Buyer Wants To Sue After Buying a 20 Year Old Car!

[Hc7TjxPv]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I sold a 20 year old vehicle with over 150k miles a couple weeks ago for around $14,000. The buyer paid to have it shipped to a different state.

After the vehicle arrived, he complained there was an engine knocking sound. I told him that it sounded the same as all the other cars that I have had (I've had a lot of these same vehicles and they sound the same to me). When he pushed me more, I told him to get the oil changed. I told him that I put some engine cleaner in the oil a few thousand miles earlier and that maybe an oil change would take care of the problem. I bring this up because he is claiming that I knew there was a problem because I used the engine cleaner which isn't true.

After an oil change, he had a mechanic who said he listened with a stethoscope and confirmed it was coming from the engine. Another mechanic said it would need a rebuild which will cost a lot of money.

I have the standard Bill of Sale from California signed with the sales price. In my very detailed ad I stated that I recommended a local mechanic look at the car because it was 20 years old. The buyer declined the inspection.

Now the buyer is threatening to sue, or offering to return it and even allowing me to keep 5% as a restocking fee. IE, he would pay to ship it both ways. I have a feeling that this buyer has extreme buyers remorse. Does he have a case against me?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I sold a 20 year old vehicle with over 150k miles a couple weeks ago for around $14,000. The buyer paid to have it shipped to a different state.

After the vehicle arrived, he complained there was an engine knocking sound. I told him that it sounded the same as all the other cars that I have had (I've had a lot of these same vehicles and they sound the same to me). When he pushed me more, I told him to get the oil changed. I told him that I put some engine cleaner in the oil a few thousand miles earlier and that maybe an oil change would take care of the problem. I bring this up because he is claiming that I knew there was a problem because I used the engine cleaner which isn't true.

After an oil change, he had a mechanic who said he listened with a stethoscope and confirmed it was coming from the engine. Another mechanic said it would need a rebuild which will cost a lot of money.

I have the standard Bill of Sale from California signed with the sales price. In my very detailed ad I stated that I recommended a local mechanic look at the car because it was 20 years old. The buyer declined the inspection.

Now the buyer is threatening to sue, or offering to return it and even allowing me to keep 5% as a restocking fee. IE, he would pay to ship it both ways. I have a feeling that this buyer has extreme buyers remorse. Does he have a case against me?

Does he have a case against you? Probably not, if in your "very detailed ad" you did not state or imply anything false about the condition of the car and if the buyer did, indeed, decline to have the car inspected as recommended.

 

[Hc7TjxPv]

Does he have a case against you? Probably not, if in your "very detailed ad" you did not state or imply anything false about the condition of the car and if the buyer did, indeed, decline to have the car inspected as recommended.

What about saying that the car's engine and transmission run smoothly? Would that be false? To me it was true when I wrote the ad.

 

[Dave1952]

Advertising a car that "runs smoothly" is not a warranty of mechanical excellence, it's salesmanship. There's even a term for this, puffery. Unless you warranted in the bill of sale that the engine was good tell this guy to enjoy his new car. Did you use the expression "as is" in your bill of sale?

 

[Zigner]

Advertising a car that "runs smoothly" is not a warranty of mechanical excellence, it's salesmanship. There's even a term for this, puffery. Unless you warranted in the bill of sale that the engine was good tell this guy to enjoy his new car. Did you use the expression "as is" in your bill of sale?

"As is" isn't even required. It's the default unless specifically stated otherwise.

 

[Hc7TjxPv]

"As is" isn't even required. It's the default unless specifically stated otherwise.

I used the default Bill of Sale provided by the California DMV which doesn't say "AS IS".

 

[TigerD]

Advertising a car that "runs smoothly" is not a warranty of mechanical excellence, it's salesmanship. There's even a term for this, puffery. Unless you warranted in the bill of sale that the engine was good tell this guy to enjoy his new car. Did you use the expression "as is" in your bill of sale?

I disagree. It's puffery when a major corporation does it and is called before the Ad Board. It is a lie when Joe Blow does it and cannot afford a suite of attorneys to defend it.

Absolutely no one can answer this online. It requires a review of the ad, the sales agreement, and all communications by an attorney. Too many questions are unanswered.

TD

 

[quincy]

"Puffery" applies to any advertisement that makes statements so grandiose that no consumer could or would take them seriously (e.g., the world's greatest hamburger). If a statement can be believed by a consumer to be true and it is not true, it is no longer puffery but false advertising.

There was an infringement/false advertising suit that centered on false claims that went beyond mere puffery. In Castrol Inc. v. Penzoil Co, 987 F.2d 939, 3d Cir (1993), the Court found that the statements made in an advertisement about Penzoil's oil (provides "longer engine life" and "outperforms any leading motor oil") could not be proved true but could be proved false. Castrol won its suit.

When a statement like "the car's engine and transmission runs smoothly" is made, it could potentially be viewed as a subjective opinion or as a false statement - depending on how it is read by the consumer. If the engine does not run without knocking, I can see where there could be some question over the use of the word "smoothly." But it would not be considered puffery. A statement like "the best car ever made" would be puffery.

When selling an item, it can be better to keep the ad for the product brief and then let the product sell itself on inspection. That way the purchaser can't hold any false claims against the seller when the purchaser is looking for a refund.

Here is a link to California's Business and Professional Code (which covers individuals as well as businesses):
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=bpc&group=17001-18000&file=17500-17509

That said, the buyer declined to have the vehicle inspected prior to purchase and accepted the vehicle in "as is" condition, so Hc7TjxPv has this in his favor.