Buying cars sight unseen...

Does anyone have any suggestions on this? Are there any services where you can have someone go look at the car for you? I've seen some cars on ebay that look interesting but they're on the east coast.

I've only done it once before and luckily it worked out but it was kind of a special circumstance. It was my 64' Lincoln and the guy drove it from SoCal to my house in NorCal and didn't get paid until he arrived so I figured it was a solid car.

Do you just have to trust people?

Don't trust anyone, the used car scene and now unfortunately the classic car scene has lost its old school ways. Buddy just got burnt hard on a 59 Buick sight unseen. Try to find a local shop near the car and pay a little bit for an inspection. Pictures can be very misleading and hide a lot of issues

I've been searching for a Cadillac forever and I'm really digging this one but it's in freaking Florida. Any Orlando RDP'ers by chance?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1970-Cadillac-DeVille-/162381596482

82.4% .... On eBay is pretty weak rating IMO.

Find a local for sure to check it out.

Nice ride.

https://www.carvana.com

A vending machine for cars......

I have no idea if it is good or bad, I just remember it from when we looked at their last fundraising round in 2016.

I just don't think I could do it..

My buddy just bought a house in havasu sight unseen though? so.. lol

I would buy a new or CPO car sight unseen, but that would be it.

RiverDave said:

I just don't think I could do it..

My buddy just bought a house in havasu sight unseen though? so.. lol

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^^^^
I bought my house in Havasu "sight unseen"...

I had looked at a lot of houses with my realtor, so she knew what we were looking for. I was in Dubai and she emailed me with some pics and said "this is the house you're looking for". I emailed back and told her to make an offer, which she did and was accepted. Finally saw the house about a week and a half later, couldn't be happier and she "nailed it", it was what we were looking for.

GRADS you looking for a old caddy?? i got a cadi connection that knows where some gems are he has 4 of them for his self. what iv learned about them is there is a shit ton of electrical and vacuum lines under those hoods...lol

DON'T BUY ONE SIGHT UNSEEN- everyone's 8 or 10 on a clean scale is way different

I had a friend purchase a Big block 1972 corvette from Florida a couple months ago. ($40k)

He's spending another $15k to get it road worthy, from all the pictures, you could not tell it needed a new exhaust, the front end was trash, and the tires were 15 years old (but still new).

I bought a 77 Bronco sight unseen...


First email and ask for a ton of detailed pics.

Then call the guy on the phone and ask him to snap some specific pics while walking around the car and send them in real time. This gives you the confidence that what you are being shown is what you are grtting.

In the specific case of the Bronco (And most American iron) If the paint and body are in the shape you expect dealing with mechanicals is failry easy.

... I think you should buy this car it's taking up space in my garage where I could be putting a reclining chair with a cupholder for lemonade ... don't tell anybody it's a secret sale ...

I bought new and used sight unseen and would've liked to have viewed them both. New Solara convertible from Longo Toyota came with dash panels that didn't match up and I regretted never taking it back every time I looked at them. I bought a used Vette from a dealer and had it shipped from Minnesota. While there was video/lots of pictures they were taken 8 feet away that didn't show a crack around the door handle and the Carfax didn't report any damage (I tracked down the previous owner who said he hit a deer and wiped out the door). So I say you should view a vehicle if possible - just my two cents.

If I can't crawl and look underneath, no bono. Lot of tell tale signs under that no internet pictures cover, ever.

Willie B said:

... I think you should buy this car it's taking up space in my garage where I could be putting a reclining chair with a cupholder for lemonade ... don't tell anybody it's a secret sale ...


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throw this on the market these cars are popular thru the south and bay area

You've got nothing but time on your hands. Get on a plane go look at it. Negotiate down a little to pay for trip and arrange shipping.
Simple for a trophy husband.

Grads, or anyone else for that matter , the mil has a 64 I think thats only got 60,000 ish miles thats been parked for years . I'm sure it needs a lot of tlc due to sitting so long , but at 25 grand for that one you could drop a ton in hers and still be ahead.
I have no idea what it might be worth but her biggest concern is that it gets a good home.

I have purchased 3 Ebay cars sight unseen. I was very disappointed to totally pissed off when they were delivered. Look closely at those pictures. That car looks like apiece of shit with a buff job and new tires. I would stay away from it.

707dog said:

GRADS you looking for a old caddy?? i got a cadi connection that knows where some gems are he has 4 of them for his self. what iv learned about them is there is a shit ton of electrical and vacuum lines under those hoods...lol

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Yes I've been looking for a 65-70 Coupe DeVille for a while now. If your guy knows of some please let me know. As far as electrical and vacuum hoses go, I'm used to that. I think my Lincoln Continental had more than any other car out there.

pronstar said:

I would buy a new or CPO car sight unseen, but that would be it.

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I had a GT3. PTS with a color that there were only a few of as only a few of us picked that color and paid the 5500 bucks for PTS.

Hit twice, once by a priest (seriously) and once by an uninsured person. Neither structural hits but both required some cutting and welding of aluminum and both reported.

A couple months ago a guy posts on a porsche site about his used CPO GT3 with custom color blah blah blah. I say are the last 4 of the VIN xxxx. He says yeah, how did you know. I say it used to be my car, how much did you have to pay given the accidents.......

I mailed in my sworn affidavit last week with a couple dozen pictures, he didn't know anything about accidents and they were both on carfax. Never disclosed.

I wouldn't buy a used car without an independent inspection, especially when dropping six digits. Factory CPO or not.

You just can't trust people any more.

Willie B said:

... I think you should buy this car it's taking up space in my garage where I could be putting a reclining chair with a cupholder for lemonade ... don't tell anybody it's a secret sale ...


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Cool car. What is it ? And whats asking $$?

Ebay offers a service to hook you up with a inspector, you pay the inspector and they do a full multi point Inspection with pictures and send you a copy of the inspection report of the good and bad if the inspector fucks you with bad info eBay kicks him to the curb. I had a friend looking for a 5 window and he turned down 3 or 4 before he bought one when it came it was exactly what the inspection report said as well as the pictures he said well worth the money.

4Waters said:

Ebay offers a service to hook you up with a inspector, you pay the inspector and they do a full multi point Inspection with pictures and send you a copy of the inspection report of the good and bad if the inspector fucks you with bad info eBay kicks him to the curb. I had a friend looking for a 5 window and he turned down 3 or 4 before he bought one when it came it was exactly what the inspection report said as well as the pictures he said well worth the money.

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What's the fee on something like that?

I used a home inspector before I've bought my homes, and the value there was well worth it.

Have a friend that purchased a $300,000 Hemi Cuda' number of years ago online.

we warned him to send one of our friends to go look at it in the Midwest before he bought it

When it arrived you could tell it had been hit in the front pretty severely and repaired nothing you could ever tell online with photos but there were certain crunch points that had a little wrinkles in them. The damage probably do value of the car by at least 10%.

Never buy online unless it's CPO or new. Like PT Barnum and said, there's a sucker born every minute and the Internet is full of sellers and suckers.

Classic Daycruiser said:

What's the fee on something like that?

I used a home inspector before I've bought my homes, and the value their was well worth it.

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I don't what it cost but it wasn't cheap, these guy's get work through ebay they don't want to screw up that easy paycheck, one of the inspectors told my friend that if you are caught taking money from the seller your fucked

Rotten deal said:

Cool car. What is it ? And whats asking $$?

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...It is a 1973 Buick Centurion Convertible...pretty rare car...I kind of redid it the way I thought Buick should have done it in the first place...I have owned it since '90 or '91...here are some pics of the way I redid the interior... ...$14K...

Nice . I thought it was a buick. Just didn't know model.

GRADS said:

Yes I've been looking for a 65-70 Coupe DeVille for a while now. If your guy knows of some please let me know. As far as electrical and vacuum hoses go, I'm used to that. I think my Lincoln Continental had more than any other car out there.

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I drive by one every night on the way home from work. Lowered, 24's?, nice white paint and black top. Its parked in front of a low rent tire and rim shop on Aurora Ave just north of Seattle. It looks good, but I have never seen it move. If you would like I can stop and get the details?

NFW would I buy a car like that with out having at a minimum a third party look at it. Are you confident in your ability to really vet an old car that's been worked over?

Grads, I watched the video on the car then flipped through all the photos. The video doesn't really show the defects (notice they didn't show the drivers side door sill plate?? The door has sagged and rubbed the paint off and exposed bondo) but the photos do. Nit picking always depends on pricing of the vehicle, and I didn't see what they were asking for this one nor do I know what they are worth, but I can say this car is not a 10, not even close.

The bumpers need to be straightened and re chromed, except for the upper portion of the front bumper. The paint is flat and solid (shiny) on the doors and quarters, but the detail areas not so much. Notice how uneven the gap is at the bottom of the doors? There were some rub marks on the door panels that show red color, makes me think some one died ( black 3M interior paint) a red interior to black. One of the photos was disturbing, it was taken from what looks like the drivers side rocker panel area, but it appeared that the floor pan had been ripped on either side of the frame rail and fiber glass resin used to fill in the holes. Hard to tell and there were no other pictures of the floor pan of the car. The chrome trim on the vinyl top that was painted black is chipping off. I could go deeper, but again, it comes down to price. Don't buy that car without having some one look at it unless the price is just to good to pass up, and you know what they are worth in varying conditions.

Do not buy it blind. Find a shop close to him, maybe a dealer and pay them for a PPI
(pre-purchase inspection). Also look for a mobile vehicle appraisal company and pay for a report.

I used that car as an example. I really do like it but this was more of a general question.

I have a triple black 68 convertible Cadillac that will be for sale in the near future. 98%rust free. pretty nice car..

bonesfab said:

I have a triple black 68 convertible Cadillac that will be for sale in the near future. 98%rust free. pretty nice car..

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Pics? Price? I might be VERY interested.

LHC Kirby said:

82.4% .... On eBay is pretty weak rating IMO.

Find a local for sure to check it out.

Nice ride.

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Yup. Keep looking. That score is a deal breaker.

I buy cars sight unseen from all over the country. I mostly deal in modern cars because I can send them in for inspections at their brand dealers. I ALMOST bought a late model Porsche GT3. Seller was a respected broker but almost pulled a fast one on me. I spent 300 for a full PPI (pre purchase inspection) inspection at porsche and it lead to leaking head gaskets and a partially fucked transmission among a slew of other issues I probably would not have found until I had it in my hands for a month. I also negotiate cars to where even if there is unforseen issues I have saved enough or there is still enough meat on the bone to stay cash positive on cars. I am not a dealer or anything, I just like to buy cars play with them for a little bit and not lose my ass and try and make a small amount of money.

As far as classic cars .. I would put eyes on it, drive it, and find a competent mechanic and pay him to do a full on inspection of the car from top to bottom.

Willie B said:

...It is a 1973 Buick Centurion Convertible...pretty rare car...I kind of redid it the way I thought Buick should have done it in the first place...I have owned it since '90 or '91...here are some pics of the way I redid the interior... ...$14K...

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What a cool car [emoji106]
I don't recall that model at all...
It sort of has an Oldsmobile-ish front end, and the tail of a Riviera.

pronstar said:

What a cool car [emoji106]
I don't recall that model at all...
It sort of has an Oldsmobile-ish front end, and the tail of a Riviera.

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... I saw one of these probably around 1980 on the corner of a car lot in the West Valley... didn't know what it was ...didn't turn around to go look at it but later on when I spotted another one around 1990 ,...I became obsessed with them and I'll bet I looked at 20 of them before I bought this one...if you sat this next to an Oldsmobile and looked at both cars you could see that the Buick is a better looking car...

...It was my girlfriend and myself's touring car...I had a 70 Torino convertible and a 60 Cadillac convertible at the same time but it just seems like we took the Buick 90% of the time???...

Wow you have had some really cool cars . I like them .

Rotten deal said:

Wow you have had some really cool cars . I like them .

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...and then I got into boat collecting...lol...

Grads, if your really looking for a car, post up what you want, let the members of RDP assist with finding it. Price, model, year, stock or customized.. all would help us help you. Seems that you liked your Lincoln, but now want a caddy from the same era? There are a couple of ways to go, buy a clean low mileage survivor (going to take some cash to get to cool status), something some one else has turned to cool status (they would charge a premium for this, but build quality would always be a questions and wouldn't perfectly match your tastes) or buy something and have a shop make it what you want. Seems the third options would be what you want, but you would need to start with the right car. Cadillac's from the 60's are huge. Paint and body work would be your largest expense followed closely by re-chroming and interior. Mechanical and electrical issues are trivial as are rims / tires and suspension. Those are cheap compared to the first three things it takes to make a car cool.

I found a couple of local cars that would make a great start to what I think your looking for -
Never seen one of these before, has a muscle car look, but still huge.

https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/6051511213.html EDIT - had no idea these things were front wheel drive. Since your Grads, and probably have a poster of Ralph Nader in your garage, you may enjoy the first in class safety features in the car and let the FWD aspect not effect your decision?

https://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/ctd/6056803145.html Change the top color to black, rims / tires, blackout the windows. Stereo. Done.

18,000 Canadian. Nice starting point.
https://vancouver.craigslist.ca/van/cto/6052066330.html

28K miles, put some rims on it and tint the windows and call it good.
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/ctd/6048045426.html

Or just buy this, drive it for a little while and sell it off. It pearl white, but already has some cool applied, albeit by our brethren to the north. The exchange rate is back on our side now, I'm sure you swing a nice deal on this one.
https://bellingham.craigslist.org/cto/6038284786.html

GRADS,

You'd look better in a 1933 with a V-12.....Just saying


https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/cto/6058606226.html


(not as many vacuum lines and electric motors either)


Or this 1969 convert. https://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/6045382457.html

IROCDave said:

Grads, if your really looking for a car, post up what you want, let the members of RDP assist with finding it. Price, model, year, stock or customized.. all would help us help you. Seems that you liked your Lincoln, but now want a caddy from the same era? There are a couple of ways to go, buy a clean low mileage survivor (going to take some cash to get to cool status), something some one else has turned to cool status (they would charge a premium for this, but build quality would always be a questions and wouldn't perfectly match your tastes) or buy something and have a shop make it what you want. Seems the third options would be what you want, but you would need to start with the right car. Cadillac's from the 60's are huge. Paint and body work would be your largest expense followed closely by re-chroming and interior. Mechanical and electrical issues are trivial as are rims / tires and suspension. Those are cheap compared to the first three things it takes to make a car cool.

I found a couple of local cars that would make a great start to what I think your looking for -
Never seen one of these before, has a muscle car look, but still huge.

https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/6051511213.html EDIT - had no idea these things were front wheel drive. Since your Grads, and probably have a poster of Ralph Nader in your garage, you may enjoy the first in class safety features in the car and let the FWD aspect not effect your decision?

https://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/ctd/6056803145.html Change the top color to black, rims / tires, blackout the windows. Stereo. Done.

18,000 Canadian. Nice starting point.
https://vancouver.craigslist.ca/van/cto/6052066330.html

28K miles, put some rims on it and tint the windows and call it good.
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/ctd/6048045426.html

Or just buy this, drive it for a little while and sell it off. It pearl white, but already has some cool applied, albeit by our brethren to the north. The exchange rate is back on our side now, I'm sure you swing a nice deal on this one.
https://bellingham.craigslist.org/cto/6038284786.html

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Thats some funny shit right there! I really appreciate the links. I'm looking for a mostly stock car. Some lights mods are ok because I will more than likely bag the car. I've narrowed it down to a 65-70 Coupe Deville convertible or hard top.

Classic Daycruiser said:

GRADS,

You'd look better in a 1933 with a V-12.....Just saying


https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/cto/6058606226.html


(not as many vacuum lines and electric motors either)


Or this 1969 convert. https://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/6045382457.html

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I've been eyeing this one hard. I saw another add this guy placed and the rear drivers side quarter panel had a pretty dent but that's not that big of a deal. The bottom line is I have around 100K of spending money for boat and car. I'd like to get the boat situation squared away first before I get the car but if the perfect one came along I might jump on it.

I love this this Caddy

http://www.aeclassiccars.com/New-Braunfels/Texas/For-Sale/listings/1934-cadillac-custom-black/

copterzach said:

I love this this Caddy

http://www.aeclassiccars.com/New-Braunfels/Texas/For-Sale/listings/1934-cadillac-custom-black/

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That is one very cool ride !!! :thumbsup Maintains that vintage feel, yet with a real modern stance, I just with I could justify that kind of coin for another garage queen :rolleyes

You know Grads, if you buy a gas guzzling smog producing car you have to switch parties, that's the rules. Lol