On August 11, I purchased a used 1 owner 2002 Volvo Cross Country station wagon from the Concord location of Lovering Volvo. Although the car had extremely high mileage, 132,000 it was only 5 years old and the Concord Dealership had done all the service on this car from the first day it was sold to the Doctor and her husband.
I made a point of asking my salesman, Tom Cobb, his feelings about the car having such high mileage and no real warranty available. He proceeded to regale me with a tale of how his sone had bought one of these cars and driven it for thousands of miles with no problem. As the saying goes, "Volvo for Life"
After getting the loan closed at my bank, I returned to the dealership and took my "new to me" Volvo home. Part of the final deal was a 30 day 1000 mile warranty that split costs 50% between myself and the dealership. It's important to note that this car looks so good that people think it's brand new. There is no excessive wear on the interior. There are no blemishes on the exterior save two small dings from another door. So this vehicle did not look like it had been driven hard and abused.
So I get my new baby home on Saturday the 11th. On Sunday I noticed a slight lag in the transmission, before it made a clunk noise and shifted into gear. This wasn't a constant occurence and I had recently traded a 2006 VW that did the same thing. However seing that I drive approximately 50 miles roundtrip to work I listened for the offensive clunk to sound again.
As is expected the noise came back and I made a service appointment for the car for the following Saturday and they would make an exception to their policy about loaner vehicles being out on weekends, so that I wouldn't be with a car. Then the sound went away and the car was driving fine.By later in the week the noise returned so I booked the next available servce appointment where I could get a loaner. Which was Wednesday August 22, dropping the car off on Tueday night August 21. At this point I has owned the car a glorious 11 days.
Day 12 of ownership is something that people have nightmares over. Getting that phone call that says you know that little clunk. It translates into big dollars. Seventeen hundred dollars plus and I haven't even owned the car for two weeks yet. To add fuel to the fire I was also a little over the 1000 miles allowed in the warranty.
Fortunately there is a Service Manager named Sean in Nashua who took pity on my plight and managed to get management absorb aproximately $1,100 of the coast. Meanwhile I am looking at this situation with a more factual view and I put together what I felt was a very fair plan for all parties involved. I proposed to Ricky Lovering sales manager in nashua the following. The dealership would by back my car for the price I paid, $13,148 I think with fees. I would then purchase another volvo, only this one would be a certified used Volvo that has the balance of the 6 year 1000,000 mile warranty still in effect. This car would have cost me $20995. The main purpose of this was to get inot a Volvo that would not have anymore service surprises.
After I emplained my idea to Ricky Lovering, he made it clear that this would have to be run by Rich Lovering Sr for his approval. And this is what they came back with a a counter offer. They would give me approximately $10,600 for my trade in. Oddly enough this figure matches the trade value in the NADA guides, I could then putchase there car for $20995, even though my bank valued the car at $20,050. But the real kicker was that I would still have to pay for repairs on a car I was no longer going to own, approximately 650.00. The cherry on top of this sordid mess was that even though Lovering offers coupons through their ads on Autotrader that discount another 300.00 off the price, in this special situation I couldn't use one. Although from the numbers they offered there was nothing special about this deal.
The Loverings have chosen to play hardball knowing that I'm working with a limited budget. But when I end up with a car that looks like it just rolled off the showroom floor, with all the service records and one owner, well know two, and I'm terrified to drive for fear of another breakdown, I consider my self being ripped off.
There is an expression in law that you take your victim as you find him, and hear the Loverings have found a quiet person with a history of depression. If there is anyone who can help me I'd greatly appreciate it. If nothing else bring the heat to bear on Lovering and Volvo North America.
Thank You
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