Purchased a 1.6 Polo Vovo in November 20...

Asked by Shanelle on 20-02-2025 22:11:20
Question posted in the Consumer Protection Law category relating to Gauteng

Purchased a 1.6 Polo Vovo in November 2023 from a private buyer. Upon checking the car out everything seemed fine. Weeks into owning the car serious troubles started to arise with the vehicle - and could not even be driven.  Took it to a mechanic and the entire engine needed to be redone which cost so much money - well around R15 000.

A year later I started experiencing more problems with the car and decided I did not want to spend money on the car again as it was becoming too much financially. I decided to put it up for sale and clearly outlined the issues/faults that were experienced with the car. With few minor issues and fixes, the main issue was the throttle body causing poor acceleration.  This was clearly stated and outlined to the buyer. 

when the buyer enquired about the car I told him everything I knew . He insisted that the car was his and that he was willing to come early morning to purchase the car. He also knew about the outlined mentioned issues of the car before even pirchasing yet still insisted. I even insisted on him towing the car home given the issues but he insisted on finding his way by getting the throttle body and fixing it there before driving home. 

The deal was however done and all papers provided. 2 days in he informs that he no longer wanted the car as it has too many issues, even when he was clearly informed of all the issues. whatever faults he encountered was on himself, and I had no clue thereof. 

Can he insist on wanting the car returned? Or is the deal done and he now has to sort everything himself? 

If you would like to view the entire answer, you will need to either login or register a FREE account.

Disclaimer

DISCLAIMER: Advice or answers from Lawyers on South African Legal Advice are not substitutes for the proper advice of an Lawyer. South African Legal Advice is a public forum and questions and responses are not private or confidential or protected by the attorney-client privilege. The Lawyer who assists with your question is not your Lawyer, and the response above is not to be considered to be legal advice. You should not read this response to propose specific action or address specific circumstances, but only to give you a sense of general principles of law that might affect the situation you describe. Application of these general principles to particular circumstances must be done by a lawyer who has spoken with you in confidence, learned all relevant information, and explored various options. Before acting on these general principles, you should hire a lawyer licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction to which your question pertains. The responses above are from individual Lawyers, not South African Legal Advice. The site and services are provided “as is”. This site is not for emergency questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals. Please carefully read the Terms of Service.