Recently I purchased a 2002 Volkswagen Golf GTI 337. The car has been built and was in great shape for being 10 years old. About 4 days after purchasing it the coolant return y valve split and caused a bunch of major issues. When I contacted the seller(We had been in contact the past couple days) I said "Oh hey just so you know you had a bad coolant line." he simply replied "Yeh on the passenger side return". I'm really pissed that this guy didn't even mention that the $11 part was broken. Keep in mind the guy had told me about the fuel pump problems and I was still more than willing to purchase the car. Do you guys think there is anyway that LEGALLY I could go after this guy for selling a vehicle under False Pretenses or Fraud?
My reasoning behind this is that he knew about the issue and failed to even briefly mention anything regarding it. Also on his bill of sale he didn't put "As Is".
Thanks in advance!
Dizzymagoo
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Originally Posted by clx
i dont have the confidence to borrow a bike, nor do i believe it is ethical
its like screwing your brother's wife when yours has her period..........
Unfortunately, I don't think there's anything you can do since it was a private seller. He can just claim he forgot to mention it, which he really may have. A used car is considered sold 'as is' unless otherwise stated. If it were a dealer, you could say they should have caught it in their inspection.
Technically I guess you could "go after" anyone you want for anything, doesn't mean you will win. Although I agree that it was a **** move on his part not to mention it, you already stated that it was "only an $11 part".
Agreed. Can't do a whole lot when buying a used car. With any car, you don't really know what might break and when. With a new car you are covered with a warranty. But you pretty much have nothing with a used car. Hopefully you don't experience any other problems. I will still always buy used cars. Can't imagine spending 40k on a Mustang or 60k on a Vette...
I don't think you could do much. If he actually knew there was something wrong and hid it from you, then you may have a case. Unfortunately you don't really have a way to prove it. I would say save yourself the legal headache for now.
If you could prove that he knew it had failed or would fail very soon then you would have some grounds to take legal action. But unless he admits that he knew it was broken or that it would fail very soon after sale there is nothing you can do... all he has to say is that the coolant piece was in that same condition when he bought it and it just happened to break after you bought it, sorry but you are kinda outta luck
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Unless life also hands you sugar and water your lemonade is going to suck
He wrote to me in text message the stuff that I typed in my original post. I have it all in writing him telling me that he didn't say anything about it. What I mean't by "its only an $11 part" is that it wouldn't have stopped me from purchasing the vehicle. I just would like to known about it before hand to prevent further issues. My main reason was that after this part broke and I fixed it and filled the car back up with coolant I couldn't get it to start. Thinking that issue was related to the coolant line breaking I was curious as to what type of legal action I might be able to get away with. After more investigation turns out the flywheel seperated from the ring gear. Bad timing for both things to go wrong at the same time.
Oh well, lighter and more efficient flywheel here I come!
Thank you for your opinions and help!
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by clx
i dont have the confidence to borrow a bike, nor do i believe it is ethical
its like screwing your brother's wife when yours has her period..........
He wrote to me in text message the stuff that I typed in my original post. I have it all in writing him telling me that he didn't say anything about it. What I mean't by "its only an $11 part" is that it wouldn't have stopped me from purchasing the vehicle. I just would like to known about it before hand to prevent further issues. My main reason was that after this part broke and I fixed it and filled the car back up with coolant I couldn't get it to start. Thinking that issue was related to the coolant line breaking I was curious as to what type of legal action I might be able to get away with. After more investigation turns out the flywheel seperated from the ring gear. Bad timing for both things to go wrong at the same time.
Oh well, lighter and more efficient flywheel here I come!
Thank you for your opinions and help!
Well that's a horse of a different color... I recently found myself on the loosing end of a used vehicle purchase as well, and I used to be a GM certified tech. Sometimes it's bad luck or bad timing, sometimes people overlook things... I overlooked something when i purchased, and I'm guessing the previous owner knew about it considering the way it was "hidden". (Took out the bulb in the cluster for the check engine light) Fighting him legally might have been an option, but I ultimately decided it wasn't worth the hassle and unlikely that I could win anyways...
Sorry about your misfortune, especially with the flywheel. That really sucks. Win some, loose some I guess. Best of luck getting her back up and running though...
