New car . . . part 2

[mizu_no_cagalli]

So, we've had the focus for how many days? And yesterday I get on the freeway and rear-end a pickup. The goddamn breaks didn't work. We had mentioned they felt really soft when we test drove the damned car and were assured they would check the car over before we picked it up. Hey! Guess what! Breaks are supposed to stop the car, not gradually slow

Comments

[athenazandrite]

Oh man Haru :( What the hell. Did you get the 'going to fix the brakes' thing in writing? Was it from a dealer? Cause they might pay for damages. That sucks so hard. I'm glad no one was hurt.

[mizu_no_cagalli]

Yes, it was a dealer. We're going to see what they say. First we're getting all the facts. We took the car in to Midas yesterday to get the breaks thoroughly looked at (we didn't trust asking the dealer to look at them considering they said they were fine before) and they said the breaks were all kinds of not good. They said you could tell someone had recently changed the break pads (with super low end ones) and had shaved down the rotors, I think (I'm no mechanic), to resurface them when they really needed to be replaced. On top of that, the master cylinder was cracked and leaking fluid. In the end, the whole break system had to be replaced and should have been replaced before we drove off the lot. It's going to cost us over $900 to get the car safe to drive and that's BEFORE the $500 deductible we're going to have to pay to the body shop to get the frond end un-crunched. Once we get the car back from Midas today, I'm going to scan the paperwork and email it to the dealer along with a very unhappy letter. I'll also send a copy to my

[jetster]

Oh geez D: I'm glad you're OK though. I would definitely be talking with the dealers, and also to your insurance (if you have it) about what the dealers told you >:(

[mizu_no_cagalli]

Yes, we have insurance. You legally have to. And it's good insurance, too. And we're going to tell them and the dealer aaaaaall about it. (See my response to Athena above).

[jetster]

Oh right, I keep forgetting that insurance companies rule your country even more than they do over here (at least a little less now that you have government provided health cover, I guess). It differs between States/Territories here, but in Victoria, accidents that lead to injury are covered through the vehicle registration. Further insurance is optional, but with that said... It's kind of a silly thing to go without, so I don't know why you would risk it.

That whole thing about them replacing the pads and resurfacing the rotor makes it sound like they are going to try and tell you that they did do something about it, but expected you to do the rest. I'd make sure that you have all your paperwork from when you bought the car at the ready, if you can, because I would think they would have had to have made notes about any further work they expected you to do? It sounds a lot like misrepresentation, otherwise.