I see a lot of old cars on here from way across the US from my location. How can I buy one, without getting ripped off? I saw a car I liked on the internet, pictures looked good,so I e-mailed and called the man. I rented a car,drove 200 miles to get the car. It was what I call a $10,000 pieace of junk. If you buy a car,site un-seen, you can get stuck. The transport company will not get in the middle of a transaction. What can you do? Thanks,Mike dart1971
have the person your buying the car from take videos and lots of pictures, talk on the phone and email (email a little better because its in words so you have proof of anything if you ever need it) have someone who lives near the car thats on the HAMB take a look at it and let you know if it's worth it then hire a transporter perferbley from the HAMB and get the car and wire transfer the person the money
The "Pre-Purchase" appraisal I provide will include an assesment of the condition, list any options or added equipment/parts, notes regarding condition and 40-60 bumper to bumper photos (complete interior, undercarriage).
You're also a lot less likely to get ripped off shopping in the HAMB classifieds. If the car is being sold by someone who has been on the board a long time, they're unlikely to take your money and run. I would send a second, neutral HAMBer from the area to look at it as well, just to be sure you really know what kind of condition it's in.
never buy a car you can not personally inspect. otherwise you are rolling the dice on whether the car is what you think it is
I've never bought a vehicle "cross country" but I sold my old truck a few years back to a guy out in California. He knew every problem up front and had pictures of EVERYTHING. There were no surprises and I made sure he knew exactly what he was getting. No honest seller should have any problems supplying you with information or pics of anything. Try to educate yourself a little on the common problems with whatever make/model/year vehicle you're looking to buy- especially common rust issues- and make sure to ask for detailed pictures of those areas. If you have problems getting info or straight answers out of the seller, then it's time to move on. Also, as was said before I'm sure you could put up a post here on the HAMB to try to find someone in the area that could look at the car in person and offer their opinion. I've done it for others and saved some friend from dropping some serious coin on a pile of junk. Good luck.
There are people who will go look at them for you and do a written asessment. I've found the best thing is to fly in and look at it.Some of the best money I've ever waisted was on plane tickets.It sure saved the heartache later.
In addition to the above, you can also check out the seller to determine what sort of person he is (private eye stuff). After you get his full name and residence address, start with a free Zaba.com search and you'll see if he owns real estate, has lived in the same home for years, etc. Then spend $30 or so on a search of liens or lawsuits against him, arrest record, etc. Flake = no deal.
I paid an appraiser in the area where the car was being sold to go look at it, take plenty of photos plus a video along with his appraisel. I didn't buy the car.
Man, where were you guys when I bought my car.. I also didnt know about the HAMB when I bought my car. So I was doomed from the start.. Its all working ut though... GOod Luck,, do what all these guys are saying.. Definitely hire a local guy with your best interest to check it out...
I bought a car from another state. I hired Northeast Inspection to look at it for me.They sent an inspector to look at it. He took tons of pictures and ran a magnet all over it to check for bondo. Posted the pictures on the net so I could see them .He drove it around and crawled under it. Called me while he was there and told me about it and I was able to ask a bunch of questions. Cost me $250. Well worth the money. I ended up buying the car and had a Hamber haul it for me. When I got it I was happy. It was exactly as the inspector had told me. I would do it again if I was in the market for another car.
And I don't care how many pics you get. Some cars photograph unbelievably well. I was gonna Ebay an edgy Pontiac I had around 7 yrs ago, but had to abort as it looked AMAZING in every shot
Find someone on HAMB close by to look at the car. If it passes their inspection buy a plane ticket and see it yourself. Charlie Stephens
On the only car deal I considered doing long distance, I posted on the HAMB for someone who could go look at it. A fellow HAMBer drove about 80 miles or so to go check it out for me. He took detailed photos and emailed them to me and gave me his personal report by phone. I sent him $80 for gas money. It turned out the car was a rust bucket, (which wasn't apparent from the seller's photos.) Also, the seller was being less than honest about the condition. It was the best $80 I ever spent.
Unless you can afford to blow the money you'd spend on the car, or it's a screaming deal on something rare and normally expensive, don't do it. Really, there aren't very many cars you can't go out and find one like it locally and when we start talking the ones that are hard to find or super popular, they usually cost enough the money shouldn't be an issue in the first place.
If you can't get a local HAMBer to check it out for you, the "pre-purhase appraisal" is the way to go.
I arranged to buy a body. It was nearby, so I went to pick it up. I arranged over the phone to purchase a perticuler body. When I got to the location to pick it up, an employee of the owner told me they were going to switch bodys with me ,but did not have time to get another one ready. This is exactly why I was afraid to buy a car in another state. I could have arranged to buy a car and had another one shipped to me! I would be stuck like Chuck! Mike
I've bought two cars from the HAMB classifieds: one in Joplin, one in Indiana. Flew in, drove home about 1,000 miles each time. One was a ratty '62 Suburban, so there wasn't much to hide with photos, and I wasn't expecting much for $2,000. I have always been happy with the truck, and 5 years later it's my still-ugly daily driver. The second was last October, and pretty good photography wise, and had some good build photos so I could see what was under the paint, and the owner was honest about the body flaws. However, I was told "One thing about this car is it doesn't leak a drop of oil." Which is right... not ONE drop. A couple quarts on the way home, to the point that it was literally dripping off the rear bumper, so it wasn't actually ONE drop. I was also told "this car is pretty water-tight." Which, again, was accurate. Once the water comes pouring in the windshield gasket and around the doors, the car holds it like a bathtub! It's absolutely water tight at that point: No water will leak out--it sits in the floor pan until it evaporates out. Part of the oil leak problem also turned out to be the distributor having two wires crossed, so it was building crank case pressure. (which I was assured was actually just a stumble because it had a "summer tune" on it, and that stumble goes away when it's warm). It still leaks oil, but not nearly as much, and runs a lot better. It's 50 years old, and my wife currently drives the tires off of it as her daily driver. (they're both our only running cars) The third car I bought was from a '73 Duster I bought in LA and drove home two years ago. He mis-diagnosed the distributor being out of time, thinking it was a vacuum leak. I disagreed and thought it was electrical, but we didn't have a timing light. I drove it a couple thousand miles back to Atlanta chasing heating issue after heating issue, popped the head gasket in the desert, bypassed the heater due to a leak, MacGyver'd the upper and lower radiator hoses, ran out of gas in the desert thanks to a faulty gas gauge, etc. etc. Hell, life's an adventure... Buy a cheap car that you won't be disappointed with, buy a few Craftsman tools when you fly into town, and drive the bitch home. As long as you remember that a nail clipper file can be used to fix points and rotors, duct tape can girdle a radiator hose, and a zip tie can replace a fuel pump, you've got nothing to worry about. What's the worst that can happen? -Brad
talk to the seller over the phone, talk to the seller over the phone, talk to the seller over the phone. Can't say it enough. Don't get starry-eyed over the car or the description. Have him/her send as many pictures as you want - every part of the car that may cause concern. If they get edgy, just back out. A valid seller will not only understand your concern, they will be more than happy to allay your fears and present their vehicle in its actual condition. Anything other than that, keep looking. Evasive answers, pictures won't load, car is in a dark garage/shade/under cover - forget it. There are no rules for protecting yourself except to PROTECT YOURSELF. Do NOT relinquish possession of your cash until you are absolutely satisfied that you and the seller have a complete understanding of the condition and marketability of the vehicle in question. If you get any nonsense about how easy it will be for YOU to get a title, find out why he/she didn't take the same simple steps in their state. Believe me, unless you're face to face with some old grizzled dude (such as myself) that has had the car forever and just can't find the title, you have NO business acquiring a car that you may not be able to get paperwork for. PROTECT YOURSELF, and....talk to the seller....if it's such a good deal, why hasn't he/she been able to get rid of it in the local market? good luck, keep the Vaseline® close dj
I've done this several times, and so far with good results. I follow several rules of thumb. 1) Talk to them on the phone, not just email. 2) ASK TONS OF QUESTIONS. Often times, they will say "NO RUST". but really, they don't know what the underneath of the car looks like. Make them crawl under there and see AND take photos. 3) Email photos of everything you can think of. 4) Make a judgment call, and roll the dice. 5) Not sure this does any good, but I always ask them what 5 main things need to be fixed or repaired. Also, what would they fix if they were going to keep the car. A liar will lie anyway I guess, but this is another good attempt to get them to tell you what "might" be wrong with the car. Good luck! Bottom line, if you can't put your hands on it YOU are taking risk. Figure that into your buying price. If you can't get a REALLY good deal, I wouldn't risk it.
Pictures make any car look better,eyes on what you are buying or get Hamber to check it out for you,I drove from Tampa,Fla.,to birmingham ,Alabama to buy a 55 Chevy,damn that picture lyed about that piece of crap.Its your money so by looking at the car yourself a bad purchase can only be your fault.
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