Seller Reneging on Promise

What is the name of your state?
Tennessee

Hello, I am 19 and in college at Tennessee State University, and to put things simply, I was "did up a job" on a used car from a seller. Excuse my grammar and spelling because I am in a rush.

To tell you what happened:

I was looking in the paper for a used car when I ran across an ad for a 1994 Ford Taurus, air, CD player, four doors for $1200. Sounded good, so I called and inquired about the car. From the way the seller was talking the car sounded promising. He claimed the car was a good car, and it was “clean enough to go to church in (lol). He said he had to put in a heating coil and I would be on my way to becoming a car owner. In addiditon, he assured me on the phone (after I asked him more about the car) that if anything would go wrong with the car, he would give me my money back or fix what’s wrong with it because he couldn't sleep selling me a bad car. The next morning we went over to his house, to my surprise, it was a 1990 model Taurus, and it looked like it was clean enough for a trip to the city dump. Well, I was kind of turned off, but after asking him was this car “a trap”, and him assuring this was a good car and he would give me my money back if it doesn't work. I decided (like a fool) to go ahead and give him a deposit for the car until he got everything fixed. (I know this was a crazy move, but I was thinking I would rather have an older working car than find something newer for the same price that would break down….then too about the interior, a huge washing would change that, so I thought.) After going out to this shop he worked out of, discovering more problems with this "hoopty" that he was pretending to fix, I gave him the rest of the cash. Well after he got my cash, his story about giving me my money back if the car didn't work changed. He claimed that he wouldn't give me my money back, but he would fix anything that goes wrong with the car free. Well he played around with those words for a week or so. During that time, his son with out a license (while fixing my breaks and axles discovering they were jacked up) ran my car into a 68 pick up destroying my back bumper. He promised me a new bumper, but like everything else, it was an empty promise. Finally after going out to this junkyard he "worked" with, and him giving me the run around claiming he told the mechanic there to fix everything that was wrong (later discovering they “bootlegged” fixed it) he finally took back his promise about fixing anything that would go wrong with the car. Well, obviously with all of the stuff that was wrong with this trap, the car flunked inspection with flying colors (it was smoking so bad they didn’t inspect it). My mother finally called him and demanded that he take this car through inspection or she would sue him. He then began talking about I buy the parts and his son would put them on, but I refused because he promised to fix anything that would go wrong. After playing phone tag with him and his wife for a couple of days, he finally claimed he would fix the problems with the car to get it through inspection, in exchange for the bumper. Well he got it through inspection (illegally I believe), and I was able to take the car back with me to college.


I guess you all are wondering why I typed all of this history. Well I did that to get to this point here:

While up here, this car started with a radiator leak, after finding a way to bootleg the leak with some stop leak, the engine oil started leaking. Sometime last week I got some more stop leak for that. Now my transmission has completely died. In addition to that, the air he promised to have in this "smokemobile" was not there. I took it to a mechanic here in Nashville where I am attending school, all he could say is that my car was "f***ked up." The mechanic said my air was unplugged because with it hooked up, my belts would snap causing a heap of problems. After two months of toiling with this, I am wondering what I can do. I refuse to pay $1000 for a new transmission, and in addition, I think he should pay for my bumper since he didn’t fix anything. This car is parked here at the dorm taking up space. Can someone please tell me what can I do?

Thanks,
A desperate college student.

have it towed to East Nashville and leave it for the kids to play in. You have no recourse against verbal promises that were not put into writing.

It's a hard lesson to learn but one you have learned early.

[JETX]

"I am wondering what I can do."
*** Regretably, there is little you can actually do by law. Simply, you fell for the clunker and the SOB lied to you. The problem you have is that NOTHING is in writing. And I will bet you dimes to donuts that even if you were to get this into court, the seller will have a COMPLETELY different version of the facts than you have presented. And since the obligation falls on you to prove your case, you are very likely SOL (and I don't mean Statute of Limitations).

"Can someone please tell me what can I do?"
*** Your best bet is to contact a local salvage yard and see how much they will give you to come and haul it away...... and be sure to learn your lesson from this... NEVER, EVER pay for anything without getting ALL the promises in writing.

Thanks for the advice. I have some of it in writing (like date, how much I paid, etc.), far as him promising to repair, I have 2 witnesses that heard him say he would fix the car. Would that count as anything?

Honestly, I don't want to have to take this guy to court, but some kind of way put some more fire under his butt (like I did before) for him to hold his word.

If that wont help, I am going to see if I can bootleg this thing back to health for the 3rd time. I am praying I am only low on fluid.

Thanks.

Did you ever think to take this clunker to AAmco and have the filter and transmission fluid changed out?

[racer72]

A new heating coil? Did the guy promise new muffler bearings and carberator sprockets too?

LOL... he must mean "heater core".

[JETX]

Originally Posted by BigCat50

LOL... he must mean "heater core".

LOL.... and why did you post your ignorant drivel on a thread that was already TWO MONTHS old????

I had to research my answer. I mean, I had to research my "drivel".

[JETX]

Originally Posted by BigCat50

I had to research my answer. I mean, I had to research my "drivel".

The 'research' must have been pretty quick..... since you didn't even ask a FLIPPIN' question!!!

The seller didn't replace the heater "coil". He replaced the heater "core". I didn't ask a question, of course. Why would I? If you, or someone else, would have corrected this mistake in the OP's post sooner, then I wouldn't have even had to comment.
Besides, I was responding to Racers post. If anything I say pertains to JetX, I will address JetX ( is that a drain un-clogger? lol). Fair enough?


Some folks need some manners, and some humor. Whew

Bootlegging was something we did to drink liquor back in the days of prohibition. I don't think that term applies to afro-engineering your automobile.

[JETX]

Leave it to the uneducated 'Sambo' to make an inane and idiotic post on a thread that is a MONTH old.

[BelizeBreeze]

Originally Posted by JETX

Leave it to the uneducated 'Sambo' to make an inane and idiotic post on a thread that is a MONTH old.

I guess his head got muddled chasing that tiger around the tree