Used car warranty from specialist

[Deleted member 11979]

Does anyone know what the legal minimum warranty is that I should expect on buying a used 22 year old Mercedes from a dealer?

Clearly I'm not expecting the guy to warrant everything for a year, but what does he have to warrant and for how long.

I don't expect there is a simple answer.

Thanks a lot

 

[jaymanek]

It gets very difficult with classic cars as pretty much everything can be classed as wear & tear, so unless its a major drivetrain issue, I wouldnt expect much to be *legally* covered.

however, most classic car dealers will not risk their reputation and will try to look after customers..

What is the nature of the issue? Also its relevant how long ago you bought the car and how many miles its since covered...

 

[219]

I'd think it all depends on what the car is and how it is being marketed to arrive at what would be a reasonable expectation .

With a £500 190E , I'd think that once it drove off the forecourt you'd be on your own - unless it turned out to be a 'cut & shut' or suchlike .

At the other end of the scale , if you were buying a £40K Pagoda , even though it was older , for that money I'd expect any defect not drawn to my attention beforehand to be looked at sympathetically .

Between those two extremes , taking something like a mint SEC priced at , say , 10 grand , I'd expect the normal used car warranty of six months to apply - at that price the dealer ought to be making enough profit to cover himself .

Jay , can dealers get insurance to cover themselves against getting their fingers burnt when something goes badly wrong with a customers car ?

 

[Dieselman]

I'd think it all depends on what the car is and how it is being marketed to arrive at what would be a reasonable expectation .

With a £500 190E , I'd think that once it drove off the forecourt you'd be on your own - unless it turned out to be a 'cut & shut' or suchlike .

At the other end of the scale , if you were buying a £40K Pagoda , even though it was older , for that money I'd expect any defect not drawn to my attention beforehand to be looked at sympathetically .

That would be my opinion as well.

If the dealer is generally dealing in this type of market and charging a premium, the expect the dealer to be able to demonstrate the cars have a good going over and decent warranty as such.

I would prefer to buy with no warranty and less cash, as they always have faults which need attention.
The basic condition is all you really should be interested in, body rot and any major mechanical issues in particular.

 

[jaymanek]

Jay , can dealers get insurance to cover themselves against getting their fingers burnt when something goes badly wrong with a customers car ?

They can buy warranties but unfortunately a lot of items arent covered with these and so the dealer usually ends up bearing the cost anyway.

Unfortunately used cars will cause problems, its just a fact...
especially as they get older... A 22 yr old W126 is going to have niggles even if its "mint," - how far the dealer goes to rectify things can vary...

 

[Deleted member 11979]

I've not bought the car as yet, it's a 1989 W126 500SE.

Generally I agree with Dieselman, and buy a cheaper car and take my chances, however, this one is particularly lovely with no rust in any of the usual places, all the paint is the same colour, and it drives beautifully with a 22 stamp service history.

It was out of curiosity really as another I had looked at came with a 1 month engine and gearbox warranty which I thought was stingy.

Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[bigfatjim]

In reality the car MUST be fully roadworthy and fit for the purpose sold. If the car is sold as 'spares/repairs' or 'scrap' or 'faulty' then you have no comeback. Otherwise the SOGA will come into play and in effect any faults within the first 6 months are deemed to have existed at the time of sale, except wear and tear items such as brake pads, tyres although a sliding time/mileage scale would be used here. It would be unreasonable to require brake pads within 1000 miles or a month.

The courts will take into account all factors, so a 22 year old car cannot be expected to have the same level of consumer protection as say a 2 year old one would. However, engine failure 2 months down the road or gearbox packing in after 4 months would be claimable under the SOGA.

HTH