We bought a used 2001 Chevrolet Suburban at Bankston that their written documents said was a "certified car" and, therefore, was not being bought "as-is," and further, we bought a warranty for about another $1,200.

The Texas Safety Inspection sticker showed that Bankston had done the inspection three months before and that it had been drive less than 200 miles before title was transferred to us.

We were to learn that the vehicle was out of oil, had one front parking light bulb burned out, the emergency brake did not work at all, and someone had attempted to patch a 4 inch or so bad spot on the driver's side's door and had done a terrible job of it.

With the exception of the oil and bad spot on the door, the vehicle could not have passed the Texas Safety Inspection because of the burned out light bulb and inoperable emergency brake, yet they had applied the sticker anyway.

I brought the vehicle back to Bankston's service center. The driveway guy said I'd have to get permission from the sales manager to get the items repaired. It took ten days to run him down. Then he said they would fix only the emergency brake and that I would have to pay half of the cost. Never mind, they broke the law when they sold us the vehicle that could not pass the state inspection. I paid about $125 for the brake repair.

I took it to another shop to have the oil changed and the parking light fixed. I still have not had the paint repaired.

I wrote the owner of Bankston, Autonations in Florida -- in fact, wrote the president and told him the problems. He didn't respond.

In the meantime, we have bought another vehicle, our son has bought a new truck, and our friends have bought a new vehicle. NONE of them bought from Bankston because of our experience. You should buy there either.