Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car

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Thu 14 Feb 2013 21:35
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - marcusg

I just bought a 10 year old Renault Clio from a small independent dealer, and it is in far worse state than I was led to believe, but I suspect that it's buyer beware and I just have to live with it.

My particular issues are:

1. When I bought it I was told the cambelt had been replaced and was shown a receipt for the work, but on closer inspection I can see this receipt now says "not needed" in small writing.

2. There are very wet patches in the boot and under the front passenger seat, so it seems the car leaks water seriously. The car is not very rusty so I imagine the front leak is probably the sunroof? Not sure about the boot, can't see obvious entry point for water.

The car came with a 28 day warranty but I'm quite sure neither of those two items are going to be covered.

So my questions are:

1. Is there anything I can do about the fact they lied about the cambelt?

2. How much does it cost to repair water leaks? Should I just bin the car and say goodbye to £1900?

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Thu 14 Feb 2013 22:10
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - tony g
If that's all that's wrong with the car ,why would you want to get rid of it .

The faults that you describe are so minor it's not worth pursuing the dealer ,it may be possible to adjust the sunroof to stop it leaking .

The warranty definitely wouldn't cover the faults that you describe .

Edited by tony g on 14/02/2013 at 22:11

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Fri 15 Feb 2013 10:36
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - 72 dudes

I agree with tony g about the warranty.

But under the Sale of Goods Act, you may have some comeback for the water leaks. The dealer would have to prove that these faults were NOT present when you bought the car.

So contact the dealer, tell him about the water ingress, and politely but firmly explain that under the SOGA, he has a duty to repair it. If he refuses, you have the right to take him to Small Claims Court, but frankly, it would be cheaper to get it sorted at a local bodyshop.

The lack of a cambelt change is indeed buyer beware, there's no way you can prove that you were misrepresented, and you should have scrutinised the paperwork more closely.

But get the cambelt done as soon as possible, it may cost £250 but you'd lose far more by selling the car now.

Come back to the forum and let us know the outcome please.

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Fri 15 Feb 2013 12:36
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - marcusg

I am fairly sure that if I complain about water leaking he will just say it is an old car and it is my problem, is there any way I can inform myself about exactly what the SOGA does and does not cover?

Maybe I won't bother contacting him and will try and get someone to fix the leaks at the same time as the cambelt. I am just worried by all the stories I have heard where people have paid a fair sum to replace one part of the sunroof and then the problem still hasn't gone away because it turns out the leak was another part, or it was something else entirely. I tried pouring a bottle of water over the roof and the door seals but didn't notice any obvious water ingress, but admittedly I'm no mechanic.

The cambelt thing annoys me more because I was outright lied to than the cost, after all even if it was replaced a few years ago you are supposed to replace them on 1.2 Clios fairly regularly anyway.

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Fri 15 Feb 2013 16:23
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - Cris_on_the_gas

If the dealer told you that the Cambelt had been changed and it hasn't that is clear misrepresentation.

If he does not agree to rectify this then you can get it repaired and sue through the small claims court for the £250. however how much evidence have you got that s/he stated it had been changed, witnesses ?

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Fri 15 Feb 2013 19:54
Renault Clio - Made mistake buying car - marcusg

No evidence at all! I will pay to get the cambelt replaced on Monday. Might ask them to try to fix the leak to, though I was talking to someone today who said if the leak is not obvious then it might require stripping out part of the interior, which would be expensive.

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