The time I saved my parents from buying a waterlogged Mercedes

Kinja'd!!! by "AC2 - The Now 15 Year Old Jalop" (ac-2-shoes)
Published 09/14/2017 at 17:45

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STARS: 6


Kinja'd!!!

Back in 2015, when my dad was looking for a 2006-2009 Mercedes ML350 as a gift for my mom (on account of mother’s day), I made a great family story that I still tell every now and then for the laughs, I’m telling it here now, here’s how it it goes:

When my dad was looking for a surprise mother’s day gift for my mom, we encountered a nice 2007 ML350 with all boxes checked off: navigation, backup camera, and I think there was even lane-departure assist, all for $8,000 on Craigslist. What’s the saying, too good to be true? because it was.

When we went to see the car in person, it looked flawless, it had a nice dark green paint job like the one below, it had a nice beige interior (which neither of my parents like, but my dad was willing to compromise) and it had all the options the seller said it did. The interior was clean, too clean.

Kinja'd!!!

Heres where the sketchy and funny part come along. You see, my dad is smart in car buying, no matter what he always brings an OBD reader along for the purchase, whether from a dealer or CL. When we put the OBD reader in the car, about 11 different codes came up (1st flag), the seller told us they were normal, because of course he did. Next we noticed the about 15 different air fresheners in the car, the seller told us he wanted to make the car nice for the sale, because of course he did. After seeing more flags than in a UN building and me being the Gearhead of the family, I acted up. While the scumbag seller was talking nonsense to my father, I asked him “Is the car flooded?” Now this is the funny part: The seller was so surprised by a then 11-Year Old asking this question that he stuttered more than Porky Pig and started saying “nononono, its perfectly fine,” I think he wanted to just sink back into his pants then. After that, me and my dad just left. Next week we went to a place called Sunrise Motors (now shut down) and bought a clean 85k mile black 2009 ML350 like the one at the top for $17k, now that is $2k more than our actual budget, but it was worth it “to see my mom so happy” (according to my dad).

Maybe this story isn’t as funny as I thought it was, at least not through text.


Replies (8)

Kinja'd!!! "TomServo (Resides on the Satellite of Love)" (mk7silkblue)
09/14/2017 at 17:56, STARS: 4

Sounds exactly like something I’d do. We are close to the same age, and I have a similar one. It was the end of 2015, and my mother’s Subaru Outback had been lit up like a Christmas tree and generally acting funny. Well, we took it to the dealer. The codes were wiped by the dealer and they sent us on our way. Of course, she went to drive it the next day, and accelerates, and the revs shoot up but the car goes nowhere. So it goes back the next morning on a flatbed. That afternoon, the service manager says that there’s no issue, and that the oil consumption (quart a week) was normal for all cars. The service manager ends up wiping the codes again, and when 13 year old me confronts him, he blames it on the tow truck driver. When I explain that I hooked up a code reader, and it displayed catalytic converter codes, he clams up, and says, “I don’t really know what’s wrong”. I knew this was bogus. And he was clearly trying to push it until it’s out of warranty, In 600 miles. So I call Subaru of America, 2 hours later, my mom gets a call stating that her catalytic converters are on the way. They knew the catalytic converters were screwed for a year.

Kinja'd!!! "TomServo (Resides on the Satellite of Love)" (mk7silkblue)
09/14/2017 at 17:56, STARS: 0

Sounds exactly like something I’d do. We are close to the same age, and I have a similar one. It was the end of 2015, and my mother’s Subaru Outback had been lit up like a Christmas tree and generally acting funny. Well, we took it to the dealer. The codes were wiped by the dealer and they sent us on our way. Of course, she went to drive it the next day, and accelerates, and the revs shoot up but the car goes nowhere. So it goes back the next morning on a flatbed. That afternoon, the service manager says that there’s no issue, and that the oil consumption (quart a week) was normal for all cars. The service manager ends up wiping the codes again, and when 13 year old me confronts him, he blames it on the tow truck driver. When I explain that I hooked up a code reader, and it displayed catalytic converter codes, he clams up, and says, “I don’t really know what’s wrong”. I knew this was bogus. And he was clearly trying to push it until it’s out of warranty, In 600 miles. So I call Subaru of America, 2 hours later, my mom gets a call stating that her catalytic converters are on the way. They knew the catalytic converters were screwed for a year.

Kinja'd!!! "Nisman" (nisman)
09/14/2017 at 17:57, STARS: 1

But was it actually flooded?

Kinja'd!!! "Chariotoflove" (chariotoflove)
09/14/2017 at 17:58, STARS: 3

It sounds funnier when you end with the seller getting strung up by his lying toes and dipped in 40 weight. You should write that version.

Kinja'd!!! "AC2 - The Now 15 Year Old Jalop" (ac-2-shoes)
09/14/2017 at 17:59, STARS: 0

Thats f*cking awesome. We young opponauts have to represent and show the world that kids aren’t just cellphone obsessed idiots

Kinja'd!!! "AC2 - The Now 15 Year Old Jalop" (ac-2-shoes)
09/14/2017 at 18:00, STARS: 1

I dont think I can lie. But that does sound like something from the book “Swindle”

Kinja'd!!! "AC2 - The Now 15 Year Old Jalop" (ac-2-shoes)
09/14/2017 at 18:00, STARS: 0

Yep

Kinja'd!!! "Chariotoflove" (chariotoflove)
09/14/2017 at 18:05, STARS: 2

It’s not a lie, it’s an “alternate ending” like in Wayne’s World .

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