Sold the car, the buyer wants his money back claiming the turbo has blown

[Reddbull]

Hi, I sold my car on monday. the advert described the car as:

The car comes with MAIN DEALER SERVICE HISTORY upto 101k. All previous MOTs included/

 

Current mileage 131,000

 

Mot: November 2010

Tax: August 2010

 

I had 2 new (front) coil springs and anti roll bars fitted about a month ago (receipts) .

 

There are no dents but please note there are some scratches on the car. The scratches are shown in the pictures.

The car is 8 years old and done 130k so please do not expect it to be in a showroom condition

 

The engine sounds fine, no problems with gearbox, turbo, clutch etc. No rattles etc.

The sat nav and climate work really well, so do all the other things.

There are no major problems with the car, only some small anoying things which I listed below.

 

Normally the car starts the first time but sometimes it takes a while to start. I was told that it will need a new tdc sensor which is not too expensive to repair (about £30 including labour).

The injectors were all checked and they are all in very good condition.

2x window regulators will also have to be replaced. Apparently it is a common fault. You can hear the motors working fine. I bought the kit on ebay few weeks ago but I do not have time to do it myself. Please do not expect a brand new car. If you have any doubts please feel free to come and have a look at the car. The car could do with a valet.

I have tried to be as honest as possible.

You are more than welcome to come and have a look at the car, but please no dreamers and time wasters

The car is cheap to run, cheap to insure and cheap to tax.

It is a nice family car.

 

I am open to all reasonable offers.

 

I am looking for a quick sale as I have bought a smaller car and I no longer need this one.

 

Any inspection. PLEASE NO TIME WASTERS. No P/X. Car is sold as seen.'

 

 

The buyer made me an offer, I made a counter offer and the buyer called me saying he is willing to accept it. I invited him to inspect the car first.

The car was advertised for £1449 and I have agreed to sell it for £1200.

The buyer was a car mechanic. He came to test the car, looked under the bonnet, test drove it. I even offered him driving it up a really steep hill so he could listen to the engine etc. The car drove with no problems.

I was really honest with the buyer and told him about all the problems with the car. I did not use the car a lot and spent too much money on it (coil springs- £400) so I just wanted to sell it as it was pointless keeping it and paying insurance, tax etc. On top of that we had 3 cars in the household and only 2 people with driving licences. After the inspection the buyer said to me that the problem with starting may be a bit more than just the sensor so he would offer me £1125. I agreed to the price we exchanged documents and he drove off.

 

7 hours later he called me saying he wants his money back as the turbo has blown!!! He threatened to kill me and my family if I wouldn't refund the money. I obviously called the police first. He now says he will take me to court. I don't know what to do. The turbo was fine when I sold the car. He inspected it and found nothing worrying as a mechanic. His wife was also there and she also works for a garage. Even though I did not do a lot of miles in the car, there were no lacks of power, no noises, no smoke which would indicate that something was wrong with it. I told the buyer what repairs were carried on whilst I had the car, about all problems as I am not the type of a person who would lie when it comes to things like this. The price was below average (about £1600- £1700). He had definately more knowledge about cars than I have. Any advice?

Edited May 13, 2010 by Reddbull

[Conniff]

Ok Reddbull, firstly can you please assure us you are not a dealer in any way?

[Reddbull]

Hi, I am a private seller. As mentioned I'm a student and live about 10 mins walk from university. I was 100% honest with the buyer. I told him about problems which I had with the car, the fact that I dont think the previous owner looked after it etc. When his wife asked me about fuel economy I said I couldn't tell her as we only covered about 300 miles in the car since we had it. It was due to the fact that I had to replace the coil springs, it had problems with starting and i live 10 mins from uni.

[Conniff]

Have the police given you a crime number and what was there response to your complaint?

 

Do not be intimidated and do not give him back his money.

 

The sale has only a couple of minor points under the sale of goods - It must be as described (that seems to have been done), You never misled him about any faults (there seems to have been no mention by either of you in regards to the turbo - confirm that please).

[Reddbull]

The police said that they can charge him with racially aggrevated threats to kill and malicious calls. I told them I don't want to report him yet, I just wanted to flag it up with them. In case he does something else they will charge him.

Yes, I have been given crime no.

 

I just don't want any more trouble. I could not sleep for few nights anyway. The worst thing about it is that I was honest with him and there was nothing else I could have told him about the car. I answered all his question, invited him to get the car inspected couple of times.

 

well the advert said 'The engine sounds fine, no problems with gearbox, turbo, clutch etc. No rattles etc.' And also 'Any inspection. PLEASE NO TIME WASTERS. No P/X. Car is sold as seen.' And this was true statement at the time the car was sold. He test drove it, inspected it and drove off having no concerns. I do not know what he did to it after he drove off though. Why would I be any more mechanically knowledgeable than him? He was claiming to be a car mechanic and I have no knowledge when it comes to mechanical stuff. If the engine accelerates, does not make any weird noises etc I would regard it as working fine.

 

P.S I obviously listed the faults with starting engine which I knew about and the windows' regulators etc.

Edited May 13, 2010 by Reddbull

[Conniff]

Next time you sell a car, leave out the 'Sold as seen' it has no meaning in law.

 

He took the car for a test drive and reported no problems and said that he was a mechanic. If he is worth anything as a mechanic, then he would have noticed if there were any impending faults with the turbo.

 

I have read what you said in the ad, so this is a case of Buyer Beware.

 

Please don't be intimidated and report to the police immediately if he should contact you again in a threatening manner.

[Reddbull]

Thank you Conniff. I would not think he has a case against me as there was nothing dishonest on my side. I even said to my brother after the sale that I am glad that I was honest with the man. I never treat people in a way in which I would not want to be treated myself. It may be naive nowadays but well...

 

As I said before he is now trying the 'i will sue you' card. I started ignoring him because I will not tolerate the insults which he makes in his every single email. I will just wait and see... But I promised myself that I will not sell any car privately ever again. It may make some more £££ but it is not worth it if you get a person like this...

[heliosuk]

People like this usually get their comeupance redbull. As conniff says you have nothing to fear. It is possible to block his e mails but I'd actually keep them for Mr Plod if the buyer hasn't got the message. If he was a proper mechanic, as conniff has pointed out, you do get tell tale signs and he of all people should have been able to pick up on it.

Don't worry about it.

[ollie2008uk]

hello mate how did this go for you?

 

Ollie

[Reddbull]

Hi, well it is hard to say to be honest. I was receiving some prank calls at 3 am so I decided to change my phone no. I am considering reporting this as an assault as I was very distressed and could not sleep. I am sick of the guy and I think the 'turbo problem' has ever even existed.

[Conniff]

As long as you arent intimidated enough to give him any refund. He's a mechanic, or so he claimed, so he can fix it himself.

 

Don't give in, hold your position.

[Reddbull]

Hi, Conniff. I will not give him any refund and I will not change my mind no matter what he does/ says. I think that was his way of getting a better bargain- by threats. I have spoken to one of my law lecturers who used to be a solicitor and she said that I have nothing to worry about.

[ollie2008uk]

what car was it? I would defiantly report him to the police without a moments hesitation. The guy sounds like the biggest idiot going and he deserves a little visit from Mr plod! To be honest if I was in your shoes and had been threatened and my family threatened I would rally the biggest blokes up and go visit him!

[MARTIN3030]

Was it a Golf by any chance ?

[Reddbull]

Ollie, I do not think the guy is worth it. I would rather get him into trouble than be in trouble myself.

 

Was it a Golf by any chance ?

 

It was a renault laguna II

[Surfer01]

Maybe he did a quick swap with a faulty turbo and was hopiing you would cave in and refund his money.

[ollie2008uk]

I would almost certainly call the fuzz on him!

[MARTIN3030]

Has the intercooler been checked ?

[Reddbull]

Has the intercooler been checked ?

 

no idea and I really don't care to be honest. At first I felt sorry for the guy, because I would not want to be in his shoes but then I have started having doubts as I have never had any problems with it(apart from the ones stated in the ad). I don't feel sorry for him anymore for the way he acted and I think he just made it up, hoping I would pay him. I have been watching his ebay account and he has recently purchased some parts which were not damaged in any way. This makes me even more suspicious. Why would you buy a new front grill if the one on the car is not even scratched? But as I said before, I am not really bothered. Hope he gets what he deserves...

[Reddbull]

Hi guys, just need some advice. I have received a couple of prank calls (again) It is definately that guy that keeps calling me. I have told the police about all of them apart from the one I received today. I am considering writing to this guy and telling him that if he will not stop he will get into some serious trouble. I do not think he is smart enough to realise it. I am really sick of it now and I will really report him if this continues.

 

Any suggestions?

[billy bob66]

if he phones again put the phone to one side,and let him rant.

if turbo has gone sounds like he has been flooring it.dont give in,hang tight as threre is always help here to put your mind at ease.

[Reddbull]

Thanks Billy_bob. This is what I do- I just answer the phone and leave it on the desk. I am seriously getting sick of it hence I was considering warning him by an email.

[Conniff]

It's not your job to warn him. Tell the police you are still being harassed and they will go around and warn him off.

[billy bob66]

reddbull take the advice of conniff,getting in touch by email might only make things worse and wind him up the wrong way.

get in touch with the police and explian to them he is harrasing you and let them warn him off.