560SL from ebay... - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

zeus2112 · #1 06-11-2013, 04:23 PM

...So I bought an '87 560SL on ebay. No, I didn't drive it, and a valuable lesson has been learned.

Seller advertises it as a car thats in great shape, with impecable history, everything works, lists all the things are have been done and are new, etc.

Car looks great!

Car arrives, and white smoke billows from exhaust as its being unloaded from carrier. I take the car to the mechanic and just find out that it basically needs about 4-5 grand to make it right.

-new brake system (everything, roters, calipers, tie rods, shocks x4, brake lines)

-differential rebuild
-belts
-hood pad
-shifter bushings
-fuel distributer adjustments
-A/C charged

So, I'm curious what you all think. I feel i've been sold a lemon, and a victim of internet fraud, since the ad described a very different car, and thus why I bid on this.

Thanks in advance

rocky raccoon · #2 06-11-2013, 04:40 PM

A fully sorted 560SL goes for $15k to $20k. At $10k you may have good expectations. At less than that there is a lot of work to be done.

I bought two cars on ebay, sight unseen. In one case (560SL) I ended up spending about $4500 and was glad I did. The other (300CD) was actually better than the seller thought it was but I still spent about $1500. In both cases, I bought them for daily drivers and used them as such.

Strife · #3 06-12-2013, 01:00 AM

Unless the car was sold with those things having been replaced, I'd call that "par for the course".

The belts, brakes shoes/calipers...those are consumables. Between my two SL's, I believe that I had to replace 6 calipers from frozen pistons. When you don't change the brake fluid in 25 years, the water gets to them. The soft brake lines are cheap and so you really want to drive with 25+ year old rubber hoses involved with the function of the brakes, especially ones exposed to the elements and flexing all the time? The hood pad and bushings (hood pad in particular) are easily within the bounds of the home mechanic to replace.

zeus2112 · #4 06-12-2013, 06:59 AM

Thanks.

My point, and i guess i didn't make it clear here, is that the car was sold under the guise that these things and MORE, HAD been done. But the reality is that none of the items listed have been done, and he over promised—FRAUD.

thanks

Hogweed · #5 07-05-2013, 09:26 PM

contact the seller. most people don't stand behind what they sell but he may try to work with you. outside of that you will likely spend more time and $$ chasing this issue than you will fixing what you can and finding a decent indy to do what you can't 9and possibly living with the rest and the knowledge that you got boned)

Quote:

Originally Posted by zeus2112

Thanks.

My point, and i guess i didn't make it clear here, is that the car was sold under the guise that these things and MORE, HAD been done. But the reality is that none of the items listed have been done, and he over promised—FRAUD.

thanks

rs899 · #6 06-12-2013, 07:43 AM

If all those things had specifically been stated as being done in the ad, and you can prove they were not done, that sounds like fraud. Some of them may be easy to prove, some not so much . Take the seller to small claims court, if you can. Perhaps ebay can help (though they never helped me, but this is real money).

Can you send a link to the ebay ad? It should still be there (under completed listings) for awhile.

zeus2112 · #7 06-12-2013, 07:46 AM

thanks

if you PM me your email, ill send you the ad and the video of the car coming off the truck, and smoking like a dragon...

thanks

Hogweed · #8 07-05-2013, 09:31 PM

ebay buyer protection is your best option. contact them as soon as possible.
know what happens when you win in small claims court? you win the judgement and have very little (read zero) power to collect anything. plus the case must be filed where the sale originated which is generally considered where the seller lives not where you live. most used cars are sold as-is and unless there was a warranty expressed, as is means as is. i cannot think of a bigger waste of time. sorry you had to exp this....it totally blows to be left hanging

Quote:

Originally Posted by rs899

If all those things had specifically been stated as being done in the ad, and you can prove they were not done, that sounds like fraud. Some of them may be easy to prove, some not so much . Take the seller to small claims court, if you can. Perhaps ebay can help (though they never helped me, but this is real money).

Can you send a link to the ebay ad? It should still be there (under completed listings) for awhile.

zeus2112 · #9 07-07-2013, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hogweed

ebay buyer protection is your best option. contact them as soon as possible.
know what happens when you win in small claims court? you win the judgement and have very little (read zero) power to collect anything. plus the case must be filed where the sale originated which is generally considered where the seller lives not where you live. most used cars are sold as-is and unless there was a warranty expressed, as is means as is. i cannot think of a bigger waste of time. sorry you had to exp this....it totally blows to be left hanging

Thanks Hogweed.

The myth about ebay buyer protection, is that it only covers cars 10 years or younger, thus my '87 560 is NOT protected. that was the first call I made, and they told me that. Does suck...thanks though.

Walrus · #10 07-07-2013, 11:14 PM

Okay, so you have bemoaned here and at BW... what does the previous Owner say? Have you contacted him/her and discussed your findings?

I may be busting your balls a bit here, but that should have been (and may have been) your first call. Once you exhaust all your avenues with the previous owner, then come online and bemoan/cuss/discuss/complain all you want.

Sorry you had this experience...

zeus2112 · #11 07-08-2013, 08:27 AM

Hi all, and sorry for not posting back with an update. I appreciate all the help and insight...

My intention wasn't to gripe and vent, but really to see what others—the experts, like you all, had to say about my experience. That said, here's an update and also a more thorough recap of my experience.

My first call, before going on here, was to Ebay, and I was quickly told that buyer protection doesn't extend to cars more than 10 years old—wish I'd known that before bidding, so I blame myself.

I also did contact the seller, and after some dialogue, he did refund SOME money. Not enough, but like they say, a bird in the hand...

I posted neutral feedback for him, withe an honest answer on the car that was delivered.

Thanks for all the help and insight here.

DieselPaul · #12 07-08-2013, 10:36 AM

Buying a car sight unseen is a big issue. What I've done in the past, and I've had people do to my cars is call and offer to pay for a dealership to do a used car inspection and offer to pay the seller for his time. Several of the issues you have with the car are subjective, some people have a bad feel for cars or are good at not caring. As far as he was concerned the suspension FELT fine, the brakes FELT good, that diff didnt SOUND too loud, etc. Its all stuff the seller made a personal opinion call on. I have an uncle who genuinely thinks his car is tight as a drum. It needs every piece of rubber in the suspension, a transmission, and ball joints. Some people just don't know cars, and thus I don't take other people's word for it. So did he defraud you or was he just ignorant?

I'm sorry this happened to you, but I'd highly recommend if you do it in the future paying for a pre purchase inspection by a third party professional. My friend bought a Porsche and at $150 an inspection he lost $300 passing on two cars. But he dodged two $20,000 bullets with that $300 investment.