When I called to make arrangements to see the vehicle I was told that I would need to go to a specific office (apparently they have two seperate buildings). When I arrived and asked to see the car I was told it would be several minutes before they would "bring it up." Turns out the vehicle was being stored indoors (first sign something wasn't right). I drove the vehicle and was satisified with the test drive.
When I arrived back at the dealership I was met by the salesperson (Brad). I asked a few questions, one of which was what is the history of the vehicle. Brad could not give me a precise reason for selling the vehicle. He once said it was a trade in, and another time had said it was a "friend" of the owner. I asked Brad about the vehicle's mechanics/maintaineance and I was told specifically their service department did a thorough inspection of the car and changed all fluids. He said "it's all ready to go."
I noticed on my drive home that the vehicle had indicated the coolant level was low. Clearly a bad sign. It became very apparent that the car had a leak from underneat (dripped all over garage floor), which would explain why the car could not be parked outside on the lot like all the other cars.
I got the vehicle into a dealership immediately and I was given a list of problems including brakes (digging into rotor - $400 fix), oil (very dirty and gritty, hadn't been changed in quite awhile), and the best part - a valley pan leak which is coolant ($1000.00). The mechanic showed me where the vehicle had been leaking, he also stated it had been leaking for a long time, many months indicitive by the corrosion buildup. Total bill - $4300. Second opinion from another dealer, $3200.
I notified the dealership of my findings and was met with no oposition, or rebuttal. It was apparent that they knew of the problems this car had and did not disclose this information. Everytime I called, Brad was not available, conveniently. Another salesperson had offered me a $500 refund with the acceptance of the owner. I asked for atleast enough to cover the valley pan leak and I was told "it's this or nothing." Obviously, I took the money. To give some perspective, I purchased the car for $14,500.00 and I've put $2000.00 into keeping it running, this being 2 months after purchase.
I hope you're able to learn from my mistake. The signs were there but its human nature to want to believe people. They claim it's a family run and owned business, must be a quality family. I'm surprised they haven't been ran out of Boulder. I just don't understand why and how people can make a living profitting off their lies. It's got to be a great way to live.
And to top it all off, I learned they never got an emissions test on the car. I had to spend half the day getting a test on a leaky car.
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