Another rant about buying used

[Darrellq]

"Worthless trash people?" Sounds like you did a worthless job of inspecting it before you negotiated the price. Much of the stuff you mentioned could have been determined pre-purchase.

 

[jrsavoie]

I have a friend looking for a GM/Chev 2500. One was on my road for sale. So he asked me to go look. Here where I am, you cannot get a safety if the rocked panels are rotten.
Well the whole bottom of this thing was rotten, the frame was rotten and it said "certified" so obviously he has a mechanic friend that's not too worried about his license.

I drove over an hour to look at a rust free Duramax.
The rockers were all but gone.
If the rust pieces have fallen off, does that make something rust free?

 

[somanytractors]

I buy and sell used all the time. Never had a new one and never will. You can't trust people to tell you the truth.
It's up to the buyer to verify what the seller says, and often ultimately the buyer is taking a risk because there's so many things that can't really be verified.
But if you buy a used one and then have to spend a bunch, lets say $2000 to get it right, it's still much cheaper then new and just because you buy a new one theres no real guarantee that it is going to work great either.
When buying I always assume the worst. If they say it needs a starter, I hear the motor is probably froze up.
And what about the tranny, pto, 3pt. Just because the 3pt goes up it doesn't mean it actually works. Put a couple hundred pounds on it and make sure it can lift it.
I'm all for buying used but use caution and know you are taking a risk, but then buying new can be risky too.

 

[jrsavoie]

"Worthless trash people?" Sounds like you did a worthless job of inspecting it before you negotiated the price. Much of the stuff you mentioned could have been determined pre-purchase.

Are you one of those guys?

I try to take people at their word.

I bought a mower. The seller said all fluids and filters had been changed.
After mowing the first time, I went to blow out the air filter.
There was at least a 1" hole in it, expanded metal was rotted. Checked the gear box, it had about a tablespoon of sludge in it.
He had also cobbled up the wiring, mouse damage. He didn't do it right. He just hooked up wires until everything worked.

I'll be addressing that soon. I've been avoiding the issue.
It died yesterday and when I pulled the control panel, all the wires fell off the key switch.
I'll give him this one. I'm guessing all the wires didn't match the ends available.

 

[Rockbadchild]

The demand and how quick things sell online create and put the buyer at a very difficult situation and make the seller in a position to easily fool or scam someone. Then if you put yourself in the seller shoes you always get the tire kicker dud who ask a million question then want you to hold it without down payment then back down at the last minute... very rare you get both parties who are not a pain to deal with. Often I see things that I would like to buy but knowing I cannot get there early enough, now I often don't even bother if that's the case. Often see items that sell within minutes of being posted. I had instance where you are first on it you want to send money to secure it but the person doesn't want too, cash only they say, so your like ok then keep it for me I am on my way, you get there and he sold it ...I myself have often put myself in a vulnerable situation like sending the money first even without seeing the item, I do some due diligence like getting the address and phone number and verified the two before hand and personally talk to them on the phone but still and those times where I took that risk if I would've never been able to purchases these things, sometime it is simply a necessary evil or risk.

so you see them all

people without morals (scammer)
people without honor (ill keep it for ya but doesn't or it is good to go but isn't)
tire kicker (ask a million question, a million photos, then ask for a hold but never show up)
the ghost (ask is its available then never hear from them again)
the low baller
the high baller (I know what I have, its a gold mine)

who I my forgetting ??

 

[Rockbadchild]

Are you one of those guys?

I try to take people at their word.

I bought a mower. The seller said all fluids and filters had been changed.
After mowing the first time, I went to blow out the air filter.
There was at least a 1" hole in it, expanded metal was rotted. Checked the gear box, it had about a tablespoon of sludge in it.
He had also cobbled up the wiring, mouse damage. He didn't do it right. He just hooked up wires until everything worked.

I'll be addressing that soon. I've been avoiding the issue.
It died yesterday and when I pulled the control panel, all the wires fell off the key switch.
I'll give him this one. I'm guessing all the wires didn't match the ends available.

surely sound like it

 

[Jstpssng]

“No rust” is my biggest gripe with people selling used. You get there and can push your finger through the rust

A while back I looked at a truck which was advertised that way. They had duct tape covering the holes. There was nothing redeemable about that truck, its next stop should have been the shredder. What really peeved me though is that just a year earlier I had looked at the same truck from a different owner, and it was junk then.

 

[dkmc]

But anyway, here's another @*$% that says "It's all serviced. I just replaced ALL fluids and filters. Ready to go"

Needless to say, the engine oil was black, transmission and hydraulics were all low, and I highly doubt he changed those filters. And now I just checked the engine coolant and it's nothing but p!$$ water. Don't even register in my hydrometer.

If I was there to purchase a tractor and the seller said that, I know I'm going to pull the dip stick, open the radiator cap, etc. So I'd be holding the dip stick and saying "when exactly was that when you just changed this oil? Looks like it needs to be changed again"! IOW, call him out with a simple question. What is he going to say? Blatant BS from a seller asking a premium price should not be ignored. I get not pissing him off if it's something you really want.

I bought my '57 IH 330 back in '91. Guy said "Runs good, just has a little 'click' in it". Under load the 'little click' turned into a louder sound. Turns out the bull gear in the rear end was cracked bad, had to split the tractor and luckily was able to find good used gears from Central Tractor back in the day. This is a bit different than being able to check the fluids tho. The price ($950) was in line with the work it needed.

 

[Jcichy71]

Buying “long distance” sure puts the buyer at a disadvantage.
It seems like the only way you can try to claw back some type of advantage over the seller is to bring a wad of cash and make your firm offer, or be very tough and point out the shortcomings of the item you are buying without ticking off seller TOO much.

I have really grown to dislike buying used equipment more than 50 miles from my home

Good strategy is have a place picked out for lunch close by and don’t be afraid to walk away… they think they have you until you hop in your truck and drive away… alot of times they will call/message before you get to far!

 

[dkmc]

Good strategy is have a place picked out for lunch close by and don’t be afraid to walk away… they think they have you until you hop in your truck and drive away… alot of times they will call/message before you get to far!

I have an even better approach. Take a buddy along and have HIM play devils advocate. He's the one pulling the dip stick and saying "Just changed the oil?? Looks pretty dirty to me"! And he picks apart any other issues or BS the seller throws at ya. If it agitates the seller you can say "He's just being cranky" or some such. The seller can get pissed if he needs to, but at your buddy not you. Seller still gets called out on his BS. When negotiating a price, you can point out the machine needs work. Works pretty well I've found. Been on both sides of it.