Did this guy just get away with theft or am i missing something?
 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/COLLECTORS-PERSONAL-AUTOMOBILE-BEAUTIFUL-CONDITION_W0QQitemZ260022112721QQihZ016QQcategoryZ6331QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
this seems like a gorgeous car, but the winning bid would say otherwise. what's up?

Three things would stop me from bidding on this car:

1. The seller only has 6 feedbacks

2. The car has unknown mileage - the seller doesn't even seem to hint at a "presumed" milage, only that the odo is broken.

3. There are NO interior pics besides that one doorpanel.

I hope the thief was really the bidder, not the seller ;-)

Jim

that's what i was thinking.

It does have a limited interest, but I'll bet the seller is in tears that he/she didn't put a serious reserve on it. There is no way that it's a beater.

Hopefully the buyer contacted the seller prior to auction end to (a) get more photos and (b) find out what the odometer actually reads.

Other than that, hard to go wrong with that low of a price.

look at the high bidder..... 0 feedback... that usually means the owner has a fake bidding i-d. The owner then puts his max bid in there....if anyone can beat what the owner really wants... then it's theirs ....otherwise the owner pays the ebay fees..

this happens all the time....

Why I don't like E Bay
 

This is why I don't like E Bay. If you're buying something small and inexpensive or big enough to warrant going in person to pick it up, okay. Otherwise, things like cars and other big-ticket items are too risky in my opinion.

This is one place where the old-fashioned classified ads in my local newspaper seem the best bet. Of course, if E Bay was to create area-specific sections to their listings, that might be nice. I suppose it's possible to narrow your search to a specific area, but I just don't use E Bay that much.

How do the rest of you feel about this? Obviously, you're looking at cars on E Bay, but how far would you go to buy something like a car?

Maybe a small bargain, but not a steal.

I noticed a dash cover and seat covers, almost always a sign of problems being covered up. Also, the chrome fender trim is usually installed to hide rust problems. And no "serious collector" is going to let the speedo not get fixed, or add chrome alloys.

My guess it that it's a high mileage car with nice paint.

Chrome fender flare covers are also good for covering beginning signs of rust, or facilitating it.

and no motor shots.

a 116 could have a lot of issues and still look pretty good in a photo.

tom w

eBay is just another avenue used to purchase a car. Common sense is no different than if you are buying from the dealer, a private ad, or a shady used car lot. Inspect and test drive, then buy if you are satisfied. If buying sight unseen, you better be paying next to nothing (I have done this before and have been surprised, but you need to know what questions to ask).

Ebay is fine, but I would never buy a car sight-unseen. I certainly wouldn't from a local buyer... why would I through Ebay?

It amazes me that some people will ignore all common sense when purchasing items via the internet. Can you imagine an ad in your local paper that stated, "If you respond to my ad, and come look at my car, then you are legally obligated to buy it."

The reputable sellers on Ebay will allow the buyer to back-out of a deal if he finds the car unacceptable upon inspection. If the seller has a reasonable vehicle, then he knows it will sell for a reasonable price -- he doesn't have to force a sale on someone. If he's selling junk, then he'll do whatever it takes to unload his crap.

jp

Sometimes it can work.
 

I'd think just about ANY ebay car would need a personal look-over, through a personal friend or a forum member close by, otherwise the buyer is at risk for hidden problems.

Even a near new car could be a repaired wreck, flood car or a repo. That said there can be nice condition, babied cars, up for sale. It's up to the buyer to parse them out first, and get a clear idea of what he's getting.

I helped a buyer in Chicago on the internet some years ago who was interested in a 1980 300SD near San Francisco. The car was a donation to a charity, so it really did have issues needing to be fixed, but I went and looked at it and drove it, and helped with the paperwork, and a friend helped with a few repairs, and arranged the cheapest shipping, (uncovered, on toof the car carrier, and it was last to be delivered, it went all the way to Maryland, then to Chicago,) it was filthy when it got there, but it was an old rust free Calif. Benz in the desired W116 diesel style which was what she wanted, so, with help, the buyer got the car she wanted, at a good ebay price, even though it wasn't possible with local help, which we were glad to give.

I went over the car as thoroughly as I could, the seller co operated, I reported the plusses and minuses I saw on the car, on that basis the buyer bid on it and won the auction.

I'd never personally have bid on a car donated to charity (the charity was the ebay seller here) but the buyer got herself an inexpensive W116 diesel that looked and ran pretty good. For today, I think about $1500 wasn't actually too bad of a price for a rust free car, with the $800 delivery price added on.

So it can work, but there are horror stories galore out there too.