Do I have recourse on a used car bought 6 months ago in TX, just found out that it had major frame damage that was not disclosed

I think you can sue the Audi dealer for negligence. They should have been able to detect the frame damage when they checked it out before you bought it. You should also sue the used car dealer for fraud if they bought the car from auction because they would have known about the damage.

Frame damage usually happens from an accident and when that happens some manufacturers terminate all original factory warranty coverage. An Audi dealer can tell you if that occurred with your vehicle and the one you bought this from should have known what the Audi computer was saying. Your purchase was only months ago and that’s good because most states give you at least one year, often two, to file a claim against a car dealer under most laws. Your claims sound like they would include fraud, breach of warranty and contract and violation of your state “Udap” law, in most states, maybe more. If the dealer had no clue (which is not likely) then in most states you can add negligence to that list of claims too. Most car dealers though know exactly what they are selling. Wrecked and repaired cars can be dangerous because you don't know the quality of the repair job or the repairman. Car dealers generally have a higher disclosure obligation than an ordinary consumer would have selling the car. If the dealer knows something and realizes that the buyer would want to know about it, but doesn't disclose it, the dealer may be committing fraud by concealment. Every state has its own definition of fraud, but generally it's a lie or something kept hidden that costs you money. There is a big difference in value between a car that has never been wrecked and one that has, even when the repairs are done right. It's called "diminished value" and it means your car is worth much less than one that was not wrecked and repaired. You probably have the right to either cancel the deal or recover the amount you were overcharged for the car. If you want to know what your car is really worth, take it to a car dealer and see how much they will give you for it after you tell them that Carmax says it was wrecked and had frame damage. Many car dealers won't want to buy it at all. Still, there is more than one way to get rid of a wrecked car (or a bad car) or to get even when you’ve been ripped off. You should talk to a local Consumer Law lawyer about your state laws and what your rights are, right away. Call your local attorney's Bar Association and ask for a referral to a Consumer Law attorney near you or you can go to this web site page for a Free Online 50 State National List of Consumer Law Lawyers (http://www.ohiolemonlaw.com/ocll-site/ocll-locate_local.shtml) and find one near you (lawyers don’t pay to get listed here and most of them are members of the only national association for Consumer Law lawyers, NACA.net). But act quickly because for every legal right you have, there is only a limited amount of time to actually file a lawsuit in court or your rights expire (it's called the statute of limitations), so don't waste your time getting to a Consumer Law attorney and finding out what your rights are. If this answer was helpful, please give it a “vote up” rating below. Ron Burdge, Attorney, www.SalvageTitle.info, www.burdgelaw.com

You may well have UDAP/Consumer Fraud type claims in addition to the warranty claims. Because it supposedly has major frame damage it is not likely to fit under the definition of the implied warranty of merchantability for a car that new, giving you a decent lemon law type claim. Because dealer almost definitely lied to you knowingly, you should have a decent UDAP claim. I'm told in TX the UDAP law is typically stronger than the lemon law. Find yourself a good consumer attorney who knows this stuff to help you along. Best place to find one is typically here: http://www.naca.net

I would invite you to read the publication I have posted on my page. It applies NC law, but it may be informative to a Texas Attorney. I will join the chorus that recommends contacting a local attorney as soon as possible. Good Luck.