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I've never bought a car off of eBay but I almost did....once.
First off, you need to be able to go and visually inspect the vehicle. I say this because photos can be doctored up to hide things like rust and bad body work.
Also because if you click on the button and win and haven't been able to test drive the car, you are leaving yourself open for errors.
When you bid and win, it's a legal binding contract. Meaning you are required to follow thru with the sale. Meaning if you took the sellers word on it that's a cherry automobile with zero problems, but when you get the to pick it up you find out the car is a rusted junker full of bondo, the engine doesn't run or things like the lights don't work....then it's on you.
Many times have I heard of people buying "sight unseen" only to find when they get there the car is not as described, was not running, was junk....you name it. It usually ended up being nothing but wasted time and money on the buyer's behalf.
So take these tips.....if you're going to buy a car off eBay, go see it in person first....drive it....make sure it is what the seller says it is. And bring some money with you. You might be able to persuade the seller to pull the auction and sell it to you on the spot.
Also if it's an out of state car you'll need to arrange for a way to ship it back and you will have to find out the state laws on how the car is to be titled. You may be required to have a police officer drop by and verify the vin is for that car and is not a stolen car/stolen vin tag before he can sign off on the out-of-state paperwork. That's how I had to title a NC registed car in Indiana when it was even in my name.
Ok now back to my story....to make it short....saw a nice 1968 Chevelle on ebay for $6500 when I lived in NC....it was a black 2 door HT with red interior, 327 engine and powerglide trans. And it was 10 miles from my house. I called the guy on Sunday, test drove it, everything was good. Told him I'd go to the bank the next day (Monday) and get the loan. Fast forward Monday afternoon. Called the guy back with $6500 cash in hand, but unfortunatley someone in Missouri had already wired him money to hold the car.
Would you/have you ever bought a car on eBay? What do you think of it and what are your stories?
I brought a car off ebay. Will I ever do it again,maybe. If you do,I suggest buy a car that you are willing to travel to purchase it. They always want money up front. I mailed a cashier check for 10k for the car purchase from ebay. Three days later called to see if they receive the check and set up shipping. The number was disconnected. I was worry,so I email the person,no reply. I got really worry,I was ready to call the police. The person finally called and gave me the new number on the fourth day and gave me the address to the warehouse to where the car was stored. Be careful and again try to find a car that you are willing to travel to buy it and to see if you will be satisfied with the purchase.
Oh,another thing I found out they bid on their own cars to bring the price up. In the end it didn't matter I got 3k more than what I paid for it 2 years later.
I've never bought a car off of eBay but I almost did....once.
First off, you need to be able to go and visually inspect the vehicle. I say this because photos can be doctored up to hide things like rust and bad body work.
Also because if you click on the button and win and haven't been able to test drive the car, you are leaving yourself open for errors.
When you bid and win, it's a legal binding contract. Meaning you are required to follow thru with the sale. Meaning if you took the sellers word on it that's a cherry automobile with zero problems, but when you get the to pick it up you find out the car is a rusted junker full of bondo, the engine doesn't run or things like the lights don't work....then it's on you.
Many times have I heard of people buying "sight unseen" only to find when they get there the car is not as described, was not running, was junk....you name it. It usually ended up being nothing but wasted time and money on the buyer's behalf.
So take these tips.....if you're going to buy a car off eBay, go see it in person first....drive it....make sure it is what the seller says it is. And bring some money with you. You might be able to persuade the seller to pull the auction and sell it to you on the spot.
Also if it's an out of state car you'll need to arrange for a way to ship it back and you will have to find out the state laws on how the car is to be titled. You may be required to have a police officer drop by and verify the vin is for that car and is not a stolen car/stolen vin tag before he can sign off on the out-of-state paperwork. That's how I had to title a NC registed car in Indiana when it was even in my name.
Ok now back to my story....to make it short....saw a nice 1968 Chevelle on ebay for $6500 when I lived in NC....it was a black 2 door HT with red interior, 327 engine and powerglide trans. And it was 10 miles from my house. I called the guy on Sunday, test drove it, everything was good. Told him I'd go to the bank the next day (Monday) and get the loan. Fast forward Monday afternoon. Called the guy back with $6500 cash in hand, but unfortunatley someone in Missouri had already wired him money to hold the car.
Oh,another thing I found out they bid on their own cars to bring the price up.
That is true also, it's called "shill bidding". Ebay does scout around and look for shill bidders and if caught they warn them and then terminate their account if it happens again. But yes it does happen.
I've bought 20 cars on eBay during the last 7 years.
Some have been honestly represented and the sellers were fair in their assessment of what they had to sell. They answered my pre-bid questions to the best of their ability, and weren't too far off the mark.
One seller, however, was making a good living buying junkers and mis-representing them. I bought two cars from him, one which should have been sent to the crusher (it was a total wreck, not even a parts car at the time I bought it), and one which had a bad motor (blown head gaskets) and many bad/inoperable systems due to rust. Both terribly misrepresented, and I later hooked up with over a dozen eBay buyers of his cars that had similar experiences. Long story short, I got some of my money back on one car and was stuck with a several thousand dollar loss on the other. Our seller, however, based upon our reports to his home state's criminal affairs dept (via the dealer licensing board) was turned over to the Fed's for odometer fraud and was later found guilty of selling several dozen cars with rolled back odometers ... jail time for him. I understand that he went bankrupt trying to pay his attorney fees, but he's somebody I really hope suffers a lot more in the coming years.
So, it's a mixed bag overall. I drive a lovely AlfaRomeo Spider that I bought on eBay for cheap as a restoration project, and I've bought other cars which I fixed up at realistic cost and sold. Another car is my daily driver after putting several thousand dollars of needed repair work into it, but I bought it cheaply enough that I'm not over my head in it.
If you're not a knowledgeable buyer of cars and capable of making good judgements about the values and condition of what you're buying through eBay, I wouldn't advise you to buy cars here.
So far I have bought two Audi's off of ebay, one from a mercedes dealer, one from a dealer that specialized in off lease luxury cars. Both transactions were painless. The first one I had the merc dealer ship it to me for $700.00 and my bank did a loan on it. The second I flew across the country and picked it up and had them arrange financing through their main bank. Signed all the papers and was done in 15 minutes. In both cases the sellers included for free a 90 day warranty that covered any mechanical problems.
The first car had lived a harder life on the lakes up north and over the three years I owned it I ran it hard in Colorado and across the US. Did have to fix a few things but the mileage was getting up there anyways. Ran it for 3 years and 50K, bought for $12.5K and sold for $9.5K. Good Deal!
The second one I've had for four years and pretty much was in showroom condition when I bought it despite being 3 years old.
Personally I've never been too squeemish about buying off of ebay. I don't think it's any worse than buying from anyone else and probably it is better. The main thing is get the Carfax on it which will detail any accidents. Make sure there are plenty of very clear photos detailing exactly what you are buying. And I would only buy from reputable dealers with an extensive history of positive feedback, rather than a private person.
I purchased two on ebay, and one from the Auto Trader that was on the far side of the country, and had them shipped. all three were excellant cars and the deals, including trransportation, went smooth and fast. I would have no problem buying that way again.
It is a crap shoot. I bought a Saab convertible from a MBZ/Volvo dealer in Iowa. they assured me it had been inspected and the guy told me he had driven the car and it ran great. When I picked it up it vibrated from 2 slighlty bend front rims.. so obviously the sales guy had never driven the car. Same story bought an Audi from another 'reputable' dealer and when I got it, the Check Engine light was on!
On the other hand I sold a Peugeot wagon on ebay and as an ethical person, I disclosed any flaws. The guys wife was visiting the east coast from California and she drove the car and cald her husband to tell him it drove well. I shipped it to California and he sent me a thank you email saying the car passed California inspection and emissions with flying colors and drove great. One little caveat, he noticed a slight hole in the muffler. I voluntarily refunded the cost of the muffler. We were both members of the same car club and I had a good reputation among the members.
Lesson is if you can, inspect the car personally or hire an independent examination prior to purchase and perhaps negotiate a few days money back agreement. I would never buy a car on ebay again. The only way I would buy a car from a stranger is if the seller has a good reputation and is linked to people you know. Check their feedback as well.
Location: Prescott Valley,az summer/east valley Az winter
2,061 posts, read 4,138,118 times
Reputation: 8190
Needed a car and found one on ebay that was close~ drove car and listened to the guys story on how he got car from an auction. Air conditioner pump was out and missed by both me and guy who I bought from~ we split cost. was a good car for me for 3 years before I updated. Wouldf be sceptical on ebay but would consider again.
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I was worry,so I email the person,no reply.
I got really worry,I was ready to call the police. The person finally called and gave me the new number on the fourth day and gave me the address to the warehouse to where the car was stored.
Be careful and again try to find a car that you are willing to travel to buy it and to see if you will be satisfied with the purchase.
In the end it didn't matter I got 3k more than what I paid for it 2 years later.
