A moral dillema a tale of two shitties

[cort16]

YO.

On Saturday I sold my A2 to a girl in her early 20's with 2 kids and now have the super kung-fu Diahatsu Materia on the road.. The buyer and her Dad drove to Glasgow and back then just as they're just about home the temp needle goes into the red and it dumps all it's coolant into the tarmac. We've had the car for months in regular use with no sign of overheating and it's always ran A-okay.

 

Now they're not sending me hate texts or asking for their money back. The girl just mentioned it when I was dropping off the spare set of wheels for it. Her dad has now dropped it off at the local garage.

 

Now I know I'm under no legal obligation to do anything but I feel pretty shitty about it given she's a young lass with 2 wee kids. Plus they're local and in a wee town don't want to get a reputation for being a twat any more than I deserve. I've not sent away the v5 either. Even though it's filled in the car is still in our name.

It's happened to me before and it's a shite feeling.

 

I've no idea what it it is. It could be a stuck stat, failed water pump or blown HG.

 

To do the right thing should I

 

Be harry the bastard and not do anything?

Give her, her money back and fix it myself given I can probably get it done cheaper than her?

Let her find out what the issue is and offer to to pay some of the garage bill?

This forum is full of normally fair minded people so what do we think?

 

 

[Asimo]

I would offer to take it back for a full refund. Similar thing happened to me once. Fixed the problem, sold again, everyone happy.

[colino]

If you can say in all honesty that the car was fine with you, you asked all their questions and had no knowledge of any major faults, I'm going to say, private sale, caveat emptor.

Too many years of lying new owners battering cars off kerbs, swapping good parts for bad, ragging them to hell and back and saying, "it wasn't me", have certainly helped cast this view; but you really have no idea what happened to that car when it went out of your sight or how long the warning lights were blazing when a simple, easily fixed fault may have been ignored and left your cherished old car as a heavy doorstop.

[garbaldy]

The last time that happened to me I called the buyer up and told him to bring the car back for a full refund, he didn't want to do that as it was an £80 car with Mot, he stuck it into a garage and got a huge bill which he sent to me, I was well pissed and told him to gtf

[Tamworthbay]

How much did you make? How much is your reputation worth to you? Then do the maths, for me I would offer a refund or see what repairs it needs. I had similar when I sold my last mini to a mate. It had been perfect the entire time I owned it but decided on that moment to shite its entire ignition system. I spent a morning and best part of £100 sorting it then another morning getting it running right again because his mate had twiddled with every setting despite it being an obvious ignition issue. He is a still a good mate so money and time well spent in my opinion.

[fordperv]

Did she pay you a lot for the car? If it was a larger amount e.g over about £1200, I'd be tempted to pay some of the repair cost to let me sleep better

[gordonbennet]

I'd be feeling bad too, you've met the people and i suspect they were decent folk or you wouldn't be asking, i go by gut feeling with people.

 

If you have time could you nip round to the garage its at and have a word with the lad doing the job, then see what you can do about helping put things right.

[cort16]

The engine management light came on when they drove the car but I knocked 200 quid off the price for this and they where happy. Other than that it was all good. If it wasn't I wouldn't let my Mrs and young daughter drive around in it. We only changed it as my Mrs didn't take to it.

 

The were decent honest folk, which is why I feel bad. The girl was really excited.

 

I had it up for 1195 and sold it for 1000. As with Garbaldy I don't want her to stick the car in to the garage, run up an 800 quid bill and expect me to foot it (not that I would). 

 

I told her to let me know what happened after she took it to the garage but didn't make any promises.

[stripped fred]

I would base my decision on how much I got for the car. If I got top whack for it I would be more generous but if they got it at a bargain price I would be less so. Legally you don't owe them a penny but morally might be less straightforward.

[cort16]

The car was cheap comparatively to other similiar A2's but not a give away spears or repairs price. If someone from London had wanted to buy it I would have said it would have made it no bother.

[oldcars]

I think i would refund her the £1000. I'm a wimp like that,i would sleep easier. You don't have to but as you say if you live in a small town you can do without the grief. Fix it up and sell it on to someone that lives far away 

[egg]

I'd refund.

 

But I've never sold a car for more than £500.

 

But part of me does think that any buyer does have the opportunity to get a professional pre-purchase check for about £100-£150, or even ask vendor to MOT it at buyers cost as due diligence checks....

[omegod]

I refunded on an Omega that lunched it's crank bearing an hour after sale, just wasn't worth the grief to be honest.

 

In this case I would refund it and hold my head up high in the community, patch up the car and give it to WBAC asap  

[Slartibartfast]

I would refund too I think.

[castros_bro]

None of the above,  why not just talk to her and explain you don't know what to do but feel you should offer to help "resolve the situation" some way, then try and find a compromise which both of you like. 

[scaryoldcortina]

Wait and see what the garage says - it might just be a random and easy to fix problem like a hose coming off.

 

How far is Glasgow anyway?

[Cavcraft]

You're already showing how decent you are by saying what you think your options are. I'd offer to either pay all or a fixed amount of a repair or offer to buy it back, as it seems she is a genuine buyer and hasn't kicked up a big fuss about it.

 

Obviously she needs to get a quote for the work required before you make a final decision, just in case a garage try and have her off and do the work which costs hundreds. Fair play to you for not being some knob who just bombed her straight out.

[Longblackcoat]

Wait and see what the garage says - it might just be a random and easy to fix problem like a hose coming off.

 

How far is Glasgow anyway?

Yeah, I'm in this camp. If the garage come up with a dead hose, knackered thermostat, that sort of thing, then I'd probably offer to pay for some/all of the fix amount, on the basis that it could have happened to you at any point and you just got lucky. £50-100 or so, I'd be looking to go halves.

 

If they come up with something more serious, a different kettle of fish. I think I'd refund (then fix it and resell), but expect them to bear the cost of getting it back to me.

[John F]

You can't really do much until you know the diagnosis anyway, but if its HGF I'd be inclined to refund & take the car back, repair it myself & then sell it again.

 

If it's something cheaper (stat, hose)? Hmm, that's the sort of thing that can happen on any car and at any time, so at most I'd maybe offer a small contribution towards the cost as a goodwill gesture.

[Dippy]

I think you've demonstrated what a nice guy you are but you cant be expected to give a full refund as you dont know what they have done.

A mates wife drove home as fast as she could when her car puked its coolant so the needle wasn't in the red for as long.

 

Wait and see what is wrong and maybe offer a small compensation but even a nice guy should not feel obligated have to give a full refund.

[For Fiats Sake]

They'll be all nicey nice, have the garage fix it then send you the bill after getting in touch with ROGUETRADERSWATCHDOGMARTINLEWISFUCKWITSGETWHATTHEYDESERVE.COM 

 

Get that V5 in the post, move, dump mobile phone, change email and get into the Shitters Protection Programme immeditately.

 

There will be a unmarked (apart from car park dings natch) Bedford CF camper at the end of your street at 10pm tonight for you and any of your family you wish to take with you into the SPP.  Unfortunately we can't at the moment include vehicles, they will be Roffled to fund the brave new life you will have chosen.

 

Good Luck!

[cort16]

Wait and see what the garage says - it might just be a random and easy to fix problem like a hose coming off.

 

How far is Glasgow anyway?

 

About 35 miles. So they did about 70-80 miles in it before it tanked.

[twosmoke300]

Its prob the vag classic of water pump impellor slipping on the shaft -

Id refund and have the car back

[cort16]

She's going into the garage at 4.30 so we'll see.

[stripped fred]

It depends if you ultimately want to end up in heaven or that other, slightly hotter place.

[cort16]

Benidorm?

[stripped fred]

That's the one!

[mrbenn]

Fair play to her for taking it to the garage to see whats gone wrong rather than coming back at you straight off. A lot of people would piss themselves loudly and messily while demanding you make substantial reparations for the trauma.

 

Fingers crossed its nothing serious.

[purplebargeken]

Benidorm v Heaven. Hmm, Benidorm please. 

 

See what garage says and then come back on here. 

[Bren]

Give her a refund - less hassle, shows you are a good egg.

 

On the downside, your nose will be pissing blood everywhere due to the altitude on the moral high ground.