History:
I purchased the car in September and I had to take the car back to the dealership at least 6 times in the first 3 months. The very first day I purchased the vehicle it broke down on the freeway, the manifold got so hot it was glowing red and began smoking. A passerby on the freeway flagged me down and told me my car was on fire. Ray, the car salesman and the car lot's mechanic had to pick my husband, my cousin, her husband, and myself up from the median of the 105 freeway. Needless to say I was given a loaner while they attempted to "figure out"/“fix” the problem. That was the beginning of what would be never ending problems. The engine light continued to come on. I immediately called and took the car back they rigged up whatever they needed to, to make the light go off and a day or two later it would come right back on. After contacting the finance company and complaining about how many times I had to take the car back they called the dealership. Once the finance company contacted Ray and requested he fix my car properly he became very upset.in early December I was driving home with my kids on the freeway and the next thing you know my car just lost power. I had to hurry and merge over to the shoulder, and call Triple A. At that time is when I was told that my engine was gone and when I called the finance company to inform them of this they told me they could pay for the expenses, but I needed to provide them with 3 estimates. Once I supplied them with the 3 estimates the lowest being $2500, they told me they would only “LOAN” me $725. That wasn’t going to help me at all! At that point I decide I would not be making any more payments and they could pick the car up from the auto mechanic. I only had the car 4 Months and I had yet to drive my car a whole month without having problems. I expressed to Gateway as well as Westlake Financial Services, that I was a STRUGGLING single parent with 3 children, who needed transportation and could not afford to pay a note on a car that was inoperable. I needed to concentrate on trying to save for reliable transportation. Please, please tell me there is something I can do. I believe the dealership knew about the problems with the car and they knowingly sold me a lemon. I have a picture of the diagnostic machine read dated 09/29, that shows there was an issue with the catalytic converter which is directly associted with the emissiosns.
Facts:
1. I purchased 2002 Chrysler Sebring (Convertible) on September 14,2209.
2.99,580 at time of purchase and 105,000 (approx.) when it broke down.
3. I didn’t receive a warranty because when I asked about one the salesman/Manager (Ray) stated that the finance company would not finance me with a warranty. I would have to add it at a later date.
4. I don’t have any repair orders because every time the car had an issue up until now I contacted the dealer and I also contacted my finance company and informed them of the numerous issues I was having with the car from day one. They contacted the dealer and told them to fix the problem. That was the extent of their involvement; however they (Westlake Financial Services) should have several notes under my account from me calling to complain. Every time the dealership got the car and returned it they told me they couldn’t find a problem, everything was fine and that it was just a sensor. However, I did manage to take a picture (attached, taken 9/29/09) of the diagnosis the machine gave one time when I was there watching them try to fix my car.
5. I purchased the vehicle in California.
6. The car was not registered in the time allotted by law. I went back to the dealership over a month after purchasing the car and they still had not taken my paperwork down to the DMV.
7. I filed a complaint with Consumer Affairs, Bureau of Automotive Repair; Agent Robert Robbins is handling the issue with the dealership. The outcome is still pending. However in the research he discovered that the dealership is not certified with the state as a licensed auto repair shop, therefore they should not be performing any repairs and Mr. Robbins discovered that the Chrysler was smogged on September 16 and it failed horribly all the emissions were extremely high and then they smogged it again on September 18 and it passed with flying colors, however no repairs were made on the vehicle.
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