Preston woman's 13 months of 'hell' as dream £24,000 Range Rover turns into a nightmare - and she's left to catch the bus

The woman, who wishes only to be known as Leanne, bought a 2016 Range Rover Evoque for £24,000 from Preston Motor Park in April 2022, but says she’s had to have seven different courtesy cars over 111 days, and has recently had to travel by bus -meaning she can't get to her beauty business in Blackpool and has given up the lease.

A Facebook post she made about the problems has been shared 131 times, and now she's looking to take legal action.

Speaking to the Post, Leanne said: "It's actually had a horrendous, detrimental affect on me.

"It's been so stressful for me. This was my dream car, and it's turned out to be a nightmare."

What’s been happening?

Leanne says she noticed a 'jerkiness' to the car on a test drive, but says the salesman put it down to the power difference compared to her previous car.

The reversing camera wasn't working when she picked it up, and three days later, a low battery warning light came on.

She claims a raft of other problems ensued, including the car being covered in scratches, and being unable to pick up power on the motorway - something she says caused near-misses.

She says the car has had to have a new gearbox, and even after that major work, it became "out of control" and was revving to 4,000 revs on a 100-200ft stretch of Deepdale Road,

Leanne says during all of this, she’s repeatedly been in contact with Preston Motor Park, who she says initially told her there wasn't a problem and to keep driving to rectify the battery issue, and who have then taken it in for extended periods of time for checks and work.

Out of pocket

While this has been going on, every month Leanne’s been paying £398 car finance, £100 on insurance and £15 road tax.

At one point, the car was in the garage from early January to mid March, and in total Leanne's been given seven different courtesy cars over 111 days, including a Fiat 500, which wasn't large enough to transport goods needed for her job.

She says she feels let down by Preston Motor Park, "talked into keeping it", and has accused them of not keeping her informed.

She said: "I've been paying for my car to be sat in the garage. And I've persevered and trusted the garage and now I'm embarrassed.

"I was having to ring and ask all the time, what's going on. I was embarrassed. It's been causing problems in my family."

Leanne has recently declined any further repairs and as such is not eligible for any further courtesy cars, leaving her to catch the bus.

Her finance company has accepted that the car isn't fit for purpose and has agreed to end the deal, but they're offering her £4,000 less than what she paid for the car due to the mileage.

Leanne says: "There are miles on the car, but the dealer has been telling me it's fit to drive."

She is now looking to take the matter to the financial ombudsman.

Cambria Automobiles, which owns Preston Motor Park, has declined to comment.