Hi all,
I've been dealing with a crappy situation after buying a car from a dealership here in Brisbane.
Here's the cliff notes.
- Purchased car from major dealer with broken air con
- Before purchasing, wrote it into contract that issue must be fixed. Dealer & I signed contract.
- Issue has been "repaired" 3 times now within <60 days of buying the car
- Air con has now failed for the 4th time
- Took car in again and am now being told a rock caused new damage to the condenser, and I must pay $800
- I don't believe this to be true, I think it's always been broken, hence gas leaking out again every couple weeks
- What can I do?
And here's the longer version for those who are interested.
I initially went to a dealer to inspect a used Peugeot RCZ. 2012 model with 90,000KM on the clock. Did the test drive and was quite impressed, but made sure to check all the electricals. The salesman and I both noticed the air conditioner wasn't working, and he agreed that they would sort that out prior to purchasing. He assumed it would just need re-gassing.
We drove back to the dealership and negotiated for about an hour. I managed to get the price down about 10%, as well as got them to throw in the "premium warranty" (although I kinda know this has limited/no value). Before you guys pull me up on this - I made sure to write on the contract that the air conditioner must be repaired under "Special Terms". We then signed a deal and I was told I would be notified when the car was ready to be picked up.
And it begins…
First Repair
So, a week later, I go in to pick up the car after being told the air conditioning has been fixed. I sit down in the car, ready to drive away, and turn the air con on. Of course, it's not working - hot as can be. Felt like fire bursting out of the fans on this 33 degree summer day. I walked back inside and spoke with the salesman who claims he is certain they fixed it, and "even got the thermometer out to check it". Absolute BS. So, he says, take it away and if it still isn't working, just bring it back and we'll sort it. After having driven an hour, I was ready to take the car and sort it out later, assuming it would be a fairly straightforward process.
Second Repair
I call again and organise a repair. I bring it in again a few days later, then receive a call 2 days after that saying it has been fixed. I go to pick it up, test it out, and it's working! Everything seems okay. I drove the car around for about a week, and started hearing what sounded like a gas leak from within the car. Shortly after this, the air con stopped blowing cold air.
Third Repair
I called them again and arranged another repair. This time, the salesman (still the same guy, mind you) says he will speak to his manager about taking it to an air con specialist. I take the car in and they take it to the specialist. Two weeks later, I get a call saying it's fixed and I go in and pick it up. They gave me a copy of the paperwork from the third party air con specialist which says it cost around $2500 to fix, and they replaced the "evaporator core". It made no other notes aside from the fact that they found a fault with it and replaced it.
All went well for nearly a month, until…
Fourth Repair
The air con started making the same damn noise again. The sound of a gas pipe leaking, coming right from the fans inside the cabin. 1 hour later, no more cold air is coming out. God dammit. I call them again, and organise ANOTHER repair.
This time, it took 1-2 weeks between my initial call and involved me chasing him up multiple times, just to get a date where I could bring it in. Finally, I take it in again. He says they will take it to the air con repairer again because they have an obligation to repair it, given the dealership has already paid them to fix it once. I say fair enough and leave.
The BS begins
So, today, I get a call saying they've found the issue! Apparently, I have driven over a rock which has damaged the condenser, and they insist it is a fresh issue and not the same one I initially brought it in for. They are now asking me to pay $800 to fix and keep pulling the "we're just passing the message on from the repairer" nonsense.
What can I do in this situation? I've stated my case via text and have full evidence of all the previous repairs & the agreement in the contract that the air con be repaired. I've only had the car for ~60 days — less if you account for the time it's been in the shop. How can I prove that I didn't cause this issue? I know I haven't driven over any rocks, I only take this damn car out a few times a week to the local shops and the occasional highway drive. Never heard a noise whatsoever, and there are no signs of rocks hitting the bumper or anything.
Advice would be greatly appreciated.
Godric on 01/03/2018 - 18:26 Comment score below threshold.
