Anybody buy a car on ebay sight unseen/ what was your experiance? Would you do it again?

 

Bought my first Vette from Ebay sight unseen. A clean 94 with 108,000 miles on it last Nov which was promptly totaled for me by a semi.

I flew into New Jersey and drove it home no issues.

The seller was great with contact. I was very apprehensive, but the fact he was so helpful made me feel better.

The price didnt hurt,,,,, I was high bidder at $7,500 !!!!

He made the car sound much worse then it was to be truthful,,,, I think he ended up screwing himself as the car was worth much more then that.

The ins gave me almost 14 k on the total !!!!!!

 

sorry to hear of your lost did you buy another with the in money?

 

I bought my 94 vert on it...I would not do it again....The car was in a bit rougher shape than it was advertised...But over all I was happy with it I bought a 94 vert triple black with 86,000 miles for $11.500.....But I had to re-do the leather seats,new power antenna,and new disc brakes, and a small tranny leak which I have to get at.

 

Got mine on Ebay, drove to the bottom of Va. to get it and have been driving it ever since. Got a great deal and the guy was easy to work with.

 

no, I would never buy a vehicle "sight unseen"

 

thats the right way to do it go to where the car is located look at it and if you like it buy it right on the spot and drive it home. but this car is in ohio and I cant go there to check it out it would be carzy to buy it and then have it ship right? well I am high bidder at the momunt but I havnt met the reserve but im nerveours

 

I bought my Corvette and my Blazer on Ebay, but they were both local and I looked at them first. Actually the auction had ended for the vette. I would be reluctant to buy sight unseen, but I wouldn't rule it out, it would depend on a few things. How many pictures and how good are they, how does the seller sound, I would have to talk to them, is it a dealer or an individual? Of course their feedback or lack of it might tell you somehthing about them. And of course, the price would have to be right.

There are risks to be sure, all you can do is try to minimize them. You can always try to get a forum member to go and look at the car.

 

Ill email the person ahead of time and tell them Ill give them the money once I see/recieve the car. I NEVER send deposits. Thats how I got my 87.

 

Bought my 92 off of Ebay from a guy in Arizona (I live in Calif). Had 54,000k miles for 8500.00
As soon as the driver dropped it off I took it to get smogged and registered at DMV. On way home stopped at a Wheel Works got new brakes and tires. About a year later the Opti went out so I had that and Water pump replaced.
Car has performed better than I thought it would and I'm very happy with it. When I bought my C6 I was going to trade it in but it drives so well i couldn't do it.

 

I am going tomorrow to Ocala Florida to pick up a 1979 vette with 83k on the clock that I got on Ebay for $7000. No deposit sent either...

 

I bought a 70 mustang fastback off ebay, from AZ, awsum car, had a few minor things off from descriptioin, but nothing bad....won every show it has ever been to.


go a 70 chevelle SS off ebay. That was kinda a turd, but we got our money back out of it.....still bad ***. and ag reat price.


got an 03 cadillac CTs. awusm car. damn near perfect.

and i saw my vette online, but iwent to go see it and drivei t b4 i bought it.


All around i'd say ive had a 8/10 experience with online car buyin, sight unseen.

 

I wish I could do that,like I said thats the safe way of doing things good luck to you hope everything goes your way

 

Se if a forum member that lives in Ohio can check it out for you. Try all of the forums. Must be someone who lives around were the car is.

Randy

 

yhanks Randy good idea going to the c3 section

 

Bought my 85 last November off ebay. I was always bidding low on vettes and losing to higher bidders. I just happened to log on and saw this vette with just an hour left to bid. I bid $4000 and won it for $3,800. I was shocked. I really did not expect to win. Wife wasn’t happy either. I called the seller asked about the driving condition and if it could make it from Georgia to Texas. She said it was her daily driver but needed to be restored. I hopped a plane that weekend and drove it back with no problems. Since I bought it, I have replaced the shocks, front brakes and replaced the carpet. It had 140K miles but does not burn any oil. It has cleaned upped pretty good. There were not a lot of photos to look at but had newly covered seats, new instrument panel, and new flow masters. When I picked it up she gave me a list of some of the recent work history since they owned it. If I had to do it again, I would email the owner and ask for more pictures and specific questions you might have. I consider myself lucky considering the way I got it and I love the car.

 

I guess I was pretty stupid, I saw mine on Ebay, didn't meet the reserve. About a week later (when it didn't get relisted) I email the dealership that had it. The guy I spoke to (both email and on the phone) was very up front. He sent me close, detail pictures of nearly everything. Probably about 60 total. I asked for a Carfax and for him to go to the local Chevy dealer with the VIN and get the records. After it was all said and done I bought the car sight unseen.

When I got the car here (From Northern Virginia to Kansas) the only surprises were that the CD player didn't work and the tires which did have about the amount of tread he said, but rode like 1 ton truck with 10 ply tires with 80psi in them.

I got the Bose fixed and new tires put on, I am very happy. Apparently I was lucky. Would I do it again? NO, I'd come on here and ask if there was a member that would go check it out for me and give me a report.

 

Bought a 1990 Audi Quattro Coupe for my wife in Hollywood, CA. We live in Colchester, VT. She really wanted one, and only about 1500 were imported over a three year period. This was a low milage eample in her favorite color (only about 20 or so in the perticular color) and lived it's entire life in Arizona and CA.

Bought the car sight unseen then flew out and drive it 3000 miles home. Was the best deal I ever got on a car.

Another I bought was a wrecked 1985.5 944 in Maryland. Again flew down/drove back. The car had a borken windshield and the front fender/headlight was messed up pretty bad. This was another awsome deal. Owner was a med student at John Hopkins and had crashed the car then decided to buy a Boxter. No expense had ever been spared on the car, when I added up the receipts he gave me it totaled over $9,000.

I traded my former '88 chevy pickup for a '85 Corvette with a guy in North Carolina. This was back in '97. the car was in pieces. I put it back together and drove it for a few years before selling it.

I recently bought a '85 basket case sight unseen from a fellow forum member. This was a **smokin'** deal as the timing was right. I will be starting a post soon about this experience as I am finishing up the project. It was a BIG project.

I've got the best deals on E-bay. BUT, I am a professional mechanic and know a great deal about the cars I am buying. I always contact the seller several times with many specific questions before I buy.

Up here in VT many cars tend to be over priced, or they rust FAST so 90% of the cars I've bought have been out of state and sight unseen. Never had a bad experience yet.

 

With the Corvette being such a high end car, I would never even consider buying on without at LEAST looking at it in person. If something isnt right, it could cost a pretty penny to fix. Most people take care of their Vettes very well, but there are a few out there who dont...

 

That's the key. I've got a good friend who has bought a fair number of Corvettes and other cars on Ebay. But he also knows cars and knows what questions to ask. First, read the auction carefully. Does the seller know what they're talking about or do they come off as a moron or full of crap? I'd also recommend phone contact to get a better feel of the person and to see how they handle your questions, other than in print. It's still a crap shoot to some extent but if you're savvy and lead with your head instead of your heart, you can get some great deals this way.