On 6/7, I contacted Wayne Espeut from World of Cars in regards to a Craigslist ad they had on a 2002 Kia Rio with 106,390 miles on it for $2900. Advertised in the listing was Maryland State Inspected, Cold Air Conditioning and rides great. I called to get a little more information on the vehicle such as if there was any issues with the engine, any leaks, condition and problems in general. I was told that there were no issues with it, it was very reliable, great condition, cold AC.
I figured this would be a decent little starter car for my wife to get her back and forth to work. So we made the purchase with taxes tag and title was $3405 and I financed it through USAA. I asked him if I could have a full tank of gas for making the purchase with him and he took the car to get gas and gave me 3/4 of a tank. When Wayne left the car running, he said the air was blowing a little warm at the moment and should kick in a few moments. While driving the car home, the air stayed warm the whole time.
I gave it a few days and on 6/13 I went to Bank Street Auto to have them check and recharge the AC to get a 2nd opinion. They recharged it and said that there was a leak in the system and didn't know how long it would last. That cost me $109.00 and lasted no more than 2-3 days. On 6/23 my wife started the car and it was making a grinding noise and was stalling. She got it out of our apartment complex and it stalled in the middle of the street. She got it to start one more time and was able to park it on the side of the road.
I had called Wayne from World of Cars to advise him of the situation and he said if there was any way to get it to him and he could take a look at it and let me know what the issue was. I contacted my insurance company and luckily with Roadside assistance I had it towed up to him on 6/24. I called World of Cars and spoke with Nikki as soon as the tow truck left with the vehicle to let them know it was on it's way. Later that afternoon about 5:10 pm, I got a call from Wayne stating all the issues, that it was repaired and the total cost would be $770.84 and since his warranty is a 50/50, my cost would be $385.42. Issues (FIXED) were, Full Tune up including changed spark plugs and wires, replaced mass air flow sensor and repaired the AC and leak.
First thing I said was, if this car was (SO CALLED) inspected, why was there so many issues with it and it's been driven a total of 5 times since I got it. His answer was that he doesn't know what problems are with the vehicle until the purchaser rides them off the lot. So I went in and paid for the repairs using my Visa card figuring I had no other choice and told him I'd pick it up the next day due to just getting off of work and not having anyone there to drive the car home.
6/25 I showed up without calling, I had the 2nd set of keys on me to start up the car and let it run for a good 10 minutes and the air was NOT blowing cold at all. I went inside World of Cars where Wayne was asleep on his desk and I woke him up and said hello. I advised him the AC wasn't working and he acted all shocked. I said just give me my refund back and I'll check with a Kia dealer. He wrote me a check for $125.00 which I have not yet cashed because I felt I was being ripped off and was unsure if repairs were actually made to the vehicle. Before I left I asked him another question because I was curious. I said, when was the last oil change on the Kia? He said, I don't know, we just top off the fluids. I really felt unsafe driving it after that remark. So my wife drove it home following me and it's been parked in our lot since we brought it home.
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