Overhaulin'

Can win this case in small claims court?

(CALIFORNIA) CAR SALE I sold a used car that I had bought about 2 months ago. I had not registered under my name but had the original title and the bill of sale(under my name). I had not registered the car because it was, at the time, not running. The car was not running because of a mechanical issue. I gather feedback from 3 or more mechanics and all said that it was the timing belt. They quoted me but at the time I didn't have the money to fix it. I decided to just sell the car which I posted on craigslist.org. I stated in my post that the car not running and that they could feel free to bring their own mechanic. Point: I sold the car to a man who accepted the conditions of the car. We signed a contract (with witness) which clearly states that the car is SOLD-AS-IS. Now the guy found more issues with the car, and asked for a refund. After I refused, he filed against me to small claims court. Question: Can I win this case in court? I have all the paperwork and copies of bill of sale. Exact words from Contract: date I SELLER sell a CAR (model, year ) with VIN NO. and plate NO. to BUYER for the AMOUNT the car is sold as is. Then i had my witness sign the contract along with the buyer (i made two copies)

Public Comments

1. If the original paperwork he signed is clearly marked "As-is" then you should probably win that case.
2. He will only win if he can establsih that you told him the ONLY problem was the timing belt. Otherwise, as-is means as-is.
3. You might have a problem if you never registered the car in your name. The car wasn't legally yours. You had no legal right to sell it. Invest in a consultation with an attorney licensed to practice California law. Good luck
4. California already has a presumtive AS-IS clause when you buy a car from a private party, dealers have to post an AS-IS notice on the window You are lucky to have a signed contract so there is no way that this guy claim he did not know that it was an AS-IS sale. I do not see anyway that you can lose this case.
5. I am concerned that both the sale to you and your sale to the other party may have been improper under California law, because if this vehicle was registered when you purchased it, and is more than 4 years old, title could not be transferred without a valid smog certificate. (If you do have smog certification, then he has no grounds to back out of an as-is sale.) If your purchaser is able to rescind the sale on this ground, you may want to try to get your money back from the person from whom you bought the vehicle. http://www.ehow.com/how_2003079_sell-used-car-california.html