Have you ever bought a vehicle online, sight unseen except for pictures?

[Jstpssng]

I've mostly-bought, sight unseen ... basically negotiate the entire deal, make it clear that if my inspection & drive agree with the seller's description, I'll pay such and such a price -- and also that if anything is obviously not so, or if the seller tries a different price, I'll walk immediately.

I've done this often since '90 when I first did it, didn't want to drive 80mi just to haggle with a salesdroid and find out we weren't compatible.

Last time, we flew to Vancouver BC (from CA USA) and bought a car for tons less than local (and way fewer miles... er, km), even with import fees. Worked out great.

That works out better for both parties. I don't mind somebody asking if I'll take less once they have talked to me and decided they are interested; but when I get an email or text saying "what's the least you will take" or "$xxx, cash" without even asking anything about it I don't bother to reply.

When I sold my BH the guy called and asked enough so that I knew he was interested; so we agreed on a price if he came up and liked it.
Then he asked "will you take a check"... it was a Sunday and banks are closed. If he had waited until he got here I would have said no, but I agreed and had time to do a search and found that he was a straight shooter.

 

[ddbackhoe]

bought a truck off ebay sight unseen. bid what i thought was a low bid and i'd be happy paying. wound up winning. drove up to CT drove it home. did a little work to it drove it 2 years. sold if for more than i had in it. it's still running around the county being used



that first one is a scam

Yep, I think your right. I did not read through it before using it for an example, my fault.

 

[Bird]

Never bought one online, but way back in 1966, I sat down with a Ford salesman, spec'd out exactly what I wanted, right down the color for a new Ford sedan. Then he went to check and found that a dealer in another city only 20-30 miles away had that exact car. So he called to see if they'd dealer transfer it and they would. So he and I went together and got it.

I have absolutely no doubt that I got the worst lemon to ever come from the Ford Motor Company.

As a result, I wouldn't buy a Ford product for the next 25 years, but then I've been back with Fords now for many years. But I sure ain't gonna buy a car without seeing it in person.

However, I have a nephew in Washington state who bought a used car online from an eastern state and had it shipped out west and has been very happy with it.

 

[Jstpssng]

Yep, I think your right. I did not read through it before using it for an example, my fault.

It was flagged before I even got a chance to check it out.

 

[MechE1]

Several. Some advice from what I've encountered. a. Do a lot of research. A lot. If from dealer, reviews online (expect 20% negative-ish reviews. People ding reviews for the weirdest reasons). Read them. If seller is personal, harder. b. Verify the pictures your looking at are current pictures. c. TALK to the seller. d. go with your gut. Dealer stuff should be pretty straight forward. Reviews and vehicle description/pictures. Someone that's trustworthy will likely send all the pics you want and have an honest conversation with you. Ask questions. If you have trouble talking with them and they are hard to deal with, move on. Pushy....move on. I've encountered several that would post pics of their cars WHEN NEW and try to pass them off as used car pics i.e. current. The amount of research I've done for on line cars is staggering, but I tend to always develop a gut feeling and so far, I've never been burned and very happy with the outcomes.

 

[fried1765]

Maybe it's just that I haven't been vehicle shopping for so long, but is $4500 for a 95 a good price? That seems a bit high. I paid $4500 for my 95 Taurus when I bought it 15 years ago. Those are selling for $1500 or less now. Yes, I know trucks can cost more (and do more) than a passenger car.

I sold my '86 GMC Jimmy 6.2 diesel on E-Bay 4 years ago (2015 - 29 yrs. old) for $8200 (125,000 miles). I bought it used, in 2000, for $8000.
A "good price" is what someone is willing to pay.
The two final bidders, one in Germany, and one in the Bahamas.
The Bahamas bidder bought it, and paid to have it shipped to Nassau from New England.
I was very pleased!

 

[fruitcakesa]

I bought my 04 VW Jetta TDI sight unseen by me [but looked at by a friend who is not VW savvy] from a guy in Florida.
I flew down with family to visit the friend and pick up the car and discovered a few issues but since it had 250k+ miles and the price seemed good I could not complain.
My daughter and boyfriend drove it home to Vermont and in the process discovered it had no heat, leaking heater core was the problem and that was a giant pita to fix [I had to pull the dash which required me to basically gut the car interior to get it out].
After all is said and done, I am still driving the car as it approaches 300k miles and still gets 45 mpg

 

[TractorGuy]

I purchased a 2013 Mustang GT off a CL ad from a Ford dealer in middle GA. They sprung a surprise on me at the closing that I should have walked out the door on but I already had a cashiers check ready and I wanted the car. I had a buyers order that specifically said it included all taxes and fees and when I closed the deal they did not pay my FL sales tax as they said they would. They said I would have to take care of that and they would mail me a check. The check they sent me fell about $600 short. I later emailed the owner of the dealership and explained what happened and he mailed me a check to correct the issue. We went back and forth a bit on who said what but at the end of the day the buyers order I sent him was undeniable. Glad I insisted they put in writing that it was the "out the door" price with all taxes and fees included.

I bought my backhoe out of AR off ebay and had it shipped to FL. I messaged back and forth with the seller several times before I committed. Pretty much everything he told me was a lie. I spent several months and a few thousand dollars getting it usable. The seller said it was a good running machine that was "ready to work". It had a fuel tank full of rust and wouldn't run 5 minutes without shutting off. He said it had no leaks. It was spewing oil out of one of the stabilizers and had several hoses leaking. One of my questions was how are the brakes. He said "brakes are good". It had NO BRAKES! Had he told the truth it would have been a deal killer due to the expense of repairing those. I still haven't fixed the brakes but they are not really needed on my property. That will be a three grand repair at the dealer. I don't think I want to tear the rear end apart on a 15,000 lb tractor.

All in all I have had a snafu on both of my distant purchases but I think I came out okay on both.

Edit: Almost forgot I bought my JD4310 on auction without going up to see it first. They had two tractors I bid on and it was second on my list. The one I wanted went for 10 grand before fees. When I saw the one I bought in person I was disappointed but now that I have it cleaned up and almost finished I am glad I bought it. It was a round about way to get a decent tractor but I think I have saved some $$$$. I bought the tractor with no loader but it had the SCV. Bought a used loader frame from a junkyard and rebuilt it with all new generic cylinders and new hoses. Bought a grapple and made my own third function kit to operate that. I am all in for $10,662.

 

[TractorGuy]

When dealing with a car dealership make sure and get them to email a buyers order that specifically state if all taxes and fees are included or not. I can understand them wanting you to pay your taxes in your state. They will often tack on an administration fee that varies from $250 to $1000. Make sure they divulge that up front! Sometimes it's negotiable.

 

[Looking4new]

In 2009 I bought my 1987, 26 foot Carver Montego aft cabin boat sight unseen from a marina. 10 grand. I got a hold of a boat surveyor in a neighbouring town to go and survey it before I told the seller I would buy it. I kept it at the sellers' lot for one whole season while I fixed the things the surveyor said needed attention. It has been a good boat and I hazard a guess that there are many more seasons left in it.