Legal action options????

[brettjoe]

Hey All,
I just recently bought a 96 Taurus from a private seller. I test drove the vehicle for a good hour on a Wednesday evening, then decided to buy the vehicle on Friday. EVERYTHING looked fine, sounded fine, ran fine, etc. On that Friday, on the way home from purchasing the car, the o/d off light came on, and would not kick into that next gear. In addition, the engine started to smoke, which I just attributed to oil leaking. (Which I sorta knew it had a problem with.) Working for a company that produces Ford Workshop Manuals and Repair Manuals, I was able to find out that the problem is most likely a bad overdrive clutch and the seals are leaking...meaning a new rebuilt transmission needing to be done!!! I havent been able to take it in anywhere, because I dont have the time NOR the money for a new trans., but I did call the seller and let him know I was having these problems. The actual seller will never talk on the phone, but his partner in the garage will. They say bring it in and they will look at it. Here's my question: DO I HAVE ANY LEGAL RECOURSE IN THIS SITUATION? IS THERE ANY SITUATION WHERE A SELLER CAN BE MADE TO REPAIR A DEFECT, AT THEIR COST, THAT I AM QUITE CERTAIN THEY KNEW EXISTED, YET SOLD THE CAR UNDER MISLEADING CIRCUMSTANCES? I paid $1800 for the car, and the mechanics I have talked to say the new trans will run the same amount. What are my options? I need help as I do not have the money to be just throwing it around.
-brett

[dxrflyboy]

Did the seller offer any kind of warranty with the car? Dealers and garages in my state must offer a 3 month/3000 mile warranty on most cars, but there is a price cutoff, below which a warranty does not have to be offered. If the garage stands behind the car they sold you, they will most likely put a used trans. in the car. If they tell you it's your problem, you will probably end up taking them to small claims court to settle the matter. You will also most likely lose. I hope you can get some satisfaction from the garage, even though I doubt they knew there was a problem with it. A guaranteed used transmission is also another option, if you end up eating the repair.

[93 CAPRICE LTZ 5.7]

check your state for a lemon law! FYI transmission shops make big$$$ from ford & chrylser transaxles!
your cars resale value may have a say in wether or not you want to put a new trans in your car. Also the owner did know this trans was bad. I know because they usualy start to slip and shudder under moderate to heavy acceleration. Depending on your driving style you may have not noticed on your test drive but I garantee it had the symtoms I mentioned.the owner will not talk to you because of his guilt and the mechanic is seeing big$$$$$$!!

[Doug Rodrigues]

Unless you can prove that the seller knew that there were problems with the vehicle and hid the facts, at least in the State of Nevada, you're stuck with the car.

There is such a thing as an "Implied Warranty," that says that the purchaser of any non-particular item should expect the item (in this case, an automobile) to be worth closely what the buyer paid for it. However, buying from a private party isn't included in the "Implied Warranty," at least in my state. I suggest that you phone the District Attorney's Office in your area for an opinion in this matter. My gut feeling is that you're stuck with the car as-is.