Headgasket failure?

[jribeiro]

Hi all,
I bought my audi a3 2.0t fsi quattro on 30th May 2014 with 58k on the clock. After i had purchased it i noticed the expansion bottle looked black so me and a colleague of mine (we work for honda) decided to remove it and give it a good clean. On cleaning i noticed what looked like rust being washed away. After we refitted the bottle my mate decided to fill up the bottle to the brim to see if any bubbles would come up (headgasket). After a while of running car we did see bubble come up. This being 2 weeks after purchasing the car i decided to go back to the company i bought it from. They then decided to send it to a garage they work with for them to test. The garage came back and said there was no fault could be a possible blockage in the coolant system. I took car back and noticed that my temp gauge would barely reach half way despite 30 mins of driving regardless of round town or motor way always stuck to quarter or less. I done a cylinder leak test at work when car was cold and the blue liquid changed to yellow, which indicated headgasket failure. I phoned up the company and they told me to take car to their garage and they would do the leak test there. So i did and the test they did would not turn yellow. However they done it with engine hot (which metal expands and seals up when hot) I was not happy with this decision therefore the trader decided to take it to an independent audi specialist garage (again which they knew) for them to test the car. So the "specialist" took my car and tested it and couldnt fault the car and told me that doing the leak test inside a workshop, the other cars co2 could affect the test. So i decided to do the test outside in a car park and filmed it from start to finish, my results showed there was a fault. The trader also told the first garage to flush my coolant system and fill with new coolant.

I am unsure of what to do in legal terms because i feel like i am being played with and now a month has gone by and nothing has been done. Can anyone advice? Am i entitled to a full refund as i can prove car is not fit for purpose?

Please Help

John

 

[Lukeyb]

Read the sale of goods act 1979 and contact citizens advice, they will tell you what to write and point you towards sample letters etc

 

[jribeiro]

Thanks Lukeyb. I have contacted them before and they did say I was entitled to a full refund within the first 3 months of purchase. But then I know for sure the garage wont just give me the refund that easy?

 

[pluves1]

How did you pay? Cash? More protection if you can get away paying with a credit card - although you may need a sizeable credit limit
I tend to find a letter followed up by a visit will have more impact. The letter makes it official and shows you know your rights. Turning up in person shows you're prepared to be reasonable. If they don't play ball then CAB are great with these sorts of cases. And yes you should be able to get your money back if you now don't feel the car is right as they've had plenty of opportunity to fix. Ideally you need someone else to give you a diagnostic of the problem in writing. An Audi specialist chosen by you should be ideal although you might have to pay for this.

 

[jribeiro]

I have it in writing from honda where I work to say theres a problem. I did pay in cash and I also have a video of the whole procedure being done from start to finish.

 

[Lukeyb]

The sale of goods act is valid for up to 6 years, though you have the burden of proof if it's been many years that the problem was pre existing. Seeing as it hasn't been long and you have at least 2 of your own independent reports that corroborate the issue then the seller would be dumb not to get it sorted with you.

Go to Audi themselves they will do a full check of your car plus any specific checks you want doing for £60, I don't know if they felt sorry for me with my situation but the actually waived this charge for me too. Audi (at least my dealership) aren't so bad, they said they would rather I have a good dealer experience than charge me for a big list of pre existing faults that I was having trouble resolving with the trader that sold me the car.

 

[jribeiro]

I took it to audi and they did tests and said they could not find a fault with the head gasket. However they did say the coolant was contaminated as the bottle was heavily stained. I spoke to the technician and he mentioned reason why they got a different result could be because of the atmospheric temperature as it has been really hot therefore engine was warm. So he did mention the car has a fault but did not want to commit to saying it was headgasket or cracked head without seeing him himself cause he mentioned in the past perhaps some sort of sealant ie kseal was put in the coolant system to seal up any cracks. But they would need to go further which means another £144 diagnosis which i already paid for. He did say there is a problem though

 

[Artimus]

My advice at this point would be to give the car back ...pronto.

People that use K-Seal, Rad-weld, etc, should be hung, drawn and quartered! those products cause more long-term damage to engines than they prevent, and users tend to patch cars up on the cheap, then pass the burden to the unsuspecting at full cost.

Maybe the dealer didn't know about the rad-weld and sold the car in all innocence, but it shouldn't be you that gets the s**t end of the stick sorting it out! the worst thing is it'll take more work to purge this carp from the coolant system - because it'll have hardened in all of the waterways - than it would have cost to fix whatever was leaking in the first place.

It's not worth the hassle, so get rid.

 

[jribeiro]

Thanks artimus. Thats exactly what I want to do. My only worry is I know the ***** traders will deny giving my money back. Can they reject giving my money back?

 

[Artimus]

You're fully entitled to a refund. Follow pluves1's guidance and you'll get it! make sure you mention "engine sealant" in your reasons for not wanting it! don't accept a promise to repair it either, be firm\stubborn, but civil at all times - it may take a while if they play hardball, but they don't really have a legal leg to stand on, so you'll get it in the end.

How did you pay? Cash? More protection if you can get away paying with a credit card - although you may need a sizeable credit limit
I tend to find a letter followed up by a visit will have more impact. The letter makes it official and shows you know your rights. Turning up in person shows you're prepared to be reasonable. If they don't play ball then CAB are great with these sorts of cases. And yes you should be able to get your money back if you now don't feel the car is right as they've had plenty of opportunity to fix. Ideally you need someone else to give you a diagnostic of the problem in writing. An Audi specialist chosen by you should be ideal although you might have to pay for this.

 

[jribeiro]

Ok thanks. Im going to contact citizens advice today and see what they say. These guys are going to be hard I know it.

 

[jribeiro]

Hi guys just an update on whats going on.....
I took my car to audi without the trader knowing and had them check my car. Audi came back saying they done a head gasket check and block test and were both coming back with no faults. However the technician didsay that the coolant was contaminated and the thermostat was either faulty or missing as the temp did not reach 90° as it should. With this report I wrote to the trader with both my reports from honda and audi and demanded a refund. I got a letter back from the trader saying that they reject giving me a refund but are willing to fix the fault with coolant and thermostat at a ****ty garage they use which I do not want. Can I still demand a refund? Or do I just have to fix it? My concern is why did I get in 2 tests saying theres co2 in the cooling system but audi did not. I asked this question to the technician and he did say as the days were extremely hot weather this could affect the test as the car was not completely cold. What you guys think? Thanks

 

[pluves1]

They have had ample opportunity to fix previously. I reiterate what I said earlier and now I would be paying a visit to CAB.

How did you pay? Cash? More protection if you can get away paying with a credit card - although you may need a sizeable credit limit
I tend to find a letter followed up by a visit will have more impact. The letter makes it official and shows you know your rights. Turning up in person shows you're prepared to be reasonable. If they don't play ball then CAB are great with these sorts of cases. And yes you should be able to get your money back if you now don't feel the car is right as they've had plenty of opportunity to fix. Ideally you need someone else to give you a diagnostic of the problem in writing. An Audi specialist chosen by you should be ideal although you might have to pay for this.

 

[jribeiro]

My only issue is the only place who has said theres co2 in the cooling is the garage I work for however I did not cheat the test I did it fairly as I love the car and wished the car had no issues. Even audi have said theres no issue with the headgasket but theres a problem with the cooling system and thermostat. What should I do?