A woman who bought a Chevy Cruze from Facebook Marketplace has said that she feels ‘scammed’ after the car began to throw up one issue after another. This culminated in a real mess when she tried to transfer the title of her new purchase from the previous owners to herself.
TikTok user Esmeralda Saucedo (@essmei1) posted a video of her Chevrolet Cruze, having originally been incredibly happy to have bought the car. As it was a Facebook Marketplace purchase, she managed to get the car for a very good price.
However, it didn’t take long for her to start finding problems with the Chevy. These started when she took the car in for an emissions test, and from that point onwards, the pleasant purchase quickly became a nightmare. All sorts of faults began to show up with the car, and none of these had been mentioned by the seller.
Just when she felt it had reached its lowest point, things got worse with the Chevy Cruze when she tried to transfer the title. It transpired that the previous owners had around $1,000 in unpaid taxes on the car, which, to Saucedo, was the worst of the problems she had encountered.
What Was Wrong With the Chevy Cruze?
@essmei1 Someone scammed me on the facebook marketplace with a Chevy Cruze #checycruze #fyp #viralvideo #facebook #marketplace ♬ original sound – Esmeralda Saucedo
Saucedo had spotted the advert for the Chevrolet Cruze on Facebook Marketplace while hunting for a new car. The advert looked good, and as it was available at a good price, Saucedo decided to take the plunge. Marketplace finds can sometimes provide very good value for money.
However, it didn’t take long for problems with the car to arise. Saucedo took the car in for an emissions check, but it was a shock to her to find out that the car had failed. It turned out that the previous owners had tampered with the dashboard, meaning warning lights would not appear. The lights referring to engine problems or other issues would not flash up if something was wrong.
Saucedo also claimed that the mileage of the car had been tampered with. Then it transpired that the air conditioning didn’t work, which, given she had bought the car in the height of summer, was not a good thing. “I got scammed so bad,” she said in her video. “Not only that, it shakes so badly to the point where it feels like there’s an earthquake,” Saucedo added. Yet her problems were not over.
The Cruze Had a Huge Amount of Unpaid Taxes Left on It
Saucedo had taken the car to the DMV and had been trying to transfer the title over from the previous owners to herself. It was during this process that she learned the previous owners had left around $1,000 in unpaid taxes on the car. Yet this, nor any of the other issues, were listed or mentioned by the seller of the car. Frustratingly, the car had felt great for the first month before these issues began to crop up.
It has left the TikTok user stuck with a car that has multiple issues, and she can’t afford to replace the car. It is perhaps the mileage on the car that is the biggest red flag. Federal law means it is illegal to alter the odometer on a car with any intent to alter the mileage. Sellers should also disclose the full mileage when ownership of a car changes. Modified mileage means there will be some discrepancies in the history and maintenance records of the car.
Will Saucedo Have To Pay the Unpaid Taxes?
The $1,000 in taxes left on the car are slightly more complicated to deal with. Individual jurisdictions handle problems like this differently. It could be that the previous owner will be obliged to pay off the taxes on the car. However, responsibility could end up with Saucedo to pay them off. This would leave her even more frustrated, and another $1,000 out of pocket. Either way, Saucedo has had a lot of problems to deal with on an originally great purchase.