Advice on buying car unseen needed

[MB_Mike]

I am considering a W126 that is on the other coast of these United States and need a little help.

1) What steps can I take to mitigate problems ie, being ripped off in one form or the other

2) What is the best way to return the car to me on the opposite coast? I'd love to fly in and drive home but I'm also realistic.

Thanks!

[WGB]

Fly over and look for yourself.

[ponton]

There is always an element of trust/risk with any transaction between unfamiliar individuals.  The only real way to be certain of what you are getting is by going and looking at it and checking the mechanicals yourself.  Perhaps this is your answer to number two.  Considering the expense of travelling all the way across the country simply to decide this is not the car for you, it would be best to develop a list of your primary concerns with the vehicle.  Any cosmetic and structural questions should be answered by the seller both verbally and with a photograph (ask them to do this).  This will probably require them to take more photos than what they have since when posting a vehicle for sale you are going to get very macro type images.  It makes it hard to see the rust developing in shadowed areas, for instance at the bottoms of the wheel wells and the rocker panels.  By doing this you are also ensuring that you are seeing new images since they probably wont have them just lying around.  If they are that organized, the car is probably in pretty good shape (my logic anyway).  Anyway, here is the list of questions I generally ask.

-Does the vehicle come with a title? What is the condition of the title?

- Does the vehicle leak any fluids including engine oil, transmission oil, power steering oil, antifreeze, brake fluid, gasoline or winshield washer fluid?  Asking this question at worst case gives you some sort of recourse if it leaks when you get it since if you notice it immediately they should have been aware if they were willing to have answered the question.  My hope is that it gets them to actually look.

- What is the condition of the glass?  Is there any cracking, pitting, scratches?

-What is the condition of the gaskets on the doors and windows?  Has there been any water leaking into the vehicle?

-Is there any rust?  If so what is the extent, please include a photo of any rust including underneath.  

- Is there any ripping/cracking/tearing of the seats, dash and console? Stains in the carpeting?

-What is the condition of the exhaust systme?  When if ever was it replaced?

-What is the condition of the paint? When if ever was it repainted?

-When was the last brake replacement?

-When if ever was the suspension rebuilt?  What components were replaced?

Even if you don't plan on picking it up yourself, make it seem that way until you actually discuss that part of the sale (after you get your answers) this will make them think that you will find any of their un-truths when you come to get the car.  This should make the seller realize that you are serious,. The list is long, but if they have been maintaining the vehicle they should be aware of most of these issues.  If you run through this list about one of your own cars you would probably be able to answer most of them immediately with the answers to the rest readily available.  Pictures are a pain, but so is selling a car...

Hope this helped, just my method, probably missing significant pieces, but you get the idea.

Ponton

[Hemersam]

Ponton's list of questions is very thorough. However, I wonder if many, if any, sellers would take the time to answer them. Even if they did, you have no guarantee that you're being leveled with. My advice is to exercise patience and wait for something to turn up in your area. I resisted the Ebay "distance purchase" thing twice and eventually got two great MBs which I absolutely love.
Hemersam
P.S. Patience: easier said than done, I know.

[thysonsacclaim]

I know this seems a bit weird and perhaps wouldn't be the right thing to do depending on the tech skills of the other person and whether they are just trying to sell fast, but have you considered asking them to make a video? Even better would be to see if they could live stream you things so you could ask them to show you certain things. I do this a lot when I contract purchases for third parties in China and India if I cannot get a sample. Of course, it may not work out and a personal once or twice over is always the best way. It was just a thought.

As far as actual delivery goes, well you might do the math and see where the numbers favor you if money is a deciding issue. I would start with getting quotes for a car transport service and then maybe see what it would cost to actually drive the vehicle (providing it is trusty enough to drive), keeping in mind fuel consumption and cost for hotels etc.

Another fantastic idea, which I don't know if they have it going that far east to west, would be to check Amtrak. Here in Florida, we have an auto-train which drives from Florida near where I work straight up to Virginia. A lot of Defense Contractors, politicians and Pentagon folks use this to travel for work or when Congress is in session because you can bring your car along with you and not have to rent one when you arrive. (check out the train routes here: http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?c=Page&pagename=am%2FLayout&p=1237405732511&cid=1237405732511 ). The cost from going to Virginia from Florida is about $400, that's the regular fare (coach class), including dinners, sleeping bunk and transport of the car. Again, I don't know if the train service running East to West has the option to bring your car though.

There is another service that does just car shipping and that is http://www.autolog.net/ . You don't travel with it, though, I don't believe.

I'm not sure how reliable this car is you're considering buying, but I'd set aside a risk pool of money and include that in your figures for "just in case" something goes wrong if you plan on driving it.



Anyway, best of luck to ya!

[MB_Mike]

All very helpful replies. Thank you. I am so impulsive and emotional and trusting all very bad traits when negotiating. Oh did I mention impatient? I am in the process of having a mechanic inspection done however it was a place suggested by the seller  as there is a bit of a time constraint on both are parts.

This just may be a bad idea all around.

[MB_Mike]

Found a place to do a PPI for me. From their report it seemed that they focused mostly on cosmetics and didn't offer much insight to the mechanicals.

Typical 25 y/o car stuff, door and trunk rubbers, slow-noisey sunroof, faded wood, weak drivers seat ect...

What bothered me most was the exhaust was bodged and there was a crossover pipe running right under the tranny pan. 1. heating the fluid 2. blocking access unless you dropped the exhaust. Also the tranny cooler lines were repaired with JB Weld at some point which just sounds sloppy.

There were lots of little leaks which bothers me since the ad said "no known leaks" and also touted a rebuilt power steering system and suspension system and both were weeping like widows.

SO. The moral is get a PPI and the lesson is...Well I obviously haven't learned that because I am still considering the car 

[Hemersam]

I repeat: wait (patience is a great virtue) and search until you find what you want close to where you live. If you keep looking, you'll eventually find "the one."
Hemersam

[thysonsacclaim]

Well Mike,

Perhaps it wasn't meant to be. I think a lot of us get that butterfly feeling when we have an opportunity to buy something we really (think) we want / need. At least I do.

I think, though, when you find 'the one,' you will know. I notice things tend to line up in favor of me getting something if it seems it was 'meant to be.'

I remember spotting my car, just a few months ago. I saw the ad on Craigslist. When I first saw it, I could have bought it but I would have been eating rice and pourage for a month as it would have sufficiently drained my bank account.

I waited a while; saved up more while looking at other cars. I really needed something to drive because I transferred the loan on my prior vehicle to a family member in order to save money so I could take more classes. I just put it out of my mind.

A month and a half passed and I found out the car was still there for sale. It was about $900, a little more with tax, tag and title. I'm not sure what $900 buys in your neck of the woods, but here most of the vehicles were early to late 90s Japanese imports with phrases like "Does not go in reverse (car is parked facing garage," "Has no third gear," "Needs transmission," "Does not start" on the ad and so forth. In other words, quite a bit of work would be needed to make them remotely driveable and I didn't really think it would 'pay off.'

My car isn't perfect, but the bottom line of my anecdote is this: if it seems to hard to purchase, for logistical reasons or whatever, it may not be for you.

I think, if it doesn't work out, you will find something down the road which is better, closer to you, and has fewer leaks and other issues.


That's just my 2 cents.



Cheers

[ponton]

Sounds like you want to walk away from that one

[crs79]

MB_Mike, are you a member of peachparts.com?  Incredibly knowledgeable community with members everywhere.  Meaning there is usually someone in the area in which you are searching that can go look at a car for you.  Usually for little to nothing, and I would trust their judgement.