I purchased a 2012 Audi A6 3. - p.teresi85
I purchased a 2012 Audi A6 3.0T with 105,222 miles on it. I live in Henrico VA. I spoke to Justin on the phone and among other questions I asked specifically about any fluid leakage and rust on the car. Justin assured me that his shop put each car though a 160-point inspection before they are listed for sale. "We take great pride in our family owned business and great pride in the vehicles we sell because they are top quality and we try to have one owner vehicles on our lot." Justin was very disarming and made me feel like I could trust him. Within the first ¼ mile of the test drive the hood open warning light came on. I informed him of the issue, his mechanic made an adjustment, and after some back and forth, Justin agreed to take off the cost of the part in case the issue returned and I had to replace it. I asked again before we began paperwork about fluid leakage or rust, and he once again informed me of his company’s policy of vehicle inspection and also gave me the family business line again. I leave the lot, put gas in the car, stop for lunch with my two boys (all in Norfolk), and headed down I-64 back home. Remember, I left the lot with 105,222 on the car. Not 20 miles later, the oil warning light came on and told me to add a quart. I called Justin and asked him about it and he very quickly and with little compassion said it may be the sensor (these vehicles do not have dip sticks). “They tend to go bad on high mileage cars." So I stopped, added half a quart of oil, and the light went off. I got home, threw cardboard under the car to see if there was a leak, and the next morning… oil. The following day I got the car in the garage, looked underneath, and the whole oil cooler, oil pan, surrounding frame, and transmission head were caked with old oil. Also, the sub frame was covered in rust. Now I am not a certified mechanic, but I’ve been working on cars my whole life and I can say with 100% certainty, any novice mechanic, let alone, as Justin called them the, “highly knowledgeable guys”, in Trimax Auto’s shop, would have clearly seen that oil leak. They sold me the car anyway and Justin flat out lied about it. When I confronted him with the issue and asked him how they could have missed something so obvious he told me, “Well Mr. Paul, I don’t personally inspect the cars”, as if that absolves him of selling an unsuspecting stranger a vehicle not in the condition he represented it to be in. He told me I could bring the car back, have his shop guys look at it, and they might, emphasis on might, do a repair and split the cost with me. I decided to take the car in locally to have the leak diagnosed and sure enough the leak was coming from the oil cooler and the mechanic made a point to show me the multiple parts of the frame/sub frame which were covered with rust. I contacted an attorney and was told because I did not have a witness when I asked about leaks or rust it would become a, “he said she said”, situation which would severely weaken my position in court. So, I was stuck. I sent Justin the invoice from the shop and he agreed to pay half for the diagnostic and half for the part. $111. Icing on the cake, when I got the plates in and went to remove the temporary tags, I discovered Justin used the wrong size bolts (both width and length) to attach the tag. Not only did he break the license plate bracket ($130 OEM replacement) but he drove the bottom bolt so deep he chipped the paint through to the panel. You would be hard pressed to find a place less caring about you or your possible future headaches once they get you to sign paperwork. I implore you to take the car to another mechanic shop and have them inspect the vehicle. Selling cars with no mechanical issues is easy, results in a happy customer, and a 5 star review. Lying to your customers when you know the car is broken and will need repairs within miles of it leaving the lot is also easy for people like Justin and the owner of Trimax Auto. Beware.
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