What if I want to return a used car?

[Epidote]

I bought a used car from a car company (I think they are called tent?), the warranty said the engine and motor would be under warranty for one year/10,000km. 

Now the engine light was on for several times, I sent the car to the company, they checked it, and I don't think they find any problem, but now the engine light is still on. 

and we have driven almost 10,000 km which means we will have no warranty soon.

I was wondering what I can do? What is the usual way to deal with it? Is it possible to return this car because obviously I don't think they can repair the engine.

Thanks 

[Ben Zioner]

Lawyer up. But T.I.T.

[Bill97]

Which engine light?

[NoDisplayName]

Not likely to get the results you want.

Tents sellers don't have a reputation for selling quality vehicles.

The warranty was for 10k, you've driven nearly 10k.

Would it be worth your while to pursue the matter?

What year/make/model/km's, and how much was it?

 

[Jeff the Chef]

Make. model, year of car would help make a diagnosis, what's the car running like with said engine light on. A lot of these lights are just an indication that a sensor is playing up and a easy fix, unless there is a major problem.

[Woof999]

If the engine light is on then there would almost certainly be a fault code recorded. Any decent garage will have an OBD fault code reader that will tell you why the light is on, whether it's likely a faulty sensor or something more serious.

 

If the light was on when you took it to the dealer and they had an ounce of skill, they would already have read the fault codes.

[Epidote]

28 minutes ago, NoDisplayName said:

Not likely to get the results you want.

Tents sellers don't have a reputation for selling quality vehicles.

The warranty was for 10k, you've driven nearly 10k.

Would it be worth your while to pursue the matter?

What year/make/model/km's, and how much was it?

 

Toyota corolla, 2013, about 120,000km. 

[Epidote]

6 minutes ago, Woof999 said:

If the engine light is on then there would almost certainly be a fault code recorded. Any decent garage will have an OBD fault code reader that will tell you why the light is on, whether it's likely a faulty sensor or something more serious.

 

If the light was on when you took it to the dealer and they had an ounce of skill, they would already have read the fault codes.

yes, the problem is when I took it to the dealer, the engine light is off. 

it was like would be on 1-2 days and off again.

[Liverpool Lou]

Of course you can return the car to the dealer but don't expect to get your money back if that is what you were thinking on a ten-year old car! Does the warranty specifically have that provision and is it a written warranty, i.e. official?   Verbal warranties are not warranties.

[Liverpool Lou]

17 minutes ago, Woof999 said:

If the light was on when you took it to the dealer and they had an ounce of skill, they would already have read the fault codes.

Tents have one purpose, that is to sell used cars, they are not technical service centres, no one would expect their skills to be in any other area than sales.

[Ralf001]

Ask what the fault code is.

 

Research fault code.

 

Tell them to fix.

[Liverpool Lou]

15 minutes ago, Epidote said:

the problem is when I took it to the dealer, the engine light is off. 

How could anyone expect them to find a fault that wasn't indicated?  You need to take it in when the check engine light is showing.

[Liverpool Lou]

Just now, Ralf001 said:

Ask what the fault code is.

 

Research fault code.

 

Tell them to fix.

There wasn't a fault code, he took it to them when the 'check engine' light was not on...

 

19 minutes ago, Epidote said:

the problem is when I took it to the dealer, the engine light is off. 

 

[In the jungle]

1 minute ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There wasn't a fault code, he took it to them when the 'check engine' light was not on...

 

 

The ECU records fault codes.

[chickenslegs]

If it was me, I would take it to a Toyota workshop for checking. It's probably okay to drive it there if the warning light is steady. If the light is flashing, don't drive, get the garage to pick it up.

 

Your tent dealer probably doesn't have the equipment to check.

 

There will be some expense but better than causing engine/system damage.

[JeffersLos]

500 baht for a ECU reading here.

 

That gives you the fault codes, present and recorded. 

 

 

Of course, you will probably want them to pay the 500 baht ECU reading on your decade old car. ????

[Epidote]

19 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Of course you can return the car to the dealer but don't expect to get your money back if that is what you were thinking on a ten-year old car! Does the warranty specifically have that provision and is it a written warranty, i.e. official?   Verbal warranties are not warranties.

Not sure if it is called tent. It is a registered company and  seems to be a used-car dealer with a website and car list, and yes, the warranties are written.

 

[Epidote]

Just now, JeffersLos said:

500 baht for a ECU reading here.

 

That gives you the fault codes, present and recorded. 

 

 

Of course, you will probably want them to pay the 500 baht ECU reading on your decade old car. ????

Any garage can do that? 

[In the jungle]

1 minute ago, Epidote said:

Any garage can do that? 

Most can.

 

You can get an OBD2 scanner (fault code reader) for as little as a few hundred Baht on Lazada but a good shop would probably use something more capable.

[Liverpool Lou]

3 minutes ago, Epidote said:

Not sure if it is called tent. It is a registered company and  seems to be a used-car dealer with a website and car list, and yes, the warranties are written.

"Tent" (the word that you used) is just a word used to describe used car dealers and their premises in general, it is not an indication of how their premises are built, what they look like or whether they're "proper" companies. 

 

You've got a warranty so you've got no problems while it is still in effect.    If you're asking what to do when the warranty expires, you can't do anything (as far as enforcing repairs on the dealer) except to take it somewhere and pay for it to be fixed.   

[Ralf001]

23 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There wasn't a fault code, he took it to them when the 'check engine' light was not on...

 

 

Nonsense.

They would have plugged a machine into  the OBD2 port to clear the engine light... there is a code.

If the light was off... there is still a record of event... which has a code.

[Liverpool Lou]

9 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

32 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There wasn't a fault code, he took it to them when the 'check engine' light was not on...

 

 

Expand  

Nonsense.

They would have plugged a machine into  the OBD2 port to clear the engine light... there is a code.

Possibly "nonsense" from you, also.  If there was no check engine light showing when it was taken in there's a pretty good chance that, being car sales outfit, not a mechanics shop, they wouldn't investigate it very deeply, if at all, particularly if the ten-year old car's warranty is just about to end..  

[Celsius]

Yes, of course used car salesmen will give ur money back.

 

 

[scorecard]

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Tents have one purpose, that is to sell used cars, they are not technical service centres, no one would expect their skills to be in any other area than sales.

And the old saying applies:

 

"Would you buy a used car from this man / tent?"

[Liverpool Lou]

14 minutes ago, Celsius said:

Yes, of course used car salesmen will give ur money back.

...especially, and preferably, if the warranty is just about to expire.

[Epidote]

1 hour ago, chickenslegs said:

If it was me, I would take it to a Toyota workshop for checking. It's probably okay to drive it there if the warning light is steady. If the light is flashing, don't drive, get the garage to pick it up.

 

Your tent dealer probably doesn't have the equipment to check.

 

There will be some expense but better than causing engine/system damage.

Got it, I would check the code first, thank you all

[NoDisplayName]

2 hours ago, Epidote said:

Toyota corolla, 2013, about 120,000km. 

Tent guys are just resellers, basically flipping cars.  They may have a one-bay shop in the back for quick fixes and minor repairs.  Wouldn't expect them to have a qualified tech on hand.  If the light wasn't on when you when you went to see them, nothing they could do if they didn't have a scanner.  No telling if they had one and found a fault and didn't want to tell you.

 

Find a neutral party dealership or repair shop to scan your engine.  Ask around for a recommended garage.

[FritsSikkink]

3 hours ago, Epidote said:

Is it possible to return this car because obviously I don't think they can repair the engine.

You have driven the car for almost 10.000 km. Do you expect when you return the car, they will return the money you bought it for, so you had the car for free the last year?

You have a warning light, who says that the engine is at fault, could be the sensor.

[novacova]

2 hours ago, Epidote said:

Toyota corolla, 2013, about 120,000km. 

This is most likely the o2 sensor, an easy fix that you can do yourself. Depending on the make of the vehicle, it’s on the exhaust pipe just before the catalytic converter, replace it. Or it is the intake fuel sensor between the air filter and the intake usually on top of the intake hose, a wire harness plugged into it. Replace it or clean it with a degreaser, easy fix.

[HauptmannUK]

First of all don't panic and assume you have a 'faulty engine'. If the engine seems to run ok, does not make undue noises and consumes no/minimal oil and water then the likelihood is that the major mechanical parts of the engine are fine. 

There are literally hundreds of things that can cause the MIL to illuminate. Something as minor as a poor seal on the filler cap or a weak battery. The fact that the light periodically resets makes me think its likely to be a  minor fault.

The best option would be to take it to a Toyota dealer or Toyota specialist who will use Toyota's own 'Techstream' software which can read not only generic OBDII codes but also Toyota's proprietary codes - historic, current and pending, as well as accessing live data.

I have Techstream in the UK and normally what I find is a lot of random and irrelevant historic codes.  Unless the fault is very obvious then I would clear down all stored codes and ask the customer to come back when the MIL comes back on again and then get back into the diagnosis proper.