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Hi Folks.
It is regarding a Car which was purchased in May 2013. The car was purchased from a small garage/car dealer in our area. The car was sold with a replacement engine in. We were verbally told this to be around 70k, but they have since said in written letters it is 75k.
We received the log book for the car and this tallied up with the invoice which was given at the time of purchase.
The car broke down on the 8th October 2013. It was taken to the selling garage and they said they believe it to be the head gasket. But clearly would accept no responsibility for it. There was an offer from the garage of the head gasket from the old engine. We removed it from their garage and took it to two car mechanics. The first one would not repair it. It was during the second garage inspection that we were informed that this engine actually came from a scrap yard. The mechanic said he did not really want to repair it. He would if we forced him to basically, but he would not give any guarantees at all. And this basically confirmed his not wanting to do it. There is no history to the engine. It could have done more mileage that it had been stated or something else.
It was at this point that it was found out that the engine number on the log book and the engine number on the invoice 'Did Not' match up the the engine which was sitting in the car.
I then contacted Consumer Helpline. They advise me in writing to a letter to the seller using one of their templates. This I did, and received a letter back from the dealer saying that because there had been 10k done since purchase he was not responsible for it. And that he had sought advice from Trading Standards. And the offer of the head gasket from the old engine now was going to occurring a charge for their labour charges.
I then contacted CAB through Consumer Helpline and met with someone from our local CAB, They said he was just trying to cloud the water with this 10k issue of the mileage. They drafted together what appeared to be a good case, including information about head gaskets which I was totally unaware of
Consumer helpline also passed it on to Trading Standards at the same time. Trading standards totally miss-advised us. Everything I said he argued with. including information that I had been told that morning by CAB. They advised us as though it was after 6 months of purchase. the man would not listen at all, did not look at paperwork etc. He told us to go out and get a car mechanics report on it. I was told that a car mechanics report is great for advance purchases, and could tell us the state of the car at the time, but not in retrospect, Was then guided to OFT's Document for Buying A Second Hand Car. It was after studying this, I then rang Trading Standards back and said, asked why they had been advising me as though it was after 6 months of purchase and not within the 6 months, and what about the Burden of Proof. He said he had thought about this after he had spoken to me, but he didn't ring to tell me. He then rang me back saying Small Claims Courts based their rulings on a book by Ervine Cowan, and he would hate me to think I had a case! The issue surrounding the incorrect logbook he said was not really an issue as all we had to do was get the receipt from the dealer showing where the engine came from, how much was paid etc for then engine, and then we could supply it to the DVLA ourselves to get the log book changed. I was exceptionally surprised to hear him saying that.
It was then we sought advice from a solicitor when I was eventually able to get one. This is not on Legal Aid, He wrote to them, and the garage wrote back saying that there had been 10k done since purchase (but we cannot prove this is untrue, although it is as it was only used to work and back 30 miles a day return for with a small amount of leisure), they were a genuine family garage etc. the solicitor then asked for details of the replacement engine. On this occasion the garage rang the solicitor and said it was a local scrap merchant. The solicitor advised he was waiting for written confirmation. Now the garage/dealer is refusing to supply it.
A nightmare of a situation. I rang our local TS's manager a couple of days ago as I am utterly fuming at the way TS handled it and it appears that the person who miss advised just happens not to work for them any longer.
We have been trying to find out more information about the engine and eventually found out today that the engine came from the same model of car ie a Ford Focus, albeit and estate car, but that the PSi was 110. Where the original engine was a 90psi. The car does not show up on a DVLA data base, we believe because it was made in Germany for the German market.
The DVLA have no interest at all in it, but I do have a contact who has been able to give me information (or not as the case may be). It beggars belief that a seller/dealer etc can blatantly change an engine in a car but not inform the DVLA of log book changes.
We have been fighting this since October 2013 and I feel so desperate!
The dealer has said we knew about the details on the log book not being correct. Not only is this totally untrue, (well actually a blatant lie) but it also leads to the fact that no-one would ever buy a car where details do not tally up. But even then, when apparently saying we knew about it and we were happy with the information, why did he write the old engine number on the invoice and not the new one. Blatantly, because we did not know the log book and receipt were showing different information to the replacement engine!
The car is sitting with no MOT, on SORN and has moved nowhere since October.
Any ideas anyone. Oh. it was bought on a personal loan, not on a credit car or HP.
Thanks from a really desperate desperate person!!!
It is regarding a Car which was purchased in May 2013. The car was purchased from a small garage/car dealer in our area. The car was sold with a replacement engine in. We were verbally told this to be around 70k, but they have since said in written letters it is 75k.
We received the log book for the car and this tallied up with the invoice which was given at the time of purchase.
The car broke down on the 8th October 2013. It was taken to the selling garage and they said they believe it to be the head gasket. But clearly would accept no responsibility for it. There was an offer from the garage of the head gasket from the old engine. We removed it from their garage and took it to two car mechanics. The first one would not repair it. It was during the second garage inspection that we were informed that this engine actually came from a scrap yard. The mechanic said he did not really want to repair it. He would if we forced him to basically, but he would not give any guarantees at all. And this basically confirmed his not wanting to do it. There is no history to the engine. It could have done more mileage that it had been stated or something else.
It was at this point that it was found out that the engine number on the log book and the engine number on the invoice 'Did Not' match up the the engine which was sitting in the car.
I then contacted Consumer Helpline. They advise me in writing to a letter to the seller using one of their templates. This I did, and received a letter back from the dealer saying that because there had been 10k done since purchase he was not responsible for it. And that he had sought advice from Trading Standards. And the offer of the head gasket from the old engine now was going to occurring a charge for their labour charges.
I then contacted CAB through Consumer Helpline and met with someone from our local CAB, They said he was just trying to cloud the water with this 10k issue of the mileage. They drafted together what appeared to be a good case, including information about head gaskets which I was totally unaware of
Consumer helpline also passed it on to Trading Standards at the same time. Trading standards totally miss-advised us. Everything I said he argued with. including information that I had been told that morning by CAB. They advised us as though it was after 6 months of purchase. the man would not listen at all, did not look at paperwork etc. He told us to go out and get a car mechanics report on it. I was told that a car mechanics report is great for advance purchases, and could tell us the state of the car at the time, but not in retrospect, Was then guided to OFT's Document for Buying A Second Hand Car. It was after studying this, I then rang Trading Standards back and said, asked why they had been advising me as though it was after 6 months of purchase and not within the 6 months, and what about the Burden of Proof. He said he had thought about this after he had spoken to me, but he didn't ring to tell me. He then rang me back saying Small Claims Courts based their rulings on a book by Ervine Cowan, and he would hate me to think I had a case! The issue surrounding the incorrect logbook he said was not really an issue as all we had to do was get the receipt from the dealer showing where the engine came from, how much was paid etc for then engine, and then we could supply it to the DVLA ourselves to get the log book changed. I was exceptionally surprised to hear him saying that.
It was then we sought advice from a solicitor when I was eventually able to get one. This is not on Legal Aid, He wrote to them, and the garage wrote back saying that there had been 10k done since purchase (but we cannot prove this is untrue, although it is as it was only used to work and back 30 miles a day return for with a small amount of leisure), they were a genuine family garage etc. the solicitor then asked for details of the replacement engine. On this occasion the garage rang the solicitor and said it was a local scrap merchant. The solicitor advised he was waiting for written confirmation. Now the garage/dealer is refusing to supply it.
A nightmare of a situation. I rang our local TS's manager a couple of days ago as I am utterly fuming at the way TS handled it and it appears that the person who miss advised just happens not to work for them any longer.
We have been trying to find out more information about the engine and eventually found out today that the engine came from the same model of car ie a Ford Focus, albeit and estate car, but that the PSi was 110. Where the original engine was a 90psi. The car does not show up on a DVLA data base, we believe because it was made in Germany for the German market.
The DVLA have no interest at all in it, but I do have a contact who has been able to give me information (or not as the case may be). It beggars belief that a seller/dealer etc can blatantly change an engine in a car but not inform the DVLA of log book changes.
We have been fighting this since October 2013 and I feel so desperate!
The dealer has said we knew about the details on the log book not being correct. Not only is this totally untrue, (well actually a blatant lie) but it also leads to the fact that no-one would ever buy a car where details do not tally up. But even then, when apparently saying we knew about it and we were happy with the information, why did he write the old engine number on the invoice and not the new one. Blatantly, because we did not know the log book and receipt were showing different information to the replacement engine!
The car is sitting with no MOT, on SORN and has moved nowhere since October.
Any ideas anyone. Oh. it was bought on a personal loan, not on a credit car or HP.
Thanks from a really desperate desperate person!!!
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