eBay Motors experiences

[mdcrab]

I am thinking of purchasing a car using eBay Motors.
Trying to find out what I should look out for, good questions to ask, things to check, etc.

So far we looked at vehicles at CarMax and local car dealer and already have found somethings.

First do a through inspection in well lighted shop area. Did not do this at CarMax, but we did at the Acura Dealer tonight.
At the Acura dealer we noticed the spare tire cover did not lie flat. On further inspection it was found the trunk sheet metal floor was deformed and rolled over in one place. Also the car was supposed to have 19,600 miles but it looded like a lt more. Not sure if someone could have disconnected the speedo for awhile or is this too hard to do.

Second, after this experince I think it maybe a good idea to an undercarriage inspection on a lift before buying any used car.

Third, try to take a Mechanic along or take the car to a mechanic if local.

Fourth, researched good and bad models/years in CR.

Also the CarFax did not have any record of the car being damaged. Salesman said that it would have only been report if there was a police report filed, but I think it is also reported by insurance companies if it involves a substantial $ amount. The Carfax showed that the car had 4 owners, but two were dealers. One of the record listings showed that the vehicle was titled by "Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Dept. Arlington TX"???????

This was an Acura "Certified" 2002 RSX Type S.
Anyway, I am open to suggestions which will increase our probability of getting a good car.

mdcrab

 

[ViperSSD]

I can't help too much, but one of the possible reasons that the car has passed through a couple dealers is that many dealers will unload a car at auction if they can't sell it in a specific amount of time.....and these auctions are frequented mainly by dealers so other dealers end up purchasing the car.

 

[mdcrab]

bump

 

[Slacker]

Trust your instincts, if there is any doubt at all, walk away, there are lots of cars for sale out there.

 

[SweetSweetLeroyBrown]

I'd pass on any 2002 with that many question marks...could be a fine car, but why risk it for a few grand in savings.

 

[CrackRabbit]

Ive purchased two cars, well rather to say purchased one car and almost purchased another.... both have been absolute nightmares... the first was a 89 Mazda 323... described as having a minor clutch problem.... got the car, clutch pedal went to the floor slack, and there were tons of other problems that werent described.... put a stop payment on the check i wrote for it and made the seller pick it up. I got lucky to put it simply. Second car was a 94 escort, car was in great shape (and still is) but the title was Fubared (not properly assigned), spent 3 months and an extra $200 getting a bonded title for it... I would probably buy again... but i would most certianly check the car in person and ask to see the title to make sure its not messed up in any way.
Good luck to you..

CrackRabbit

 

[Maximus96]

how do you tell if a title is messed up or not?

 

[CrackRabbit]

just need to make sure its assigned properly... make sure that there arent any errors, erasures, or editied entries on it.

 

[fredtam]

I bought my 2001 Altima in late 2002 on Ebay sight unseen. I checked carfax and also had a very good company in Houston check it out for me . They charged me a little over a $100 but checked it out , sent me a very detailed report, and tons of pictures. Every little flaw was documented. Obviously this wouldn't be cost effective on a bunch of cars but once you get things narrowed down its a good idea. I ended up with a great car with far less than average miles that had been well taken care of. I also lucked out bidding and got the car for $4000 less than NADA loan value. Make sure you check the NADA values. Do not base buying decisions on KBB prices. The values in KBB are overpriced. Having been in the car business I can only think of 2 banks that base values on KBB. Just make sure you get a car with below average miles and plenty of factory warranty left.

 

[Salvador]

Never buy a car sight unseen. If you can't see it in person, make sure a trusted friend can thoroughly check it out for you.

Never go to look at a car in the dark or in the rain. Preferrably, you want to look at the car in good, natural lighting.

My sister got stung on her last new car because she looked at it inside under good lighting, but when she got it home, she noticed that the car had some acid rain damage. You could only see the damage in natural lighting. We complained and the dealer tried to buff it out, but it didn't all come out. Plus, I'm sure that they removed some paint in the process. I would've been pissed off big time about it, but my sister didn't seem to care, so we just let it go.

Always check the VIN. Pay for Carfax. Make sure that there aren't any problems.

It's always a good idea to have a mechanic check it out as well. Also, hang out on some car forums for the particular make and model of the car if you can. You can learn a lot about a particular car and what to look for.

Try not to buy the first year of a new model or a redesign. Especially if it's an American car. I've seen so many problems with first model or redesign year cars that later get fixed.

Sal

 

[CrackRabbit]

Another thing to remeber, dont always rely on carfax, my escort has a perfectly clean carfax even though the title was messed up.

 

[phatj]

bump for more experiences

 

[djNickb]

Originally posted by: ViperSSD
I can't help too much, but one of the possible reasons that the car has passed through a couple dealers is that many dealers will unload a car at auction if they can't sell it in a specific amount of time.....and these auctions are frequented mainly by dealers so other dealers end up purchasing the car.

Correct. The dealer auctions are the main way that dealer find and move around cars that they are looking for or cannot sell in their location. These are not the 'auctions' that many of you probably think of. They are very impressive high tech operations. Many larger auction companies have live Internet bidding and the bids come in real time as you are also standing on the auction lane bidding on the car. Sellers are required to guarantee their cars or face punishment by the auctions if they 'green light' a car and it actually does have problems. It is in the seller's best interest to disclose all MAJOR problems with the vehicle. This is basically the business that me and my partner operate. We buy cars from the dealer auctions that require little to no reconditioning (basic repairs and the like), fix them and resell them. These are not public auctions either, you have to be a licensed dealer to even enter the auction grounds. Since we are not a traditional 'dealership' with a large lot we have little overhead and are able to pass on our savings to our customers. Example: right now we have a 2001 BMW 330i that we are offering for below trade in value! The car has a clean history and is just out of factory warranty. Ebay is just another way for dealers to unload vehicles other than taking them to an auction. They tend to get a bit more on ebay than at the auction depending on several conditions, but still sell for great deals nonetheless. If anyone wants some more info on this or about what I do feel free to PM me.

 

[Jumpem]

A little off topic... how much does it roughly cost to have a car shipped?

 

[Armitage]

Finishing up a deal right now on a 1993 Land Cruiser that I won on Wed. Had my brother check it out and drive it. Carfax is clean, one owner. Final bid was a bit below NADA "low retail" value (well below KBB value), and was as high as I was willing to go.

I'll let you know how it goes!

As somebody else said ... there are plenty of cars out there. If something smells bad, stay away.

You said two dealers have owned it? One is likely the dealer that took it as a trade-in, and then sold it at auction to another dealer. Seems a little unusual for a dealer to auction a late model, low mileage car. That and looking rougher then 19K miles would have me sniffing a bit ... I'd think you should see almost no wear @ 19K

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Jumpem
A little off topic... how much does it roughly cost to have a car shipped?

das-shipping

 

[Thegonagle]

Don't bid on any car you haven't inspected and driven. That obviously precludes any car listed on eBay that's not local.

The way I see it, there appears to be a lot of good dealers listing cars on eBay. At the same time, eBay is also great for sellers who want to get "book" value for a car that's definitely worth a lot less, since there will be plenty of fools who just look up a car on KBB.com and then bid sight unseen.

 

[Cal166]

I had a very good experience with ebay motor or maybe it was just damn lucky.

4 months ago i was doing research and trying to find my car -- A Maxima SE 96-99 Model.

I tried Cars.com, autotrader.com but no luck because we all want the highest price for our car when selling.

So one day i was surfing thru ebay checking out Maximas and came across a very low milage and had all the options i wanted (FULLY LOADED) and the best part was that the seller is that he lives Across the bridge! on his auction, he said he would like to do the deal outside of ebay so i called him and we worked things out.

-Drag my friend along to check out the car cuz he knows more and he went thru the process of purchasing a car.


Previous owner was a girl who used it at Princeton University - Less than 10,000 Miles a year.

1998 Nissan Maxima SE Fully Loaded with Bose System - 54,700 Miles
-Brake Pads had to be changed
$8700

 

[vi edit]

The way I see it, there appears to be a lot of good dealers listing cars on eBay. At the same time, eBay is also great for sellers who want to get "book" value for a car that's definitely worth a lot less, since there will be plenty of fools who just look up a car on KBB.com and then bid sight unseen.

Actually, from what I've seen auctions close at, and what I've seen people actually get cars for, cars are selling for significantly LOWER than book value. I see ebay as a last ditch for many people that want to get rid of a car. They don't have to show it, don't have to worry about people backing out, ect. Just post it and be done with it. Almost every car I see on there is selling for 10%-25% less than what local cars have asking prices of.

The guy in the office next to me got a car that was valued at $5500 for $3000 off of ebay. He got a plane ticket for $120 and then paid $40 in gas to drive it back home. He's been happy. If he wanted, he could turn around and sell it for $4000 around here and make an easy profit.

 

[abc]

Originally posted by: djNickb

Originally posted by: ViperSSD
I can't help too much, but one of the possible reasons that the car has passed through a couple dealers is that many dealers will unload a car at auction if they can't sell it in a specific amount of time.....and these auctions are frequented mainly by dealers so other dealers end up purchasing the car.

Correct. The dealer auctions are the main way that dealer find and move around cars that they are looking for or cannot sell in their location. These are not the 'auctions' that many of you probably think of. They are very impressive high tech operations. Many larger auction companies have live Internet bidding and the bids come in real time as you are also standing on the auction lane bidding on the car. Sellers are required to guarantee their cars or face punishment by the auctions if they 'green light' a car and it actually does have problems. It is in the seller's best interest to disclose all MAJOR problems with the vehicle. This is basically the business that me and my partner operate. We buy cars from the dealer auctions that require little to no reconditioning (basic repairs and the like), fix them and resell them. These are not public auctions either, you have to be a licensed dealer to even enter the auction grounds. Since we are not a traditional 'dealership' with a large lot we have little overhead and are able to pass on our savings to our customers. Example: right now we have a 2001 BMW 330i that we are offering for below trade in value! The car has a clean history and is just out of factory warranty. Ebay is just another way for dealers to unload vehicles other than taking them to an auction. They tend to get a bit more on ebay than at the auction depending on several conditions, but still sell for great deals nonetheless. If anyone wants some more info on this or about what I do feel free to PM me.

hi, i can't pm so need to ask straight up, this a coupe? what color. auto or manual. how many miles. what options. what sate are you in? thanks!