I got my Cobra 1 month ago and every since I bought it I have had nothing but problems. Oil leak from the valve covers, strange vibrations, spoiler on the rear loose/falling off, throw out bearing, pressure plate, something in the front end poping/creaking loud and yesterday I couldn't get it into second gear!!! I has been in the shop for 2 weeks out of the 4 that I have owned it I have had 3 rentals and I already made my first payment. What can I do am I totally screwed? The dealership manager is speaking to me about it but all he says really is they what to fix this one for me, I on the other hand want a different 03 Cobra this one sucks!!!! I have only put 250 miles on it since I bought it, I just filled up my second tank of gas yesterday before I took it back in for the clutch/tranny!!! Help what can I do????
Help please!! Ripped off by dealer on 03 Cobra!!
- Thread starter BNH4.6
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I'd try to contact Ford directly and let them know your situation and see if you cant get them to hunt down a left over 04. It'll take a higher authority than what a dealership can do for you to make something like that happen. Deffinatly sounds like you have a lemon on your hands.
Personally it sounds like the dealership people may have abused the car alittle bit by the time you got it. (you said it was an 03 which means it would have had to have been sitting on the lot for a good year and a half.)
My mom got an 03 Roush 380R in September. There are a couple odds and ends that have to be taken care of. Part on the seat, stripes, and a couple other things needed to be replaced... That's part of buying a car thats sat on the lot for a year, however, the problems your having sound like alot more than a car that's simply sat for that period of time. Deffiantly try to contact Ford like I said.
Personally it sounds like the dealership people may have abused the car alittle bit by the time you got it. (you said it was an 03 which means it would have had to have been sitting on the lot for a good year and a half.)
My mom got an 03 Roush 380R in September. There are a couple odds and ends that have to be taken care of. Part on the seat, stripes, and a couple other things needed to be replaced... That's part of buying a car thats sat on the lot for a year, however, the problems your having sound like alot more than a car that's simply sat for that period of time. Deffiantly try to contact Ford like I said.
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Sounds like you just got a lemon. every manufacturer has them, it's kind of random but one car just gets tons of problems.
So really it's not the dealership's fault. Try and keep cool and calm and work through this. you can sue ford, and you can also do some other things. it's not the dealer's fault, you bought the car new. Oubviously you're mad, and rightfully so, but don't make yourself a burden to your dealer - you need to ensure your dealer will want to help you out with this
So really it's not the dealership's fault. Try and keep cool and calm and work through this. you can sue ford, and you can also do some other things. it's not the dealer's fault, you bought the car new. Oubviously you're mad, and rightfully so, but don't make yourself a burden to your dealer - you need to ensure your dealer will want to help you out with this
oh wait, it's an 03'?
Well then, that's different
Well then, that's different
Vancouver83LTD said:
Yeah I was going to say, since the cars been there for alittle bit, the possibility is there that some of the kids that work there may have taken it out for a spin a couple times and tore it up. Just a guess.
I'd say it's a pretty accurate guess, too
I used to work for a bmw dealership, and yes, some lot boys do rag on cars.
one kid actually got busted in a customer's M5 out back - it's valet service, they do your oil change then go through the car wash - matt decided to lay down a strip of rubber coming out of the car wash, almost hit the manager around the side of the building - was fired on the spot, and the manager gently drove the M5 to the waiting customer - guy never knew what happened, got in his car, thanked the manager, left.
Matt walked off the lot and was just plain gone
I used to work for a bmw dealership, and yes, some lot boys do rag on cars.
one kid actually got busted in a customer's M5 out back - it's valet service, they do your oil change then go through the car wash - matt decided to lay down a strip of rubber coming out of the car wash, almost hit the manager around the side of the building - was fired on the spot, and the manager gently drove the M5 to the waiting customer - guy never knew what happened, got in his car, thanked the manager, left.
Matt walked off the lot and was just plain gone
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It was probably the last car assembled on a Friday...In theory the best cars are built on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, My 98 was built on a Thurs, and my 04 was built on a Tues. On Monday the workers are recovering from the weekend, and on Fridays they are excited because the weekend is at hand..But it is just a theory of course.
Look up the lemon laws in your state. Get a lawyer.
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is a Federal Law that protects the buyer of any product which costs more than $25 and comes with an express written warranty. This law applies to any product that you buy that does not perform as it should.
Your car is a major investment, rationalized by the peace of mind that flows from its expected dependability and safety. Accordingly, you are entitled to expect an automobile properly constructed and regulated to provide reasonably safe, trouble-free, and dependable transportation – regardless of the exact make and model you bought. Unfortunately, sometimes these principles do not hold true and defects arise in automobiles. Although one defect is not actionable, repeated defects are as there exists a generally accepted rule that unsuccessful repair efforts render the warrantor liable. Simply put, there comes a time when “enough is enough” – when after having to take your car into the shop for repairs an inordinate number of times and experiencing all of the attendant inconvenience, you are entitled to say, ‘That’s all,’ and revoke, notwithstanding the seller’s repeated good faith efforts to fix the car. The rationale behind these basic principles is clear: once your faith in the vehicle is shaken, the vehicle loses its real value to you and becomes an instrument whose integrity is impaired and whose operation is fraught with apprehension. The question thus becomes when is “enough enough?”
As you know, enough is never enough from your warrantors point of view and you should simply continue to have your defective vehicle repaired – time and time again. However, you are not required to allow a warrantor to tinker with your vehicle indefinitely in the hope that it may eventually be fixed. Rather, you are entitled to expect your vehicle to be repaired within a reasonable opportunity. To this end, both the federal Moss Warranty Act, and the various state “lemon laws,” require repairs to your vehicle be performed within a reasonable opportunity.
Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a warrantor should perform adequate repairs in at least two, and possibly three, attempts to correct a particular defect. Further, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act’s reasonableness requirement applies to your vehicle as a whole rather than to each individual defect that arises. Although most of the Lemon Laws vary from state to state, each individual law usually require a warrantor to cure a specific defect within four to five attempts or the automobile as a whole within thirty days. If the warrantor fails to meet this obligation, most of the lemon laws provide for a full refund or new replacement vehicle. Further, this reasonable number of attempts/reasonable opportunity standard, whether it be that of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or that of the Lemon Laws, is akin to strict liability – once this threshold has been met, the continued existence of a defect is irrelevant and you are still entitled to relief.
One of the most important parts of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is its fee shifting provision. This provision provides that you may recover the attorney fees incurred in the prosecution of your case if you are successful – independent of how much you actually win. That rational behind this fee shifting provision is to twofold: (1) to ensure you will be able to vindicate your rights without having to expend large sums on attorney's fees and (2) because automobile manufacturers are able to write off all expenses of defense as a legitimate business expense, whereas you, the average consumer, obviously does not have that kind of economic staying power. Most of the Lemon Laws contain similar fee shifting provisions.
You may also derive additional warranty rights from the Uniform Commercial Code; however, the Code does not allow you in most states to recover your attorney fees. and is also not as consumer friendly as the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or the various state lemon laws.
The narrative information on Magnusson-Moss, UCC and lemon laws on these pages is provided by Marshall Meyers, attorney.
The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is a Federal Law that protects the buyer of any product which costs more than $25 and comes with an express written warranty. This law applies to any product that you buy that does not perform as it should.
Your car is a major investment, rationalized by the peace of mind that flows from its expected dependability and safety. Accordingly, you are entitled to expect an automobile properly constructed and regulated to provide reasonably safe, trouble-free, and dependable transportation – regardless of the exact make and model you bought. Unfortunately, sometimes these principles do not hold true and defects arise in automobiles. Although one defect is not actionable, repeated defects are as there exists a generally accepted rule that unsuccessful repair efforts render the warrantor liable. Simply put, there comes a time when “enough is enough” – when after having to take your car into the shop for repairs an inordinate number of times and experiencing all of the attendant inconvenience, you are entitled to say, ‘That’s all,’ and revoke, notwithstanding the seller’s repeated good faith efforts to fix the car. The rationale behind these basic principles is clear: once your faith in the vehicle is shaken, the vehicle loses its real value to you and becomes an instrument whose integrity is impaired and whose operation is fraught with apprehension. The question thus becomes when is “enough enough?”
As you know, enough is never enough from your warrantors point of view and you should simply continue to have your defective vehicle repaired – time and time again. However, you are not required to allow a warrantor to tinker with your vehicle indefinitely in the hope that it may eventually be fixed. Rather, you are entitled to expect your vehicle to be repaired within a reasonable opportunity. To this end, both the federal Moss Warranty Act, and the various state “lemon laws,” require repairs to your vehicle be performed within a reasonable opportunity.
Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a warrantor should perform adequate repairs in at least two, and possibly three, attempts to correct a particular defect. Further, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act’s reasonableness requirement applies to your vehicle as a whole rather than to each individual defect that arises. Although most of the Lemon Laws vary from state to state, each individual law usually require a warrantor to cure a specific defect within four to five attempts or the automobile as a whole within thirty days. If the warrantor fails to meet this obligation, most of the lemon laws provide for a full refund or new replacement vehicle. Further, this reasonable number of attempts/reasonable opportunity standard, whether it be that of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or that of the Lemon Laws, is akin to strict liability – once this threshold has been met, the continued existence of a defect is irrelevant and you are still entitled to relief.
One of the most important parts of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act is its fee shifting provision. This provision provides that you may recover the attorney fees incurred in the prosecution of your case if you are successful – independent of how much you actually win. That rational behind this fee shifting provision is to twofold: (1) to ensure you will be able to vindicate your rights without having to expend large sums on attorney's fees and (2) because automobile manufacturers are able to write off all expenses of defense as a legitimate business expense, whereas you, the average consumer, obviously does not have that kind of economic staying power. Most of the Lemon Laws contain similar fee shifting provisions.
You may also derive additional warranty rights from the Uniform Commercial Code; however, the Code does not allow you in most states to recover your attorney fees. and is also not as consumer friendly as the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or the various state lemon laws.
The narrative information on Magnusson-Moss, UCC and lemon laws on these pages is provided by Marshall Meyers, attorney.
Give the dealer the opportunity to fix the car. [I assume the warranty is intact?] Tell the dealer about each problem and hopefully they will fix them all.
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