Purchasing a vehicle without first inspecting it is akin to gambling. You win some of the time, but you also lose part of the time. Tim Linington learnt his lesson the hard way when he bought an M3 F80 without seeing it first, only to find out it had problems. The sports car was purchased for £28,000 from Nottingham shop Performance Club through Auto Trader. At current currency rates, it equates to almost $37,000 or €33,800.
He received the Austin Yellow M3 F80 on February 7, barely five days after it passed its MOT test. The buyer, who owns an auto parts company, was dismayed to learn that the vehicle had a lot of problems. A cracked windshield, a broken back bumper, an illegal tire, and a loose rear seat were among the issues. The BMW was described as “in excellent condition” in the ad, he told Nottinghamshire Live.
When Tim Linington contacted the dealership, the manager assured him that he “knew what he was paying for.” In an interview with the British magazine, Sam Moustafa said that the customer was “obviously [knowing] that the automobile is part-exchange [trade-in], which is why it was cheaper.” I urged him to come inspect the automobile right immediately, but he replied it was too far away.”
The story has a happy ending in certain ways.
The automobile was only seen in images and via a video call by the angry customer. It would have required a three-hour journey to see it in person, which Tim Linington declined to undertake. He typically flies across the nation to purchase autos, but this time he didn’t. He had intended to reject the M3 F80 before requesting that the dealer pay £1,400 for the repairs. The two ultimately agreed to a £1000 settlement. He had intended to file a lawsuit against the dealer, but he later changed his mind.
If there’s one takeaway from this, it’s that you should never purchase a vehicle without first seeing it up close. In this scenario, it’s a (relatively) happy ending, but things might have gone a lot worse for the buyer.
