Auto Milko Sells Doctored Vehicles, Ripoff Car Dealer, Bad Used Cars Belmont New Hampshire

On September 21, 2013, I purchased a 2003 Ford Escape from this merchant located in Belmont, New Hampshire. The vehicle was stated by the dealer to be in good condition and in running order. The dealer offered to place temporary license plates on the vehicle and perform the New State Inspection at an additional cost of $400.00. This stipulation indicated that the vehicle needed less than $400.00 worth of work to be inspectable. The dealer further state that there was no need to pay him the additional $400.00, as we could just as easily take the vehicle on our own to any inspection station and have the inspection completed for less money. The dealer also stated that the vehicle was able to pass state inspection as is. I ultimately declined to have the inspection performed at the dealership due to inspections costing less than $400.00 to perform and the vehicle was delivered to me in Hillsboro, New Hampshire on September 24, 2013. The next day, I obtained license plates and a registration for the vehicle and then attempted to drive it. The vehicle was able to drive for approximately twelve miles before experiencing substantial mechanical problems. For a vehicle that was sold to me as being able to pass state inspection, it did not take long to discover that the vehicle was not in fact inspectable in its current state. On September 25, 2013, I brought the vehicle to Hillsboro Ford, a local Ford dealership in Hillsboro, New Hampshire, for diagnostics. The diagnostics revealed a repair bill of $4,962.95, of which, about $4,000.00 was required in order for the vehicle to be safe for the road and inspectable. These repairs include the vehicle’s transmission, as well as the front breaks and oil pan. The Hillsboro Ford dealership informed me that the issues with the transmission had to be known by Auto Milko, as the bolts to the transmission pump were clearly recently removed. On September 25, 2013, I called the dealer who sold me the vehicle at Auto Milko and was told that the dealership would not allow me to return the vehicle. Based on the independent second opinion evaluation by Hillsboro Ford, it appears that the dealer who sold me the vehicle was aware of its significant mechanical problems at the time of sale and failed to disclose them as required by the Fair Trade Practices Act. I would have never purchased this vehicle if I had known of any of these issues, especially considering I was assured that the vehicle did not need any work to pass inspection.

Additionally, I would also like to inform you that the original agreed upon purchase price for the vehicle as stated by Auto Milko was $3,600.00; however, since I was not willing to pay with cash or check, the dealership charged me an additional $100.00 for the ability to make the charge with a credit card, as the dealership is charged a fee for customers using credit cards.