Hi Tabetha, thanks for the very detailed reply. Bit scary news.

As said I'm new to this. Seriously pissed off that this light started flashing 5 miles after driving home. None of the lights came on during the test drive and driving felt fine. Still feels fine, there is none of the jumping or getting stuck you talked about.

Dealer refused to refund even though we called him 10 min after buying the car. I will be contacting trading standards and the citizens advise bureau first thing on Monday.

Having said that, cosmetically the car is in very nice condition so if I can get it sorted without breaking the bank it will be fine.

Btw, with autobox repairers do you mean a specialist? I was thinking of going to a Ford dealer that does service so they can hook up the diagnostic computer and check the car out. Bad idea?