Question For AutoBrag: What To Do If You Bought A Lemon
Question: Hey, I recently bought a used 2005 nissan minivan with 28k miles from a mitsubishi dealer over the internet…I took a flight there and drove it back 700miles. After I got in the van I noticed the odemter was not working right, it was unreadable, but I thought it was cold/stuck…about 200 miles down the road it came on perfectly clear and said 78k (50k more)…I called the dealer and they were claiming it was not working right and I should take it to a nissan dealer…I took it to a nissan dealer and they said it was working….when I got back home I inspected the van more throughly and found it to have water damage BIG TIME…it looks likes it was under water about 3 ft high, the cd player doesnt work along with several radio buttons and defrost, etc……I stopped payment from my bank and notified the dealer. They said “oh yeah, it was wet when we got it, it took us a whole day to clean out” but claim it’s their problem as the carfax report checks out clean and the miles thing can be fixed they claim, they refuse to pick the car up. What should I do? I have the phone call recorded if you want to hear it. Thanks
Queen of the Road: Terrible, Terrible, Terrible!!! That is the kind of stuff that makes people have a terrible impression of car dealers. I’m really sorry about what happend.
This is the first thing I want you to do right away. There is an amazing blog on the internet called The Consumerist www.consumerist.com that is THE best consumer advocate site. They get millions of readers and really take bad businesses to task. Write to them with a detailed description of what happened. Email tips@consumerist.com their editor is Ben Popken ben@consumerist.com senior editor is Meghann Marco marco@cosumerist.com and associate editor is Chris Walters chris@consumerist.com
Secondly, what state are you living in and what state is the dealership in. We will contact a few attorneys on your behalf and see what they can do. Believe it or not there are some great lawyers in the business of protecting car consumers. For some information about the Lemon Law visit http://www.lemonlawamerica.com/
In our experience, Carfax does NOT show everything but it is the most reliable tool out there for now. Let’s help you out of this mess and in the mean time if you need prices on any new or used cars let us know. Shame on those guys. Now let’s make them fix the problem.
Follow Up Comment: Thanks for your help…the dealer has offered to meet me half way on driving the car back, but won’t refund any of my expenses…I think I might just take that offer so this is done with….I think I found a car in dallas, tx, let me know if you think this is a good deal,2007 Nissan Quest Base, 21.5k miles $15995 + $83 doc fee. I will keep you updated on the other dealer, thanks again.
Queen of the Road: For a 2007 Nissan Quest Wagon with 21,500 miles, prices can range from $15,050 (being in above average condition) to $14,400 (being in average condition) and $13,800 (being below average condition). With this specific model expect them to charge an additional +$1600-1700.
$15995 + $83 doc fee sounds about right, but I would assume that it’s not in above average condition and aim for $16,000. Good luck with the current car situation and let us know how it goes.
