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Russ

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oh that's more than damp :eek:, that is definitely not good, the leaking sunroof drains are most likely the cause of this. Was the carpet already cut as this is a one piece affair for which you have to take the whole interior out to remove.

I'm not totally sure where you stand, second hand goods still have to be fit for purpose, and I think you could argue that it clearly wasn't when you looked at it - the mould was a clear sign, it must smell awfully damp as well?

It's fixable, but your looking at having to remove the seats etc then to remove the carpet and it will never dry, plus someone's sliced it into pieces.

Personally I wouldn't touch the car, sounds like the dealer is trying to pull a fast one given the other things you have found wrong with it. I certainly wouldn't be paying that price for a car in that condition.

so the carpet is already cut like this but only on this side. admittedly I should have moved both mats but only moved the top one and I didn't notice the state it was in. valuable lesson learned there, guess i just never expected anything like this. There's no way he wasn't aware of this, they've clearly been put on there to hide it.

the damp smell isn't that bad, probably due to recent valet and air freshner in car.

dealer is trying to say that's happened after recent showers since we've had it.

You are looking at a full days work by someone who has done the job before to replace the carpet and possibly the side impact sensors as they can fail when they have been wet.

You will need a replacement carpet and several plastic trim clips to sort the job properly.

Not the end of the world, I have done a few of these wet carpet replacements (But I am a glutton for punishment)

well he is right, but only a result of a pre-existing problem such as sun roof or boot leaks which it's clearly still got.

The cut carpet it a clue that someone already knew of the problem - I suspect that someone had been in there with a Vax beforehand. I would be looking in the spare wheel well and the plenum as well for signs of water.

It is repairable, but you shouldn't have to be doing it if you're buying a car like that. It's quite an involved job but I have done it - I had a sunroof leak on mine, only minor as it had turned out, so wasn't immediately evident until a particularly heavy shower a few months later, plus I wasn't aware of the sunroof drains not having had a sunroofed MG before, and not previously being a member on this forum.

I strongly advise that you write to the dealer as you will then have evidence if this ends up in small claims court

Sure, it is caused by showers but there was clearly mould at the time of purchase so this is an issue he would have been aware of and should have been fixed.

I did pay on credit card so Im hoping that's extra protection as he doesn't sound like he's going to be very helpful. Certainly won't trust him to use his garage as he suggested.

already done, via email :D

I'd be keen to know the history of the car, don't know if previous owners are still listed on the log book - but you have to wonder whether they chopped it in for P/X knowing it's faults and the dealer's realised he's got a dog and tried to shift it on? He's not going to bother finding and rectifying the leak(s), and then stripping out and replacing all the interior to solve the wet carpet - that would never dry. What other reason would there be for the carpet to have been cut out.

Run the reg number through the on-line MOT checker on the DVLA website - this will give you the MOT history for the car, this is also a good clue as to what sort of owner it has had.