Should an auto dealer fix known recalls before reselling a vehicle?

arizona,was sold a 2001 ford escape in late oct early nov of 2001 ii was told it had 70 point inspection and qualified for an extended warranty it had about 14000 miles at the time. through nhtsa i found that the vehicle had 4 or 5 recalls all dated in late in the year 2000. out of these one was fixed, no record of the others being fixed, including fuel system, steering, throttle control. they have stalled me on getting the 70 point report, i have asked for it several times. i found a very dirty air filter element after getting bad fuel mpg. this makes me wonder what else they said they fixed and missed, they offered a meeting with the owner or sales mgr in future. i no longer want the suv or any dealings with them as i feel they misrepresented it and the "excellent service department" at this point do i have any rights or recourse in this matter?

jeff williams

[racer72]

It is up to you, the purchaser of a vehicle, to verify the condition of the vehicle prior to buying it. Did you have the vehicle inspected by an independant mechanic first? If you bought the vehicle from a Ford dealer, they should honor any recalls. If it was not a Ford dealer, they have no responsibility for verifying any recalls or having the repairs done. Contact the area service rep from Ford about the recalls and that person should be able to get the recall items taken care of. But you present nothing that warrants returning the vehicle to the dealer.