[Zed6]

I took the little red wagon in to my adopted Maza dealer for its 30K yesterday. They get most of the way through it, then the service chief asks me, "Are you aware that your vehicle might have been in an accident?" Uh...no? He shows me that the ABS sensor under the hood is pushed back and that the lines out of it are bent, which could cause the ABS not to function. I, not accustomed to the precision with which imports are generally assembled, didn't think to notice this since I'm so used to things just being crammed under the hood any which way.

Apparently the car took a hit on the front passenger's side before I got it and wasn't repaired quite to Mazda spec. (Apparently the former service advisor wasn't quite up to spec either, after letting this go unseen for 2 oil changes before this service.)

I got the car from a Chevy dealer in PA back when I lived there in February. I have a feeling that news of this accident would be world premiere information to the dealer. So now to open a real can of worms with some questions:

- Is there a statute of limitations on something like this?
- What happens if the dealer really didn't know about the accident and believes the car was sold without a defect? Am I up the creek because he can disclaim responsibility? Would he try to pin it on me after all this time?
- Will this eventually need a lawyer (or two) to fix, despite not being a lemon law case?

I hate to get even deeper into this, but it's just one of several battles I just don't furkin' need to be dealin' with right now. I just want it done.

 

[Juicy]

If you buy a vehicle you should always ceck through CarFax or another company like it to make sure you are getting what you are told you are getting.

 

[Zed6]

I'm told Carfax won't expose light hits - only things like totals and major flood damage.

 

[Juicy]

Actually they will only record hit that are reported to the insurance company. So if they didnt get it fixed that way then yes you are outta luck on the reports I mentioned above.

 

[Slv6sPitt]

Minor accidents will no show up on Carfax. If the car had a salvage title (repair cost for an accident exceeded ~75% of the cars pre-damage value) Carfax would definitely show that. I'm not sure you could go back to the dealer where you purchased it and complain unless they originally told you the car had never been in any type of accident. Check the contract you signed. It might even say that you purchased the car "as is". Typically, it is up to the buyer to ask the right questions and do his or her homework before making a purchase.

Just because the car had some front end damage doesn't mean there is anything mechnically wrong with it. If the ABS were not working correctly, you would likely know it. I wouldn't pay to have the ABS "repaired" just because some stuff is not exactly in the condition it was when it came from the factory.

 

[J Dragon]

I'd give a thumbs up to the Tech who worked on your vehicle that let you know what was wrong in the first place.

He could have kept his mouth shut and you would have never known.

 

[Axion]

Just go out and and slam on your brakes in a empty parking lot, that should let you know if they are working correctly or not. I agree with all the pervious stated comments as well. Usually up to the buyer of a used car to ask, dealerships won't jump to tell you that the car has been wrecked before, and take the chance on a lost sale.

 

[Modcon]

It's a used car.
It had what was apparently a minor fender bender.
You didn't ask the right questions and the dealer either didn't offer that information or didn't know it was in a fender bender. (I assume it was not specifically sold as a car that had never been in an accident...)

If the ABS is working (good idea on how to check it Axion!) then I don't see too much of a gripe since you didn't even know about it until it was pointed out to you.

If you were happy with the car and its performance before you found this out and everything is working properly and nothing is damaged that you can tell, then what's the beef?

 

[LapisLazuli6]

I'm told Carfax won't expose light hits - only things like totals and major flood damage.
[/b]

Not true. Carfax only shows if a police report is filed, or if the insurance company's involved. I don't know which one, but on my old car an accident showed on Carfax, which was a hit/run. But it said 'police' something on the report.

There's really nothing you can do, since the car was fixed and you purchased it. It also passed inspection as well, or the dealer in PA couldn't have sold it to you. Next time around, just do a little research or buy a brand new car.

 

[DennisW]

Not true. Carfax only shows if a police report is filed, or if the insurance company's involved. I don't know which one, but on my old car an accident showed on Carfax, which was a hit/run. But it said 'police' something on the report.

There's really nothing you can do, since the car was fixed and you purchased it. It also passed inspection as well, or the dealer in PA couldn't have sold it to you. Next time around, just do a little research or buy a brand new car. [/b]

Sadly Paul it doesn't appear either statement is always true.
Example: My previous car was a 2001 Impala that was hit left front when it was 2 weeks old by an asshole who was in too much of a hurry to get home to bother to stop for that pesky red light in front of him.
Damage was bumper, both headlights, hood, left front fender, grille and all the little pieces that go somewhere unessn. Total was just over $4000. It had a (Chicago) police report and was handled by State Farm, curiously enough we were both insured by State Farm. My car was repaired by my preferred body man, who's shop is a State Farm approved facility.
I checked CarFax a couple years later as I had a freebie for a month and there was no record of any incidents involving my Impala. That was a surprise to me as well, I thought with the paper trail from this accident it would have shown up in their database.
Sorta made me loose my faith in CarFax for accurate information anyway.
You might want to visit a qualified body shop and have them give the car the once-over. If there are issues that would affect the car's safety it would be wise to have them taken care of.
As far as the legal issues, I have not a clue. It sounds like you would be opening a large can of worms and unless you have some sort of documentation from the selling dealer that certifies the car as accident-free my guess is you'd not have much luck getting any sort of compensation. They could always claim it was without their knowledge as well, and then it's your word against theirs against the original seller of the car. They may have never asked him if the car had any damage history either.

Lots of luck, and BTW are you showing up at the Chicago Area Zoom-Zoom event this weekend?

 

[Guest]

I had an extra carfax and I ran one on my 87 Grand National that got stolen and burnt to a crisp 3 years prior. The car was declared a total loss by State Farm and a police report was filed and it still came up completely clean.

 

[LG-2]

They did the same thing to my sister with an Altima. It was crashed like 2 time and they didn't tell her... She traded the car in again for a PathFinder. She has bad car tastes... Dealerships lie to you just to get the extras...

 

[LapisLazuli6]

Lots of luck, and BTW are you showing up at the Chicago Area Zoom-Zoom event this weekend?
[/b]

Man I wish I could have made the trip to Chicago. I love the city, and I loved the ZoomZoom event when it was in my area (Wash., DC).

 

[HedsIc]

Caveat Emptor

 

[Zed6]

The Carfax came back clean. But it did reveal that my 6 was a rental in its first life, so it could've been an incident in the lot after a return that nobody bothered to repair properly.

I met with the dealer on Saturday and he gave me 3 options:

- Buy the car back at market value (bad idea considering the rollover involved)
- Trade (even worse idea)
- Do the repairs and give me a rental while the 6 is out (most economically feasible, plus I get to keep the 6)

He admitted that there's sometimes not enough time to check the Carfax with the volume of trades they get, and that may have been the case here. But he's owning up and doing his best to satisfy. Full report when I get the car back Monday.

 

[BigBens6]

Giving you repairs and a rental seems like a mutually benificial situation, i would take it up, it sounds like it was an honest mistake unless you get the feeling he is running you around...

 

[Zed6]

Resolved!
Got the car back yesterday...with a new passenger's headlight assembly and a realigned hood. And the ABS controller is sitting tight 'n' upright in its proper postition. No charge for any of it, and all is groovy again. Kudos to the dealer for standing up for what they sell.

 

[Modcon]

Resolved!
Got the car back yesterday...with a new passenger's headlight assembly and a realigned hood. And the ABS controller is sitting tight 'n' upright in its proper postition. No charge for any of it, and all is groovy again. Kudos to the dealer for standing up for what they sell.
[/b]

Sounds like it all worked out very well. Good deal!

And what was the name of that dealer again?

 

[jaybag]

Good to hear you had a happy resolution.

Thumbs up to the dealer!