Generally automotive dealerships can’t assist however be sacks of shit. Over the summer time, a Florida man purchased two used Volvos from a used automotive dealership, it wasn’t till after the deal went via that he discovered each vehicles had been in accidents. Nearer inspection from unbiased mechanics reveals that each vehicles had non-functioning airbags and seat belts. When the client discovered, he instantly took them again. That’s all unhealthy sufficient as it’s, however because it seems this story will get worse.
The vendor offered one of many Volvos once more, and the I-Staff at ABC Motion Information in Tampa Bay tracked down the proprietor to search out out if the right repairs had been achieved on the automotive. Wouldn’t you recognize it, the fixes hadn’t been achieved on Gilbert Santiago’s new-to-him 2022 Volvo S60. An unbiased mechanic appeared over the U.S. Navy veteran’s automotive and located that the seat belt pretensioner and airbags didn’t work. He was additionally by no means instructed the automotive was offered at public sale in 2023 following an accident the place a number of airbags have been deployed.
Final yr, Ron Egbert purchased the Volvo from the vendor in query – HGreg. He took the automotive to a Volvo dealership in Sarasota after his airbag warning mild got here on. What they found was slightly troubling, as ABC Motion Information explains:
A technician found the driving force’s airbag was rusted and had markings from a junkyard. Wires had been tampered with, and the airbag was incorrect for the car.
Egert took the automotive again to HGreg, and that is what occurred subsequent:
“I confirmed them the images. And I mentioned you’re taking this automotive again. I am going… this automotive is unsafe to drive. Nobody ought to be driving this automotive,” Egert mentioned.
HGreg’s spokesperson mentioned the corporate “solely purchases autos via probably the most respected public sale firms” and “conducts a multi-point inspection,” which incorporates “a evaluation of diagnostic indicators.”
She additionally wrote in a press release, “If, for no matter purpose, HGreg believes the car airbags wouldn’t function as meant, it might not be retailed by HGreg.”
That’s an amazing sentiment, however right here’s the factor: HGreg did certainly promote the automotive to Santiago just some months later, and he instantly had severe issues with it. The airbag mild got here on nearly instantly, and that’s when he took it to the Volvo tech. Right here’s what ABC Motion Information says they discovered after some digging and what Santiago did subsequent:
He mentioned the technician on the dealership instructed him used salvage elements have been put in in his automotive.
That technician’s photograph reveals the identical junkyard markings as the image taken by Egert’s mechanic at a special dealership a number of months earlier.
Santiago paid to interchange a number of airbags and associated parts.
“Most likely across the ballpark of six grand out of my pocket,” Santiago mentioned.
[…]
Images taken by Santiago’s technician present wires wrapped in electrical tape, like these taken by Egert’s technician, who wrote that the wires to the airbag “have been tampered with.”
We requested Santiago to fulfill us at Brazzeal Automotive as a result of his mechanic in Tampa didn’t uncover points with the seatbelt pretensioner we realized about from Egert’s report from the mechanic on the Volvo dealership in Sarasota.
“Now it’s going via all of the completely different modules within the automotive,” licensed technician Chris Wallin instructed us as he attached a diagnostic instrument.
“I don’t see any lively codes,” Wallin mentioned, which might usually point out all security programs have been working.
Sounds good, proper? Improper!
However when Wallin popped open the inside door panel, he discovered the seatbelt pretensioner system wasn’t plugged into the wiring harness, which might enable it to deploy.
“This ought to be plugged into right here,” Wallin mentioned, pointing to wires wrapped in electrical tape. “That is the seatbelt pretensioner. And it appears like there’s one thing wired in there. It’s all taped up.”
Wallin peeled again electrical tape to discover a resistor.
A resistor is a passive part in {an electrical} circuit. It may be used to control or restrict the move of present.
[…]
“What they’ve achieved is simply take a resistor that matches the resistance that the pretensioner is meant to have and simply form of shoved it in that wiring harness to trick it into pondering it’s acquired a very good pretensioner,” Wallin mentioned of Santiago’s automotive.
The tech mentioned it was achieved deliberately, however there’s no approach of figuring out who put in the resistor. He mentioned it was put in to maintain the seat belt restraint system from popping up a warning mild. That’s some actually evil shit, of us.
He says he contracted HGreg they usually gave him the runaround, saying “it handed their inspection,” and due to that “nothing was displaying that was flawed with it. So there’s nothing they will do.” Terrible.
Right here’s what HGreg needed to say for itself, which isn’t a lot:
We contacted HGreg on Sept. 19 with a listing of questions, however they didn’t reply them.
A spokesperson replied in an e mail, “Thanks for bringing the case of Mr. Santiago’s buy to our consideration. We’ll join with the client immediately.”
Greater than a month after receiving that response, Santiago mentioned he hadn’t heard from anybody from the corporate.
“They should be held accountable for that as a result of we’re speaking about folks’s lives after they’re on the market on the street,” Santiago mentioned.
They actually do. You recognize, I’ve heard tons of tales about sellers doing shady shit, however it normally has to do with monetary offers. It’s very uncommon you get a vendor that goes out of its method to promote folks unsafe vehicles twice.
