Problem

[Helen]

Guys am looking for advice.

I bought a FTO on sunday, i bought her as the woner said that the car was 100% and she would have no trouble passing the NCT as it only failed on the omissions test, he said it had been services 3 months ago so i took his word on that too.

Got her to the garage on monday, there was not a drop of oil on the dipstick which means she is leaking it somewhere, the track rod ends needs to be replaced. The Air conditioning is not working properly so it needs to be gassed. BUT my favourite part is it will not start.
when i got in to it on monday morning i turned the key, she started then died. got the garage to come out and jump start it as i thought it was the battery but still no good. Now IMO this does not just happen overnight.

He had the car running when we got there so she had warmed up so we would not have seen the problem. he told me the revs were turned down low and that was what the problem was, the revs are ticking over at 1200 and i have not touched it yet. i have been told that she should be ticking over at 700 so how would it be to low at 1200.
i now have to bring her to a Mitsubishi garage to get the brain cheque which is more money i have to spend on a car that i should not have paid so much for without an NCT.

Where do i stand?

[deepseadcs]

The same problem I encountered when i first bought my gpx last year, won't start when cold, failed on NCT because of omission( rev too high).... After days of search....found it was Idling motor problem, also mine was bypass, which means 2 wires connected to idle motor was cut, the 2 wires are connected to ecu. Maybe the mechanics was just lazy to change it. So i just reconnect the two wires and change the idle motor. I also notice that the old idle motor was wrongly connected. The idle motor connector should be facing down to engine not up to the boot. Since then no problem encountered and NCT passed.

Deepsea

[soc]

Helen,

Unfortunately you're on dodgy ground here with the whole buyer beware idea. Legally I don't think you'd have any real comeback because it was a private sale without any warranty. Basically the onus is on the buyer to check out the car.

I'd try contacting the seller and tell them the problems you are having - maybe they're genuine and will discuss although by the sounds of things I doubt it. Alternatively you could get someone to play hardball - visit the seller (I assume you have an address) and let them know you're not going to let this go....

Personally I'd be looking for my money back

Out of interest what kind of money did you pay, if you don't mind me asking....

Anyway, sorry to hear about this...

Cheers
Shane

[cpoh]

I hate to have to say it but you should have had the car checked by a mechanic before you parted with your cash. At the end of the day as the saying goes "let the buyer beware" and you broke nearly every rule when buying a car. Never let the seller start the car up and have it running for you when you meet him, a lot can be learned from the cold idle and start-up. Did you check the nct fail report sheet to see exactly what she failed on? Did you buy the car privately?

[CJ]

This is a difficult situation. As was mentioned, the onus is on the buyer to check the car out properly prior to purchase. Theres obviously a number of things wrong with the car, as Shane mentioned contact the seller, and see if you can work something out between yourselves.

he told me the revs were turned down low and that was what the problem was, the revs are ticking over at 1200 and i have not touched it yet

What a load of cr@p, the stepper motor is obviously not working correctly and needs replacing.

The thing that annoys me is that the seller is on this forum and advertised the car in what would appear to be good faith, I would like to hear his point of view before I say any more on the matter.

CJ

[Helen]

The seller of the car is on the website and ya i know his address. tony rang him last night and he was told us we bought the car as we seen it and he had already bought a new car with the money.
did not see NCF failure report as he said he never recieved it from previous owner who i have spoken to and said that he had given all paper work with the car.

He had to have know that she was not starting on first go so i know i was ripped off in buying it.

i have no problem popping to my Solicitor if know i have a leg to stand on.

[Helen]

CJ i have his number if you would like to give him a call on my behalf

[CJ]

I have no problem popping to my Solicitor if know i have a leg to stand on.

Helen, it might not be a bad idea, at least you'll have a clearer view of how you stand legally.

CJ

[kevinod]

Unfortunately you're on dodgy ground here with the whole buyer beware idea. Legally I don't think you'd have any real comeback because it was a private sale without any warranty. Basically the onus is on the buyer to check out the car.

There is some law where if you discover the car develops a major problem within 3 months the seller has to fix it, but I'm not sure on the specifics.

Even though it was a private sale, the seller was still deceitful in his descripton of the car, so there could be some leverage there, but I guess it would be difficult to prove being your word against his, etc.

How was the car running when you drove it home?

Re the oil, can you see any leaks around the engine? Is there oil left on the ground after it's been parked a whlie?

For the engine diagnostics, you can check for codes yourself with this guide, not as much info as the MUT-II would give you but it would give you some indication of any problems.

[JD]

Helen, Sorry to hear about the trouble you are having.

In relation to the stepper motor - mine was causing a problem recently and a simple cleaning did the trick (half hour job), if it comes to it I would certainly try this befor purchasing a new one, as they are very expensive.

JD

[JJ]

Hi Helen, the law may be different in Ireland than in the UK but in the UK the car has to be as described in the advert. For instance if its described as a good runner with no problems and then you find its a bag of cr@p you DO have recourse to law as its been mis described under the trades descriptions act which applies to private sales just as trade sales.

IMHO anyone who deceitfully sells a car knowing its in a bad way should examine their concience carefully I certainly couldn't live with it.

[dave100]

Helen for starters, contact this seller and give him a chance to respond to these problems.
Gotta say it tho, if the guy sold you the car 'as seen' then its obvious the vehicle wasnt gonna be a good un.
Keep us all posted as nobody likes dishonesty on forums.

[RiceRocketUk]

Hi Helen, sorry to hear your bad luck, with regard to your problems yes does sound like a stepper motor problem, it could however be just a wire leading up to the stepper, the green one, as it is common for it to break. Get it checked first to make sure its not that, dont want to spend £89 when you dont need to. If you need any help or advice on parts or problems please feel free to call me or pm me. Needless to say I sell most of them

[Muad_dib77]

Has there been a resolution to this pickle?