I bid on a set of fog light assemblies on E-bay located at http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7924118207 to replace a cracked lens of my daughter's 240D. The description stated:

"Up for auction is a pair of used headlamp assemblies removed from a 1981 Mercedes-Benz 240D. The Bosch foglamps appear to have the normal inside water damage to the reflectors but the yellow glass is in good condition on both lamps."

I could have lived with pitting from water damage, but when I received the lights, the fogs are completely rusted through. Not rusted, but rusted through. I contacted the seller and even sent pictures so he could see the damage himself. He replied with:

"I regret your disappointment with the item. I
described the assemblies based on visual inspection
without dismantling the units. I did note damage to
the reflectors in the description though the extent
was not known. All my items are sold 'as is' and I
have a no return policy.
Mark"

Here are 3 pictures of the first one I took out:

I hope you used a credit card or PayPal!!!

__________________
1984 300D Turbo Sedan (Hilda) 272,115 miles.....
Anthracite Gray/Palamino Leather, I am 3rd owner

2001 Dodge Stratus (Silver) (wifes) 55814 miles...

1982 280TE Wagon Astral Silver Metallic/
Anthracite Velour
260,512 miles (Eva)

1969 230 Sedan Olive Green/Black MBTex
4 Speed Manual
84,213 miles ????
Haus Frau


2004 Boreem Ninja Pocket Bike
Highly Modified 49cc (Ling Ling)

Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit

Sorry to hear that you had a bad experience. The guy could've at least offered to do something for you. Now his 100% feedback is tarnished. Maybe he cares, maybe he won't give a darn.

Looking at the pictures on the auction, the parts almost look like the entire part was submerged. Was this car pulled out of a lake??

__________________
It is a truism that almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so. Robert A. Heinlein


09 Jetta TDI
1985 300D

I had something like that with a pair of "Very Clean" set of car seats. Where the foam rubber had turned to mush the consistancy of oatmeal, and the seats were caked in grease.

Ebay wouldn't help........they said I bought seats they shipped me seat.....jerks...... Same with paypal, I paid for seats I got a pair of seats.........jerks.

Thank god for credit card payments.....My credit card company listened to my fraud claim, got my moneyback even if the crooks at ebay and paypal didn't care.

However they recomended I keep the worthless pieces of junk for a year in case they try to sue........as proof of fraud. Now they are taking up precious space in my garage collecting dust.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

You left him his first negitive. Good job!

I waited until I contacted him and gave him every chance before leaving it. I don't know what I really expected, an offer to refund (at least some) of the money or perhaps something else. Heck, even a little concern would have been nice.

Nice job on the CD from Ebay. Description sounded great. Was car as described? Very nice.
JL

__________________
Jimmy L.
'05 Acura TL 6MT
2001 ML430 My Spare

Gone:
'95 E300 188K "Batmobile" Texas Unfriendly Black
'85 300TD 235K "The Wagon" Texas Friendly White
'80 240D 154K "China" Scar engine installed
'81 300TD 240K "Smash"
'80 240D 230K "The Squash"
'81 240D 293K"Scar" Rear ended harder than Elton John

I'm also sorry to hear that you had a bad experience.

This seller doesn't smell like a rip-off artist to me. I'm basing this off of the (admittedly limited) information available in his eBay profile:

1) Feedback left for him seems to be very favorable. I see lots of specific statements that the packaging was good, items were as described, shipping was prompt, etc. This isn't the sort of feedback I tend to associate with "just barely satisfied" or "vaguely disgruntled" buyers. (When I'm a seller, I appreciate that sort of specific feedback much more than a generic "item rec'd OK" or "good transaction" - it's a pat on the back, and it tells other prospective buyers what to expect.)

2) Looking over some of his recent transactions, it appears that he fairly routinely leaves positive feedback first, without waiting for positive feedback from the buyer. This is behavior that I respect, and don't typically associate with shady sellers. Many of them (and, sadly, too many of the reputable sellers) flatly refuse to leave feedback until they've "gotten theirs" first, some even stating so (as a not-so-veiled threat) in their auction listings. That's a pet peeve of mine, but I will forcibly step away from that particular soapbox at the moment...

I'm inclined to think that there might have been no intentional deception on the part of the seller. He might have described the condition as he saw it, put it up on eBay with a $9.99 starting bid, and let it go at that.

The place where, in my opinion, the seller really fell down is when he chose to rigidly stick to a policy of, "as-is, no returns". Many legitimate sellers find that to be a reasonable general policy, and that's fine with me. A really stand-up seller, though, should be willing to acknowledge that sometimes situations arise that aren't handled well by such a general policy. In those cases, more flexibility is needed. This is just such a case, and I'm really struck by the inflexibility of the seller.

Again, sorry to hear of your bad experience. If I had read that description, and then received those goods, then I would have been disappointed, too.

I hate to see what the rest of the car looked like if the fog light was that badly rusted!

I'll bet thats why it was parted out........................

He plays ignorant of its condition, I'll bet he did know, why else the no returns for any reason. If he truely did not know he would refund sales price minus shipping if it was returned.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

I used his feedback as a reason to bid on the parts. Paid 51.65 after shipping for them, but mostly based on his feedback. Like I said, I could have lived with some water pitting, but these things are useless.

Anyway, filed a dispute with Paypal today. If it doesn't work out, I'll file one with the credit card compqany. I really hate to have to go that route, but feel that the seller might have known the true condition of the fogs, especially considering that as soon as I opened the box , I could here all the rust kicking around inside the lense. The outter glass is clear and what makes the yellow is the inner reflector which is damaged along with the housing.

Jimmy,
I'm very pleased with the car. The non-working A/C was a simple fuse. What's funny is that I bought this car in Maryland (flew up to get it) and going through the service records discovered that it was here in Savannah for a few years before heading north.

I agree with eskimo...
Doesn't sound like he was trying to burn anyone...
Probably should have took them apart to say "rust damaged"...but after all, the trading market isn't always fair..
If I were him, I would perhaps refund some of the money...but it is hard to say...
All a play on words unfortuantely :-/

I know you bought entire headlight & fog assemblies in the auction, but exactly what parts do you need?

Ebay has crooked buyers as well.

A friend of mine listed a high end piece of pottery and it brought good money. The deal went as planned,until the buyer received the item. At that time the buyer stated the piece had been repaired on one handle. My friend, a knowledgable, life-long dealer in pottery knows to examine his items carefully. To avoid negative feedback he told them to ship it back and he refunded the $. When the piece arrives it is NOT the same item, the handle being clearly repaired. The customer pulled the old switch-r-roo.

So, why no returns? That could be one reason. BTW-In no way am I implying that our member tried to switch, I'm just giving one explanation as to why no returns.

Another thing you have to consider is the seller may list hundreds of items a month and does not disassemble all items. He may not know a thing about MB's and described the item as HE saw it meaning he did not disassemble. If you want it examined closely contact the seller well before the end of the auction and tell them specifically what you want to know/where to look/ what to look for. If that is done and the item arrives not as described after asking specific questions, then it's clear fraud and you've got a leg to stand on.

You guys are very informed enthusiasts [sp.?] and know your cars well.The seller generally knows less about what he is selling than you do so please ask very specific questions.

I do feel though, in this case, the seller should have been a little more willing to "work" with the buyer somehow i.e. partial refund or maybe even a not so short email.

Cheers,

Bill