Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 14:02
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - westend90

I recently moved to the UK (Scotland) and purchased a car, and am now having some problems and would be greatly appreciative if the members on here could give me some advice on what they would do if in my situation.

I purchased a 2008 Vectra diesel 1.9 Sri on 21/03/2016. When I viewed it the previous Friday it seemed ok apart from a rattle on at low revs. The dealer said it was as the car hadn’t been driven in over a week and when it heats up it will be ok. He said he would MOT the car and fix up the bits and pieces and have it ready the Monday. I asked him to do the timing belt and water pump as well and after a bit of negotiating he agreed if I would pay the asking price (separate MOT centre would be carrying out the work). I arrived just before closing on Monday due to work and picked it up. However when I got home and checked through the documents there was no record of timing belt and water pump being done. I drove it to England the following morning for work and it was fine on the motorway, however driving in towns, at traffic lights etc there was a juddering at low revs and when engaging the clutch. I phoned the dealer to let him know about the missing documents and also informed him about the juddering which he said would be the clutch release bearing. Eventually the timing belt documents were posted out to me but I was still concerned about the noise.

I took the car to my local garage last week (6 th April) to get the once over and put my mind at ease. Here is the list of items:

-three tyres cracked and worn below legal limit

-tracking out

-front bulb gone and number plate bulb gone

-Anti rollbar bushing gone in back

- DMF and clutch need to be replaced.

My worst fears were confirmed about the DMF and the clutch! I phoned the dealer immediately and his tone changed considerably. He said he would do his best to fit me in and have a look, however they would not be changing the DMF if it was noisy and not failed, and they don’t care what the other garages report says. He said they were busy in the next two weeks but he would give me a call back to see if he could fit me in. Needless to say no call, so I rang him again the next day and it went straight to voicemail I used my work phone to ring straight after and surprise surprise I got through. He began to make excuses as to why they couldn’t see the car next week as it was “Easter week and they were really busy”. My one month warranty will expire the week after along with my 30 day sale of goods act rejection period.

My thoughts are that I will write him a letter stating that he has to make good all the faults the other garage found or I will have to begin the process of reporting him to trading standards and rejecting the car under the sale of goods act, and I am considering reporting that MOT centre too. I have recorded all telephone conversations so far using an app for my phone so I have a record of exactly what was said and when,

Sorry for the length of post and any advice is greatly appreciated as I don’t really know much about cars (enough to get by) and anything above is what I’ve learnt from researching forums the last few days.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 15:43
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - oldroverboy.

You don't say How much you paid.

Take the car back to the dealer immediately and reject it.

You have 30 days to do this.

No dithering.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 15:47
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - scot22

I agree with ORB.

It is obvious from your OP you have researched carefully and intend to deal with it properly. That is what the legislation is for - protection.

Best Wishes.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 15:55
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - quizman

Surely you could have seen the illegal tyres?

Why buy when the engine rattles?

Why believe anything the man said?

Take it back and reject it as has been told to you and be more careful when you buy another car. Perhaps take someone with you to check the car over.

Stick to your guns with the garage and good luck.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 17:24
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - scot22

I used to be trusting.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 17:28
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - Graham567

I have often wondered if taking the car back and rejecting it is always the right way to do it.I know that the law is on your side but what happens if you park it up outside the dealers,give him the keys,documents,rejection letter and then expect a refund?

My experiences of dealers is that you will end up with no car and no money.

I know people will then say you need to go down the legal route and sue him for the money back but once he has the car and your money there is very little you can do about it.

I know you have the law on your side but its useless,and the dealer knows it.Its ok being in the right but i feel the new rejection law has no teeth.

Now on the other hand if they had written into the law that you could go down with the police and make him hand your money back then that would be something. Unfortunately real life is reality and i do feel that cowboy dealers know all the ins and outs of wriggling out of fixing or refunding.

It makes me laugh with people who say buy from dealers as you will have more protection than a private sale.The only time i have found this to be true is with main dealers who want to uphold their reputation.(Obviously some main dealers can also be bad).Not many ordinary dealers have that ethos.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 17:36
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - pd

I suppose it comes down to the old "reasonable" test.

Is it reasonable for a DMF to be rattling on a 35k miles car? Not really.

Is it reasonable for a DMF to be rattling and worn out at the end of its life on a 140k miles car? Probably.

So, my gut feeling, is that the chances of success - legally - probably depend on how many miles it has done.

Remember that no one here - myself included - can say for certain whether you have a legally tight case or not so take all/any advice on that basis.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 20:08
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - westend90

Hi and thanks for taking the time to reply. The car has done 77k miles. I would hope that the most recent update to the sale of goods act (October 2015) will help me out. The fact that the car requires 1000 pounds of work only 2 weeks after purchase should surely serve to prove that it was not fit for purpose and not as advertised.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 20:06
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - westend90

Hi, thanks for taking the time to reply. I paid with VISA debit and have read some items on forums about chargeback so maybe this option will prevent me from waiting too long for the money?

Yes you are correct this is not a main dealer, but an ordinary one. I will wait for advice from trading standards before going and parking the car up at his garage!

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 20:02
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - westend90

When I viewed the car I noticed the front one was worn. This was changed but the rest were not. The wearing is on the inside of all the tyres and the cracking is hard to see unless you are looking for it. I will admit I did not give the tyres my best inspection.

I bought because I needed it, and the rattle seemed to lessen as the engine had heated up after the test drive. My knowledge of cars is not the best.

I intend to try to reject it, and will contact trading standards first.

Thanks for the reply I appreciate you taking the time.

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Sun 10 Apr 2016 19:58
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - westend90

Thanks for the reply. I paid 3,300 including the timing belt and water pump being done. Mileage on the car is 77k. I know I am on day 20 now. I think I will refer to trading standards to see what my best option is

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Mon 11 Apr 2016 00:51
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - pd

TS will be about as useful as a chocolate teapot on this. This is a civil matter between you and the seller. They'll give you a leaflet and suggest a letter but won't do anything to help you.

If the dealer says a straight no and you go legal accept that it will take 6 months on average.

If you are aiming for rejection stop using the car right now. If you accumulate miles you can't argue it is not fit for purpose. Park it up and buy another car to use.

If you get it fixed and plan to claim the cost be very careful to get a very good independent report, keep every part, and make very sure where you stand. Also make very sure there is evidence you have given the seller every opportunity to inspect the car.

My gut feeling - and it really is just a gut feeling - is at the end of it all they'll say it is partly wear and tear and best case split the cost 50/50.

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Mon 11 Apr 2016 08:23
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - slkfanboy

This issue is that this is a 10 year old car and what is reasonable? Going to court may well be very risky as these are issues that 10 year old cars have.

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Mon 11 Apr 2016 11:28
Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 sri - Advice needed on problems with new car - 520i
Isn't there another route here? The car was provided with a new MOT, if I'm reading this correctly? Immediately afterwards, the car was inspected and found to have dangerously defective tyres and a range of other obvious failure issues. The OP states that this certificate was provided by a 'separate MOT centre', who presumably like many others are slapping worthless certificates on anything this dealer sends their way. What are the legal sanctions for being caught doing that?

Perhaps the OP could approach the test centre, with evidence of the later inspection, and ask whether they would consider a, ahem, "goodwill gesture" towards some of the costs as a mutually acceptable way of compensating for their "oversights" whilst carrying out the MOT? Unless of course they'd prefer a visit from the authorities and a bit of local press coverage. Alternatively, you could approach the dealer with the same proposition and let the pair of them think it over. How many other dodgy motors do they churn out between their two businesses?

Edited by 520i on 11/04/2016 at 11:30

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