re: memories

[quk@isham-research.demon.co.uk (Phil Payne)]

In message <000001bde13c$9ad9e320$7abed2cc@default.nycap.rr.com> "Osman Parvez" writes:

> Selling a large-ticket item to another Q-lister has risks. Just as I'd
> prefer not to sell a personal vehicle to a friend, ...

As I think I've mentioned, one of our local deals went pear-shaped.  I
bought John Robinson's Passat off him for use as a workshop and family
runabout.  I'm a bit more mechanically minded than John, and I rapidly
discovered that the service history was fiction.  He'd been taking it
in regularly, paying lots of $$$ and getting the book stamped.  Trouble
was - no one was doing anything to it except topping up the oil.  So I
had a vicious battle with 'black sludge' (now fixed, but required a
head-off cleaning session) and a long uphill struggle to get all of
the engine accessories working.

Not John's fault - he'd concentrated his time on two quattros and
three carts, and left the Passat in the dealer's car.  He didn't know
he was being systematically ripped off.  Perhaps it's my fault for
not being more cynical - but we spent hours working on his quattros
together and I had no qualms about taking a car off him, having seen
him work on them.

It's reached the stage (we meet around three times a month) where we
both avoid the subject out of embarrassment.

--
 Phil Payne
 Phone: 0385 302803   Fax: 01536 723021
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