Max Auto Sales

Max Auto Sales responded

Hello Thaddeus! We're unable to look into your request without a phone number or email address. Could you please give us a call? We are easy to reach at 337-989-0078.

Max Auto Sales responded

Thank you Allen! We sincerely appreciate your business, and we'll be sure to share this with Jeff.

Max Auto Sales responded

Maria, First, we want to say that safety is a huge concern for us. However, regardless of how much effort and concern we put into it we still have not figured out a way to predict how and when some vehicle components will fail. Sometimes it is possible; sometimes it is not. A brake caliper locking up is one of those things that is difficult to predict, if at all. We don't want anyone to be in an unsafe condition. It's why we inspect EVERY vehicle. We are one of the few, if not the only, used car dealership here in Lafayette that has 4 full time techs whose sole job is to inspect and repair every car as needed. We have extreme confidence in our techs to inspect and repair the vehicles as best as possible. You have to remember that we ourselves also drive our vehicles. We drive them as our own, with our families in them. It is on our tech's own best interest to do the best job possible. Some cars can be repaired, and the ones that can't we send to auction. For your vehicle in particular, we spent over $1000 getting it ready. We spent $574 in parts, and $429 in labor. We worked on the sway bar links, hi and lo side valve cores, and mounted and balanced 4 new tires. We did a full safety inspection, which includes looking at the brakes. The brake pads and rotors were obviously good or they would have been replaced. It's not something we shy away from which is easy to see just by looking at the sheer number of brake jobs we do monthly. You state you were told that there was rust; we don't deny that. Every car has rust, and the older the car is the more rust it has. But rust is not necessarily a safety concern, nor does it indicate a pending malfunction. Rust around a brake happens within 24 hours; all you have to do is look at the brake rotor of any car that has sat still for a 24 hour period after the rain. In most cases, the existence of rust, and looking at rust on a housing or shield, is not sufficient enough information that our mechanic, or any mechanic, can determine that the brake caliper will lock up. Brake calipers lock up on both used, and newer cars. For your specific vehicle, we inspected it, tested, it and drove it. You can see in the attached photo that we performed an oil and filter change, and a full “used car inspection” which is how we discovered the other items that needed to be repaired and which we delineated in the first paragraph. We drove it several times running errands, and even home and back. There was no indication that there would be future brake caliper issues. There is only so much that can be done to make sure a car is in good, running, and safe condition. It is a used car; the only way to be absolutely certain would be to buy a new car instead of a used one. You said yourself that you purchased a “used” car, in “as is” condition. When we purchase any car we know there may be issues needing repair. It's the nature of buying a used car. We accept that responsibility and the cost of making whatever repairs we find it needs and that are discernible at the time. We're simply asking you to do the same. You purchased a used vehicle. You even say you did so on “as is” terms which also means you did not want to purchase the optional used car warranty. That is where our responsibility ends. That is also the point where you accept the responsibility and possibility of unforeseen issues that you may have to deal with in the future, and bear the cost of repairing those. We think it is unfair that you of course wanted to purchase the vehicle for the lowest possible cost, and then still want to hold us accountable and to bear the costs of repairing the unknown, and unforeseen future costs, at some other repair shop 2 hours away, that we can't verify. We regret that you chose to leave us a negative review, we feel it is unearned and unjust, and we are sure our customers who read this will feel the same.