars come with a 3 month warranty these days unless it was a £500 shed?

    Common misconception TBH - it's a very grey area. They aren't worth the paper they're written on a lot of the time.
    I think the official standing is that if something non consumable breaks within 6 months then the burden of proof is on the dealer to show that the fault wasn't there when the car was purchased. But then it gets even more complciated based around whether or not the car was described as being 'good condition/fully working/no faults' etc.

    You could also argue that a HG is a wear and tear item.
    Last edited by Si; 29-04-2015 at 07:27.

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    Guest zeppelin101's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Si View Post
    Common misconception TBH - it's a very grey area.
    You could also argue that a HG is a wear and tear item.
    Not really, there isn't a car made in a very significant length of time that has a head gasket as any kind of a service item.

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    Guest Si's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zeppelin101 View Post
    Not really, there isn't a car made in a very significant length of time that has a head gasket as any kind of a service item.
    Perhaps I worded it wrong - I'm not saying a consumable like brakes etc, I'm saying wear and tear, like bushes, wheel bearings, etc. Sounds pedantic but there's a definite difference.
    Playing devils advocate, the stance would be that if you bought a car with 100k on it, then it could (probably quite rightly) be argued that it's not out of the realms of possiblity for the HG to go at that mileage with no other external factors.

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    Guest zeppelin101's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Si View Post
    Perhaps I worded it wrong - I'm not saying a consumable like brakes etc, I'm saying wear and tear, like bushes, wheel bearings, etc. Sounds pedantic but there's a definite difference.
    Playing devils advocate, the stance would be that if you bought a car with 100k on it, then it could (probably quite rightly) be argued that it's not out of the realms of possiblity for the HG to go at that mileage with no other external factors.
    You'd have to prove the intended design life of the engine to make that statement stand up. Nowadays it's typically 150k miles design service life, not sure how long that has been the case for though (and what manufacturers for that matter).

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