Used car bought less than 30 days ago developed fault

Chuckoir

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My wife bought a used (07) BMW 1 series 3 weeks ago, and the traction/stability control lights have come on instrument cluster have illuminated.

A bit of Googling points it to a number of potential things, but the main one seems to be a fault with the DSC unit, which will cost around £350 to fix.

She bought it from a trader 3 weeks ago, and it came with 3 months "Engine and Gearbox" warranty, neither of which (I suspect) will cover this fault. Before I phone the trader tomorrow, asking if they're willing to fix it out of goodwill, do I have any Consumer rights which I can exercise?

Found this on the CAB website(https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/buying-or-repairing-a-car/problems-with-a-used-car/):

'You’re legally entitled to your money back or a repair if the car is faulty
‘Faulty’ means the car is not:

  • ‘of satisfactory quality’ - it should do what you’d expect for its age, price and type
  • ‘fit for purpose’ - eg if you asked for a car that would pull a caravan, it has to be able to do that
  • ‘as described’ - it has to match the advert or the description the trader gave you
If the problem fits into at least one of these categories, take it back to the trader before 9 October 2017 to get a full refund. You have longer if you only want a repair - and if the trader takes too long (or it causes you too much inconvenience), you’ll still be entitled to a refund.'

But as the fault has developed since we bought it, can I use the above in my favour? i.e does it fit in to one of those categories?

I won't even complain about a meal I don't like, so the thought of me asking for money back on a used car makes me slightly nervous.

Any thoughts/advice will be much appreciated.
 
Take a look at the Honest John site - bigotry besides, he has some good advice about your consumer rights.
 
Thanks, that banks up what the Citizens Advice Bureau site tells me.

She won't want to reject the car, as it seems a relatively easy fix, but I guess I'm just curious as to whether it would be unreasonable to ask the trader to pay for said fix - given we've only had it for 3 weeks, based on the 30 day period "thing" quoted in both the honest John site and CAB?
 
They should but the question boils down to what is reasonable to expect from a 10 year old car...
 
Quoth said:
They should but the question boils down to what is reasonable to expect from a 10 year old car...
Click to expand...
Yeah that had occurred to me. I'll phone them tomorrow and see what they say.

Thanks for link.
 
It doesn't matter what the dealer offered to warranty, an item must be fit for purpose whether new or second hand and developing a serious fault within three weeks is not fit for purpose. Approach them with a reasonable attitude if you/she would like to keep the car, but go armed with the right info and only get unreasonable if he does (common sense really).
 
it is an old car but also a minor fault in the bigger thengs
call them
 
Quoth said:
They should but the question boils down to what is reasonable to expect from a 10 year old car...
Click to expand...
Last ten year old I bought, I was told "if it is still working when you get home, that is your warranty". Only paid £50 for that car so I thought it fair enough.
 
Okay, so turns out it's the pressure sensor in the ABS pump. No idea why that knocks out the DSC, but it has. Have been quoted £660 from an independent specialist, and BMW will charge over 2k to change the whole pump.

Phone the dealer, taking it back on Monday and they'll fix it FoC. Result.

Thanks all for the comments.
 
DSC depends on wheel sensors in the ABS system so if ABS isn't working DSC will also turn itself off.

Also verify the dealer has fixed it properly by taking the car to a trusted independent to check it out. Used car dealers can be very dishonest.
 
Same as vw, their version of the traction control works off the abs system. My abs pressure sensor failed and turned the traction control off. Unfortunately the sensor was built into the pump in my case.
 
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