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Really need advice. Please.

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13K views 107 replies 16 participants last post by  TTT 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Don't know if this is the place to post this but here's goes anyway.

Hey guys as some of you know I have had a lot of problem with my scenic but this time I have major problems. Il start from to beginning as I would like advice on where I stand. Is it worth taking to court or trading standards.

I bought the Renault scenic on 10.07.2015 From a local guy who sells cars from his home it was up for £600 all taxed and MOT I checked the car over it looked ok I drove it it seemed fine so I went ahead with the purchase. Trading my old smaller car in as well so I got £300 Off my car and I paid £300 cash making £600. Problems after problem I took the car back they sorted the problem for now and was told to take the car back to them when the MOT runs out.

The last MOT ran out on 20/11/2015 So after all the problems and stern advice from headquarters (the Mrs) I decided not to take the car back there for the mot and contacted my local garage who I know have a good reputation I also got them to fit the starter motor as that had gone too.

At 11.00 this morning I received the dreaded phone call from the garage doing the mot. In the mans words

Do you want the good news or bad first ? How the bloody hell have you been driving around in this death trap I am sorry but the car has failed miserably and I won't be allowing it back on the road at all. You will need a tow truck to come and collect it as it just isn't safe. We can fix it but it just wouldn't be worth the money. It is in the hundreds.

So he gave me just some of the problems.

All brake hoses are rotten

3 tires have bubbles at the rear side of the tires.

The hand brake is faulty

2 brake pads left hand side need replacing.

The list goes on ...



where do I stand I have checked the last MOT certificate and it is dated 08/11/2014 According to the paperwork it passed with flying colors no adversary's nothing at all. I have only had the car 4 month. Surely all these problems haven't happened in the 4 month I have had the car. I have checked the recipes from the purchase and the sneaky dealer has written down the price he gave me for the lupo £300 But hasn't written the cash down I gave him so I may have lost my money. The car I traded in was in brilliant working order just had it serviced at vw before trading.

I should have know to check all these things before purchasing but I am no mechanic feeling pretty ****ty and guilty at the moment as I feel it is my fault as I am the owner i put my family at risk I have been running around thinking my car is safe with my mother,girlfriend her little brother and my unborn child all in the car on the motorway. But with the last mot been done and all clear I thought I was ok. I need help quick as I have no car and my funds are 0. I am on the way to collect the car on which I will take pictures of the faults ( as directed from the garage incase i can take court action) Any advice is Greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
 
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#2 ·
Dont think you have a leg to stand on ...An MoT is only showing road worthiness on day off test really depends if you can PROVE that the trader sold the car knowing it was carrying defects making the vehicle was unfit for the road but you have now had the car for about 5 months now
 
#3 · (Edited)
Due to the age of the car it is normal for the brake pipes to have rust but by how much as many will fail it on any rust others will advise it is just surface rust and to wire brush and coat in grease
tyres this can happen at any time
brakes are normal ware and may or may not have been like it at the time you bought it
in all its a 50/50 on the list you gave
the best mot stations are ones that dont do repairs or one you can trust the one I have used for years will show me the problems if any and will use a wire brush on pipes if any rust to determine if it is surface or more serious if surface will advise on what can be done
brake hoses again they may have been ok on last mot
it could be worth looking online to see if anything was listed on the last 2 mot's
Ron
 
#4 ·
Hey guys thanks for the feed back short message as I'm currently in the thick of it family crisis. I have been onto vosa website and down loaded all previous mots I will stick them up in due course maybe late tonight\tomorrow morning let you guys have a scen as sometimes I don't have a clue what some stuff mean.
 
#6 ·
As Bugsb says al MoT stations differ ..I use one and if car fails i know not to ask him to do repairs as he will tell dont have time for next 10 days so think i can trust him
 
#7 ·
You bought a banger for 600 quid, got 5 months use out if it, cut your losses and look for something else.

Should be worth around £150 scrap value or more as well so can get some money back.
 
#8 ·
I bought the Renault scenic on 10.07.2015 From a local guy who sells cars from his home it was up for £600
As said by another member I don't think you have a leg to stand on either. I guess the seller is a 'home trader' working along the lines of a private seller rather than an established dealer who would be VAT registered and a limited company etc.
At only £600 your car wouldn't have come with any warranty so its a case of 'let the buyer beware' in the legal sense.
The only 'claim' you might tentatively have is if the vehicle was knowingly mis-described when sold to you eg it had a new exhaust system when it clearly still has an old rusty one in place.
But a lot of time has passed so its unlikely any organisation will back a case for you. The most I can see happening is the 'trader' may be stopped from selling from home any more but it won't get your car fixed or your money back.
I take it you traded your Lupo for a bigger car but I'm sorry to say you have entered into a bad transaction on this occasion and ended up with a lemon.
The MOT fail doesn't sound as disasterous as the garage has implied .... yes they've got to make it sound that way in order to cover themselves should you choose to drive the vehicle away .. YES it is DANGEROUS to drive a car with corroded brake pipes etc, but these and the other things ,tyres etc are easily replaceable.
You have got to weigh up whether the Scenic is worth having repaired or do you cut your losses and buy something else .. even something else cheap.
There's nothing wrong with cheap cars if you know how to check the mechanics of a car over properly.
 
#9 ·
So here I am I did ask for advice and I guess I got it so thanks guys now a know where I am with this I appreciate it :). As mentioned I need to think do I let it go or repair on the other hand I'm no millionaire so would have to go and buy another cheap car I have to look at it this way. Do I repair this and know these parts have been done and hopefully that's most of the things replaced and it would last me another couple of years engine depending or do I buy another cheap car and end up back at square one and after repair everything.


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#10 ·
Do I repair this and know these parts have been done ....
What's the year and mileage of the Scenic? What other faults has the MOT tester stated apart from those you've already mentioned? And what previous major faults from earlier years did you find on the VOSA site?
 
#11 ·
Scenics are cheap the trick is to take some one that knows what they are looking for dont let yor heart over ride your head many get caught up in the moment when looking at another car and just hand over the cash walk away think about it then decide
I dont think I paid more than £400 for any of the 4 I had over 5 years each one had some minor faults but nothing to do with an mot
so way up the cost of repair and buying another car
Ron
 
#12 ·
The list you've given us isn't major if.... if you sort out the jobs yourself.
Tyres, couple of hundred.
Brakes, weekend's work, maybe a 100.

But doubt you'll get much change from 500 for the brake work if a garage did them.
Stripping off old pipes and getting new ones made up, then fitting is a pain but is actually quite simple, just time consuming.
It's the time you pay for, materials are relatively cheap.

On any comeback to the seller.
If a trader, Sale of Goods Act gives a measure of protection but after 5 months would need to show more then normal wear and tear.
If a private sale, basically sold as seen, no protection whatsoever.
 
#14 ·
I should have know to check all these things before purchasing but I am no mechanic feeling pretty ****ty and guilty at the moment as I feel it is my fault .
... dont let yor heart over ride your head many get caught up in the moment when looking at another car and just hand over the cash
Don't go beating yourself up over this horrible situation. Many of us have made mistakes along the way :eek: and also done exactly what Ron points out too :eek::eek: (how I loved the Herald I bought with the rusty bonnet/wings that would flap about in the wind :rolleyes:).
Whichever way, repair or replace, it'll work out all right in the end. :)
 
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#17 ·
There's very few long term drivers who haven't bought a lemon some time in their life.

Many moon ago I remember buying a MK II Escort. It was really clean - clean rotten.
First car I ever bought
9 year old Mk1 Cortina
Should have been a 1500 but depended on how many pots felt like firing.
Loooong Gear Lever that you had to hold to keep in fourth.
Rotten Sills, inner sills, floor pan Flintstones style.
Inner wings (strut mountings) rotten.
List was endless, young, inexperienced and believed the seller.... inspected and bought in the dark as well....

The plus side with lemons is that you learn a lot.
Not to trust sellers may only be the only thing but it is a valuable lesson.

That Tina was my pride and joy for a couple of years...... did my first clutch (and gearbox) change (scrapyard for box with shift extension)
Head Gasket
Probably all the suspension.
Knocking up repair plates with a hammer and bench vice.... pop rivet in place and get the local garage to weld them in.
All my own servicing
Brakes
Whatever was needed I did.
Fun days...learnt so much.
 
#19 ·
everybody gets caught ,,,,,My lad went 150 miles away look at a car for me ,he paid for it(600£ no mot) he checked it over, i went pick it up within 2 miles blackpool illuminations across the dash if there was a light that would come on it was on,got it back ran it straight in for the mot ,wheel bearings all round not failures advisorys all these plus odds and ends failures wrong rear seats the seats where out of a car this is an estate both top strut mounts ,discs and pads all round,headlights didnt work Gave 600 £ for the estate ,then with all this had to sort engine fault 300£ for the injectors,it cost me 640 for all the parts that included all bearings from advisory, to be able to use the car so am now at just under 1300£ for an estate car ,with 130,000 miles on the clock,that was 4 years ago ,took the car for an mot,the new one where it lists the recorded mileage of the vehicle the year before i bought it the recorded mileage was 240,000 miles ,so if you think you are on your own :eek:,But am i bitter ,you :censored: bet i am
 
#20 ·
To me, that doesn't sound too bad.

Three tyres, may as well get a set of 4 and negotiate for a discount.
Hint, many of the franchise places are cheaper online. So you can order on line, they email you when tyres are in, go in an get them fitted.... can be about 20% saving over driving in and buying the same tyres. Shop around !!!!
If really brassic, hunt round for part worns but be careful what you buy if you do.

Brake pipes.
Looks like the long pipes along the back axle and only a couple.
Last couple I did...full length on my Kia, copper pipes with end flares made up were 30 notes.
Local franchise place quoted 120 to supply and fit, local independent 100.
As I said before, brake pipes aren't difficult but can be a pain.
As always, shop around.

Handbrake.
Adjustment or sticky cable would be my guess as no advisories on foot brake.

Screen.... depends on damage.
May be repairable...stone chips usually are, cracks usually aren't.
See if screen cover is included on insurance and if any excess.
 
#21 ·
Thats nothing ,whats he quoted for that ,that is not 3 hours work on a bad day ,he will not take the tank off ,he will cut the pipe ,pull it out the clips send a new pipe over and secure it with cable ties so it can not touch anything ,that is one roll of brake pipe possibly 12£ you can not count tyres they are wear and tear like exhausts .Windscreen is a bummer that could be expensive,whats the quote excluding tyres. 160£ plus the dreaded
 
#23 ·
Exactly,muppet of a son ,saying that ,that LAGUNA estate he got me on a punt non runner 54 PLATE with spare alternator and starter ,only needed a battery and A CV for mot ,170 FOR CAR,30 mot 10 for cv ,well 6,90 for cv but did have to wear a lot of gloves,210£ think hes slightly made it up ,he supplies my laptops when they go T--S up,great son really:d
 
#25 ·
Thanks guys so it's not that bad then ? Iv managed to get the MOT history off vosa as some of you have been asking sorry it took so long I'm a ocd with details online so took my time blurring stuff out. But at last here you are. I kind of get the feeling some stuff that has been advised in the past just hasn't been replaced. I guess it's down to me. As seen on the last mot it passed .




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#26 ·
As others have said its not bad I think the only reason he said not to drive it was due to the tyres

I don't know an mot station that does not say disks worn just scratch them and they say that if they are worn to excess then they would fail them
brake pipes easy job and you will have new brake fluid so a plus on that
hand brake as said may just need freeing up with out looking at it
if the pads are well worn its worth getting them changed as well seeing as the wheels will be coming off
Ron
 
#27 ·
There's nothing in the old history I'd be concerned about ... it all seems to be on par for normal wear & tear items on an older car. Interesting how the windscreen has been 'advisory' for so long. If its an advisory on this recent test then that's one job you can probably ignore and fix later if the MOT tester is agreeable.
 
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#29 ·
There's nothing in the old history I'd be concerned about ... it all seems to be on par for normal wear & tear items on an older car. Interesting how the windscreen has been 'advisory' for so long. If its an advisory on this recent test then that's one job you can probably ignore and fix later if the MOT tester is agreeable.
Unfortunately, a fail item this time.
Which suggests inspector being finicky or that the damage has spread into the driver's view.
Or it's new damage.
If the first, people like autoglass would likely fix and doubt the inspector would argue.... though over 10mm diameter in driver's view they should not fix.
But we haven't seen so can only surmise.

As said earlier, check insurance. Many include windscreen cover and as such, a repair would be free (to you) and carry no damage to No Claims.
Even a replacement screen may be outside No Claims or have no impact.
 
#30 ·
Thanks guys I will take a picture in the morning of the windscreen there's a small chip where a small stone has probes hit but that's it. Also I don't get the brake lines at the rear why are they brake lines goi g to the back isn't the rear brakes the parking ? And isn't it it cable ?


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#31 ·
Brake pipes, not lines.
These are pipes to carry brake fluid.

The brakes on the rear operate in two ways.
One is via cables for the handbrake.
Second is hydraulically, same as the front brakes, when you put your foot on the pedal.

The pipes are corroded. Inspector believes they are at the point of failing, leaking, which isn't good

As said, relatively simple job but can be time consuming.
 
#32 ·
Hahn right now I understand I thought the brakes only operated on the front with the foot pedal you learn something new everyday. The second question is If do it my self could I just remove the old pipes and bend the new ones into the same shape. I'm really low on funds lol. Found this pipe on eBay is it the right thickness ect ?



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