Buying, shipping, and safe money transfer on sight unseen purchase?

Hey everyone. Ive always wanted a Terminator and I'm finally in a position to buy one. I found one but it's about 12hrs away.

I'm thinking I want to have it shipped, but me and the seller both want to try to take the risk out when it comes to him knowing his getting the payment and me knowing I'm getting the car once he receives payment.

What are some options you all have used? Ideally if there's a shipping company that would handle holding and transferring the funds once the vehicle and title have been received by them I would like go that route, but I'm doubting there's a shipping company that will do that.

I've read an escrow would probably be the best bet, but I have no experience with that and I'm not sure if that would work for sure?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Fly out there and trailer the car back. I personally wouldn't purchase a car sight unseen. I drove 1500 miles one way for my Cobra and it was well worth it.

I have purchased/shipped 7 Cobras including a few sight unseen. If you can get there to see it in person, that is always best. Plan B is tons of pics/videos/FaceTime. I have always spoken at length with the seller, getting to know them some before making the deal. Each time, I have felt comfortable mailing them a cashier’s check. They sent me a copy of the title, I mailed them the check and then we waited for the funds to clear the seller’s bank. Once the funds cleared, transportation was scheduled and the seller put all paperwork, including the title, in the trunk.

There have been a couple surprises through the years on the sight-unseen cars, but nothing I couldn’t fix.

Don’t buy it sight unseen. Spend the few hundred and fly out to inspect the car. One mans “its mint” may not equal what your definition of “mint” is.

I just bought my 90 notch off a member only here sight unseen. But on 12 hours I'd make the trip.

Fly out there, if you like it drive it back. Fun little road trip.

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Agreed. I’d fly or drive out to check it out and hand over the cashiers check. Good luck in buying! Post pictures when you lock up the deal.

Bought my cobra sight unseen literally across the country. I mailed him a check then I scheduled transport of the car.

Bought my cobra and f250 sight unseen. Most recent with the truck I got a copy of the title, bill of sale, and wired the money. Once his bank got the cash he over nighted the title. Went through a shipping broker and had it shipped up.

I was looking at escrow.com when I was considering a purchase 1/2 across the country. I read a few good articles about them and seemed like a nice service to protect both buyer and seller. They do charge a fee but if you split it with the seller it's not incredibly expensive.

This is of course if you don't want to fly out and see it in person. You could also try to find a reputable shop near him to perform an inspection of the car on your behalf.

When it comes to purchasing these cars "most" of the time you will have to buy from someone who is "not" local to you. Then you will need to decided how bad you want the car and what you're willing to do to get it.

I purchased both of my Cobra's sight unseen. My coupe was in Lubbock, TX being sold by a dealer and my Vert was in Phoenix being sold by a member on this site. Both were close enough for me to go look at before purchasing them, but based on the pictures and conversations with the sellers I felt it was not necessary.

Both times the seller would not do anything without funds. Completely understandable because you have to pay for something before it will be released to you. So, both times I had my bank wire the funds to the sellers bank.

Once that happened:

• My coupe: the dealership had a representative drive my coupe to me. He brought all the paperwork and I signed everything at my house. The dealership offered to pay for anything I identified as wrong with the car and gave that to me in writing. Once all the paperwork was completed I took the representative to the airport. I then went home and thoroughly inspected the car. Sent a list to the dealership of the things I felt needed to be addressed. They called my local Ford dealer and purchased everything on my list. I went and picked up the parts and installed them. It was a great experience.

• My Vert: I drove to Phoenix with a trailer and met the seller at his home. He gave me the keys, the paperwork and any parts he had. I loaded the car and drove home. I cleaned the car up and then commenced to getting it up to my standard. I went to the DMV to register the car in my name. They said the title was not signed in the correct spot and could not title the car in my name. Called the seller and then sent the title overnight with overnight return envelope. Seller signed in the correct spot and sent the title back. Besides the extra money I had to spend to overnight the title back and forth, it was a great experience.

Bottom-line is anyone looking for a Terminator will more then likely have to buy one from someone who is not local. So, you will have to travel to inspect it, have someone inspect it for you or buy it sight unseen. I know there are risks involved, but it can be a rewarding experience if you do "your" part in the transaction, while protecting yourself as much as possible.

If theres a reputable mustang shop near the car's location pay to have them inspect it and report back could be another option