Not all apple pie and motherhood despite 5 star Auto Trader Rating
Made appointment to view Land Rover Discovery Sport. Shortest test drive in history. Father checked I wasn’t a lawyer for a living. Son felt bad, but did what father told him. Son reminded me I had AA cover before I set off for home! Sure enough engine nearly blew up same day. Returned car for refund. Son told me they could repair it. Returned car on trailer not repaired as confirmed by two independent specialists. Denied me refund on pretext that I’d agreed to them repairing it. Fobbed me off with £1000 refund. Since found out I have 6 years to claim. So considering taking court action for losses (£7500).
Dealers below response is risible. They admit to selling me a luxury car with an engine not fit for purpose that I had to drive 160 mile round trip in one day to return it. Stop and think about that for a moment! It was actually dark by the time I arrived back at their dealership and I still had to walk along the canal to catch the train back from Berkhamsted to Andover. That car should never have been allowed to leave their forecourt with an engine in such poor condition. It is infeasible to me that they did not know about it, but I am convinced were more interested to see the back of it. Moreover, they have clearly never tried to claim under the Warranty they sell. I hawked the car around 2 independent Land Rover Specialists and both told me that they could not repair the engine (remember this was the same engine that Kings Road Garage say they repaired and took advantage to return it knowing that I was out the country so not able to check the repair) for the labour rate set by their 3rd party Warranty Firm. I’m convinced they trailered it, as they didn’t want to risk it breaking down! So I was left with a car that had not been properly repaired, if at all, that could blow its engine up any moment, so the experts were saying. And nobody I could trust (by this time I had lost all faith I had stored in Kings Road Garage) willing to actually do a proper repair! Kings Road Garage refused to refund me saying that I was not entitled to a refund because I’d agreed instead to allowing them to repair it, which I later found out under the Sales of Goods Act and Consumer Rights Act was a lie! It is true that I asked for £1000 compensation, but I had paid full asking price believing this to be trustworthy dealership, but I was sold a lemon I believe it’s called in the motor trade! I then looked to PX it against another used car from a main dealer I could trust. The first one Hendy Land Rover in Salisbury on hearing the engine said it would need investigation in their workshop before they could even make me an offer. Luckily Marshall Land Rover in Newbury didn’t hear the engine so did take it in PX against a RR Sport, but at the lowest valuation.
They advertised it on their forecourt, but quickly took it down after presumably recognising the issue with the timing chain rattle! It was sent to auction (BCA) and popped up later on the forecourt of an Independent Trader who advertised it as having had the engine out and timing chain replaced by them. Why would they need to do that if Kings Road Garage had already done so? It doesn’t make sense. I have documentary evidence to prove all of the above and for Kings Road Garage to pretend that the £7,500 I lost in less than a few months is merely depreciation does their reputation no good at all! I am still recovering financially and Kings Road Garage could resolve my issue by offering to compensate me something £££ towards the stress and hardship I have suffered. Instead they wish to portray me as some obsessed person who is acting irrationality and look how quickly they retort to warning me off! No the timeline and facts speak for themselves - everyone I spoke to at the time and since have told me that I am the victim not them. They have advised me to pursue a claim through the courts, but I still trust Kings Road Garage to do the right thing and make me a gesture of goodwill to finallly settle my dispute. If they’re reading this I’m waiting….
Reply from Kings Road Garage Ltd
Mr Munday,
Following today’s further multitude of reviews across 3 platforms…which now equates to circa 26 reviews left in the last 3 years since you purchased the discovery sport from us, this inferred latest supposed exchange between myself and my father, and then you, is entirely fabricated, fictional and in fact defamatory. We embarked on a test drive and turned around after roughly 2.5 miles at your suggestion, equating to a 5 mile round trip.
AA breakdown is offered as we advertise with them and they provide the offer, so I will indeed have passed that information to you as a free gesture.
Noting an audible rattle from the timing chain which we replaced for you (see your own photos on google reviews showing the subframe of the car on our workshop floor which is necessary to do such a large task; a further 36 month warranty was provided. Where that wasn’t deemed sufficient, you also requested monies back to which we accepted to the sum of £1000 to fully and finally conclude our dealings in December 2022 - an outcome you wrote you were happy with.
The £7500 “loss” was due to vehicle deprecation when you sold, not your expenditure on the vehicle. You purchased at the correct market price and sold at the trade / part exchange price some 7 months and 5000+ miles later. If you were to look you’d also note Marshall’s inflated the mileage on the part exchange appraisal which would have affected the value- I cannot help that you lost money on the used car market depreciation nor can I help what Marshall’s offered you, but we were genuine in doing everything to not only repair the issue of the rattle in the timing chain swiftly but also in appeasing you, for example trailering the car back to your home some 80 miles away so as not to add additional mileage.
This relentless pursuit and seeming obsession to harm our small family business over the last 3 years is becoming increasingly tiresome. I ask you kindly desist with persistent review additions / updates / changes with increasingly exaggerated, falsified and derogatory claims before the matter is taken further. If there is something you want to communicate with us please feel free to contact me directly.