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Car dealer tricked me - long time back

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smenon

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? TN

I had bought a 2001 Honda Civic from a dealer in Dec 2004. I had absolutely no idea about buying an automobile at that time. The salesperson who sold me the car didn't even suggest a test drive nor did I take on. I bought the car when it had a mileage of just above 56,000 miles. In the next 15 months, till present, I've put on just around 10,000 miles on the car. It just goes to show that I don't drive the car as much. The car did give out a rattling sound when I braked on the highways, ever since I bought it. I thought the rattling came from something that was loose and I never got it checked. It was around 3 months back that I took the car to a workshop and they said I had to replace the lower control arm of the car(which is an expensive thing). They also said I needed to change the front struts of the car(another expensive part). They said it was very unusual for a Honda Civic to have all these defects at 60,000 miles. It cost me a good amount to replace those. I did give the dealer a call to talk about this but all he told me was to check if I had an extended warranty or so, which I hadn't. I assumed, if those were the only defects, I would replace them and I did so. Now, there is this squeaking sound that seems to be coming from the rear of the car. I take it to a local Honda dealership and they say the whole suspension including the shocks and the control arms in the rear need to be changed and have charged me another huge amount(really huge considering my current situation). They too have expressed their surprise at a Honda Civic giving such problems at the current mileage.
I am sure I have not been sold a car that was in good condition nor was I told about it's condition. I feel that my lack of knowledge about buying an automobile was exploited and I was sold a car that was not in a good condition. I have gone to three auto workshops and all of them have stated that it is very unusual for a Honda Civic to give these issues at this mileage. I faxed a letter with this 'story' to the dealer to see if I recieve any reply from them. It's been 3 days and no reply. Do you think I can actually do something - something that is feasible for a middle income working professional? I would feel really really bad if I let that dealer off that dealer after he cheated me so badly.
In frustration,
thanks
 


Happy Trails

Senior Member
smenon said:
What is the name of your state? TN

I had bought a 2001 Honda Civic from a dealer in Dec 2004. I had absolutely no idea about buying an automobile at that time. The salesperson who sold me the car didn't even suggest a test drive nor did I take on. I bought the car when it had a mileage of just above 56,000 miles. In the next 15 months, till present, I've put on just around 10,000 miles on the car. It just goes to show that I don't drive the car as much. The car did give out a rattling sound when I braked on the highways, ever since I bought it. I thought the rattling came from something that was loose and I never got it checked. It was around 3 months back that I took the car to a workshop and they said I had to replace the lower control arm of the car(which is an expensive thing). They also said I needed to change the front struts of the car(another expensive part). They said it was very unusual for a Honda Civic to have all these defects at 60,000 miles. It cost me a good amount to replace those. I did give the dealer a call to talk about this but all he told me was to check if I had an extended warranty or so, which I hadn't. I assumed, if those were the only defects, I would replace them and I did so. Now, there is this squeaking sound that seems to be coming from the rear of the car. I take it to a local Honda dealership and they say the whole suspension including the shocks and the control arms in the rear need to be changed and have charged me another huge amount(really huge considering my current situation). They too have expressed their surprise at a Honda Civic giving such problems at the current mileage.
I am sure I have not been sold a car that was in good condition nor was I told about it's condition. I feel that my lack of knowledge about buying an automobile was exploited and I was sold a car that was not in a good condition. I have gone to three auto workshops and all of them have stated that it is very unusual for a Honda Civic to give these issues at this mileage. I faxed a letter with this 'story' to the dealer to see if I recieve any reply from them. It's been 3 days and no reply. Do you think I can actually do something - something that is feasible for a middle income working professional? I would feel really really bad if I let that dealer off that dealer after he cheated me so badly.
In frustration,
thanks
No, you don't have a warranty.
Google "Caveat emptor".
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
smenon said:
Do you think I can actually do something
No, you're out of luck.

UNLESS...you can somehow find proof the the odometer had been tampered with prior to purchasing the vehicle. Then you might have a leg to stand on...albeit, a very small one since it's been such a long time since you purchased the vehicle.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
smenon said:
What is the name of your state? TN

I had bought a 2001 Honda Civic from a dealer in Dec 2004. I had absolutely no idea about buying an automobile at that time. The salesperson who sold me the car didn't even suggest a test drive nor did I take on. I bought the car when it had a mileage of just above 56,000 miles. In the next 15 months, till present, I've put on just around 10,000 miles on the car. It just goes to show that I don't drive the car as much. The car did give out a rattling sound when I braked on the highways, ever since I bought it. I thought the rattling came from something that was loose and I never got it checked. It was around 3 months back that I took the car to a workshop and they said I had to replace the lower control arm of the car(which is an expensive thing). They also said I needed to change the front struts of the car(another expensive part). They said it was very unusual for a Honda Civic to have all these defects at 60,000 miles. It cost me a good amount to replace those. I did give the dealer a call to talk about this but all he told me was to check if I had an extended warranty or so, which I hadn't. I assumed, if those were the only defects, I would replace them and I did so. Now, there is this squeaking sound that seems to be coming from the rear of the car. I take it to a local Honda dealership and they say the whole suspension including the shocks and the control arms in the rear need to be changed and have charged me another huge amount(really huge considering my current situation). They too have expressed their surprise at a Honda Civic giving such problems at the current mileage.
I am sure I have not been sold a car that was in good condition nor was I told about it's condition. I feel that my lack of knowledge about buying an automobile was exploited and I was sold a car that was not in a good condition. I have gone to three auto workshops and all of them have stated that it is very unusual for a Honda Civic to give these issues at this mileage. I faxed a letter with this 'story' to the dealer to see if I recieve any reply from them. It's been 3 days and no reply. Do you think I can actually do something - something that is feasible for a middle income working professional? I would feel really really bad if I let that dealer off that dealer after he cheated me so badly.
In frustration,
thanks

You bought a car well over 1 year ago ...it was making a noise and you never took it to a shop to have it checked...now you want to sue?? It is doubtfull that you have any options...Next time you purchase a car...take it to your mechanic and have it look at!!
 

smenon

Junior Member
Car dealer cheated me

I realise I didn't have a chance and more than suing the dealer for money, I didn't want the dealer to get away.. I agree I didn't do the steps required when buying a used car but then my knowledge of the same was limited - rather zilch. I definitely know better now but still don't feel comfortable that the dealer got away with that. So it just goes to show, if U have better domain knowledge than someone else and U can cheat him, then U can have U'r way. Well, that doesn't sound too impressive.
Anyway, thanx for the responses.
 

justalayman

Senior Member
smenon said:
I realise I didn't have a chance and more than suing the dealer for money, I didn't want the dealer to get away.. I agree I didn't do the steps required when buying a used car but then my knowledge of the same was limited - rather zilch. I definitely know better now but still don't feel comfortable that the dealer got away with that. So it just goes to show, if U have better domain knowledge than someone else and U can cheat him, then U can have U'r way. Well, that doesn't sound too impressive.
Anyway, thanx for the responses.
Just for the fun of it you might try writing a letter to Honda of America. Honda cars do enjoy a reputation of being reliable, mainly because they generally are. Honda is proud of their reputation and may be concerned one of their vehicles has such extensive troubles.

Now this may get you nowhere but it would seem you have nowhere else to go anyway.

You just never know unless you try.
 

You Are Guilty

Senior Member
Suspension compentents often wear out in 60k miles. Even on Hondas. That's really not all that unusual. On the other hand, a control arm is not a wear item - they generally need replacement only after an accident.

Have you checked to see if your car was involved in any prior incidents (accidents/floods/etc)? You may find some interesting history were you to look it up.

(Of course, your opportunity to sue, if one existed, is long gone. By waiting and driving the car for a year, were you to sue now, the dealer will simply say that whatever problems exist first occurred during your year of ownership.)

In the future, it pays to be diligent when making large purchases. With all the available resources at your fingertips on the internet, you don't even need to go to a (gasp) library to do research, so it's really no one's fault that you got "cheated" but your own. Sorry.
 

justalayman

Senior Member
I am sure I have not been sold a car that was in good condition nor was I told about it's condition. I feel that my lack of knowledge about buying an automobile was exploited and I was sold a car that was not in a good condition. I have gone to three auto workshops and all of them have stated that it is very unusual for a Honda Civic to give these issues at this mileage. I faxed a letter with this 'story' to the dealer to see if I recieve any reply from them. It's been 3 days and no reply. Do you think I can actually do something - something that is feasible for a middle income working professional? I would feel really really bad if I let that dealer off that dealer after he cheated me so badly.
In frustration,
You do need to realize one thing; the dealer did not cheat you. They sold you a car. While they never "suggested" to get the car checked out, it is your responsibility to do this. There is no responsibility for them to "hold your hand" because of you being new and naive to car sales.


In respons to YAG's post: I haven't work as a mechanic for quite a few years but there are some vehicles that require the replacement of the control arm when the ball-joint needs to be replaced. The engineers had this bright idea of making it as one complete unit. I don't know if this applies to Honda.

There were a couple of things that I do remember Honda for though. There was a spate of front coil spring problems. (before the 2001 model year) and working on Honda suspension was a PITA. (and no I am not talking about the bread)

There may have (snowballs chance in hell thing here) that there was some safety recall or TSB that addressed a suspension problem in this car.
cjbrown seems to be up on auto stuff, maybe he will cruise (get it, car stuff, cruising.) through here and lend some direction there.
 

You Are Guilty

Senior Member
justalayman said:
In respons to YAG's post: I haven't work as a mechanic for quite a few years but there are some vehicles that require the replacement of the control arm when the ball-joint needs to be replaced. The engineers had this bright idea of making it as one complete unit. I don't know if this applies to Honda.
That could certainly explain it, but I'm pretty sure the Civics had replaceable ball joints. (Or at least the late models did, don't know much about the 80s ones).

Either way, it's a moot point now.
 

smenon

Junior Member
I do agree I have grown a lot wiser now and am researching a lot into a car I intend to buy in the next 5-6 months, starting now. Like I mentioned, I don't expect any compensation simply because it was mainly my fault (like most of U bluntly put it :( ). But I definitely didn't want the dealer to get away with this. I did fax a 'formal' complaint letter to the dealership close to a week back - as expected, didn't hear from them. I shall try putting in a complaint to the Honda of America too. If the dealer atleast gets a call from Honda enquiring about it, I guess he 'might' think twice about selling a not-so-good car to a naive client. But let me be very honest, the only reason why I didn't get the car checked by a mechanic was because I was in the US. I am originally from India and if I had bought a used car in India, I would have got it checked by atleast two mechanics. If it was a privat party I was buying this from, I might still have got it checked. I never expected a dealer to sell me a car, which wasn't in a good condition. Well, a lesson learnt the hard way. Guess, people are people, no matter where they are and money is money - everywhere.
 

Zephyr

Senior Member
justalayman said:
and before you buy a Chevy Malibu, read the posts on this website concerning them.
that should probably include ANY GM with dexcool- same problem in the Pontaic Montanas.....and chev pick-ups etc
 
smenon said:
What is the name of your state? TN

I had bought a 2001 Honda Civic from a dealer in Dec 2004. I had absolutely no idea about buying an automobile at that time. The salesperson who sold me the car didn't even suggest a test drive nor did I take on. I bought the car when it had a mileage of just above 56,000 miles. In the next 15 months, till present, I've put on just around 10,000 miles on the car. It just goes to show that I don't drive the car as much. The car did give out a rattling sound when I braked on the highways, ever since I bought it. I thought the rattling came from something that was loose and I never got it checked. It was around 3 months back that I took the car to a workshop and they said I had to replace the lower control arm of the car(which is an expensive thing). They also said I needed to change the front struts of the car(another expensive part). They said it was very unusual for a Honda Civic to have all these defects at 60,000 miles. It cost me a good amount to replace those. I did give the dealer a call to talk about this but all he told me was to check if I had an extended warranty or so, which I hadn't. I assumed, if those were the only defects, I would replace them and I did so. Now, there is this squeaking sound that seems to be coming from the rear of the car. I take it to a local Honda dealership and they say the whole suspension including the shocks and the control arms in the rear need to be changed and have charged me another huge amount(really huge considering my current situation). They too have expressed their surprise at a Honda Civic giving such problems at the current mileage.
I am sure I have not been sold a car that was in good condition nor was I told about it's condition. I feel that my lack of knowledge about buying an automobile was exploited and I was sold a car that was not in a good condition. I have gone to three auto workshops and all of them have stated that it is very unusual for a Honda Civic to give these issues at this mileage. I faxed a letter with this 'story' to the dealer to see if I recieve any reply from them. It's been 3 days and no reply. Do you think I can actually do something - something that is feasible for a middle income working professional? I would feel really really bad if I let that dealer off that dealer after he cheated me so badly.
In frustration,
thanks
These problems do seem rather unusual for a 2001 civic with those miles.

Do a little detective work (see if you can locate the original owner. Often, their name will be in the owners manual or warranty book if one came with the car).

If you can demonstrate that the miles on the car are not correct (ie odometer replaced, reset, or not connected), you can pursue either the dealer, or the person who traded it. Bear in mind that Honda's are frequently used as "tow" vehicles (like, behind a motor home) because they don't require expensive transmission pumps. Owners have been known to disconnect the odometer (assuming they weren't using a dolly)
 

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