MotorHub in keighley - Car sold to me with numerous faults

[Scientist2021]

No this happened on the day of purchase. My husband and dad rightfully wouldn't pay for the car with the engine management light on.

 

They were told that a sensor (the AdBlue sensor) had been replaced. Not the injector unit. I haven’t mentioned an injector unit. 
 

The second part is correct. They programmed the system out of the car so the issue was ignored. 
 

It is not merely an interference, it has to be manually programmed out of the car. The SCR control unit has been disconnected. Mercedes could see this.

This would trigger a warning light, since there is no warning light the system must have been reprogrammed/coded out of the car. If the SCR system is removed the car will not use AdBlue which will affect emissions. 

 

 

 

[BankFodder]

Okay, but apart from the timescale in which this happened, I think I probably understood what the defect is – roughly.

I think the most important thing here is that although there is a very strong suspicion that the thing was tampered with and that you were misled, there is not enough evidence here to base your claim on it – although certainly talk about it if this goes to court And hopefully the judge will draw his own inferences.

Unless you have solid evidence of this tampering then I don't think we should rely on any more than that. You said that they told your father that the unit had been replaced – but it's only his word. You don't have that in writing – is this correct?

Is there some way to get them to repeat that they had replaced it – in written form?

So were left out with a vehicle that has demonstrated quite a number of faults. You want to keep the vehicle and obviously you want to get your money back for the faults that you have paid for.

What is the total value of your losses so far?

Do you think that the car is now in a good condition? Meaning the kind of condition that you would have been happy to buy into?

Also, have you reflected on my comments about your future relations with this garage?

[Scientist2021]

The company sold me a car without a SCR/ADBlue system programmed on it.  That in itself is evidence that it has been tampered with.

 

My Husband and Father were told that they had replaced an ADBlue sensor (not a unit).  There would be no reason to replace an AdBlue sensor if the SCR system was not on the car.  They lied about what they had done.  Unfortunately we do not have in writing what they used or did in order to get the engine management light to turn off. Just their word.

 

I have been informed by another mechanic that the computer systems used by mechanics store all data and this cannot be removed.  I don't know enough about this but I will look into it, as if this is the case then the removal of the SCR software/deprogramming will be stored on their computer systems.

 

I want to keep the vehicle, I have paid £2135.92 so far to get it road worthy.  I also have to pay for the ADBlue/scr system programmed back in, this is initially £168 just for Mercedes to look at it.  They will obviously encounter some faults once it is programmed in. If this is one or more NOx sensors they are £500 each.

 

My car is in a good condition and drives well, however, I am potentially releasing harmful emissions, and although this doesn't bother the vehicle, it bothers the environment and my car could potentially fail its MOT if not programmed back in.  I want MotorHub to pay for this also.  I would have not bought the car if I knew that it didn't use adblue as the SCR system was programmed out.  So no,  I wouldn't buy the car in its current state.

 

I am aware of the reviews and the behaviour of this garage.  They have wrote and offered to look into the SCR system for me and explained that I can phone them and take it back in to them for them to sort this out.  I wouldn't trust them with a toy car, plus I can't be without a car.  As I previously stated, I work for the NHS and I need my car for work.

[Scientist2021]

https://www.avontuning.co.uk/services/advanced-options/adblue-removal

 

Read this advertisement for Ad-Blue removal, particularly the last paragraph.

Our AdBlue delete service is strictly sold as an off-road use only product, driving your vehicle on the road with an AdBlue delete could result in prosecution. Our HGV and Agricultural AdBlue service is to be used only for vehicles which are to be exported outside of the European Union. It is your responsibility to declare your modification to the relevant authorities. 

[BankFodder]

I quite agree that it will be pretty straightforward to show that the car was sold without the device or else with a device not working. The only point I'm making is that as delicious as it might be, we don't have the evidence to show that they did it.

You don't have any evidence that they told you that they had replaced it – in the event that they deny ever having said that.
So in order to get you your money back, we have to fall back on what we can easily win. And what we can win are the defects which have been found but by and large we're not able to say how or why those defects were there – simply that the car was sold to you in a defective state and you were obliged to carry out repairs and you want your money back.

 

So I'm now trying to ascertain exactly what your losses are and to find out if that is the end of the matter or there are more defects which have to be addressed.

We need to get the sum total of your losses or value of remaining defects so that we can then start bringing an action for the recovery of that money.

[Scientist2021]

Well so far as I stated my sum is £2135.92.  Should I book the car into Mercedes first and ask them to reprogram the Ad-Blue and then pay the costs upfront?

 

Sorry, that is just the sum of Mercedes.  The actual sum including tyres etc is £2962.67 and all receipts can be provided.

[BankFodder]

Sorry I crossposted with you.

Yes, you should get the car into the condition that it should have been when it was sold to you. At the very least you should get a quotation for the work.

However, you should now start laying a paper trail as you should have done when you first started getting repairs to the car.

Therefore you should write to the dealer's and you should tell them that such and such defect has been identified and you are now seeking a quotation for putting it right and if they want they can comment and when you get the quote you will be providing it to them. Tell them also that once the work has been put in hand you will be expecting them to reimburse you.

At the same time, you can give them a list of the other faults which were discovered and which were put in hand with Mercedes – tell them the cost – and tell them that you want reimbursement of this as well.

You must pay a paper trail. You must give the notice of defects you have discovered and of the work you are intending to put in hand. You must give them an opportunity to comment.

You weaken your hand enormously if you don't take the simple precautions