Should I be asking for some money back?

[toyboy]

Just bought a supposedly 2002 Honda Vtr250 with 17k on the clock from a store, have now just received the cert of registration in the post and it says 'First Registered in JAPAN in 1997'
So have the store been lying about how old the bike is (they even advertised it as a 2002 on Trademe) or is this just some sort of stuffup from the good ol guys at landtransport ?
If it is 1997 should I be asking for some money back???

[JimO]

how much did you pay, i got a 98 vtr for $3500

[Ehgreiz]

i have no real knowledge on the matter but one would be safe to assume it is NOT a 2002 bike..

pretty sure that its illegal to misrepresent something like that in an auction, dont really know for sure though.

in either case you should definitely take it up with either the dealer or trademe, dont know if anything will come from it though really :doh:

[cowboyz]

this is dodgey.

It will have something to do witht eh registered in NZ thing. Would be asking some nice questions followed by some not so nice questions followed by asking for my money back if it were me.

[newby]

Dealers have to provide you with a "buyer information card" They MUST provide this by law, and give it to you when you purchase the bike. It is usually the A4 size bit of paper that is stuck to the vehicle which has the make, model, YEAR, and Km's on it.

If that says 2002 they are in the shit, because its not. Its a 1997 bike.

[TaNkSlApT]

your best bet is to talk it through with cyclespot. it could be a misrepresentation through ignorance due to it possibly first being registered in new zealand in 2002?

if not just burn'em down. (ill get you a match but you can supply the gas with it being so fricken expensive.)

[Pedrostt500]

As Newby said the dealer must supply you with a card that states milage make model year first regerstered in NZ and if it was an import, though they may have an out if you brought it through a Trade me auction, as there are different laws that apply to auctions, if you have no luck with the bike shop go to the MTA, if no luck there try fair go they like this sort of thing, but get your facts straight first or they will make you look a knob.

[Headbanger]

Personally I'd be after a full refund.

Then I'd shop elsewhere.

Might be a great shop but thats a big enough mistake to take the money elsewhere.



But, Thats just what I would do, and I'm an intolerant bastard who never lets anything go.

[Winston001]

Simple misrepresentation under the Fair Trading Act. They either put it right - (impossible, can't make a 1997 bike into a 2002 bike) or refund you. Or you work out a compromise if you still like the bike.

As Newby said, they have to supply you with certain information - and if that is false, they have engaged in deceptive and misleading conduct.

Many vehicles in NZ have two registration dates shown on the card - Japan date and New Zealand.

Could be just a mistake on their part but you are entitled to your remedies.

[ArcherWC]

first thing is to go talk to them, could be a simple mistake and a simple fix

[Swoop]

Straight back to the dealer.

Basic stuff like that shouldn't be overlooked and you now have a bike that is much older than you believed it was at time of purchase.

[FROSTY]

A couple of suggestions here from someone in the business.
1) carefully check your VIN number and chasis number against the ones on the paperwork you've been supplied.
One possibility is theyve registered the wrong bike -easy mistake when you have a big stack of MR2a's to deal with.
2)Check around the bike. there may be a lable on it somewhere saying when it was made.
3)An error may have been made when the bike was complied -a simple keying error.


Before going in all guns blazing I'd double and tripple check my facts first.
If it turns out it is indeed a 1997 then you need to decide what you want to do.-money back or discount to fair market price

[AllanB]

Check around the bike. there may be a lable on it somewhere saying when it was made.

Frosty is correct here - Honda will have a makers plate on the bike that will state the month and year it was made.

However, it has been know for these to be 'removed' - imports get a NZ plate attached that is used for rego etc. If it is removed ask the seller to verify the year.

One note here.

Do you like the bike?

If you do and its a sweet ride you may discuss a refund on the difference in value between a older one and a 02 model. You may need to get value from another dealer to get a relistic value on this.

[Ehgreiz]

Frosty is correct here - Honda will have a makers plate on the bike that will state the month and year it was made.

However, it has been know for these to be 'removed' - imports get a NZ plate attached that is used for rego etc. If it is removed ask the seller to verify the year.

One note here.

Do you like the bike?

If you do and its a sweet ride you may discuss a refund on the difference in value between a older one and a 02 model. You may need to get value from another dealer to get a relistic value on this.

good call there imo

[Forest]

Frosty is correct here - Honda will have a makers plate on the bike that will state the month and year it was made.

However, it has been know for these to be 'removed' - imports get a NZ plate attached that is used for rego etc. If it is removed ask the seller to verify the year.

The VIN number can also be used to check the date of manufacture. The VIN number will be on the frame and on the registration documents.

On a Honda bike, the 10th digit of the VIN indicates the year of manufacture. Here is a decoder table for the digit:


1980 A 1987 H 1994 R 2001 1 2008 8
1981 B 1988 J 1995 S 2002 2 2009 9
1982 C 1989 K 1996 T 2003 3 2010 A
1983 D 1990 L 1997 V 2004 4 2011 B
1984 E 1991 M 1998 W 2005 5 2012 C
1985 F 1992 N 1999 X 2006 6 2013 D
1986 G 1993 P 2000 Y 2007 7

[toyboy]

Well im happy with the bike even though its a few years older than I thought.
Was a bit of miss communication perhaps as they never technically told me it was a 2002 model that they can remember, I didnt buy from trademe but took the info from there as being correct about the bike (same make same color same K's same price)
The guy from the shop was very nice and phoned me up first thing in the morning after hearing about this post (the power of the net is quite amazing nowadays :)) and offered a few options.
Seeing as all the bikes seem to be around the same price give or take $1000 to $500 theres not much point in changing again and searching for another bike (and this is the color i wanted, nice an black :))

(I took out the shop name cause I didnt want to give them any bad press, didnt mean to cause a stir any they seem really nice blokes)

[FROSTY]

Toyboy--sorry dude clearly I misread.
I understood from what you were"saying" that the sale documentation said the bike was a 2002
What was said between you guys in the shop is academic. (ok sorry not accademic more unprovable)

Whats on the VOSA and SIN card is what counts.
On both it should clearly show
--year of first registration any where in the world ,
year of first registration in NZ,
and where in the world it was first registered.

[Swoop]

Fantastic that the dealer has been in contact with you before you had to contact them!!!

Well done, to ________ dealership!

[alanzs]

Please name these people, so others can be aware. If they did nothing wrong, they won't mind, as they made it all better. Hell, they'll probably want the reputation of being so good to their customers known to everyone.
What did they do to make this better?

[toyboy]

Well on the sale doco there was no year mentioned so its kinda hard to prove anything as it was all verbal and assumed, and the bikes OK and just cant be bothered returning it (there was an offer to reverse the whole deal and get my money back which was a real nice offer on their behalf) as I have to have some bike in the end and their all around that price anyway, still hard to get my head around the bike pricing structure compared to cars (how early year bikes are pretty much the same price as newer year bikes give or take a small amont of $$ and never seem to change much in the 250 class)
Guess its sorta my fault for being in such a hurry to get a bike without checking out 100% of everything, once you get the license you just wanna get out there and learn asap :) But the bike is good and with a multi month warranty and all, and its the sort of bike that i've read never has problems.
Lot of rust on the frame under the seat though, so will probably strip it and zinc it
I did pay $5500 for it, with 17k on the clock