Matthew

Diamond outside, rough on the inside

I purchased a used BMW 320D from Anthony at the used car network just over 24hrs ago. On my initial call he was very helpful and facilitated taking a holding deposit and a quick collection. The car is 14years old with 177k on the clock, advertised as driving like it was a 70k car. It looks fantastic so no issues there. We took the car for a short test drive, Anthony drove the car out of the compound and I took over in the village and drove back to the compound, the test drive was OK with no apparent issues. I had concerns around the timing chain bit Anthony assured me the chain would last the life of the car and would be covered under the warranty - brilliant. The car had a new MOT on it but I noticed the NSR tyre was only just above the legal limit, Anthony offered a little discount for this which was agreeable. The drive home was over 80mi, giving me a great opportunity to get to grips with the car. As I left the seatbelt warning light for the passenger sear started pinging, I plugged it in and it stopped, not a massive issue just annoying. On the drive home along the motorway once I got past the traffic and up to 70mph there's a groaning noise coming from the car, it was notably stiff on the steering taking more work than it should to keep the car in a straight line. I got home then within 30mins I went to work so the engine hadn't cooled at all. As I went to leave work it was around 16degrees so not cold by any standard, I started the car and the revs were pulsing causing the whole car to shudder, my colleague could hear this from outside of the car too. I drove the 25mins home and it was no longer pulsing on idle, still having the noise issue with the car. I then parked my new pride and joy on the drive under the car port to keep her nice and clean. This morning I go to take my children to school and the pulsing started, it was so obvious my children even asked what it was doing. This issue appeared to ease once the car gets up to temperature but crawling through traffic at school time it was not possible to maintain constant revs so the car just pitched forward and backwards making for an uncomfortable drive. I emailed Anthony about this and received this reply: I’ve driven it quite a bit and all seemed fine, obviously it’s not going to drive or perform like a 50,000 mile car, suppose you have got to allow that it’s done 177,000 miles and it’s 14yrs old, Anthony. The car was advertised as driving like a 70k car, a later conversation resulted in Anthony saying "Well what does a 70k car drive like" -fair point and lesson learnt (the hard way) one could be well looked after, one could be a shed... Whilst I accept the cars age and mileage there would be wear and tear but there are clear mechanical defects in play here. I checked the MOT and it had NO advisories - the NSR tyre should not be a fail but most definitely an advisory, as I returned home I've also noticed a pool or oil on my drive from where it was parked overnight, again this should have been picked up on the MOT. I was not able to drive the car out of the compound so I did not see the issue with the revs, had this been seen and the other issues known I would never have purchased the car. I have asked to return the car for a refund of the amount I paid, the only cost and inconvenience caused was to myself for insurance, tax, fuel, tolls etc allowing Anthony the opportunity to repair and resell the car as he sees fit but this is not something he is willing to do. Unfortunately Anthony was not happy with this and he is seeking advice about it. Whilst I understand he is a business I looked at reviews and expected to be buying a sound car from a reputable dealer. I tried to resolve the issue prior to my review but to no avail, I'm now left with a car that's a potential money pit to get it to a standard I'd be happy to drive my children around in. I think it is only fair anyone else buying from here are aware as I'd hate for anyone else to be in this position