HI
I bought a pre Reg UK car with 10 miles on it from deleted. The car was registered in September 03 and had a PDI from the main dealer late Sept 03..all stamped up !
I then had a recall on the car and when I took it into my local main dealer for the repair work they informed that the car was a 2002 model and in the build date was December 2001!
The 3 year warranty starts from last September so that is OK but to my way of thinking the car is over 2 years old!!
Does this happen often or do we as consumers need to check the build date on each new car that we buy?
Any thoughts on this
alan
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There have been threads like this before, I think. Maybe your car sat on a storage site for some while, like the ones by the railway at Irlam. Is it still a current model and spec?
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yes it is current only minor changes eg cd changer in arm rest not in boot...I am enjoying the car in spite of its age just wondering if perhaps the log should show the build date on it
alan
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You haven't told us the model, but there will be all sorts of plastic mouldings and hoses under the bonnet showing a make-date, also the battery - if you can interpret the coding (battery depots can). Look under the ashtray, also steel wheels may have explicit dating.
Is there any suggestion that the car might have done some modest mileage which has been zeroed?
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Tyres carry a date code, too.
Prior to year 2000, this was a three digit code, so 259 would indicate week 25 in 1999. 017 would indicate week 1 in 1997.
Since year 2000, this has been a four digit code, with the week and year reversed from the three digit convention. 0048 would therefore indicate that the tyre was manufactured in week 48 of year 2000, and 0103 that it was manufactured in week 03 of year 2001.
HTH.
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The build sticker in the the engine bay says 12/01 I cannot tell it the speedo was turned back though
alan
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Unless you specifically asked if the car was built "recently" or was the current spec, then there is no recompense I think, unfortunately. Buyers of "new" cars from main dealers would also do well to remember that the spec/ build date of the car should be questioned prior to ordering and made part of the contract. There have been cases of people buying a new car, expecting to get what was in the brochure but not having specifically asked about this, then finding when they collect their "new" car that it was the previous model year.
Be warned!
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I checked a Mondeo 2.0LX out for someone last May. It was a Sept. 2002 reg. on sale in a car supermarket with 3000 miles on it. Very nice car. When I checked the build date it was Dec. 2001. I was suprised that a popular car like a Mondeo could have been sat around for so long.
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i also got stung like you have i.e my new car was far from brand spanking new and had come off the manufatcurers line 20 months earlier.
the law changed last April (i think) which may give you power to complain and reject the vehicle. You will have a stronger case if you have a model which is not up to date spec.
I bought from a well known supermarket (the moderator wont let me name them i think) and have had little joy in putting things right. I have appointed a lawyer and he is progressing a case to the small claims court. The argument being that the car i have has numerous faults blemishes etc that you would not expect of a new car!
Ridiculously, the motor trade seem to be able to get away selling a vehicle as new,based on the fact that the first registration date is the key to being new and not the date of manufacture.
The first thing you must do is reject the car and detail in writing why. if you make enough fuss you might get some joy?
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Boroboy: did you get anywhere with your saga? And if I recall correctly a case was cited (Ford? v ANOPunter) in your thread, which didn't surface again - at least I haven't noticed.
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Hi Nortones2,
My case is still dragging on. It is with a lawyer who thankfully for me is being paid by my legal expenses insurance,sadly for me this means he`s quite slow.
After a bit of correspondence my lawywer advised that it would be difficult to pursue a claim that the car was`nt new as i was the first registered owner.I am not sure he really put his back into it and the other side came up with 2 cases (precedents) which they have obviously used before! These were 20 and 35 years old and were not strictly along the same lines anyway.
This was annoying especially as the supermarket in question ( i really wish i could name them!) advertised this and other cars as "brand new". I think this is taking it when the one i bought was built at least 21 months previous and had obviously sat in a field in Ireland and the England before muggins came along.
Interestingly the firm in question have re-done their website and no longer use the term "brand new",thankfully i did a print of the old one.
Anyway, my lawyer has presented a case saying that the car was not presented as a new car would/should be and the following is evidence of that:
-It had a number of scratches and blemishes
-It leaked water when parked at a certain angle
-the aircon broke within a month (not necessarily the dealers fault i admit,but perhaps not helped by the age and sitting around)
-there was a lot of rust buid up on exhaust,brake discs and underneath the car
-the aircon stunk!
the best one however was the fact that one day i was returning home when the electrics went capput and the whole thing gave up on me. it transpires that the battery was not the correct one for the receptical it sits in,and certainly not the one that would have been fitted by Alfa. This caused it to fall over and touch the bodywork of the car,causing a short!
I was without a car for just under 2 weeks because of this and am still out of pocket!
There are numerous other issues i wont bore you with!
Some will read this and say i am a mug,buyer beware etc. however a few years previous i bought a new ford galaxy from ford brugge and had absolutely no problems at all.It came of the production line and was brand spanking and UK model and still runs fine today.
Thus i was comfortable with buying an import and expected better from this so called lead supermarket that advertises in the national press and is endorsed by all and good of motoring!
in addition the process of picking the car up from the depot in the Midlands does not allow you to check over the vehicle,not that i felt i would need to in buying a new car.
Ironically the car go`s in the garage tomorrow to fix the alarm that the supermarket firm fitted! After that i am going to part ex for something else and will be wiser for the experience.
i will update when there is concrete news on where the case ends up,although the last time i spoke to my lawyer he suggested the other side might want to do something to stop it going to court.
i will also check the other thread as i didnt keep tabs on it.
Good luck!
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Boroboy: thanks for the update. I hope the lawyer gets some action: maybe they'll settle out of court. just shows how much it's worth being aware of the dodgy trade practice of leaving them for months on end on old airforce bases. All most carefully parked by the mechanically sympathetic lads and lasses who gently move them around. I've often wondered about the sardonic smile that flits over the face of sales, when running in is mentioned.
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hi
what luck did you have in the end? I have learned that checking the vin and plastics( date marks) are as important as the the v5s itself
alan
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alan - I wasn't suggesting you could tell that the speedo had been reset - is there any sign of wear and tear anywhere on the car (tyres are the obvious example, pedal rubbers)?
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HI
No it all looks new inside only thing was that the engine bay was very...dusty
just means that the oil, battery and tyres etc are two years old now
alan
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alan - so if you are happy with the inside, it's only the mechanicals you need to worry about. People on this site are told to take all sorts of precautions before laying up a car for 12 months - what did the makers do, do you think? (I'm thinking especially of the cylinder bores, turbo, that sort of thing). If it all runs and sounds fine, you may be OK.
And the air-con?
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HI
the air con is fine
alan
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alanhappy: boroboy had exact same title post before see
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=11410&...f
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How long is a piece of string?
It is a matter of personal interpretation as to the "newness" of a car. A car just off a UK production line is new, at that moment. but what about a Japanese manufactured car which has been on the high seas for weeks. When does it cease to be "new" - halfway round the Pacific Ocean or when it lands in UK?
The only SURE criterion of "newness", able to be determined factually, is the date of registration to the first keeper of the vehicle. That is a matter of FACT, not opinion or interpretation.
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You can check the build date of your car on the following website, as long as you enter the VIN number correctly:
www.autobaza.pl
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what about the tyres on my ml270 mercedes state not to use the tyres after they are 5 years old i do a very low mileage would not be impressed if i lost a year or two because it had been in a field waiting for someone to buy it.
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I have seen rumours that the MOT test may soon be amended so that any tyre over 5 years old will not be allowed. Where does that leave low-mileage drivers like me (and my wife)?
Yet more stealth taxes and unnecessary expense.....
Time to seriously consider emigrating outside Europe perhaps.
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Harry M has a good point; the rear tyres on my car lasted seven years.
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Where do you draw the line for tyre age though, with the mileage that my gran covers I reckon her rear tyres would be at least 10 years old before they would require replacement.
Is a 10 year old tyre safe for road use? Bearing in mind they are permanently exposed to the elements, as her Focus does not get garaged, it's too big to fit comfortably.
Blue
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Is a 10 year old tyre safe for road use?
No, sorry.
It's not just a matter of the tread wearing down. Rubber is a natural compund that degrades over time. A 10 year old tyre is simply not as strong as a new tyre, and if it is put under stress it may disintegrate.
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Lol, that's the point I was making after it was claimed that replacing old tyres is a stealth tax. :-)
Maybe 5 years is too soon to change, I don't know, but I do know that I wouldn't leave them on for 10 years.
Fortunately in my gran's case all four of the tyres on her last car displayed cracking around the edges and so it wasn't hard to justify replacing them even though they had lots of tread left in them.
Blue
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Sorry Blue...
I guess she's also not to keen on parking, if the Focus is too big for a garage?
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Well, actually, she's not that keen on manouvering it around our drive! :-)
But that isn't her problem, her bungalow has a single garage, but unfortunately this was only *just* big enoough to comfrtably hold her old Starlet, the Corolla was a no no, and so is the Focus. It's surpriseing given that the bungalow is only 10 years old, and it is not small at all, but the garage is so narrow, it's disgraceful.
We decided that it would be best just to not garage the car, given that although it would fit, it be a very, very tight squeeze and the car will be fine where it is on the drive. I wouldn't like to have to squeeze myself in and out of a gap that narrow, never mind a 70 year old lady! ;-)
Blue
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Has she got room for a carport, perhaps tacked on front of garage?
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Not really, the garage is integrated into the house and a car port would make it all look serioulsy ugly! :-)
She doesn't really need it anyway, the Focus has the full climate pack, both windscreens, the mirrors and the washerjets are heated. It's a good area, so car crime (touch wood) isn't a major issue if the right precautions are taken, and she won't keep the car long enough for any serious corrosion problems to develop, the car is warranted for 12 years anyway!
When we took all that into account, plus the risk of damage from objects in the garage, and the physical challenges it would pose to an elderly lady climbing in and out of the car at very nasty angles we decided that it wasn't worth the hassle of using the garage. Especially as it meant backing the car out every time she wanted to use the tumble dryer. :-(
Blue
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"You can check the build date of your car on the following website, as long as you enter the VIN number correctly:
www.autobaza.pl"
...and if you pay to join up. You get 3 free tries per day but with those you don't get the date of manufacture.
48 hours 5 PLN = GBP 0.73
1 week 15 PLN = GBP 2.20
2 weeks 25 PLN = GBP 3.66
1 month 40 PLN = GBP 5.87
6 months 200 PLN = GBP 29.30
1 year 400 PLN = GBP 58.66
My VIN failed as not found, but a colleague's worked.
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At least unsold cars are stored better these days. Check out "Car" magazine for a nostalgic look back to 1981 with unsold Renault 14s standing up to their bumpers in water.
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I think that the point being missed during this discussion is that the car was bought from a 'supermarket', So it was almost certainly significantly cheaper. The reason for this being, that it had been stored for some time and the manufacturer wished to clear stocks, so they sell to the supermarkets at a reduced price, obviously with the oldest ones going first. Bit like reaching its best 'before date'.
MORAL, you get what you pay for. Dealing with an official agent gives you factory back up and decent repair facilities with staff trained on the product. It is suprising what good deals can be negotiated from dealers now I am pleased to say, as I recently experienced.
If I was looking for a seriously reduced product price I would try a supermarket, but know the specification ot the car that you want so that what you buy is not an old specification.
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The swines....it was COMPLETELY free last time I checked!!!
You used to get the full details.
Will have to find another website...there must be one somewhere
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