Hi Guys,
I purchased a secondhand car last year at a cost of 14,750, just after the statutory warranty ran out i started to have major issues with the vehicle. Upon diagnosis from a specialist mechanic i was told that i would need to replace the ECU unit at a cost of $2600 just for the part and another $500 in labour. i got a second opinion as requested by the car dealer and they said the same thing. I have since replaced the ECU and now the car still has faults and still not running correctly which will now mean further diagnostics at my cost for the labour and then more money to fix whatever the problem is. The car had only done 3000k's at the time i started having issues so is this reasonable use? I have spoken with consumer protection and they have told me that the law is not in black and white and basically it depends on the magistrate and how they feel on the day if the car dealer has any case to answer under consumer protection law. I could quite easily be up for another 2 to 3k to fix the car taking the total to around $6000, nearly half the price of the car. My question is do you think i have a strong case against the dealer and if i take this to court do i have a chance of winning. P.S the car was also sold to us with no jack, wheelbrace or spare tyre, yes i should have checked this but i trusted them.
I purchased a secondhand car last year at a cost of 14,750, just after the statutory warranty ran out i started to have major issues with the vehicle. Upon diagnosis from a specialist mechanic i was told that i would need to replace the ECU unit at a cost of $2600 just for the part and another $500 in labour. i got a second opinion as requested by the car dealer and they said the same thing. I have since replaced the ECU and now the car still has faults and still not running correctly which will now mean further diagnostics at my cost for the labour and then more money to fix whatever the problem is. The car had only done 3000k's at the time i started having issues so is this reasonable use? I have spoken with consumer protection and they have told me that the law is not in black and white and basically it depends on the magistrate and how they feel on the day if the car dealer has any case to answer under consumer protection law. I could quite easily be up for another 2 to 3k to fix the car taking the total to around $6000, nearly half the price of the car. My question is do you think i have a strong case against the dealer and if i take this to court do i have a chance of winning. P.S the car was also sold to us with no jack, wheelbrace or spare tyre, yes i should have checked this but i trusted them.