QLD Australian Consumer Law - Recurring Problem of Mercedes Benz Car

[Mal G]

I have a Mercedes Benz that has a major oil overheating issue. It is about to have its 3rd new engine in 70,000klms.

2nd engine was to fix the problem at 18,000 klms but 50,000 klms later, I now have to replace it again, bought new and serviced only by Mercedes.

The 2016 model has been engineered to solve this problem. I have demanded a new replacement car.

All the usual " fit for purpose, quality, safety etc etc" have been documented to the dealer. They don't want to comply naturally, however, I won't be put off, my question to you is:

Will Consumer affairs, Fair trading or MTA back my demands? Has the legislation any teeth or can the Dealer just refuse and I will have to go down the Australian Consumer Law legal path?

 

[JS79]

The dealer/manufacturer has a consumer guarantee to provide a product (in this case a car) to do what it was bought to do - in this case to drive around.

There are two articles that may help you decide what to do and what rights you have:

Lemon Car? What You Can Do Under Australian Consumer Law - Legal Blog - LawAnswers.com.au

Your Consumer Rights - Repairs, Refunds and Exchanges - Legal Blog - LawAnswers.com.au

 

[Mal G]

Thanks. All good, but as we all know to get a result is another story.

Are there any clear precedents of a consumer winning against the dealers or manufacturers, ACL is great but to have it work as it should is not that simple?

 

[John Cadogan]

I've been down this path with a lot of disgruntled owners. We have inadequate lemon laws in Australia - and in practise, Mercedes-Benz's lawyers have better funding than yours. The best option is to realise:

A) That the best and most likely outcome is that they manage to fix the defect.
B) Going to war with them is going to be at worst painful and at best resource-intensive and painful.
C) If they replace the car under some act of good faith (as opposed to a judgement) then they'll probably gag you with a non-disclosure agreement.

Trying them in the media is an option (my specialty) as they are more concerned with viral public humiliation than they are with a handful of individual disgruntled customers. Tactically, the best way to do this is to threaten to do it and give them time to consider the fallout (not too much time).

Some of my resources which might be useful:

• http://autoexpert.com.au/buying-a-c...ly-target-worst-carmakers-unilaterally-online
  
• http://autoexpert.com.au/buying-a-car/australias-top-20-dog-lemon-cars-named-shamed
  
• http://autoexpert.com.au/buying-a-car/new-cars-australia-do-we-need-tougher-lemon-laws
  
• http://autoexpert.com.au/buying-a-car/top-10-mercedes-benz-myths

Hope this helps,

Sincerely