buying on ebay

[waggy]

Greetings,

Since I expect that this thread is populated with people skilled a sussing out warnign flags in advertisements, I thought that some of you might be able to give me ideas about how to buy a mid-80s 300 D/TD wagon without seeing it in person.

I'm posting a link here for a car selling on ebay in the next couple of days because it is about the most detailed description of a car I've seen. So is there anything more that should be asked about? I've heard that compression is important for diesel engines, and although I can't really expect a seller to have compression data, is there anything that could be used as an indicator of good/bad compression?

It's item no. 4554605455. Link below.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1,1&item=4554605455&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT

Thanks much.

Matt.

[taker22]

Car seems to have alot of rust (especially on underside) and oxidation for a California car. Lots of cracks on dash and the issues with the guages can be very problematic. Something doesn't sit right for me with the car.

[JerryWagner]

Get a Carfax , find out where it's spent most of it's time, if it's in a Salt region for snow removal stay away from it, personally I would not buy a vehicle on ebay unless I could view it personally as photos do not do justice to the actual condition.

[DavidNVA]

Just my two cents, if you do decide to buy on e-bay, do an escrow. At least this way the buyer should be confident about what her or she is selling and if the vehicle arrives not as "claimed" you can re-negotiate the price without hassle. Pictures can be deceiving!

I purchased my S 500 Mercedes from e-bay, not a good experience. Car was not at all as stated. The car was involved in a front end accident, even though carfax checked out clean. Shotty repair work, the Xenon lighting system was "missing" and the list goes on. But who knows, you might have a good experience.