Used Car Lemon Laws???

[Yammer Dan]

My black cloud is still hanging around I guess. As most of you know I lost my daily ride and trashed the clutch in my Saab. Anyway I was stuck without transportation. Stopped at car lot and grabbed a 2002 Tarus that seemed to run fair. It was dirty. I cleaned it up and it has scratches and stains all over. To make it worse the Warden (trying to help) washed it whith a plastic abrasiave pad and Soft Scrub. Now it does have scratches all over. That is not my problem she was trying to help and just didn't know what she was doing. They could probally be buffed out.

My problem is I drove it for over 2 months. Had no reason to jack it up tires are good and it runs as good as a new one. Started making a thumping in the rear when you hit a bump the right way. So I looked under it and one of the pins that connect the rear strut to the sway bar was rusted into. No big deal I stopped at the parts store and picked one up to replace it. Body wise this thing looks good except for all the scratches. I started to jack it up to replace the pin. Jack went against plastic trim that runs along the rocker panels where it is supposed to go. Jack went up thur rocker panel and car didn't go up . Several handfulls of rust fell out from under the trim. I stopped and didn't go any farther before jack came thru floorboad. Question is did I just pay 4000.00 bucks to have a car for 2 months. Car lot owner's assistant promised they would call me back. Hasn't happened and I don't think he will unless he wants me to pay for anything they do to this thing. Didn't mean to write a book just a little ticked with this and thought someone would know what I ought to do. I was liking the Tarus and it runs great. Not as powerfull as my Buick and not as good on gas milage but I just got in a hurry and grabbed something with wheels on it. Thought I had gotten lucky for a change. NOPE!! This rust was complletly hidden by the trim. Is the car lot owner legal obligation to help me with this?? There was a 1000 mile or something like that power train warrenty. Trip to beach took care of that.

[Eck]

This rust was completely hidden by the trim.

Is the car lot owner legal obligation to help me with this??

Dan, I would not think there is much the dealer can do if your first sentence is true. I mean if he didn't see the rust and you didn't see the rust I have to ask, where did he intentionally try to deceive or mislead you?

 

This appears to me that it falls into that old saying.. "Buyer beware"...

 

There was a 1000 mile or something like that power train warranty.

This seems like he was trying to give you a fair deal.....

 

I know this is not what you wanted to hear my friend, but you asked and I am only giving my opinion based on your post.

hugs..

[Dragracer]

Here in FL, the Lemon Law applies to only new cars. If the sticker on the car said "AS IS, SO WARRANTY", you're most likely up a creek. Sorry.

[buddy]

Never heard of the Lemon law for used cars. Only for new cars&trucks

And as for drive train warranty that only covers the motor-transmission. Body condition is not included. Most used car dealers give you no warranty what so ever you buy as is where is, By the sound of it the Dealer was trying to do good by giving you the 1,000 mile drive train warranty which is a lot now days. Every used car or truck I bought never had any warranty of any kind. Guess me being a ASE mechanic & test driver for many years has helped me a lot in what to look for.

Sorry to say this Dan, but it looks like your stuck with a rusty car that runs real good.

Sorry

[LilBeaver]

The only way the dealer would be liable is if you could prove that there was some to prove that the rust or weak parts were a result from the car being knowingly repaired by the dealer (or under the dealer's ownership when repaired) when the frame or other parts were to damaged to be safely repaired and should have been totaled.

 

I don't know that it is called the lemon law, but there is some protection for the buyer (at least in Illinois, Michigan and Texas) for consumers against used car dealers. Dealers are supposed to inspect their cars and have the structure certified BEFORE they sell the car.

 

If it was just the rocker panels that were rusted then you have nothing to worry about (nor, in my opinion, is there any structural integrity issues with the car). Cars that have plastic trim along the bottom with little lips that come up trap dirt, salt and moisture in there and rot the panels out.

 

I don't know why manufactures claim the rocker panels are a good lift point (I have seen a lot of mini-vans that way too) because those things are so weak it is uddery ridiculous; even right out of the factory. New rocker panels to be cut and welded in place (assuming there is enough metal left to have something to weld to) are really cheap and pretty easy to put in. The body shop I used to work at would buy them at some aftermarket source for the Ford Tarus for somewhere around 30 or 40 bucks for each side and a few hours for the install (plus paint, of course).

 

Sorry to hear about your troubles

[Yammer Dan]

I talked to PV and he told me they repaired rust place over rear wheel on that side. I'm thinking if they got in to there to do that they knew about the rest of it.

I figure I'm stuck but just really ticked that I paid 4000.00 bucks for this thing. If I hadn't been on crutches at the time I might have caught it but I doubt it. It doesn't show til you try to jack it up. If I traded like that I couldn't sleep. No place for a honest man in this world.

[FROG MAN]

Honest Man????? Seems like I remember Grandpa talking about those in his day. They all died of old age years ago on my end of the county. The 911 addressing committee should have let me rename the roads and hollers around here. Let me see there is Oxy lane, Meth holler, Hydro city, Pay no taxes alley, Do it to you first street, Cash only avenue, And the little community up the road where all the kids want to know? Will my real Dad please stand up?

 

Why do I loose sleep at night trying to pay bills? All the neighbors sleep like a baby. Some sleep it off for days. Watch your back Dan there is more shaft a coming.No bars to hold them back either.

[Skid]

First: Shouldn't have bought a Ford...

Second: Remember the good offer on a Subura?

[dynodon]

Nothing wrong with the Taurus in general, any car can rust out and all of them do eventually, even those with fiberglass or aluminum parts, there is steel in there somewhere.

 

I know lots of people that are alive because the Taurus is one of the highest rated cars for crash safety, and they do protect well. Of course if the car is allowed to rust (and it is the owners fault, not the cars...understand I am not assigning blame in this case to the buyer, since the rust was done long before he bought the car!) then all bets are off.

 

One real word of caution, there is an epidemic of rusty BRAKE lines on all makes/models of cars in the rust belt. I hear from body shops/mechanics that it is the excessive use of that new liquid ice melting stuff they use, lots worse than just rock salt.

 

Check your brake lines, if there is that much rust in the body, then unless they have already been replaced, your brake lines are probably ready to spring a leak. Look everywhere, but especially in the back.

 

Oh, those sway bar links (I think that is what you were trying to replace) are notorious for rusting in two on the Taurus, but again, only on rust belt cars with some time on them. A 2002 though, really should not have this much rust, I wonder if it was a flood car, from a salt-water area? Might want to do a title search and see if the car was re-titled or had enough damage to be totaled out. You might have a case then. In that case, pay to have an attorney check it out and send a letter.

[LilBeaver]

A 2002 though, really should not have this much rust, I wonder if it was a flood car, from a salt-water area? Might want to do a title search and see if the car was re-titled or had enough damage to be totaled out. You might have a case then. In that case, pay to have an attorney check it out and send a letter.

 

I have done rocker rust repairs on many (2 and 3 year) lease returns (some were Ford Taurus). Granted this was in Michigan, but regardless, there is absolutely no reason that a car that may have been sold in Fall of 2001 (that is 8 years) might have completely rusted out rocker panels.

 

The plastic trip on cars like that and the metal lip on the inside of the rocker collect moisture, mud and salt. The plastic traps moisture between the trip and the body just as well as a cup hold water.

[Yammer Dan]

I grabbed this thing because I had to have something to get around while Insurance companies decided what they were going to do. Still waiting on them. I may fix it if I can. I should just trade it but I have a hard time doing that. FrogMan is right. These days it is

 

" Do unto others before they Do unto YOU!!!"

 

What do you get for breaking Lot Owners nose??

 

Anyone know where you can get the rocker panels??

[Skid]

.....Anyone know where you can get the rocker panels??

 

I fixed the rocket panels on Leslie's old 91 Mazda 626 by using a can of exspanding foam insulation. I rolled up and placed some plastic mesh inside the panel, sprayed the foam in. And after it expanded and hardened. I cut, sanded smooth, and sprayed some pain over it. Looked ok, but then this car over 250K miles so it didn't matter so much.....

[Yammer Dan]

First: Shouldn't have bought a Ford...

 

Second: Remember the good offer on a Subura?

 

 

 

With LESS rust!!

[Grandpagak]

i know what you mean Dan.. 5 years ago i bought the wifes pickup for 3800 dollars..the salesman brought it out to the house for me to check it out.. (he's a friend of ours) I drove , I checked everything out on it, then i crawled all over under it.. there was not even any rust under it where the rust would start... so i bought it thinking that it would last a few years .. 6 months later it was rusting out all over.. it doesnt have bondo in it ..(my first thought) so i guess that it was hiding in between the inner and outer pannels.. go figger.. really bums me out.. but we have put over 100,000 miles on it and im hopping to get another 100,000 miles tho..:bang head: