And less than a week later the car broke down.

Car: 2006 Corvette Convertible with 28000 miles, a little over $10k in mods. I sold it to him for $26k

What happened: Leaked out all its coolant and overheated. He drove it home like that (wtf?)

I fixed one problem with the emissions system (and drove it about 400 miles to make sure there were no more problems) and had it inspected before I sold it. I also let him drive it a week before buying it.

He tried to get me to take it back. I declined. Now he wants me to pay to fix it. I know I don't have to do anything but I kind of feel bad.

What would TWW do? I wonder if he screwed it up doing something stupid and is trying to get out me to pay for his mess.

5/11/2015 11:17:50 PM

He drove an overheated car. Fuck him.

Maybe if he had parked the fucker and topped it off/had it towed, you could throw him a bone and fix the leak, but it's on him now.

5/11/2015 11:21:37 PM

If you had absolutely no indication there was a problem with the cooling, it's his problem now.

If you thought something might be wrong, then maybe offer to split the repair costs?

5/11/2015 11:22:40 PM

You should tell your boss. They should get fired because they're a moron.

5/11/2015 11:28:06 PM

Quote :

"If you had absolutely no indication there was a problem with the cooling, it's his problem now."

This. Just resign yourself to the fact that this friendship (if there was any friendship) is probably now ruined. If you can (shrug) in response to that, then you're in fine shape.

Also, this:

Quote :

"He drove an overheated car. Fuck him."

You didn't sell him a fucked-up car; he fucked it up himself. Sucks to be him, but I don't think you bear any moral responsibility.

Also, I like that you've punctuated somebody else's $26 k loss with a (Seriously, it's funny.)

5/11/2015 11:40:15 PM

I had a 1995 Taurus like that, it had been totaled twice before I inherited it in 2009. It was so fucked up that the cabin lights would flicker on speedbumps, the doors did not match, the ac only ran on high, and the door locks would open and shut randomly while driving.

I knew it had a leak and kept filling it up with water, but I was working like 55+ hours a week and driving an hour each way. I was lucky to spend more than 2 hours at home awake outside of work. One day it was like vrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrmmmmm I looked down and the thermostat was on the red, coasted in to a gas station space. It never moved again under its own power. The motor actually locked up.

A guy with a tow truck bought it for $125 bucks, and I kept the battery which was pretty new. I was going about 70 and it must have busted and coolant must have been blowing out under the car where I never noticed. I never got once pissed about it blowing up because I knew it was losing coolant and therefore it overheated and blew, it was my fault.

If its overheating and he kept driving all that damage is on him.

5/11/2015 11:42:34 PM

I pretty much second the responses in this thread.

5/11/2015 11:47:50 PM

5/12/2015 2:22:52 AM

I had a car a long time ago (2006-07) that kept overheating on really hot summer days, but I never had the time to fix it, and just kept adding water.

anyways, I sold it in late Sept of that year, and even called the dude in Feb to ask how it was doing and he said no problems (never told him about the overheating)

anyway, it overheated and blew up on him in July, he tried to drive it home rather than pull over, and he had to spend $texas to get it going again, but he never even acted like it was my fault (didn't even know till we talked at an Xmas party)

I even sold him my old lawn mower when I got my new one, but other than maintenance, its going great

5/12/2015 4:36:02 AM

was it leaking coolant when you sold it to him and you didnt say anything?

5/12/2015 6:40:23 AM

Quote :

"maybe offer to split the repair costs?"

You definitely shouldn't pay for the entire thing, but if you are worried about aftermath/office drama, this may be the way to go...depending on how costly the repairs will be.

5/12/2015 6:48:25 AM

NEVER sell a car to a friend especially not one you modded unless they know the risk.

you sir are screwed... either help pay for the repair or create a frienemy

5/12/2015 7:04:10 AM

^This, always sell to people you hopefully will never have to deal with again. In this situation the guy killed his engine when he knowingly drove it with no coolant in it. Therefore its his problem to fix.

Also to anyone that says help fix it, go price out a LS2 rebuild/installation with corvette tax attached. You could half it and would still spend 3k+ (Assuming you are going to fix it correctly). And by paying any of it, you are admitting guilt in the mind of your coworker.

[Edited on May 12, 2015 at 8:09 AM. Reason : ,]

5/12/2015 8:07:15 AM

YOU SHOULD HAVE MADE A CONTRACT

5/12/2015 8:09:42 AM

All used car sales in NC are as-is. Don't need a contract.

5/12/2015 8:10:23 AM

shoooooooooooooooooooould have maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaade a coooooooooontraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaact

blackjesus can suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck a diiiiiiiiiiick

5/12/2015 8:13:57 AM

they have a contract, there was an offer and acceptance and the buyer even had an entire week of consideration

5/12/2015 8:16:19 AM

^^ yeah dude contracts don't cover friendships...

Make a contract all day long and dude will still be pissed.

I have successfully talked all my friends out of buying my cars my thought is this.... i tried to make them not want it and if they buy it anyway... it's their problem.. they know every flaw i knew about and probably even exaggerated.


Lets put it this way though... i know 66 of the best contractors you could know half with the appropriate licenses in their field... but if you ask me if i know a guy... "nope" because i'm not being responsible for that.

5/12/2015 8:21:43 AM

Don't be friends with co-workers. Alternatively, don't make shitty friendships with shitty people who aren't adult enough to honor contracts.

You people sound like you fucking suck at life sometimes, honestly.

5/12/2015 8:24:01 AM

That too... you have to know the friend too.

I have friends i like... but are complete assholes to anyone they have to pay.

5/12/2015 8:26:05 AM

you don't owe him shit

5/12/2015 8:41:27 AM

Quote :

"Don't be friends with co-workers."

Yes don't be friends with the people you spend +/- 25% of your time with.

5/12/2015 8:48:07 AM

Quote :

"was it leaking coolant when you sold it to him and you didnt say anything?"

I couldn't find a leak, but anytime it got over 100 outside and I wasn't moving fast, you could see the temp needle moving, I just kept pulling over and adding water

I did say something to the effect of "I heard this model is known to sometimes overheat in hot weather" and I gave it to him full of antifreeze

and then he tried to drive home with vapor coming out from under the hood

5/12/2015 8:50:26 AM

i sold my coworker a dog. he fed it a bunch of chocolate. now he wants me to pay for half of its vet bills.

5/12/2015 9:00:57 AM

Quote :

"a little over $10k in mods"

Mod list?

5/12/2015 9:05:43 AM

Quote :

"Mod list?"

-New tires ($2000)
-Leaky radiator ($8000)

5/12/2015 9:11:37 AM

Quote :

"Also, I like that you've punctuated somebody else's $26 k loss with a (Seriously, it's funny.)"

This isn't a Porsche - won't cost $26k to replace the engine. $5-6k will probably get the car back on the road.

It's not the OP's fault. Coolant hoses on a 10+ year old car can let go at any time. Been there done that 2-3 times in my Acura. And I always pulled over before anything bad could happen.

5/12/2015 9:23:00 AM

IMHO

with any reasonable person this wouldn't be an issue.

if he thought you sold him a car with a bad hose give him the $36 bucks for a new fitted hose or whatever...

But the driving the car with no water in it is on him..



truthfully if i'm him and i just mangled an LS3... i'm building a motor for my vette from the bottom up.

5/12/2015 9:36:32 AM

Quote :

"All used car sales in NC are as-is. Don't need a contract."

Umm..no

5/12/2015 9:36:48 AM

Quote :

"i'm building a motor for my vette from the bottom up."

I'm going to guess that a dude who drove an overheated car doesn't know how to build an engine

5/12/2015 9:44:09 AM

Ohh i know...

i'm just saying... for me when car things break i get all excited...

but then i have 5 cars.. so ... no biggie right?

5/12/2015 10:09:29 AM

You gave him a very fair price. He could have shut it down, paid $60 for a tow, and $afewhundredbucks for the repair. This is on him.

Things like this happen. Whether it happened after 200 miles or 20,000 miles is irrelevant. He probably angrily drove it while his internal monologue screamed "LimpyNuts is going to rue the day!!!!!" He tore the car up, not you. He needs to answer for his fuck up, not you.

Quote :

"I wonder if he screwed it up doing something stupid and is trying to get out me to pay for his mess."

He definitely screwed it up doing something stupid. He drove an overheated car rather than letting it take a couple hours out of his day for a tow and a cab.

[Edited on May 12, 2015 at 10:35 AM. Reason : l]

5/12/2015 10:31:06 AM

Updates for clarification.

1. There was a contract (bill of sale), the text of which details our arrangement. It basically says I fixed the known problem with the emissions and he had 1 week to test and inspect the car. Until the point that the final payment was received and title transferred, he could back out any time and I would return his entire down payment. He didn't use the entire week, but paid for it and did the title transfer after about 5 and a half days. The bill of sale specifically says "as-is" and "where is" with no warranty.

2. I didn't want to sell it to him in the first place. He was asking to buy it off me since October of last year. I told him I was going to put it on AutoTrader in the spring, but he kept hounding me about it and I eventually relented.

3. I had no idea it was going to do that. During the winter I got a "check engine coolant" message (while he was in the car with me no less) from a cold start that went away after it warmed up. I topped it off with coolant (about 1 cup or so) and the message never came back. I don't know if the 2 events are related, but he definitely knew everything I did.

4. He didn't drive it straight home after it happened. He left it at a police station overnight and came back the next day, refilled it and drove it home. The coolant temp got up to 300F or so (normal is 190-220F) on the way, which was about a 8-10 mile drive. He said most of the coolant had leaked out by the time he got there. Let it cool down and refilled it and it doesn't leak visibly while off. He started it (says it sounds like it runs normally, but I haven't seen the car since) and the coolant seems to be leaking out of the coolant pump. (Maybe it is completely fucked, maybe it just need a a coolant pump I don't know.) He drove past at least 2 auto repair places on the way home... I don't know why he didn't leave it at one of them.

5. Mods: CAI, ported throttle body, intake manifold (FAST LSXR), long tube headers with cats, crossover midpipe, Corsa sport axle-back exhaust. Custom can with upgraded valve springs and pushrods and tune, 4.10 ratio diff. About 100hp and 100 lb-ft torque over stock on the dyno. (I wasn't counting tires, but those did cost me $1500 bucks or so.)

5/12/2015 1:26:14 PM

so all he needs is a new water pump? the car is 10 years old. the water pump could go at any moment.

who cares if you lose a friendship? do you really want somebody who would try to make you pay for the water pump for a friend? fuck this guy.

[Edited on May 12, 2015 at 2:06 PM. Reason : adfs]

5/12/2015 2:03:31 PM

christ

here is what you do- tell him to drive to the kia dealership and trade it for something new with a warranty

5/12/2015 2:04:43 PM

his fault, not your problem. Warranties on used cars cost extra, he shoulda bought one, or at least at AAA membership, or just called for a tow. Dude paid 26k for a 10-year-old car and was too cheap to pay for any of the above, makes me question his priorities, if not his mental health. (Have you even seen the damage and are sure he's not fabricating this?) Sorry if it spoils your working relationship... you should probably check over your company's "employee conduct" policies before preemptively documenting the incident with a boss/HR, if you see things going in that direction when you fail to acquiesce to his demands.

5/12/2015 2:17:33 PM

A LS2 water pump is under $200, and is held on by 6 bolts...... Your coworker is a retard that doesn't need/deserve a cammed corvette.

He's a shitty person for trying to guilt you into paying to fix a water pump. Its a wear item/expected failure on a 10 year old car. Please tell him to go fuck himself.

[Edited on May 12, 2015 at 2:20 PM. Reason : ,]

5/12/2015 2:19:44 PM

i'll give him a couple hundred for engine and transmission

[Edited on May 12, 2015 at 2:20 PM. Reason : you owe him absolutely nothing.. 300F W T F]

5/12/2015 2:19:57 PM

Let's stick that engine in the s2000

tww project

Then I shake everyones hands, pay for beers, and you can all fuck off and give me my car back with a nice ballsy motor.

5/12/2015 8:02:32 PM

Why stop with a cam, lets bolt a supercharger to it and have it stick out the hood like a boss.

I know for a fact you can push 12+psi safely on that engine if you don't get greedy on the timing.

5/12/2015 9:47:30 PM

This dioshit is too ignorant for that car and too stupid to deal with. I agree with the new responses, too.

[Edited on May 13, 2015 at 12:35 AM. Reason : Don't give him a cent or the time of day. Tell him to drink the remaining antifreeze.]

5/13/2015 12:33:38 AM

Is $10k/100hp a normal $/hp ratio on these things?

5/13/2015 12:56:04 AM

I haven't priced 'Vette mods in a little while now, but I'd think you could get even 100 more rewhip for less than that, even paying someone to do the work.

heads, cam, long-tube headers, intake, exhaust, and tune should easily make that much more power, or even more, and I can't imagine that you couldn't get all that done for $10k or less.

My guess is that it had both power mods and suspension mods, and maybe more.

5/13/2015 1:15:27 AM

two roads you can take:

Quote :

"All used car sales in NC are as-is. Don't need a contract."

this. Don't listen to the fuckers here saying other wise. You don't owe him shit.

Second road if it was me:

take it to RPM in Garner or Mayhem in Raleigh. Get two quotes. Offer to split it to save face in the office. final offer and walk away. Assuming he didn't over heat it and it just needs waterpump, etc. you are looking about $1500. If he continued to drive it and oil/water mixed, he's fucked and you should definitely burn the bridge.

Final thought: never sell to friends or coworkers.



[Edited on May 13, 2015 at 7:08 AM. Reason : s]

5/13/2015 7:05:25 AM

[Edited on May 13, 2015 at 8:47 AM. Reason : ]

5/13/2015 8:38:05 AM

looking forward to Restricted's input regarding this NC as-is no contract stuff you guys are spewing. considering he worked for the source i'd assume he can probably clarify

5/13/2015 8:55:07 AM

Yes please inform us how a used car sold private party has an implied warranty.

5/13/2015 8:56:24 AM

the act of selling the car is generally going to have the essential elements of a contract. you can not misrepresent a car, if you make a claim about the quality of the car it can be enforceable. saying "the car runs great" or "excellent condition" or "transmission is perfect" or something could be an implied warranty. (this is why a written contract with clear explicit no warranty claim is in your benefit)

in this case the buyer would have to show that LimpyNuts sold him a car that is not merchantable quality, but the fact LimpyNuts gave him 1 week to test and inspect the car seems to be clear that no warranty is implied and I don't think a 10 year old water pump failing meets the standard of not being merchantable.

[Edited on May 13, 2015 at 9:06 AM. Reason : i am not an attorney, but i believe this to be correct]

5/13/2015 9:04:47 AM

a guy named LimpyNuts would drive a Corvette

5/13/2015 9:09:49 AM

Quote :

"Registered : 8/5/2002"

He's close enough to the Corvette target demographic.

5/13/2015 9:14:19 AM