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Originally posted by David Lee:
Small dealer with 150 to 200 vehicles.

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Originally posted by deepocean:

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Originally posted by David Lee:
I bought what I thought was a nice condition van and the year model I could afford. As I said, I would not have made the purchase otherwise. Matters not as it is unacceptable to me and is getting returned in the morning.

Honestly you will never know what they will do unless you try. I think you have the right attitude. Not everything in life has to be settled by lawyers or lemon laws. What's right is right.

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Originally posted by reloader-1:

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Originally posted by David Lee:
Small dealer with 150 to 200 vehicles.

I think you are up the proverbial creek, unfortunately. I’d be there first thing on Monday and raise a fuss, but the most likely outcome is you are the owner of that van.

Next time, don’t buy a vehicle until ALL problems are resolved, then you sign on the line. Also, inspect the heck out of it, and if it’s a used vehicle, get it inspected at another shop.

I know you didn’t have transportation, but this is why rental cars exist. $200 at Hertz/Thrifty/Enterprise would have saved a lot of headache and allowed you time to do proper due diligence.

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Originally posted by David Lee:

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Originally posted by Scurvy:
They have no requirement to accept a return if it was a used vehicle. There are no disclosure issues if it's not listed on Carfax.

Carfax is not infallible. I tell people this all the time. You need to do a thorough walkaround and have an independent mechanic inspect the vehicle.

Not trying to be negative but it happens. I wouldn't expect them to take it back. I would expect them to help you with the wheel bearings.

Well this dealer does use Carfax as a way to inform the buyer of damages and accidents, salvage or flood. They present it to you as a selling point. This van having been damaged and repaired was not known by me but I bet the dealer knew of it.

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Originally posted by dry-fly:
I hope things work out in your favor, David.. but honestly, don’t get your hopes up too much. Used car sales people can be complete tools and a waste of oxygen. It doesn’t matter what level or price range you’re in. I bought a used Lexus that did not have damage disclosed before hand from a Lexus dealer.

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Originally posted by bjor13:

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Originally posted by David Lee:

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Originally posted by Scurvy:
They have no requirement to accept a return if it was a used vehicle. There are no disclosure issues if it's not listed on Carfax.

Carfax is not infallible. I tell people this all the time. You need to do a thorough walkaround and have an independent mechanic inspect the vehicle.

Not trying to be negative but it happens. I wouldn't expect them to take it back. I would expect them to help you with the wheel bearings.

Well this dealer does use Carfax as a way to inform the buyer of damages and accidents, salvage or flood. They present it to you as a selling point. This van having been damaged and repaired was not known by me but I bet the dealer knew of it.

I believe carafe has a Guarantee

Carfax.com Guarantee

When purchasing a used car, it’s always a good idea to obtain a vehicle history report from Carfax.com. This type of report allows potential buyers to view information about the vehicle’s past. This information is gathered from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), as well as from other sources that will give you the most accurate and current information. Carfax.com has a guarantee that the information on these reports is correct.

When you receive a report from Carfax.com that states a vehicle has no major issues, but you later discover it does, Carfax.com will buy the car back from you. This guarantee is only valid for information that was reported to the DMV and not damage that was never officially reported.

Also, not all Carfax.com reports come with a guarantee. Vehicles that have major damage listed on a report don’t usually have the guarantee. This means that you should verify the buyback guarantee on a specific vehicle when you order a Carfax.com report. Until you have this information, you might want to hold off on purchasing the vehicle. This is a good way to protect yourself when purchasing a used vehicle.

Published in by CARCHEX on November 13, 2014

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Originally posted by Scurvy:
I'm sorry but no one in court is going to care about how certain you are unless you have written proof.

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Originally posted by reloader-1:
Big deal, this isn’t a “dealership”. It’s a small, unaffiliated shop.

Thus, leverage is greatly diminished. There may still be a way out, but it is nowhere near as likely if he bought it from a Toyota dealer.

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Originally posted by reloader-1:
Big deal, this isn’t a “dealership”. It’s a small, unaffiliated shop.

Thus, leverage is greatly diminished. There may still be a way out, but it is nowhere near as likely if he bought it from a Toyota dealer.

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Originally posted by bigdeal:

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Originally posted by Scurvy:
I'm sorry but no one in court is going to care about how certain you are unless you have written proof.

Dude, mellow out. As so many things in life, this isn't about what you can or can't prove, its about whether the dealer wants to take an absolute beating in the court of public opinion if it opts to make the wrong decision on this one. I had a cousin encounter a similar incident and after about 30 minutes of conversation between me and the GM for the dealership, they offered him a full refund or credit on another vehicle of his choice. Social media is a killer in today's business world, and coupling that with the local news action reporter generally moves dealership personnel to make the right decision. This is especially true when dealing with a smaller dealership that can't weather a huge storm of negative attention.

David Lee...Stop talking with salesmen. They're utterly useless in a situation like this. Even the sales manager may be worthless, but I suggest you start with him tomorrow and if he balks, find the GM. Dealership interactions are best viewed as a full contact fight, so be prepared. You 'can' make the dealership act as they should, but it will take a lot of work, patience, and resolve on your part. Get to the GM and lay out the situation. Most dealerships do at least a minimal inspection of used vehicles, and a dealership that isn't completely incompetent would have caught the damage repair you've described. Stick to your guns and try to remain reasonable and hopefully you can move this to where it needs to be. Good luck.

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Originally posted by reloader-1:
Big deal, this isn’t a “dealership”. It’s a small, unaffiliated shop.

Thus, leverage is greatly diminished. There may still be a way out, but it is nowhere near as likely if he bought it from a Toyota dealer.

EDIT: been reading some of their Google reviews (Midwest Auto Connection is the dealer), seems like this behavior is quite typical:

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They get some interesting inventory but the salespeople could use some training. Also, be sure to check the vehicles thoroughly as I've noticed signs of "rebuilds" on some of their cars. Especially very noticeable bodywork and paint that isn't the greatest.

They are probably a lot of auction cars that need work and they may do the work on site, I'm not positive. But a lot of the work is clearly not "top notch".

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I drove the van Friday a couple miles on secondary roads and noticed, around 30 MPH a revolving/howling sound from its front end. There also is at slow turns, what sounds like a ball joint knuckling over.

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Originally posted by David Lee:

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Originally posted by Scurvy:

Well this dealer does use Carfax as a way to inform the buyer of damages and accidents, salvage or flood. They present it to you as a selling point. This van having been damaged and repaired was not known by me but I bet the dealer knew of it.

quote:

Originally posted by reloader-1:...

EDIT: been reading some of their Google reviews (Midwest Auto Connection is the dealer), seems like this behavior is quite typical:
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