Hi folks….A while back I bought a used boxter from evans halshaw which had issues as soon as I bought it. Now common sense should have dictated I asked for a refund, but since it had a 3 month warranty I initially asked them to fix it up, which in fairness they did at a substantial cost. So after 2 weeks I got the car back with all faults apparently fixed.

Since then I’ve done approx 300 miles, only to find today that the alternator has packed up….issue is its packed up a week after the 3 month warranty has runout. Is it fair to argue that although I officially picked up the car on the 20th September since I couldn’t drive it for 2 weeks and it remained with them in the garage that my warenty should still be valid?

Nah.

Nope

Nope, but given the rest of the history you might as well have a go anyway

Doubt you would have got an alternator on the warrenty anyway,

The stuff that was broken when you bought it fair enough but how you going to argue the alternator was toast when you bought it ?

Alternators wear out.

But as he said – nothing to lose !

Btw who diagnosed the alternator as dead ? A battery with dead cells can give similar symptoms in some circumstances. Have you had it load tested ?

You reasoning sounds fine to me, couldn’t use it for a fortnight so warranty should start from the date you could use it from. You don’t order a brand new car with a three year warranty an a six month waiting list and then only get 2 1/2yrs do you?
However, alternators may be classed as consumables…
Definitely worth speaking to them about it though, emphasise how much trouble the car has been and how patient you have been with them despite all the problems and see if they’ll do you a good will gesture.

Mechanic chap from a a tested it. Battery was replaced when I bought the car. Where’s good to buy a new alternator from ?

Any used vehicle purchased should be ‘fit for purpose’ for 6 month from purchase, there are many different interpretations of this but the basis is all used car must be guaranteed for 6 months, it’s the law.

Andy….any links to this?

Your rights when buying from a car dealer

When buying from a dealer, under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (as amended) a car must be:
Of satisfactory quality. It must meet the standard a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory, bearing in mind the way it was described, how much it cost, the make, the age, the history, the mileage, the intended usage of the car and any other relevant circumstances. Amongst other things, this covers the fitness, appearance and finish of the car, its safety and its durability. The car must be free from defects, except when they were pointed out to you by the seller before you agreed to buy it or where you have inspected the car and that inspection ought to have uncovered the car defects. Even where a car appears to have a minor defect, it may still be of unsatisfactory quality if that defect could lead to extensive damage or render the car dangerous to drive.

Also:
– It is not sufficient that a car is merely roadworthy and safe.
– The dealer may be liable for faults that were present at the time of sale, even though they may only become apparent later on.
– Dealers are not liable for fair wear and tear, where the car broke down through normal use. Nor are they liable for your misuse or accidental damage
As described. This covers all statements made about the car, whether in writing, in a conversation over the phone or in the showroom, in a newspaper, website, email or text, or in documentation. If the advert states “air conditioning and CD player” then the car should come with these features and they should be working.
Reasonably fit for any normal purpose. It should get you from A to B with the appropriate degree of comfort, ease of handling and reliability that a reasonable person would expect.

Reasonably fit for any other purpose you make known to the dealer. For example, if you require a vehicle for towing a caravan.

These rights are not affected by any mechanical breakdown insurance (which is often sold by dealers if the manufacturer’s warranty has run out), guarantee or warranty giving additional protection.

Some dealers may use disclaimers such as ‘ Sold as Seen’, ‘Trade sale Only’ or ‘No Refund’ to try and limit your rights. However, these rights cannot be taken away or restricted by a dealer.

Warranties/guarantees

Warranties and guarantees provide a way for you to have faults corrected at little or no cost. They are in addition to your statutory rights, not a substitute for them – so a dealer cannot refuse to consider your complaint about a fault or defect with a vehicle simply because the warranty has expired or the type of fault is specifically excluded.

Warranties and guarantees can also be particularly useful if a dealer has gone out of business. Important points to look out for when considering a warranty or guarantee include:
Key elements of a warranty or guarantee should clearly be outlined prior to sale. For example, what is covered and excluded, claim limits and procedures, conditions that need to be followed in order for it to remain valid, etc.
Warranties/guarantees vary greatly in what they cover. Make sure you receive relevant documentation including clear details of the type of warranty/guarantee – for example, free extended manufacturer’s/dealer’s, manufacturers, insurance backed or dealer’s own warranty/guarantee.
Once the dealer gives a warranty it becomes an agreement on its own, but it is not your legal right to demand a warranty from the dealer.
Even a free warranty is legally binding and must state that it does not affect your legal rights. You should also be able to view it in writing before the purchase.

If you inspect the car, or someone does so for you, the dealer may not be liable for any faults which should have been uncovered by the inspection. However, where you inspect a car or an expert does, this mainly applies to cosmetic defects such as scratches or dents that are obvious. It’s a good idea to get a description of the vehicle’s condition from the dealer: ask whether there is a pre-sale inspection checklist.

If after the sale you realise that your rights under the Sale of Goods Act as described above have not been fulfilled, you are entitled to various remedies depending on a number of factors.

And remember, the dealer must have the right to sell you the car. If you discover that they do not have this right – for example, because the car was still subject to a finance agreement – you can reject the car and recover any payment that has been made.

Ive quoted from the .gov site instead of paraphrasing the bloke down the pub.

Ive also highlighted the bit i think you were to alluding with “its the law” while negating to mention the second part ive high lighted which also states the dealers not liable for fair wear and tear , now iirc this car is 10 or more years old so an alternator assuming its bearings were not howling away at time of purchase and the dealer told him it was something unrelated would be a wear item on a car of that age, alternators do deteriorate and fail with age and use.

Update…went to get something out the car and the battery was completely dead…showed 5.4v…down from 11 when I first tested the battery 3 hours ago

Am I right in thinking that this means it’s not just the alternator and in fact there’s a drain somewhere? Or would turning the car overy 3 or 4 times drain the battery so quickly?

You definitely have a drain somewhere. Getting below about 11 will make it fail to start, but it should hold that charge if you don’t do anything else to it

Thanks Andrew. I’ll contact the garage tomorrow. I must say Id be pretty riled if they claim the warrenty has expired given the first 2 weeks of its life, other than a 2 mile trip when I first picked it up, were spend in the dealers getting fixed. FYI when I first picked it up the indicators and brake lights didn’t work…so I fail to see how they can claim the warrenty started at that point.

Sale of goods act is an interesting one. Surely noone would think that the electrics failing on a car after 3 months and 300 miles usage is reasonable. It was cheap as far as porsches go, but not that cheap to not expect it to work.

Surely noone would think that the electrics failing on a car after 3 months and 300 miles usage is reasonable.

On a brand new car – no. On a ten year old cheap sports car?

You pays your money you takes your choice

tpbiker – I don’t have any links mate, but I am in the trade. I would speak to the garage first and foremost, if you don’t get anywhere then log a call with trading standards also might be worth while complaining via Evans Halshaw head office.

http://www.thebatteryguys.co.uk/blog/2013/04/how-flat-is-your-battery-as-the-voltage-drops/

12v is 25% charge on the battery and car will struggle if it bothers to start even.

5.4volts….ive never seen a battery that low,…..definantly sounds like a drain, although if it has an alarm and immob on it that will drain it from 11 pretty quick as at 11 its already pretty fooking flat and wont start a car. ( or were you trying to start the car with 11 volts and it wouldnt turn over ? Then it read 5.4 volts….. Yep a high drain like a starter motor would do that although im surprised it turned over at all.

How ever dont discount the alternator and it sounds lmore than plausable , worth getting a second opinion though.

Good luck at garage , play dumb about whats wrong would be my opinion , then you might at least get free opinion on whats wrong.

So….spent last night charging the battery, measured it at 15.4 volts. An hour later, still at 15.4 volts. Started the engine and it went up to 17.5 volts so the alternator appears to be working again.

Is it possible that the cold weather and hard frost can cause issues to the battery/alternator, as all appears grand. Or it more likely an intermittent fault with the alternator?

http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticles/Boxster_Tech/82-ELEC-Alternator/82-ELEC-Alternator.htm

Please read that then realise the flaw in what you have written and please stop running your car 50p your alternator voltage regulator is toast.

It can certainly cause battery issues, I wouldn’t expect it to cause an issue on the alternator though. Although it’s clear you have a problem somewhere.

I’d start by taking to gargage armed with a list of “this is what’s happened….” and see where they go from there, explain nicely about it being slightly out of the warranty period but the fact you were without it for several weeks.

17.5 volts is far too high and could cause damage to the electronics, voltage should be around 14 to 14.5 volts when engine running. I suspect the alternator if its giving out that voltage..

Bugger…

Thanks folks. Am I on to leave the battery in (without running the car) if its at 15.4 volts, or will this goose the battery/electrics?

Id think about whipping the leads off , as it should be isolated from most things but the alarm immobiliser ecu will be something you really dont want to spacker