There just isn't any way that I could buy a car sight unseen. I just have to touch it, smell it, feel it and drive it before I can buy it.

 

I bought my FRC sight unseen, but the original may or not be a member here. He had documentation for every little thing, and was so meticulous, he kept the plastic lugnut covers off so that he wouldn't lose one. He also took his seat covers when he bought the car from the dealer, so as not to hurt his brand-new seats.

The mileage was fairly low (42k), so I took a chance. Other than dealing with the balancer/pulleys and now the column lock, it's been a very good car, and I have no regrets that can be laid at the feet of the previous owner.

 

We flew to Orlando last weekend and bought our 2001 site unseen. Good photos and relationship with seller will help. Make a list of questions and specifically no what you are looking for. The purchaser check list on this forum helped me tremendously. It actually convinced me to look at the 2001 and above just because of corrections and updates they made on the cars. Take your time searching and let the right car come along, you will no it when you see it. Patience is the key here. Long story short, we bought the car and drove back 700 miles with a huge smile on our face.

 

I have purchased 4 vehicles from EBay sight unseen, a Jaguar XJ6,a Mercedes 500Sl, a 2000 Vette and my current car, a 2002 Vette. All were as expected because I asked for additional pictures and spoke at length to the previous owners. I have sold the first 3 on EBay and have the 2002 on that,[ and this ] web site right now. I'm still looking for my perfect dream car which I think is a 2006 Vette,white,auto, convertible. I have no problem with using pictures and conversation to determine the condition and have been lucky with the drivetrain condition, but you can usually tell if the vehicle has been maintained by asking the right questions.

 

I just bought a 2010 F150 FX2 which was 400 miles away. I specifically told the sales person I needed to know every single mark on this vehicle. I pulled the car fax but with only having 13,000 miles on it, I knew the truck would be solid. The sales person did a exact walk around and interior explanation to me with pics. She was exactly correct. I was impressed. When I narrowed it down to this truck I told her to be straight up with me because I was a long way away. We had the price figured before I left but I would walk if the vehicle was not represented as she told me. It all worked out great and I got the truck.

 

I have bought two that I found on the internet. The first was about 150 miles away. After looking at it and driving it I had a true corvette professional check it out. The second one I found on the forum in Wisconsin. After several calls, I found someone in the area to check it out. Before it was delivered, the battery died and was replaced with a new one. On my second drive, a warning code popped up, contacted the seller, took it to a shop and had it repaired. Seller paid the entire bill, no questions. Only problem I've had with the car in 10 months now.

 

Bought my 93 vette off of fleabay. No problems.

 

I did the same but took a long drive instead of a flight. I spoke with the dealer back and forth for a while before I took a drive to see it. The second I showed up on the lot he introduced himself and handed me the keys to take it for a drive. Needless to say I drove back home in it that day

 

I should add that when I was shopping for this car I came across one of those custom C5 ZO6 vert conversions. I was quite taken with the car, but it was on the Auto Trader website and the guy wouldn't easily commit to meeting me if I flew back to Minnesota to inspect the car. It was supposedly in storage at a friend's garage 200 miles from where he was temporarily working. Also, he was selling it for at least $8,000 below the absolute minimum it should have sold for.

Something just seemed a little off about the guy so I kept researching and then found the exact same car in Louisiana listed on another website. Then I called and spoke with the guy who really owned the actual car.

I then Reported the Auto Trader guy to Minneapolis Bunco squad. He was using someone else's car photos and car description to try and elicit a hold deposit prior to meeting for an inspection.

After that, I limited my searches to local cars, eBay cars, and CF cars. No Auto Trader cars and definitely no Craig's List cars.

Ya'll be careful out there.

 

I purchased both my Vettes sight unseen. The first one was a '95 triple black that my wife found on autotrader in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Talked with the owner who just happen to own a performance shop there and he was very straight up with me about it. When I got there and saw the car I knew I would be driving it back to Arizona. It was very clean and looked well taken care of. Now that was a great road trip to say the least. Not one problem. Our other Vette I found on eBay. That one was also sight unseen. I found our '98 in Omaha which just so happens to be my home state. Flew up there when the money was all worked out and after I looked at it, it also was coming home with me. Don't have any regrets whatsoever about doing either one the way we did them. Make sure you talk to the seller and get a feel for how they are before you commit though. Don't have the '95 anymore but the wife wants another one. Maybe some day but not for a while. This was taken shortly after the '98 was brought home. Doesn't look like that anymore.

 

To me, "sight unseen" means that the car was paid for, then delivered- all without having seen it prior to delivery. I could never do that.

I bought my '03 from a (well respected) forum member, one who is known for his top shelf Vettes. I saw photos of the car, and we had a few conversations. I was confident that all I needed was a one-way ticket. Only a refundable deposit changed hands prior to my inspection.

 

In April 2010, I bought my bone stock '02 vette over the internet/phone, Carfax (no issues), and just seeing pictures . Dealer was about 1,100 miles from me, and was ok to work with...I required pics of any/all flaws, and asked to listen to it over phone. For the most part, everything went great; the vette was as advertised. The only issue was some slight damage that occurred just prior to loading it for shipment. That damage was documented, and it all worked out ok. I'm very happy with my C5!!

Then...


Now...

 

i would never ever never buy a car this old without inspecting it on a lift myself

OR

buying from a trusted dealer like texas direct or another corvette specialty outfit

most members don't replace parts unless they are broken and most don't use OEM parts, that's 1 hit

the second would be their post history and get a general feel for operating conditions

i looked at 10 or so c5s and of those 3 were worth buying. that translates to 30% which are lower odds than closing your eyes, pointing at the stock quotes in the WSJ and purchasing the company your hand lands on expecting to make money.

so, if you would close your eyes and point to stock pick, by all means, but a c5 unseen, you might get a good one

 

I had made a list of what I wanted in my Corvette and searched for about 4 months before one turned up at a respectable dealer about 4 hours away from where i live. At the time I was trying to sell my well cared for 1994 3000GT but that's never a sure thing and they were willing to trade for almost what I was asking. Made the drive up on Easter weekend and upon pulling into the dealer's lot my eyes fell on the most beautiful white 2002 Vette with light gray interior, glass top and already installed B&B Bullet exhaust and I knew right then & there that we were made for each other. Turns out that it was owned by a woman that kept it garaged and the owner before me was a service tech at the dealership!
I spent well over an hour talking with him and he showed me everything that he had done to it along with the goodies he was letting go with the car-new floormats, cupholder, chromed accs on the rear lights, B&B exh w/rear plate and rear vent louvers. He even had a new car cover thats keeping her dust free at this very moment. He had been in a boating accident and found it difficult getting in & out of the car so he traded it in for a truck.
The dealer offered a 180 day warranty and since we were in the middle of a very busy downtown area that I was not familiar with I did'nt even test drive it. But after signing the papers and getting an excelent deal, I spent the next four hours enjoying life like never before. Everything works and looks almost new and I could'nt be any happier. I have added about 1500.00 in mods(sub & amp, partition, front bra, seat cushion, window valet, new belts & pulleys and other small additions).
Moral of the story is: know what you want--take your time in searching --and trust your instincts. Also, a good once over by a qualified mechanic is never a bad idea.

 

I drove to Ill. for my 93 with money in hand after several calls to the seller. I was prepared to drive the "one way rental" back to Ga. if the vette was not what the seller had represented. Drove the vette home.

I bought my 03 sight unseen and had it delivered from Ohio to Ga. Never saw it never drove it until I had bought it.

I have summarized that if you know what questions to ask and the seller believes that you are a serious buyer that you can find out anything that you may want to know about a long distance corvette purchase. I believe that the seller understands that a would be buyer knows as mush about the corvette for sale as the seller does.

both of my experiences were positive so I would do it again

 

I've bought two C5's from Ebay a 3200mi. and 4200mi. cars No issues happy with the transactions. Also bought a new car from a dealer on Ebay it went well also. I have also sold a C5 here on the forum and that went well. Been lucky I guess.