I finally have got to the point where I don't hardly buy anything on Ebay. I bought a large number of items over a year's period and finally decided I was wasting a lot of money. Real bargains were very few and far between.

I too tried to buy interior pieces (red for a 1970 Coupe). So many times the pieces looked good on Ebay. I was surprised how careful camera angles and lighting could understate the actual damage or blemish.

A worst case example: I ordered the "I" shaped interior piece that fits between the T-Tops. (The Coupe Roof Panel). The seller bent it in-two so he could stuff it in a smaller box! It could be bent because the plastic substrate was completely snapped in two. The two pieces were held together only by part of the vinyl covering. When I E-mailed him, he got angry. He said the piece I received was that shown in the E-bay picture. Sure enough, when I spread my piece out, it looked like the photo! The add didn't say the part had been snapped. Also, up close it looked worse than the photo.

 

"Most of my sales are done through eBay - for which I go to great lengths to prepare each individual listing."
I sell a good bit on ebay and using the same generic description and disclaimers takes a matter of seconds.
Not gonna go public but I won an auction from this guy a couple months ago. I had to use JB WELD on the part to make it functional which is also . Feel free to PM me if you want any details.
This guy has no concern for doing what is right and refunding the money. F@ck the poll...just refund his money as you should...

 

Fred: Read #2. That's exactly what I said.
As far as "VetteBay needs to do the right thing here" we already know that is NOT going to happen and there's nothing we can say or do to make it happen.

Jclgodale3: See above. Saying he needs to refund the money over and over again will NOT cause it to happen.

seventyeightcorvette: "buy something from him on ebay?..........not so sure about that!"
That's #5 on my list

Dep

 

Once again, THANK YOU to all my "Supporters"...My Xmas card list has tripled in the last few days!

Just a few more points/ comments:

1) This wasn't meant as a "bashing" of "vettebay". This thread was started in an attempt to get a feel for what others thought was the proper way to handle this and/or who have dealt one-to-one with the seller. How can you request this w/o naming the seller?

2) It's still a VERY SIMPLE and VERY CLEAR issue; I SPECIFICALLY and CLEARLY asked for "non-damaged" goods and received what you have all viewed in the pics. There's really no more to it than this.

How much I paid isn't the issue. If I was quoted a higher price, I probably still would have bitten (to a certain limit, of course). So any arguement over if I got a "fair deal" or not is mute. I asked for NON-DAMAGED, I received DAMAGED. Period.

 

How much you paid is EXACTLY the issue.
You want undamaged excellent condition parts for pennies. That AIN'T gonna happen. Answer this...how much would these EXACT same items you got cost if you bought them new at Ecklers??? I bet considerably more than $300. A Vette is NOT the best car to try and fix up on a tight budget. And you get what you pay for. Learn those two items and you won't repeat this experience.

Dep

 

Dep,

DUDE...that is EXACTLY the issue. These parts are in WORSE condition than what I currently have in the car...why would I pay ANYTHING for them? If they were given to me, I'd refuse them...Thanks, but NO THANKS!

THE SELLER determined the price...I didn't ask for these parts for this price. Remember, I asked for "NON-DAMAGE" parts...what he charged is his business...if I didn't want them at a higher price, I would not have taken the offer. I didn't think I was going to be charged "pennies"...I just wanted "NON-DAMAGED" parts!

 

DR, I'm with you 100%!! Don't let ole Dep get to ya, he loves to stir up crap.........Fry this dudes *** every chance you get. You have already caused him considerable loss from the forum. Of course, he could just change his name, and start all over........Beware folks!

 

This has nothing to do with stirring up crap. First off, the seller has NO idea what condition the seats are in your car. So that line of thought goes nowhere. Let's stop beating around the bush and say it like it is. You wanted a "deal" on parts that would look nice and would cost a LOT less than what new ones would sell for. EVERYONE wants that kind of deal. But VERY FEW get it, and even FEWER get it on E-Bay. What they do get is what you got. Something less than what you expected.
You went OFF E-Bay and tried to cut a deal with this seller. Now you are gonna have to live with that deal. Sorry about that chief. You learned an expensive lesson. Deal with it and move on. Quit asking for forum members to give you a hug and sympathize with you. You got what you got.

Dep

 

Man, EVERYTHING you state above is INCORRECT...please read the posts if you are going to reply to them!

1) It DOES NOT matter what the SELLER knows about my current interior components....when you specifically state (and give examples) of what is NOT ACCEPTABLE, then get those EXACT items, there's no reason to even argue, the SELLER is in the WRONG. (Are you going to ask for AC DELCO products, then accept Champion because they are cheaper in price...a rhetorical question, Please don't answer)

2) I did not ask for a "special deal"...I gave a list of parts w/ examples of what is NOT acceptable. SELLER determined price CLEARLY knowing what was being requested.

3) I'm not asking for "HUGS"...members are WILLFULLY sympathizing w/ me, because they have morals and know right from wrong!

Seriously, please do not reply anymore if you are going to twist things around and just make up stuff.

Thank You.

 

"Seriously, please do not reply anymore if you are going to twist things around and just make up stuff."

He suggests that you "broke from the norm" and asked for a transaction outside of eBay. He obviously hasn't read the posts and is jumping in in the middle. This seller clearly conducts alot of Vette parts business outside of eBay and even stated these items WERE NOT even in his current auction listings. It's this simple:
Buyer stated what he needed and was very clear on a specific "minimal condition" subject to purchase.
Seller SET the price based on these conditions and agreed to the "condition expectation" of the parts. There was no bargaining...period. Seller set his price based onBuyers request. Buyer paid the quoted price.
Buyer received LESS than agreed on parts based on price.
SELLER SHOULD REFUND THE MONEY...PERIOD!
Dep...don't know you personally, but the assumption that "you took a chance...you got screwed...just live and learn is an extremely bad black eye for this hobby.

 

Dep started on the whisky early today!!

 

#1 YOU brought up the comparison of what you have in your car:
"These parts are in WORSE condition than what I currently have in the car...why would I pay ANYTHING for them?"
It's a point that is meaningless, other than to try and drum up sympathy for your botched purchase.

#2 "I did not ask for a "special deal"

Oh really?

vettebay: "He called me directly and said he was throwing together a cheap driver and asked if I would give him a deal on a bunch of used interior parts which I also needed to dye for him as well."

Sure sounds like a special (cheap) deal to me. I still don't see a post describing the cost of these exact same parts NEW from Ecklers.
Vetteebay suggests a price of around $1200. Since he deals in this stuff, I'm inclined to believe him. Just WTF did you expect to get for 1/4 the price of new items?????

#3 If you aren't asking for sympathy, then why are you continually responding to the thread when you could be ON E-Bay selling this stuff??? If you look at the members responding, the majority are newbies who are as clueless as you about dealings on E-bay.
Stop and go try and recoup your losses.

Face facts...you are NOT going to get a refund. You can set all the "minimum standards" you want, but the simple reality of it is if you don't physically get to inspect what you are buying, you are taking a gamble. Not only that, but you shot yourself in the foot about getting any refunds when you set this guy out on the forum like you did.
For the life of me I can't figure out why you wanted a cheap deal on these interior parts. Your engine compartment picture doesn't look like you spared any expense at all.

Jclgodale3: Since you are relatively new to the forum, I can understand your comment about "the assumption that "you took a chance...you got screwed...just live and learn is an extremely bad black eye for this hobby". The reality is MANY people are fed up with trying to sell parts to ANYONE on the Corvette Forum. There are so many "buyers remorse" stories of people wanting refunds for all kinds of screwball reasons it's not funny. I was VERY lucky when I sold my engine and trans to a forum member. But he was also able to come out and physically inspect them. It all boils down to caveat emptor...buyer beware


Dep

 

I agree with some portions of your comments, Dep, but I would have to disagree with this statement. I have purchased many, many parts from Forum members, and have been dealt with fairly in every transaction, and have dealt fairly with the sellers in return. I just purchased another piece from a member two days ago, and the check is on it's way. I told the seller to cash the personal check, wait a couple weeks, and then send the parts to protect himself. Leaves me wide open, but its the chance I'm comfortable taking with most Forum members. While I am always prepared to expect problems, it has never happened. Ebay, on the other hand, well, lets just say that the Wild West still lives....

Personally, this sounds like any other disagreement; each side has a very different version of the story and the truth likely lies somewhere in the middle. It boils down to the seller doing this as a business however, and the fact of the matter is, if he wants to continue to do business with a very large group of enthusiasts who could possibly make him decent money in the future (Forum members), the right thing to do would be to take the pieces back and resell them himself. Just my .02.

Steve

 

Well said Steve....but I can put you in touch with a guy that sells on the forum (redvetracr) that has had nothing but problems selling stuff to guys on the forum. Obviously, everyone's experience varies and it depends on what is expected of the seller's merchandise. If people understand that used parts means USED parts and not factory fresh or refurbished, then things go much smoother.

I agree that this sounds like an ordinary disagreement. Definitely one that arises from confusion and misconception on both party's parts.
It's obvious a refund is NOT going to happen.

I have a theory on why the jump on complaints betwen sellers and buyers....
With the Vettes in the 1975-1979 years being so inexpensive, guys are spending their WHOLE "car money" on buying a Vette in only "fair" condition with the idea of it being a "cheap fixer upper" that will be easy to work on and they can make big $$$$ on it when done. The facts are that the Vette is neither cheap nor easy to fix. It should NOT be the first car a guy buys to fix up no matter how much he "fell in love with it" back in it's day. It's an SOB to work on and the parts are WAY over-inflated compared to other performance cars of that era. Plus even a minted out 1976-79 is not going to get the owner back what he put into it.

Dep

 

DR'76:

Over on the Corvette Action Forum, under the C3 headings in the Corvettes Parts Sale/Wanted section, there is a thread "68 thru 82 vintage parts for sale. Mike from Tony's Corvettes in Gaithersburg, MD is selling 10,000 sq ft warehouse full of NOS & used Corvette parts. Mike known as "turtle" says the name they use to sell these parts is the e-bay name awgdotnet that you dealt with.

 

And it should be handled as any other business transaction...weed out the complaintants so others don't have the same experience. If I had as much trouble as the guy you mention...he should just stop dealing with forum members...period. I have had about 9 transactions through forum members already, NEWBIE or not, and they have all been positive. It's good to know who you can trust and, more importantly, who you CAN NOT! I've had over 1200 transactions on ebay...about 150 in the last 5 years so I'm no NEWBIE to the business aspect of it.
He owes a refund...period! By the way, I got no refund on the JB Welded part either so this guy is setting a pattern and that patern is

 

This kind of stuff really makes me nervous. I just deleted my checking account from paypal.

Both guys have different stories.

Dep, you need to read everything before responding, otherwise your post sound quaint.

 

Dep I have to disagree with everything you have to say. Based on what I read here DR'76 wasn't treated right. He wasn't given what he asked for no matter what the price charged simple as that. Based on how you think I now know why OJ got away with murder years ago. I hope MJ doesn't have a jury that thinks like you do. I'm not a newbie I joined this forum 3 months after you did but I have been a Corvette owner for 35 years now and a Parts Wholesaler for 27 years. Remember I am also a seller of auto parts and I think VetteBay is wrong here.

DR'76, All you need to do here now is let us know if VetteBay gets in touch with you to arrange with you to send the parts back to him and then VetteBay paying you back in full.

VetteBay we haven't heard anymore from you. As another seller of Wholesale Auto Parts I feel you need to handle this properly. Forget about the $325. Get in contact with DR'76 and have him ship the merchandise back to you and pay him back in full. Let us all know that this took place and I am sure most members here will look the other way and give you some business down the road because you did the right thing here.

To all the members that have been posting to this thread if this is all done right we get put this thread to rest finally. Time will tell.

DR'76 let us know if VetteBay makes contact with you.

Fred

 

First off...I think I understand the distorted logic of what is going on here. All of you are putting yourselves in the original poster's shoes. But you aren't TIEING THE LACES. NOBODY wants to be ripped off. But this whole thread is simply a he said-he said argument. DR'76 got the jump on the seller and posted this stuff on the forum.

LOOK AT THE DANG TOPIC!!!!!

"RIPPED-OFF...what do I do???"

That ALREADY slants everyone against whoever he is complaining about. But we only got ONE side of the situation. HIS SIDE. When the seller joined and tried to post his version, you guys were already CONVINCED that DR'76 was "RIPPED -OFF" before even hearing the explaination.

I went back and looked at the pictures DR'76 posted. For what he paid, I think he got a GOOD deal. If he wanted better, he SHOULD have gone to Ecklers and paid the $1200 and bought the reproduction parts.
Fer cripes sake...he only paid $300. What the heck do you expect for that kind of money????? I know what you'd LIKE...mint parts that you can bolt on and not have to mess with. Sorry...that's NOT gonna happen. Not for $300.

And remember....all we have is the word of DR'76 and the word of the seller. Since there is no detector hooked up to this forum, all you have is THEIR description of the transaction.
"Based on what I read here..."does NOT mean you are getting an accuate description from EITHER party.

You guys that have all had positive transactions with forum members...I suggest you hop the next plane to Vegas. With luck like that you will clean out those gaming rooms

Dep

 

Dep I did a little research also to come up with my thoughts here. I went to VetteBays Ebay page and looked at his feedback. The negative feedback he has tells me something. I know he sells alot of merchandise and keeps his percentage rate in the high ninty's but he does have some negative feedback and some of it is similiar to what we have here.

Another thing DR'76 made his complaint known here on the forum to see what the rest of the forum members thought after he nicely tried to have VetteBay take the merchandise back but failed. He wanted to know what we felt about the situation. Based on what I read I would say close to 90% of the readers here agree with DR'76. VetteBay wanted to take a pole, just read the posts and that will tell you something.

As far as the price goes. You are right maybe $300 isn't alot of money to you or me but to some people it is. Again DR'76 didn't set the price, VetteBay did. DR'76 told VetteBay from what we read what type of parts he was looking for and what he would settle for. Looking at pictures of these parts they are nothing that I would want or settle for. Based on the pictures I saw of DR'76's Corvette's engine compartment it is hard for me to believe DR'76 would offer to purchase parts that looked like what was sent to him. I would think he would rather spend the extra $900 for new stuff instead. I know I would if given the choice. Look at that dash pad with all the rust under it. To me it is unbelieveable that something like that was sent out to DR'76 don't you think so? Most of us members do.