I got ripped off

[ninjascott]

I just purchased a 97 f250 with 90k on it with a plow planned on makin some money over the winter. They guy I got it from works for autozone in akron and turns wrenches on the side out of his garage he's an older guy in his late 50's or earliy 60's seemedpretty knowledgable had done some upgrades to the truck so as it would be ready for the upcomming season. So I bought the truck after a short test drive as it did not have valid plates on it seemed to be ok, well on my ride home to columbus it started running poorly so i took it to a mechanich thinking it may need plugs n wires to my dismay he tells me it has a blown head gasket and the thing was rigged with stuff called head gasket in a can and that the motor needs to be replaced. Anyone know what my rights are? I understand that it was as-is but I feel he had knowledge and willfully took advantage of me.

[Bad324]

call and tell him what you discovered and see if you take it back if he'll give you your money back. I'd be nice about it at first and see if he will work with you then go from there

[Big Chief201]

If you can prove that he acted fraudulent you may have a case but its a huge shot in the dark. Maybe if you have an email saying the thing runs good etc. you might be able to have a case. If its your word against his that's a tough case to prove. Sorry to hear that man we could go break his knees for you. I've heard of that happening to people before in fact I've known people who do that when trading cars into dealerships.

[Carwhore]

this isnt anything you can do unless you have him giving you a warranty in writing. Dealing with private sellers is very different than dealers.

And not being a dick you should of had it inspected by a certified shop.

[gixxie750]

fix the head?

[kreator]

I thought there might be a law that lets you back out of any contract within a set period of time. I know that is the case with loan's etc, but maybe it just covers specific types of contracts.

[max power]

Welcome to Ford ownership. My Ford puked its transmission 2 months after buying it.

Replace the head gasket and move on, unless he will take it back.

[jporter12]

That stuff that people put in there to "fix" a head gasket problem can cause serious damage, like restricted coolant passages, which can easily cause a repeat head gasket failure. I can definitely understand why someone would recommend an engine replacement. If they're not too expensive, a used engine can be pretty close to the same price as a proper head gasket replacement.

[Beegreenstrings]

pictures of the truck if and when you want to part with it... if not what motor do you have in it? and tranny, maybe i can be persuaded into helping out...

[Likwid]

Did he sell it "as is"?

Edit: I see you mentioned it was an as-is sale. It doesn't matter what you "feel" it's buyer beware. You don't have any good legal claim. But of course, IANAL

Edited November 6, 2010 by Likwid

[Casper]

You can get a used motor from u wrench it for $99. I'd probably just do that. Do you know what motor is in it?

[jporter12]

:duct taped mouth shut:

That says it all!

[redkow97]

I thought there might be a law that lets you back out of any contract within a set period of time. I know that is the case with loan's etc, but maybe it just covers specific types of contracts.

Do you actually have a contract? If so, you might have a prayer.

There is the "implied warranty of merchantability," which means that the item must be fit for it's intended use. In this case that would be plowing (arguably).

But,as the name implies, it only applies to MERCHANT sellers. If the guy sells a lot of cars, you could threaten him with that. The threat alone might be enough to get your money back.

Worth a try, but your "as is" sale should have contained language excluding ALL warranties implied or otherwise.

Lesson for sellers there.

[Gump]

If you paid with a check you can stop payment and take it back. He did not tell you he put that suff in there to stop a head gasket leak so he misrepresented the vehicle's condition. I did this last winter. The guy was a sheister..Talked a whole lotta talk till I finally said screw you i'm stopping the check and bringing it back. This was even after he said he would fix this and fix that. as soon as the check would have cleared he would have not returned calls or followed thru.

[redkow97]

Gump's referring to a misrepresentation by omission. Again, you're going to need an actual contract for that to apply, or you can't prove he didn't tell you.

It would also be a lot easier for you to get money back if you could show that the seller attempted to conceal the problem; otherwise he can just claim that the gasket in a can was a legitimate fix, or he didn't know about the problem in the first place.

[ninjascott]

I'm just gonna take my lumps, I found a motor for 500 at a junk yard has 90k on it and 30 day warranty the mechanic wants 600 to swap it in.

[jporter12]

I'm just gonna take my lumps, I found a motor for 500 at a junk yard has 90k on it and 30 day warranty the mechanic wants 600 to swap it in.

That sounds reasonable. It's not good that you have to put money into something that you bought as being functional though,

[cfd37buckeye]

I may be able to help you out. Have a buddy that has a cab and chassis that was wrecked, but the motor is good. I will post pics on Wednesday. He has a bunch of F250 parts he is willing to unload.

[tyler524]

Did you Atleast contact the guy you bought it from?