Brother bought car from dealer, crankshaft breaks after 5 weeks.

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PaddyW

Registered User
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Hi all,

Would like your thoughts and opinions on this please.

My brother bought a 2nd hand 2007 Opel Astra 1.4 petrol 6 weeks ago. He had the car 5 weeks and was driving in to work one morning when the car just stopped. Car was assessed and determined that the crankshaft went in it. He had to bring the car back to the dealership he bought it from.
They are trying to say that the fault is his, that a light came on and that he kept driving, which caused the problem. My brother swears no light came on and that the car just stopped itself. The car was sold with a 3 month or 3000 mile warranty and he is comfortably inside the limits on both counts. The company have offered to pay half the costs. He has since asked them to repair the car under warranty and they told him to take the car and they will see him in court.

My questions are :

Can a diagnostic tool be that exact that it gives readings to the second?
If the garage are adamant that it is fully my brothers' fault, why are they offering to pay half of the price? Should they not be saying it's all for him? Or are they just trying to recoup money for themselves, when they know they should be paying all of it?
The car was advertised as fully serviced, NCT ready. Would the crankshaft not have been checked?
Turns out they are not registered with SIMI. I rang CCPC and they advised writing a letter of complaint and then seeking legal advice. What other avenues are open besides this and small claims court, if any?

Thanks all for taking the time.
 
1st check is does the engine ID match the ID on the registration document?

2nd check do the oil pressure / low oil warning lights work on the dash?

3rd check is does the check engine light work?

Gather all the documents including ads in relation to the car, any document that describes the condition of the car.

Any guarantee or warranty offered by the garage is in addition to buyer's protection under consumer legislation. It does not replace it. Your brother's rights in law are the same whether buying a new or second hand car.

SIMI membership is not a consumer protection. It is a special interest group focussed on protecting the garages, mechanics and sales outlets who pay their subscription fee.

It sounds like he may have to go to court, in which case he will need his car examined by an engineer. Even if he wins a court case, unfortunately, collecting any award may prove difficult.

More info - [broken link removed]
 
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PaddyW.

Will probably win in court but can he wait that long ?

I know it (hurts) but how much is half ? and would paying half be best/worst option?
 
"Your brother's rights in law are the same whether buying a new or second hand car." I should have added "from a garage or dealer."

Did he have his own mechanic look at the car before buying?
 
Gerry Canning said:
PaddyW.

Will probably win in court but can he wait that long ?

I know it (hurts) but how much is half ? and would paying half be best/worst option?
Click to expand...

Hi Gerry, half would likely be north of €600.00, depending on what the dealer says!
 
mathepac said:
"Your brother's rights in law are the same whether buying a new or second hand car." I should have added "from a garage or dealer."

Did he have his own mechanic look at the car before buying?
Click to expand...

Hi Mathepac, As far as I know he did
 
Crankshafts generally dont break, the sieze up due to lack oil, or bearing issues. A mechanic can also, only see so much, so if there was a hairline crack in the crankshaft, he would want to be some mechanic to identify it on inspection.
Having said all that, there is no doubt he will succeed in the courts if it gets that far. The Garage would not have a leg to stand on. There is no way I would have sold this car with a three month warranty.
While all the toing and froing is going on, If it were my 9 year old car, I would have a second hand Engine fitted for a fraction of the rebuild.
 
LS400 said:
Crankshafts generally dont break, the sieze up due to lack oil
Click to expand...
As such, the dealer may genuinely believe that your brother was negligent in ignoring an oil warning light.

On the other hand, they serviced and guaranteed this car 5 weeks ago. They either forgot to fill the oil, or they guaranteed a car that's burning/leaking oil at a rate.
 
Get another garage to check the diagnostics and see if they can determine the time the fault developed. If they confirm no such event is recorded in advance of the problem, then you have proof they lied, and it also shows you are prepared to go to a bit of effort to prove your case.
 
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