Knocking Noise

[firemac]

Bob I paid £6k for it , I thought it was a good price but not stupidly cheap due to the mileage. And do you know I can't remember seeing the tpms on !, but that doesn't mean it wasn't! my head is in a right mess. I've been doing some digging around and have found out the seller is in the car trade! (Facebook is a powerful tool) .

I'm going to ask a second time for the garage details of the last service if he doesn't give it to me then I'll tell him he has misrepresented the sale and I want my money back if not I'll get legal advice. I have a feeling this could get messy. As I have said I can't believe I've been so stupid and trustworthy, feel sick to my stomach

Mat, if he is a trader he can't pass himself off as a private seller to try ans circumvent the various Sale of Goods acts and their amendments. You are right to reject the car in those circs and you definitely should approach Trading Standards with full details of his trader status as well as all the ad & service history info.

If he realises that you are on to his trade status, he might not think it worthwhile to get into a legal argument with you.

[Bald chewbacca]

Okay, should I wait till Toyota look at it on Monday and find out the damage /costs

or

send him a message now stating my concerns/ suspicions that he is a trader acting as a private seller and has falsely stamped the last service , what the law says and that I am going to trading standards and a solicitor for legal advice unless he refunds me?

[Davrav]

Think I would speak to his local trading standard before alerting the seller - they may already have him 'on the books'.

I'd certainly want their advice as to how best to approach the situation.

Whatever you do, put everything in writing and send by recorded delivery/signed for method.

[UncleBob]

i would act strait away. why wait. why take it to a dealer who will charge you money for looking at it. main dealer wont do it for free. i would reject the car without going any further.not sure if mixing then tyrs is legal why not semd charley a pm and ask him.

[three5]

Okay, should I wait till Toyota look at it on Monday and find out the damage /costs

or

send him a message now stating my concerns/ suspicions that he is a trader acting as a private seller and has falsely stamped the last service , what the law says and that I am going to trading standards and a solicitor for legal advice unless he refunds me?

Hi Mat,

my approach would be to complain about the knock and the TPMS light to the vendor and ask for money back. If he refuses just say that you are being forced to take the matter further and walk away. Then contact Trading Standards with all your evidence ( suspicion of forged service record, mileage descrepency, facebook / trader status etc ) and ask them to intervene. If you present all your evidence at the outset he has chance to prepare for Trading Standards and delete his facebook account. Just my two pennyworth, others will have just as valid strategies.

[Bald chewbacca]

I've text the vendor and he said the front tyres are new and the oil was done at last service and I should check the bolts ! I asked him again for the name of the last service provider ..... He said it was a self employed old man who did it. Hopefully it's a case of someone not fitting the front tyres and /or tightening the wheels correctly. Although this could have potentially killed me. I'm waiting for the "old mans number" !!!!! Won't hold my breath. Fun fun fun

[Big Kev]

Matt.........escalate to Trading Standards........you are forewarning this piece of pish that you are going to take this further. He has hidden behind the guise of a private seller to pass on something that would not have been of merchantable quality as a dealer sale, and governed by totally different legislation and return rules.

Escalate and leave it to people who will stop ye beating yursell up.

[abraxas]

Firstly, it is really difficult to diagnose a problem without actually hearing the sounds and driving the car. For all we know you could have something wrapped around the wheel hub that is rubbing as you drive, or your new tyres are not properly balanced. :) I am being facetious to bring it to another point...

It seems to me that you are working yourself up over what *may* well turn out to be a simple and/or cheap fix. 6k for a car like that is a pretty good price, I'd say. There's another poster a couple of posts down from your that sees a 2004 car for 5k "a great buy". [That is previous-shape car, with 72k miles, probably not as high a spec as a T180.] And he is also having problems with it...

Point being that maybe even if you have to fork out a couple of hundred extra to get it into top shape, still, you will have a decent car for a good price. [Maybe being the operative word, you do have to get it assessed properly first.]

As for the TPMS/RunFlat/BSR... that is a well known issue. People on this forum paid money to get the car into the same state as yours is in now. [paid for taking RFT and BSR off, and then put "normal" tyres on. They also had the TPMS light on and decided to live with it, or put a wee switch to turn it off like Charlie did. So that is not really an issue.

Anyways, just trying to bring it to the centre with a "balanced view". :) It is a horrible feeling thinking that you've made an expensive mistake, and I feel for you here. But most second-hand cars have some issue or another. Not many people can afford to change cars "just because they feel like it". They usually sell them on [for 1/4 original price] when they start giving hassle. The only way to ensure they don't is to pay over the odds and buy brand new. The other thing to do is "factor in" a bit of tolerance when buying second hand that you may need to fix a few things that may crop up...

I am no car trader and I have bought a few "lemons" in my time, it is just the nature of the second-hand car beast. Chin up mate, no point being sick to the stomach about it, things may turn out not be as bad as you see them now...

[Bald chewbacca]

Abraxas,

I've calmed down and no longer want to force the car up the sellers !Removed! .... Sideways.

I am hoping the tyre change is the issue, or on a positive note it is simple going to get it checked out and wait for diagnosis and cost, then decide a plan of action.

Seller still hasn't sent me number for the self-employed old man who serviced it last ..... I have a feeling he is on holiday with Elvis in the city of Atlantis.

[firemac]

To be honest, i wouldn't spend any money on the car until you've exhausted your contractual position with the vendor. In my opinion the best solution would be to get your money back so that you can go looking for another car with better history and that you can feel good about. Buying a car should be enjoyable whether it's new or used and this one has left you with bad vibes - that's just wrong.

Speaking to Trading Standards and getting a better idea of what options are open to you won't cost anything. Only if their opinion (and any further legal advice you get) says that you haven't got any recourse then is the time to get a dealer to check out the most worrying things.

[Bald chewbacca]

Car is in at Toyota, I've explained the situation and they are going to give it a once over and look at the wheels and tyres. They will then call me with news so I can decide on what to do. So if it's %$(ing huge repair bill then I will say no and call trading standards, if it's not and it's a reasonable fix then ill count my blessings , learn a lesson and thank the baby Jesus .

[Big Kev]

Car is in at Toyota, I've explained the situation and they are going to give it a once over and look at the wheels and tyres. They will then call me with news so I can decide on what to do. So if it's fecking huge repair bill then I will say no and call trading standards, if it's not and it's a reasonable fix then ill count my blessings , learn a lesson and thank the baby Jesus .

...........and his Da wanted him to be a joiner, like him.........so did he actually become a Toyota Tech......? Got his first pay packet just before Easter.......got hammered wi' tacks though.....

Dave Allen.

[alsdad]

What was the outcome????

[Bald chewbacca]

No run flat tyres, new rear roll bar link and new rear spring, new rear discs and pads, replaced wheel nuts, tow bar had been removed leaving connecting cord loose , I could go on

Still getting a muffled knocking noise at front of vehicle when on uneven surfaces, speed bumps etc. Toyota said it was an intermediate steering Shaft ? Another garage can hear the knocking but cannot locate the problem.

Toyota also said clutch was "heavy".

Got legal advice and I could only take him to small claims court over run flats, the rest is risk of buying private I.e sold as seen , but you have to pay your own legal costs so not really worth it.

Oh and today I noticed the passenger side isn't blowing hot air

A case of too good to be true.

You Live & learn

[three5]

Hi Mat,

the intermediate steering shaft is a know issue and sounds like a very likely cause of your problem. There are some instructions for doing the job yourself in the "pinned" section at the top of the forum. From memory, it didn't sound too difficult

Link: http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/topic/138882-change-steering-intermediate-shaft/

[gjnorthall]

A much cheaper solution to replacing the intermediate steering shaft.............

These clunking steering shafts display signs of fretting corrosion - the splines become pitted and theres evidence of corrosion. Essentially it's caused by movement within a joint that's not designed to move. The replacement shafts have a splined area diameter (and presumably spline width) a few thou bigger than the original- thus the joint is more solid when bolted up.

Rather than buy and fit a new intermediate shaft, simply remove the bolt, after scribing it's position, and clean up the splined area. Apply a coating of shaft retainer (Loctite 660 or similar) and re-make the joint - tightening the bolt just beyond the scribe line. Leave to cure before turning the steering wheel (around 30 minutes for Loctite 660). Avoid retainers with a very long or very short cure time - check the tech data on the product.

With respect to the heating issue - have you got the dual button in the right position so that the temperature adjustment applied to both sides together?