I bought a 2nd hand Berlingo a week ago, from a dealership about 60 miles away from where I live.

The gear linkage broke after day 3, and the dealer has agreed to pay for my local garage to fix the problem.

During the investigation of the gear problem, the garage spotted there was an oil leak. They think it’s the rocker cover gasket that’s gone. When I bought the car, the engine bay had been valeted and was spotless, so didn’t see anything suspicious.

The dealership are refusing to get the leak sorted as “seals aren’t covered” on the 30 day warranty.

Are they right?

Have you read the small print? It’s their warranty. Was there a no quibble return element to the warranty.

End of the day though – rocker cover gasket is not the worst problem you can find in a new (to you) car. If you like the rest of the car and they won’t stump up it’s not going to break you financially.

Don’t know if they’re right, but it’s a cheap part and a cheap job. Just get it done and don’t worry about it.

They’re probably in the right. As seals can be seen as perishable/consumables.

Bit shit given the short amount of time elapsed, plus other issues, they won’t help at all. But as mentioned, at least it’s a cheap fix.

“seals aren’t covered” on the 30 day warranty.

What does the warranty paperwork say?

Usually I’d be suspicious of any car that had had the engine bay cleaned. I’m not suggesting the seller is up to no good, just that it’s harder to check for evidence of leaks.

I’d push for them to make a contribution to the fix on the basis of goodwill. But you may have to chalk it up – ask the local garage what the cost will be to replace the gasket (if it’s rocker cover then presumably not too bad).

A quick google indicates this isn’t unusual for a Berlingo.

Hope you get it sorted – am thinking about one myself for our impending house renovation.

When I bought the car, the engine bay had been valeted and was spotless, so didn’t see anything suspicious.

First clue… a nice shiney engine bay…

I thought all commercial sales basically came with a 3 month warranty by law. (maybe not explicitly written into law but the interpretation of what fit for purpose means, and it’s often written on commercial eBay ads though I can’t say I’ve checked all that many). That doesn’t cover genuine wear and tear though. I probably wouldn’t bother chasing it up if it’s a cheap fix anyway. My previous van had a nail in the tyre which was a bit annoying as it’s pretty likely it came like that but I could hardly prove it especially as it took a month or two to work out there was a slow leak and find the cause.

(maybe not explicitly written into law but the interpretation of what fit for purpose means

I think a lot of 2nd hand car dealers think this but I don’t think it’s true. A lot of the time warranties are with “AutoProtect” which has so many exclusions it’s barely worth anything, then you try and claim off the dealer under the sale of goods act and get fobbed off saying you should use the useless warranty.

That’s my experience anyway. I started court proceedings for a 2k engine repair and they paid up 2 weeks before hearing.

Warranty is just an insurance policy the garage buys with part of the sales price. As above read the small print and just be glad the linkage broke within 30 days. A valeted engine bay hides many sins as the other poster said.

If it’s the older Berlin go the gear linkages go quite often. Cheap from eBay, sodding fortune from Citroen.
Just be glad it’s not the axle.

How bad is the leak does it need fixing ?
My dw engined expert van has had a rocker cover leak for years but never enough to go to the hassle of changing the gasket.

Guess it depends on the age of the car and how fussy you are ?

Imagine you hadn’t been given that ‘Platinum Plus’ insurance policy by the dealer. The car still needs to be in a respectable condition. If the leak is obvious I reckon you’ve got reasonablte grounds for the dealer to contribute to the cost.

However, whats the repair cost and is it worth the effort/aggravation on your part to pursue it any further than a second request that the dealer scontributes to the cost. He’ll probably tell you to bring it back so he can take a look, assuming he wants you to leave it with him, thats 2×60 mile round trip for the car, and 4×60 mile trips for your other half/a mate to follow you up/bring you back/drive you up/follow you back…

I’d call his bluff and suggest its easy for you to drop off the car, but your local garage is offering to do it for £xxx and it seems silly to bother the dealer with it when the car is already on the ramps.

Cheap gearlinkages are a false economy.

The uprated ones from Peugeot (ie the we had a problem with the original design ones) are far superior.