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Posted 3rd May 2022 (Posted 21 h, 18 m ago)
Last week we bought a secondhand car from the garage. Another garage did a pre-purchase check which we paid for and found a few bits that he reported. The other garage said they’d get them all fixed before selling the car to us.
We’ve driven it twice since having the car and the coolant light have come on flashing which usually means there’s a coolant leak. We’ve checked the collar and most of it has gone.
What can we do? We paid for the inspection and I find it hard to believe this has been caused by the two times we have used to car.
Are either of the garage liable to fix this?
The inspection didn’t find any issues with the coolant so the other garage may have knocked or damaged something whilst making the repairs that were reported
We’ve driven it twice since having the car and the coolant light have come on flashing which usually means there’s a coolant leak. We’ve checked the collar and most of it has gone.
What can we do? We paid for the inspection and I find it hard to believe this has been caused by the two times we have used to car.
Are either of the garage liable to fix this?
The inspection didn’t find any issues with the coolant so the other garage may have knocked or damaged something whilst making the repairs that were reported
I had the same issue and it was the water pump, the mechanic I took it to at first thought it was the issue in the below video which is common fault with VW group make vehicles
I remember buying my first car approx 8 years ago, an 01 plate Punto - burnt the clutch within 48 hours of ownership and they replaced it FOC. Even smaller garages offer at least 30/60 days. I’d ring them up first thing and see what they advise.
Doesn’t say on the purchase paperwork we have although it is literally just a single page.
The garage that did the initial inspection does state it gives 3 months warranty but they weren’t the ones that did the work they just inspected it and they marked the coolant off as being checked.
I’m hoping the garage we actually bought it off will fix it as we’ve already spent loads and considering we paid another garage to inspect it beforehand we didn’t expect any issues. I can’t see this being from the 2 trips we’ve done in in, the mileage difference from when we bought it to now clearly shows it’s hardly gone anywhere
If that amount of coolant is going that quickly you should be able to locate where, if the head gasket has gone is the steam coming out of the exhaust?
can you see any leaks on the floor??
unscrew the oil filler cap. Can you see any mayonnaise like residue on the cap
No noticeable leaks on the floor, haven’t checked the steam from the exhaust. We’ve filled it up again and will check the level tomorrow morning but I’m assuming the leak is when the engine is on.
Are either of the garages liable to get this fixed? Even if the coolant wasn’t leaking at the time of inspection considering the warning has popped up already points to something not being right.
or is it with the garage that sold us the car in the first place? Are they the ones liable? I see the consumer rights act allows us to get a full refund within 30 days but we part exchanged an old car that needed work so I’m not sure how that would go down plus we’d prefer to keep the car just get it fixed. We don’t want to spend any more money on it though
If you can't see a leak it must be going somewhere you can't see, ie into the engine unit. Head gasket would be a likely cause.
What car is it?
Any ideas what are options would be? Surely either the inspection or the garage selling the vehicle would need to cover this? Or is that just wishful thinking
2012 Seat Ibiza
I'd pursue repair from garage selling car and pursue refund from inspection garage for providing a shoddy service. Both covered under consumer acts.
I’ll be calling them first thing in the morning. My girlfriend is now having to pay for insurance on car so she can use it to get to work so it’s already costing us more. I’m hoping they’ll offer to fix it for free otherwise I think we’ll just ask for a refund and start again.
Yeah that’s what I’m thinking. The initial inspection had no problems with the coolant. The other garage fitted a new cam belt and some other bits which was a result of the inspection and I suspect something was knocked then or the car had just been sitting around for a while and this warning was the result of it now being used again.
I’m going to have a word with the inspection garage first thing tomorrow morning as he’s only a few roads down and opens before the garage we bought from. He was the one that recommended the garage we bought from and carried out the inspection so I’m hoping he’ll help me get this fixed for free. We’re not paying out anymore
Just looking on Ebay and the water pump is usually part of the cam belt change on these.
I know hindsight is 20/20, but you really should have had the inspection performed by an independent third party like The AA or RAC.
You don't know the degree of relationship between the two garages involved which could pose an issue now that you have a fault that needs resolving.
This.
But a few other posibilities - they may have drained it by disconnecting the rad or a drain plug on the rad - maybe not reconnected properly? easy to mess up a hose clip without the correct tool. or damaged hose?
Agree with this, cambelt done but maybe didn't change the water pump.
OP says "most of it has gone" (Coolant)
Interesting! I’ll raise this when I speak with them this morning. I would have thought the inspection we paid for would have raised this when he said to them that the cam belt needed changing if they’re usually done together.
Just had a look at the service book which they filled in when doing the cam belt and other bits and it’s been marked that the water pump was also done!
I’m starting to think this coolant leak has something to do with their work, maybe a loose connection or something?
I had the same issue and it was the water pump, the mechanic I took it to at first thought it was the issue in the below video which is common fault with VW group make vehicles
One other option would be an air block and it was not really full when re-filled after the work was done, just looked so.
Try again (don't let it overheat) but whilst standing let it warm right up and run for a bit then see if you can spot a leak. Then when COLD again check your level. Whilst you are at it check the electric cooling fan kicks in and out properly.
The garage have come to take it away to have a look and given us a courtesy car whilst they fix the problem. They’ve confirmed that it will not cost us anything as it’ll count as part of our 3 mo this warranty so all in all probably the best result we could have got. Lost a bit more money as my girlfriend had to buy insurance on my car today for work buy hopefully after this they’ll be no more problems.
Thanks for all your help
Hope they sort it quickly.
That's good to hear
Hopefully this is the case. They probably didn't bleed the system correctly when they changed the water pump etc. Creating an airlock.
If the coolant issue isn't dealt with then ironically it could result in the head gasket failing due to overheating etc.. Just hope it isn't the reason the previous owner got rid!
£1200 for a new heater matrix because of failed pack of silica gel.
I bet anything that VW know these things are prone to failure.
Makes you pause to think about this perception of quality the German brands bask in.
themotorombudsman.org/kno…act
Was bank transfer but looks to be all sorted now. They are dropping it back off later today and I’ll find out what exactly happened
Sounds good news, not likely to have had to do a big job then.
So turns out it was a small leak in one of the pipes that hadn’t been clipped properly! They’ve put in a new clip and should all be sorted now, sounds like it was caused when they were sorting out the cam belt and water pump!
Thanks for all your help!