Unethical businesses still prey on the elderly and unknowledgeable
My mom recently needed to get another car because the van she was left with by her deceased husband junked out about a year ago. At age 84, she won’t be driving much longer and only drives to the doctor, pharmacy and the grocery store. With limited cash, we found a 2009 Hyundai Sonata at a local dealer sold “as is” for $2000.
Drove it down the highway a few miles and back- pretty good runner. I told the salesman it was deal of it was $2000 “out the door,” which would cover taxes and title and plate and she closed the deal.
Fast forward several weeks later, and my mother calls me and said she smelled gas and one of my sister’s sons said there was a gas leak and “don’t drive the car because it might explode.” WHAT?
I got over to her house the next weekend and checked the car. There was no sign of a passive leak. No puddle under the car. I started the engine. Only then did I see a drip in the back driver’s side near where the gas tank opening was located. And it was only releasing a tiny drip about every 20 seconds or more. I told her the car was completely driveable for what she does until she could get it to her garage.
During the next week she takes the car to a garage her deceased husband had used for years, if not decades, in Muskegon Michigan. I won’t name the place here, however. They told her that in addition to the gas line, the fuel pump wasn’t working and neither was the timing chain. I told her the car would not run if either those things were not working! I made a plan to pick the car up and bring it back to Grand Rapids to have a garage I know and trust (M&T’s in Grandville[1]) and where my wife and I have taken cars for repair since 1991. Both my son’s have subsequently taken vehicles there. Totally trustworthy!
In the meantime, she called my wife’s brother and asked him to go with her back to the car dealer. She wanted to return the car. First, it was not covered under the state’s Lemon Law. She bought it as is. Second, even if she returned it, she is now back again without a car and having to shop for another one. I had to take vacation day to deal with shopping for this one!
Joni called her brother and told him we have a plan and don’t driver her to Grand Haven do the dealer. I made an appointment for the car the next Monday at M&T. The Saturday before we had a family gathering for my wife’s side of the family, so we drove Joni’s car and picked up my mom’s car on the way back to Grand Rapids and dropped off at M&Ts.
As an aside, the paperwork from the doom & gloom garage had zero mention of timing chains or failed fuel pumps. She doesn’t know what a timing chain or fuel pump is so I suspect those alleged issues verbally so as to not be contractually at risk.
Dave at M&T’s called me later Monday- there was a fuel leak in the fuel line back in the rear of the car. It would cost $170 to fix it- all new fuel lines from the tank to the engine. Good deal.
Dave did say she would need new brakes and rotors at some point in the future but with her driving patterns it could be quite some time.
My oldest son was visiting us in Grand Rapids later that week and was then going to head to his mom’s in Muskegon. He and his girlfriend agreed to have one of them drive the Sonata back to my my mom, saving me a trip.
As an aside, Joni’s brother said his dad probably didn’t know how to turn a screwdriver (LOL) and as such, who knows what cons this garage had pulled on him all those years and he was thinking they were “reliable!”
Fast forward a few weeks. I get three calls in short order from my mom while I am at work, but let them go to voice mail until the third. She’s at a Discount Tire location, big tire chain. The guy there is telling her she needs all new tires — four tires for $900. I asked what she was even doing there in the first place and she said her rear driver tire had a leak and was going flat to which I said just have them plug the leak and I’d check the tires next time I was in town. If she needed tires I would check with Midwest Tire [2] in Grandville, another establishment we have been using since 1991.
A couple days ago, however, who helps here on occasion with small mechanical tasks (good guy), looked at the tires after checking her oil and told her she had a lot of miles on those tires. Sales guy at Discount trying to scam the proverbial “little old lady” into spending $900 needlessly.
And here I thought this unethical behavior was a thing of the past.
