Did I get screwed over? (Snowmobile related and technical)

[Neziroth]

So I find a snowmobile for sale, and since I've been in the market for one this winter I call on it.

It's a 1991 Indy 400, rebuilt and bored to 420 with a sport clutch, for anyone who cares.

I talk to the guy and ask him how it runs, and he tells me it's very strong but it doesn't run at the moment because it needs a fuel pump. Whatever I guess, it sounds possible.

I take the 2 hour drive to look at it, and it actually looks pretty good. He starts it by putting some gas in the carburators so I can hear it run, and it stalls after a few seconds because obviously the fuel pump doesn't work.

So it runs, most of the motor does look new and is in good shape. He once again tells me the fuel pump is all it needs. So I bite, I buy the sled for $400, since it's a 1991.

After I get it home I buy a fuel pump and as I'm unhooking the old one I find he has it hooked up wrong, so it pumps fuel into the crank case and one carburator instead of both carburators (he had the return line going to a carburator.) He has both plugs out of the crank case (one for each cylinder) to drain the fuel that's going to be flooding into it, which means he KNEW it was flooding and something was wrong.

At this point I'm worried, I fix the fuel pump, put plugs in the crank case and get the sled running. It only ran on one cylinder, and died after 5 minutes. Now it won't start at all, won't even fire a little when I pull the starter. The compression is super low (50 pounds in one cylinder, 75 in the other. Both should be 110ish) Which means something is probably wrong with his newly rebuilt motor. (any ideas? Please, they're welcome)

What can I do? Any way I can go about getting my money back? The guy won't return my calls, so I can't talk to him about it.

Obviously he knew something wasn't right since he had the plugs out of the crank case so it would drain the fuel that went flooding into it.

I do have a receipt written and signed by him, and it doesn't say "as is" or anything of the sort.

Any advice, mechanical or legal, is welcome.

Thanks guys.

[Lynnsie]

IMO I wouldn't keep calling him..all that is gonna do is prolly ensue him yelling harrassment whatever. Your receipt if I am not mistaken will be binding. Just get a lawyer to send him a letter. If you do any correspondance to him, I would do it in the form of a letter, preferrably notorized. Speak to a lawyer probably just a formal letter from him requesting your money back for the lemon that you bought from him will get your money back. Good Luck..I have been screwed like this before, on my first car almost the same thing happened but I wasn't smart enough to go get a lawyer and I was 16..7 years makes a difference. Dont wait.

[Aabidano]

It's $400, I'd think a lawyer is going to charge you $100 to send him a letter... Same with lost wages taking him to small claims court.

If you could show he'd done something sneaky to make it work when you were there, you might have some chance. Or if it turns out not to be rebuilt. It really sucks, but considering it didn't work right when you bought it I'd assume you're screwed. "As is" is assumed on a used vehicle, used car dealers are forced by the state(s) to put that on the window stickers, to keep shady salesman from bilking customers.

Did he have a reciept for the rebuild? Or the parts if he did it himself? Some engine cleaner and a toothbrush looks just as nice, a little WD-40 or spary silicone and you've got a pretty motor...

Squirt some 30 weight or gear oil in the cylinders and check the compression again. If it comes up significantly higher the rings are probably shot, or incorrectly installed. If it doesn't change anything the head gasket might be leaking, or you've got a hole in a piston. Take a peek at the reed valves as well.

Is it worth $400 without the engine?

[Neziroth]

tonight we just pulled the motor apart to change the base gasket.

The cylinders are indeed bored 20 over, but one is still slightly scored, which is probably hurting my compression. The pistons both look alright, the rings are good, too.

We went over everything we came across and it's obvious the guy rebuilt it himself and had no clue what he was doing. We fixed a lot of stuff, he used some gel that is supposed to be as good as a gasket in a lot of places where he really should have just had a gasket. O-rings were missing here and there, etc.

The airbox is cracked and no good, letting in way too much air which would explain why it's running a little rough, and the carburators are sticking open too, flooding the cylinders which eventually makes it dog down and not start for a few hours.

Ohh the joys of used vehicles.

Thanks for the input, though.

[Traz-KOE]

Carb cleaner. I don't know what a snowmobile engine looks like, but get your intake looking spiffy and the throttle clean as well. Aside from flooding, bad things can happen if your throttle gets stuck open while you're out riding.

Fuel pumping into the crankcase?? Change the oil and filter ASAP. Fuel doesn't lubricate.

Check plugs and wires. Clean the ignition module. Make sure your plugs are properly gapped.

How is the fuel/air mix controlled? Read your plugs to see if you're running rich (wet tips) or lean (possible heat damage to tip/insulator).

Does it have a coolant system? If so, check your coolant. Is it clean (bright green or orange), or does it look like a nasty chocolate milkshake? If so, then you've got a blown head gasket and will probably have to tear it down, clean everything, and possibly replace the coolant system.

How is the fuel? If it has old fuel in it there may be water in the lines. Get some water remover and run that according to the directions on the bottle.

Consider a piston soak: remove the plugs and pour an ounce or two of Marvel Mystery Oil into the plug wells. Let it soak for at least 10 hours, being sure to keep the level of MMO in the wells up. If your rings aren't entirely shot this can help clean and condition the rings.

Don't use 5 minute engine flush. It's basically just kerosene and will just dilute your oil without really removing much.