Problems with recently purchased R129

[sideshowbob]

A few weeks ago i purchased a 1995 SL500 from a motor trader. After i had had the car for a few days i noticed that it had a rather erratic idle. So i took the car to TM Motors in Molesey and they diagnosed that there were problems with the throttle actuator. I was a bit gutted because i had only had the car for a few days and had covered about 50 miles in it, and the dealer had been emphatic that the car was pristine with no faults.
I decided to put it down to experience and to get the work done and pay the £750 odd pounds to sort it out.
The car has now been in the garage for over a week and it has been found out that now the wiring loom needs to be replaced. This is going to cost another £900+ pounds. This will mean that i have had to fork out £1650 on a car that i have owned for a couple of weeks and was assured by the trader that it was a very good car.
What are your opinions on this? Should i just put up and shut up, or should the dealer be helping out with this?
ps I just want to add that TM Motors have been nothing less than great.

 

[ed_d82]

Pretty sure there is a legal obligation on behalf of the trader to pay for these repairs. do a Google search and see what comes up.

Good luck.

 

[GordonTarling]

If you bought from a trader, then regardless of what anyone else may say, the law gives you 3 months warranty. It obviously was not of 'merchantable quality' when you bought it, so tackle the seller and see what he's prepared to do.

 

[brucemillar]

As Gordon says.

Dealer/Trader is liable to either rectify the fault(s) or pay you to have them rectified.

Did you tell the dealer that you had a problem before you took it in to have it repaired/looked at? IF not the dealer "may" try and argue that your repairer has caused the issue. Keep all receipts and make sure that they are correctly detailed showing what work was carried out and why.

 

[grober]

Without knowing the exact prices of the loom and actuator these prices seem a little on the high side to me- wonder if TM motors subcontracted this work out ? Could be wrong of course but if this is the case then the supplying dealer is going to jibe at the cost. In theory if you find fault with the car I think you are supposed to give the dealer the chance to rectify it [ at cost to him] before pursuing any further course of action. This is not say you should not be compensated since this is a fairly well documented fault in cars of this age and should come as no surprise to the dealer--- if he knows anything about mercs at all . However if your repairs are " overpriced" then don't expect full recompense as he's not in business to authorise signing blank cheques to rival garages.

 

[redbaron]

The loom fault is widely reported and the reason why later cars are a much safer buy. However if the car was bought from a trader you need to take this up with him. You also need to take it to him for the diagnoses/work. You will be unlikely to recover monies spent with 3rd party without prior authorisation from the trader.

 

[jaymanek]

You should have contacted dealer in the first place.. Most dealers have a set procedure and it normally doesnt involve outside garages getting stuck in without their prior approval.

The wiring loom is a common issue, the throttle body is too. There isnt much else that goes wrong with these...

 

[C43AMG]

Without knowing the exact prices of the loom and actuator these prices seem a little on the high side to me- wonder if TM motors subcontracted this work out ? Could be wrong of course but if this is the case then the supplying dealer is going to jibe at the cost. In theory if you find fault with the car I think you are supposed to give the dealer the chance to rectify it [ at cost to him] before pursuing any further course of action. This is not say you should not be compensated since this is a fairly well documented fault in cars of this age and should come as no surprise to the dealer--- if he knows anything about mercs at all . However if your repairs are " overpriced" then don't expect full recompense as he's not in business to authorise signing blank cheques to rival garages.

I have had dealings with TM Motors ( Tony ) for over twenty years and he does not sub out any work.

 

[Mercator]

I know nothing of the legal position but find it fairly surprising if a dealer selling a 17 year old car for say 5-10k (which cost new 70k odd) is prepared to take a lot of responsibility for anything going wrong with it.

 

[jaymanek]

He may not be prepared and may resist but its the law im afraid... but fiddling with it yourself is a very quick way of giving him a get out of jail card.

 

[grober]

I have had dealings with TM Motors ( Tony ) for over twenty years and he does not sub out any work.

FAIR COMMENT Renewing just an engine loom for £900 still seems a might pricey to me -- but without knowing the price of all the parts involved .

 

[sideshowbob]

Tony has been amazing, and has explained all the costs down to the penny. The wiring loom is particularly expensive and that was after Tony rang around to try and get the best deal. They are definately doing all the work themselves except for the actual refurbishment of the throttle body which gets sent out to a specialist (If i had wanted a new one the price for the part alone is c £1000 from mercedes).
But it does seem that i have messed up. I had the intention of paying for the throttle actuator myself which is why the car was put in to have the work done. Now whilst it is in the garage, possibly in bits, it is found to need the wiring loom as well. This means i cant take the car back to the trader i bought it from.
Work has stopped until tomorrow when the new wiring loom should arrive and work can commence. Emotions/stress are stopping me from completely logical thought on this matter so i would appreciate advice on what to do next?

 

[sideshowbob]

FAIR COMMENT Renewing just an engine loom for £900 still seems a might pricey to me -- but without knowing the price of all the parts involved .

Tony told me that after ringing around the only place that had one in the country was milton keynes mercedes and i think the price was £670 plus vat. This would mean that the loom alone would count for c £800 of a £900+ bill.

 

[sideshowbob]

I have had dealings with TM Motors ( Tony ) for over twenty years and he does not sub out any work.

I have met Tony twice now, spoken to him on the phone a couple of times, and sat in the passenger seat whilst he took me out for a test drive in my own car. The man is a true gentleman and i would not be able to find a bad word to say about him.

 

[C43AMG]

I have met Tony twice now, spoken to him on the phone a couple of times, and sat in the passenger seat whilst he took me out for a test drive in my own car. The man is a true gentleman and i would not be able to find a bad word to say about him.

Tony is a good guy and is very Knowledgeable,he should be.

He started at MB Brentford a hundred years ago and ended up there 600 ( 6.3 )expert. Even now MB phone him up if they are having problems.

 

[martyz]

Tony is a good guy and is very Knowledgeable,he should be.

He started at MB Brentford a hundred years ago and ended up there 600 ( 6.3 )expert. Even now MB phone him up if they are having problems.

Then surely he is more than aware of the problem with the vehicle he sold.

 

[coupe deville]

Then surely he is more than aware of the problem with the vehicle he sold.

But he didn't sell the vehicle, did he , I read it that the op took it to him for repairs instead of taking it back to the seller

 

[grober]

OK seems that you have been lucky to find an honest independent. What you need to do now is to keep meticulous paperwork of all bills to be itemised as parts and labour. Of especial importance are the original [ MB or other]invoices concerning the supply/repair of the parts required for effective repair. The supplying dealer will have difficulty in contesting these especially if it can be demonstrated that reasonable steps were taken to keep costs down.[ alternative quotes??] You are on a stickier wicket with the labour costs which could be disputed. As has been said because you have not allowed the supplying dealer to make reparation for existing faults you may not be able to get any money. Realistically it depends on the supplying dealer's attitude---- with a bit of luck you may recover a substantial part of your outlay on repairs. I would go in asking for full recompense and settle for 50%

 

[gIzzE]

Have you even spoke to the dealer?

It just seems very strange that you would take the car straight round to someone other than the person you bought it from.

 

[IanA2]

whilst you are in error in not approaching the selling dealer first, I would have thought that he should make a contribution to the repairs. Armed with an engineer's report I would ask the dealer to repay the cost of the parts. If he demurs on cost, ask him to prove that he could have got them (OEM parts) cheaper, if he can then you'll have to settle at his price. i would also ask that he repay at least half the labour cost, that is assuming that he has the facilities to undertake the repairs in his business. If not then he should repay at whatever his local rates are. I think this is a reasonable approach. If he is not prepared to engage or negotiate then sue. I would, cheap using on-line money claim.

My tuppence worth.