Need advice, smell scam from wining an ebay car bid

zener · Oct 8, 2003

I just win a bid for a car in ebay which the seller claims he is the owner and has clear title. I let him know that I am ready to pay him the full amount in any form he wishes so I can have the car ASAP ( he is living not far from me). However he tell me that he had puthis car for sale in some dealership and I should pay him right away $2000 as he required from the bid procedure and we could finalize the deal in a few days later. Please advice. Can ebay charge my CC if I don't pay him $2000? I want to pay the whole thing so I can have the car.

Ns1 · Oct 8, 2003

if he's close why don't you just drive over there and get things settled

Nocturnal · Oct 8, 2003

No, ebay cannot charge your cc for this. How is this seller's feedback? Is it at 0 or does he have any negative feedback?

Soybomb · Oct 8, 2003

Worst that can happen is you get negative feedback. The only way I'd give up my money since he's close is to meet him in person. He gets a certified check, you get a signed title.

zener · Oct 9, 2003

Members, it is worse than I can imagine. The car I bid is an 1998 Lexus SC400 by owner with 61K, in Newport Beach, CA. However by running a auto check report from the VIN number, it is found that the car was last reported at auto auction with 132,176 miles a month ago in Grand Blanc, MI. How do I report this to the authority? The report gives a detailed chronology of this car from the purchase date, renewal thru DMV and finally to the reported auction a month ago. Thanks again.

bolido2000 · Oct 9, 2003

Wow that sucks. Report to Ebay so the sucker will have to pay the fees to ebay

.
I don't know who is in charge of online fraud...FBI?

Hossenfeffer · Oct 9, 2003

See it first. Ask which dealership he has it for sale at and verify it. Get more than one opinion on what you should do.

Verify the VIN in person and have somebody (or carfax) run a check. Suppose there's a chance it's a mistake.

You didn't do a VIN check before bidding?

Don't get pressured by the seller. Worst that can happen is a negative eval.

That seller has 2 negatives in the past 7 days

0roo0roo · Oct 9, 2003

report to ebay, deals invalid if theres fraud.

Turkish · Oct 9, 2003

Originally posted by: zener
Members, it is worse than I can imagine. The car I bid is an 1998 Lexus SC400 by owner with 61K, in Newport Beach, CA. However by running a auto check report from the VIN number, it is found that the car was last reported at auto auction with 132,176 miles a month ago in Grand Blanc, MI. How do I report this to the authority? The report gives a detailed chronology of this car from the purchase date, renewal thru DMV and finally to the reported auction a month ago. Thanks again.

FBI Cybercrime Department - How to report Internet Related Crime?

zener · Oct 9, 2003

Both the reports from Carfax and Autocheck/Experian show the same. The VIN came from the seller itself when he advertise the car. I will double check with him tomorow.

zener · Oct 9, 2003

Seller admits that car in fact was shipped from Michigan a month ago. Also he is not the original title owner but still claims that the mileage is correct although the Michigan DMV reported otherwise. I think I need to report this to ebay and FBI.

bunker · Oct 9, 2003

Report it then drop it.

edro · Oct 9, 2003

EBAY LINK!!!

Red · Oct 9, 2003

Is this it?

Eli · Oct 9, 2003

I would not be buying that car anymore. Report your findings to eBay & whoever else you feel appropriate.

PoPPeR · Oct 9, 2003

i love those cars

T2T III · Oct 9, 2003

Originally posted by: zener
Members, it is worse than I can imagine. The car I bid is an 1998 Lexus SC400 by owner with 61K, in Newport Beach, CA. However by running a auto check report from the VIN number, it is found that the car was last reported at auto auction with 132,176 miles a month ago in Grand Blanc, MI. How do I report this to the authority? The report gives a detailed chronology of this car from the purchase date, renewal thru DMV and finally to the reported auction a month ago. Thanks again.

Wow, that really stinks. Have you considered contacting Ebay so they are aware of a lying seller? Also, contacting the state DMV might be a good idea. They'll be able to tell you how long the owner has had the vehicle. Additionally, if they is the original owner, he should be able to provide you with a series of paperwork for the vehicle (e.g. - previous emission test papers, etc.)

Best of luck.

In future situations, if you plan on buying a vehicle, get a 30-day run with CarFAX so you can check several vehicles out without paying for each report. Then, run a CarFAX report before committing to a particular vehicle. When I was doing my car search, I used CarFax a lot - - and found that several of the vehicles that I was looking at had been either fleet or rental vehicles. I avoided all of the vehicles that fell into this category.

T2T III · Oct 9, 2003

The vehicle has just been serviced for a 60k service. The Vehicle is in Perfect Original Clean Condition In/Out and Shows NO signs of previous Body Damage. The vehicle has always been garaged and therefore shows no wear. It is absolutely Free of Rust/Dents/Stains. Leather shows No wear or cracks. This Lexus Looks and Drives 100% Safe and Original.
All options work 100%. The Vehicle has always been serviced by a local Lexus Specialist and is ready to go.***

I'd stop at a local Lexus dealer and have them run the VIN through the system. See *where* the Lexus has been serviced ... and at what intervals. See if the Lexus service system can determine the actual miles that should be on the vehicle.

Again, I'd contact your Department of Motor Vehicles. Report that the individual is trying to sell a vehicle with a rolled-back odometer. It's bad enough that the seller is trying to sell the vehicle with the odometer rolled back ... and then it's another sad case to see the owner say they had all of the 60K service done, etc.

alkemyst · Oct 9, 2003

#1 I think its absolute bullsh1t ebay allows feedback to be private.

I am willing to bet 110 positives from selling $1 trinkets....with the premise of a big scam later. A lot of scammers also sell the scam outside ebay, only using their feedback as a reference so negative can't be left.

Feedback should never be private, same thing with private auctions....the 'privacy' should only munge the bidder info.

Eli · Oct 9, 2003

Originally posted by: alkemyst
#1 I think its absolute bullsh1t ebay allows feedback to be private.

I am willing to bet 110 positives from selling $1 trinkets....with the premise of a big scam later. A lot of scammers also sell the scam outside ebay, only using their feedback as a reference so negative can't be left.

Feedback should never be private, same thing with private auctions....the 'privacy' should only munge the bidder info.

I think you can see the full feedback profile if you're a bidder/winner?

Not sure though.

I kinda agree with your sentiment though. But, it's just something to take into account when browsing. If you don't like it, don't buy from them.

Eli · Oct 9, 2003

zener · Oct 9, 2003

Redhot, yes, that is the car. Also this is the report summary :

Report Run Date: 10/09/2003
VIN JT8CH32Y2W1001341 1998 Lexus Sc 400
Event Date Event Location Odometer Reading Data Source Event Detail
05/05/98 BAY CITY, MI 102 MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. TITLE (Title #: 164J1250262)
05/05/98 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
11/09/98 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
11/16/99 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
11/14/00 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
11/05/01 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
11/14/02 BAY CITY, MI MOTOR VEHICLE DEPT. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
07/22/03 GRAND BLANC, MI 131,751 DEALER RECORD VEHICLE IN DEALER INVENTORY
09/10/03 MI 132,176 AUTO AUCTION REPORTED AT AUTO AUCTION

Krugger · Oct 9, 2003

is it possible to change the mileage via computer? i mean i know you can roll back analog ones but what happens with digital odometers?

T2T III · Oct 9, 2003

Originally posted by: Krugger
is it possible to change the mileage via computer? i mean i know you can roll back analog ones but what happens with digital odometers?

If you look at this seller's other auctions, he/she appears to sell other car parts - dash components, mats, etc. One could easily install a speedo/odometer from a wrecked Lexus - with lower mileage in it. I'd be willing to guess that this has happened as opposed to "rolling" the mileage back on the existing odometer.

mattgyver · Oct 9, 2003

I've heard it is possible with *some* digital odometers. Never done it, so not sure if that's true.

Need advice, smell scam from wining an ebay car bid

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