Stealership issues

[jasionox666x]

Hey I will explain a story to you guys and I would like to ask for suggestions.
I've searched online for laws or cases but I can't find anything.


About 4 weeks ago my dad came back on leave from Afghanistan, for 2 weeks. My mom went with him to a car dealership to buy a car for my sister. Well they bought a car for 5 grand, paid it all off at the dealership and drove it home. About 5 days of driving it, the car just broke down in the middle of the street. It would not start, no nothing. By this time my dad already went back to Afghanistan. My mom managed to get the car started and drove it home.

She has called the dealership several times and they are telling her "tough ****" basically, while my dad is a veteran not only in the Iraq war, but is also currently in Afghanistan. They know this, they know my sister needed a reliable car, something that WORKS.

Well today they came over to my apartment and in the middle of a bypass, speed limit being 65, they broke down again. When the car breaks down you cannot turn the wheel, you can't do ****, you are basically a sitting duck, and that IS DANGEROUS.

The dealership is ignoring their calls and letters. What can we do?

[03BumbleBee]

I don't know if yo have anything like this were you live, but here we can call our local news station and explain your situation. They will expose bad business practices, I don't know what the terms of the sale were. If you bought this car "AS IS" with no warranty inplied, you may have no recourse. Good luck, most people like cars, just don't like having to buy them because of Dealers like this.

[jasionox666x]

My mom wrote to two new stations.

Also, she called and they said to call back to make an appt for a little inspection of the vehicle. She's been calling but nobody is helping and the guy that originally told her to call back never calls back when she leaves him messages.


I read in the paperwork that it says

"IS THE VEHICLE UNABLE TO PASS STATE INSPECTION" the answer is YES
Underneath it it says:
"IF NOT, WHY WILL IT NOT PASS STATE INSPECTION" which is blank



WHAT A PLAY OF WORDS

They got ripped the hell off and I find it a **** shame.

[03BumbleBee]

In Ca. you cannot sell a car to another party until it has been smogged by the current owner. Start calling for your Mom, I know this is not right but most men don't give respect to woman in dealings like this.

[DSG2003Mach1]

unless there is something in there about them being responsible for it passing inspection you probably have no recourse since it was sold as is.

Personally Id google search the car and the issue, its possible its not a major issue

[20mach104]

I think in VA you have 30 days for any car if you buy it from a dealership or atleast that is what my parents have told me but I dont know if that applies in other states.

[Monster Mach]

you are in luck.. i know for a fact that p.a has a lemon law.. take it back and say have it fixed or give us our money back or we will sue for car repair costs and court fees.. under pensyltuckys lemon law statute. good luck
http://www.carlemon.com/lemon/PA_law.html

[2k4mach]

you are in luck.. i know for a fact that p.a has a lemon law.. take it back and say have it fixed or give us our money back or we will sue for car repair costs and court fees.. under pensyltuckys lemon law statute. good luck
http://www.carlemon.com/lemon/PA_law.html

yeah do what this guy says then they can laugh at your azz and say state lemon law doesnt apply to used cars only NEW cars :23::23::23::23:

[R-code17815]

My mom wrote to two new stations.

Also, she called and they said to call back to make an appt for a little inspection of the vehicle. She's been calling but nobody is helping and the guy that originally told her to call back never calls back when she leaves him messages.


I read in the paperwork that it says

"IS THE VEHICLE UNABLE TO PASS STATE INSPECTION" the answer is YES
Underneath it it says:
"IF NOT, WHY WILL IT NOT PASS STATE INSPECTION" which is blank



WHAT A PLAY OF WORDS

They got ripped the hell off and I find it a **** shame.




I thought in PA a dealer cannot sell a car that does not pass inspection??

[Mach 1]

The laws probably vary state by state, but here in Mass. the lemon laws apply to new, not used vehicles. And if a used vehicle has over a certain amount of miles (I think its a 100k, not sure though) there is no warranty, however the vehicle does have to pass safety/emmisions and get a sticker.

[Monster Mach]

yeah do what this guy says then they can laugh at your azz and say state lemon law doesnt apply to used cars only NEW cars :23::23::23::23:

funny because my car was purchased in p.a and brought to ny stealership and was almost bought back under the lemon law....

[jiveturkey]

funny because my car was purchased in p.a and brought to ny stealership and was almost bought back under the lemon law....

NY has a used car lemon law, PA doesnt, so i take it you live in NY?

the law is in effect for the state in which you live in not the state you bought the car.

[Monster Mach]

NY has a used car lemon law, PA doesnt, so i take it you live in NY?

the law is in effect for the state in which you live in not the state you bought the car.

yep the 5th most depressing city in america

[04Mach1Blurr]

Call ford customer complaints and report it to the corporation. They will get ontop of the dealership about it. Explain everything in a business context and not with too much emotion. Was there any contract or warranty on the actual purchase?

[jasionox666x]

Call ford customer complaints and report it to the corporation. They will get ontop of the dealership about it. Explain everything in a business context and not with too much emotion. Was there any contract or warranty on the actual purchase?

No
everything was as is

What beats me is they did an inspection in the month of March of 2011 and the car was bought on the 11th of April.

How can you inspect a car, put PASSED stickers on it, and put in paperwork saying that it WILL NOT pass next inspection ? Can you tell the future?

[H-TownMachI]

what year and model of car is it?

[jasionox666x]

95 acura

[FL Mach 1]

Was the the car sold "as is"? if so then you may be SOL.

If there is nothing on the paperwork that says "as is" then you should do some checking into implied warranties. Basically they say that if you are a business then there is an short warranty period on items that you sell, such as cars. The warranty is usually 30 days or so. This does not usually apply to private parties since they are not in the "business" of selling cars.

It can't hurt to look into it.

[shadowmaker]

Was the the car sold "as is"? if so then you may be SOL.

If there is nothing on the paperwork that says "as is" then you should do some checking into implied warranties. Basically they say that if you are a business then there is an short warranty period on items that you sell, such as cars. The warranty is usually 30 days or so. This does not usually apply to private parties since they are not in the "business" of selling cars.

It can't hurt to look into it.

X2.

But it being a 95 and it being 16 yrs old, I wouldnt expect alot.

Has a mechanic looked at it to determine what is wrong?

[jasionox666x]

Was the the car sold "as is"? if so then you may be SOL.

If there is nothing on the paperwork that says "as is" then you should do some checking into implied warranties. Basically they say that if you are a business then there is an short warranty period on items that you sell, such as cars. The warranty is usually 30 days or so. This does not usually apply to private parties since they are not in the "business" of selling cars.

It can't hurt to look into it.

That's what I figured.

I'll call corporate though because they are dragging my mom across the table and she has enough to worry about.

[ASH302]

Was the the car sold "as is"? if so then you may be SOL.

If there is nothing on the paperwork that says "as is" then you should do some checking into implied warranties. Basically they say that if you are a business then there is an short warranty period on items that you sell, such as cars. The warranty is usually 30 days or so. This does not usually apply to private parties since they are not in the "business" of selling cars.

It can't hurt to look into it.

that is what i was thinkin the sold as is may apply to the car

ASh

[jasionox666x]

Yeah. I don't care about anything but they lied and said the car was safe to drive on the road and 50 miles later it cuts off in the middle of driving. Just cuts off. You can't move the steering wheel no nothing.

[Machy uno]

Calling Ford customer service wont do much good. I speak from experience. I had the same thing happen to my Milan. Bought it and it showed signs of significant damage a few months later. Corporate Fords response was tough ****, this is sales issue, not a Ford Factory issue. Take it up with the Dealership. And mine was "Ford certified." I talked to numerous people and the best it got me was a Ford X Plan pin to buy a brand new vehicle from Ford. If you could go for a new Ford under the plan than it might be good for you. With the dealership ignoring calls, refusing service and telling me I should have contacted them sooner... I'm generally one against lawyers, but in this case it might help. The BBB has a fair practice and trade law or something like that. If they mislead you, or sold you something that they knew wasn't what they were telling you the case could be won. The question really becomes how much is it worth to you though? A lawyer is going to cost and you have to prove they knew it was faulty. A previous carmax report showing they fixed it, or the inspection issue you're talking about might do it. Perhaps you have a lawyer you know who could offer advice further on the fair practice and trade clause.... Good luck to you, I know it's not a very fun thing to deal with.

[04VAMach1]

I think in VA you have 30 days for any car if you buy it from a dealership or atleast that is what my parents have told me but I dont know if that applies in other states.

There is no mandatory "cooling off" period in VA. Once you drive it off the lot, the car along with all of its problems are yours.

No
everything was as is

What beats me is they did an inspection in the month of March of 2011 and the car was bought on the 11th of April.

How can you inspect a car, put PASSED stickers on it, and put in paperwork saying that it WILL NOT pass next inspection ? Can you tell the future?

The inspection is the legally required safety inspection. It does not cover mechanical issues.

The question on the form is poorly worded and most likely whoever filled it out misunderstood the question. Talk to DMV and see if you can use this to get out of the car.

Yeah. I don't care about anything but they lied and said the car was safe to drive on the road and 50 miles later it cuts off in the middle of driving. Just cuts off. You can't move the steering wheel no nothing.

How can you tell a salesman is lying?

His lips are moving!

Sorry, had to get that out there...

If the engine is not running, you will not have power steering. You should be able to put the car in neutral and still be able to turn the wheel enough to steer it to the shoulder. If you stop in the middle of the road, you will not be able to turn it. This is not a safety issue, it is by design.

Legally, I doubt you have a leg to stand on. You have a 16 year old car that was purchased as-is. You are just going to have to use this as a learning experience...as-is means that once you drive away, you are responsible for any problems. In order to recover anything, you would have to prove that the dealership knew that there were problems and hid them from you.

Personally, I think you just need to fix the car or take it somewhere and have it repaired. You may be able to shame the dealer into doing something for you, but I doubt it.

[Mach1tosh]

Next time have an independent mechanic do an inspection. For what it costs it could have saved you $5K this time.

This time go to Kinkos and have them make a large copy of the inspection pass/non pass paper, then take it with you along with the Acura painted yellow (use water color and go on a dry day) and park as close as you legally can to the dealership and see if you can persuade either a few potential customers to walk away from the dealership or the dealership to take back the car and refund the purchase price to your sister/mother. It only takes a couple of screwed used car sales to put the dealer out of pocket the $5K paid for the Acura.

Good luck, and may your wheels be squeaky enough :3amin:

[bris09]

I thought in PA a dealer cannot sell a car that does not pass inspection??

Not if it is sold as is. Also, if the inpsection is current they are not required to re-inspect it. There's not really much that can done unless they included a warranty with the car. If it was sold as is take somewhere else, get it fixed and never buy from that dealership again while making sure everyone you know, knows how they do business.

[b3warnick]

How's about you and mom go to the dealership and ask for the owner (or the highest ranking dude that will meet with you) - not some salesman. Need to go face-to-face, not try to get something done over the phone - they will just keep ignoring you. Then show him/her the paperwork that says:

"IS THE VEHICLE UNABLE TO PASS STATE INSPECTION" the answer is YES
Underneath it it says:
"IF NOT, WHY WILL IT NOT PASS STATE INSPECTION" which is blank

Be civil and have them explain that. Then explain the situation about your dad and how this car needs to be somewhat reliable for your sister, and see if they will look over the car and find out what is wrong with it - see if you can come to some mutual agreement.

You have to get the attention of someone that matters though, not some run of the mill salesman. Just my $.02 .

[bris09]

NY has a used car lemon law, PA doesnt, so i take it you live in NY?

the law is in effect for the state in which you live in not the state you bought the car.

Yes, PA has a lemon law. To quailfy the dealer must have failed to fix the same problem three times. After that it qualifies for the lemon law. Kinda hard to qualify when they won't even look at the car. I'm not even sure if a 95 would be included in the lemon law when sold as is.

Does the car die after being driven a certain amount of time and then start back up after a certain time? When it dies does everything electrical die or just the engine?

[DSG2003Mach1]

Most lemon laws, including PA via a quick google search, do NOT apply to used cars.

while I agree the wording sucked, it does say on the window "as is" and that it would not pass inspection...it might not have given a reason because they couldnt figure it out. Honestly, youd be making better use of your time to do a search on that car and stalling issues. Going after the dealer is probably just beating your head off a wall

[wigsite]

I bought a winter beater car here in Ohio several years ago. It ran great for a week or two then kept stalling out. I took it to a local dealer who said all the smog stuff was removed. I did a little research and found out you are not legally allowed to sell a car that had the smog stuff tampered with. One call to the dealer citing the Ohio EPA policy and I got a full refund check that day. Have a mechanic inspect it and maybe you will get lucky like me and the emissions will have been tampered and you can force them to refund your money.

[2k4mach]

Yes, PA has a lemon law. To quailfy the dealer must have failed to fix the same problem three times. After that it qualifies for the lemon law. Kinda hard to qualify when they won't even look at the car. I'm not even sure if a 95 would be included in the lemon law when sold as is.

Does the car die after being driven a certain amount of time and then start back up after a certain time? When it dies does everything electrical die or just the engine?

on new cars. dont think a 95 classifies as a new car anymore.
PA lemon law doesnt apply on used cars.

which what Jive was saying NY law does work on used PA doesnt.

[bris09]

Check the link for some options.

http://www.ihatethislemon.com/used_vehicle_faqs.htm