Buying and shipping site unseen

[oneof185]

Didn't know where this post would fit best so thought I'd get opinions here.
I know some have had to buy their cobras site unseen due to distance, convenience or whatever. I'm having health issues right now that doesn't really put me in a good place to drive long distance. However, several I'm considering are all far away.
I would like to think buying off here with longtime members would be fairly safe, especially on a low mileage, not heavily modded cobra.
Any thoughts and then suggestions on best way to do a transaction like that? From getting video, wiring money with memo or what, to getting title sent separate?
Thanks for your suggestions ahead of time.

 

[Mojo88]

I went through this process very recently. Here's a thread on it: https://www.svtperformance.com/foru...havent-seen-it-yet-delivery-tomorrow.1140716/

I will say that I probably got lucky. The seller turned out to be a real gentleman (a member here). I had lots of conversations with him, and the deal was slow to coalesce, but eventually I just bit the bullet, made him an offer (a very fair one, IMHO) and he accepted. I took a huge leap of faith and directly sent him certified check. He came through admirably and honestly, and got the car loaded onto a delivery service for me, along with extra parts. So I guess a LOT of it depends on how you feel after getting to know the seller.

I've had my car for about 6 weeks now. It was everything as represented by seller, but it did/does have some issues, as does any used car.

Good luck in your potential deal!

 

[ITSTOCK]

Read some of the other threads on this forum. All I'm saying is, I wouldn't.

Have a people look at it whom are familiar with these cars if you can't look at it yourself. I looked at close to 20 different cars before buying my current Cobra, and not a single one was represented accurately.

 

[04RFVert]

Didn't know where this post would fit best so thought I'd get opinions here.
I know some have had to buy their cobras site unseen due to distance, convenience or whatever. I'm having health issues right now that doesn't really put me in a good place to drive long distance. However, several I'm considering are all far away.
I would like to think buying off here with longtime members would be fairly safe, especially on a low mileage, not heavily modded cobra.
Any thoughts and then suggestions on best way to do a transaction like that? From getting video, wiring money with memo or what, to getting title sent separate?
Thanks for your suggestions ahead of time.

Robert at hi-end auto in VA shipped mine with no issues. He provided all the pics and videos I requested.

 

[BlksvtCobra01]

Try High End or have a reputable SVTP user go check it out for you slip em a couple bucks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[dom418]

My SB was bought site unseen. For the most part it was just as described. Ask a lot of questions, request lots of pics and videos etc.

You should know from talking to the guy if he seems honest. I actually even google earthed the guys address to make sure the pics of the car matched his house.

I wired the money which was nerve racking since it was over $30k but the seller was very quick to communicate and responded quickly to my texts. Like I said, I had a good feeling and went with my gut.

 

[zredfire04]

the only way i'd consider that is if i reserved the right to refuse the car if it showed up with issues that weren't disclosed.

if you have a good friend or family member that you trust to check out the car and drive it home, that could work.

barring those two situations my advice is to wait until you can do it yourself unless you're willing to risk disappointment. i don't think they're going to be hard to come by any time soon.

 

[Iamchris]

OP, you should really look into getting a 3rd party inspector if you can't make it. They have people that do this for a living, and they are usually very good and detailed. Yes, it will cost some money to vet a car you become interested in, but it will be worth it.
In addition, or even alternately you could get someone from the forum to check it out for you. Possibly even do both, have a forum member check it out, then arrange an inspector before the final sale. The buyer might not like it much, but it is worth it. The biggest downside to having anyone look at it for you, is that standards are different... what bothers me on a car usually doesnt bother other people.
I took that angle when I bought my Viper, but I ended up finding the right car by posting on a forum... the seller decided to sell AFTER seeing my post, sent me a message and I drove 2 hours to his location several times before securing the car... and even then the car was brought to a very reputable shop and combed over before I bought it.

If you have anything pop up in the Mass, CT, RI area feel free to give me a shout.

 

[R.D.P.]

Could you fly, inspect and drive the car, close the transaction, then fly back and pay for transport? I know that would be extra money but might be worth it.

I personally think if it's a long time member on here that is an original owner, or long time 2/3rd owner, you are much more likely to have an honest transaction and get a good car. I would also say, the higher your budget, the more likely you are to get a good car and have a good transaction.

 

[03cobra#694]

There's a newer thread in road side about this. On my phone, so not sure it's the one linked above.

 

[tones_RS3]

I bought my car sight unseen. I had the dealership send me a lot of high resolution photos and a great 10 minute video of the car set to private on Youtube so only I could view it. Had the car enclosed trailer home and it was just as advertised and promised.
Did all my questioning/"talking" through email just to have proof or "paper trail".
Good luck OP!

 

[oneof185]

Thanks everyone for your quick replies. I've considered several of the ideas posted, I agree 100% not everyone is the same. I spend a lot of time detailing cars and what bothers me, a lot of people don't see.
It just seems to me the terminator owners on here seem pretty hardcore with expectations so I was hoping their descriptions were fairly spot on.
Considering a relative but they know nothing about cobras but know what would bother me I think and be able to check basic things....I'll have to decide here soon. Again thanks for the feedback, much appreciated!

 

[03cobra#694]

I bought my car sight unseen. I had the dealership send me a lot of high resolution photos and a great 10 minute video of the car set to private on Youtube so only I could view it. Had the car enclosed trailer home and it was just as advertised and promised.
Did all my questioning/"talking" through email just to have proof or "paper trail".
Good luck OP!

That GHIG doesn't look like a Cobra Tony. lol

 

[c6zhombre]

I bought my terminator from 04sleeper sight unseen...wired the money before I ever got there to see it

worked out pretty good! lol. man of his word

 

[dpj99cobra]

I bought mine from pics only from member Cool Cobra. He met the transporter and it was trailered to my driveway. Honestly I was hesitant just because it was good money and I'd never done anything like this before. I found someone local to him who knew him and was very reassuring of the kind of man I was negotiating with so that was huge. End of the day it was good for both of us...well at least for me

Sent from my SM-T710 using the svtperformance.com mobile app

 

[03cobra#694]

I bought my terminator from 04sleeper sight unseen...wired the money before I ever got there to see it

worked out pretty good! lol. man of his word

Got lucky, that car wasn't very well documented. lol

 

[Westbayou]

Bought mine from a distance, but didn't exchange funds until we met halfway. Car was meticulously documented, but for sure there were a few scratches etc. that weren't obvious in the pictures. Bottom line I'm very happy with my purchase, but there is no way I would exchange money sight unseen unless it was from a well known dealer of these cars like Hi End. I looked at a bunch of these cars before buying, including a lower mile local car before buying a car 500 miles away. The reality is most of these cars have been raped at this point, so finding a clean example like I did takes some research and work. If dealing with a forum member, make sure you do a search of every post they made on this forum. If there are any major issues with the car typically you'll find a message trail on this forum. I considered a couple cars over the years until I found a post like "Engine making noises after hitting the rev limiter, what do you think it is." Goes without saying that isn't a car you want to buy.

 

[c6zhombre]

Got lucky, that car wasn't very well documented. lol

Lol....good point! All the more shocking it went unsold for almost 4 weeks. I had time to think about, make a decision to try for it, complete the sale of my really nice mystichrome vert....then hope it was still available. I could have ended up with nada lol, quite the gamble

 

[Black Gold 380R]

I purchased both of my Cobra's sight unseen.

- My coupe I got in 2007. Bought it from a small dealership in Lubbock TX. I seen plenty of pictures. Owner told me that once I inspected the car he would replace anything I was not happy with and gave me a 7 day money back guarantee if the car was not as described.

He had a guy drive the car out to me. I inspected the car and signed the paperwork (of course I had already paid before they drove out). I called the dealership and told them of a few items that needed to be replaced (headlights, radiator support cover and I think a broken A/C vent). They called my local ford dealer. Ordered all the parts I asked for and paid for them. I went to pick them up and installed them. No problems.

- My Vert I bought sight unseen from member here in April of 2016. Car was a bit rough and needed some TLC. However, the price was great and I was looking form something that needed a little work.

Here is my thread if you want to see the kind of work I did (never mind photobucket has disabled all the links to photos, but you can still read about the purchase).

https://www.svtperformance.com/forums/threads/and-the-winner-is.1108428/

Anyway, I drove out to Phoenix with a trailer and picked the Cobra up. This one was buy as is. Again I seen lots of pictures and asked a lot of questions. Had my bank wire his bank the funds and then I went to pick it up.

Brought it home and fixed everything to bring it up to my standards. Car has been a great car and worth the money I paid!!!!

- I did it twice and did not have anyone look at the car for me first. I did everything through the internet and phone calls to the seller.

So, I know it can be done and done successfully. Ask questions. Have the seller send you plenty of detailed pictures. Get a video of the car running and have the camera at the engine to see if you can hear anything ticking or knocking or rattling/loose. Then have the camera at the exhaust with a few revs to see if any smoke comes out etc.

Good luck. This can be a very cool experience.

 

[geoffmt]

I bought my Bigdog sight unseen after speaking to the owner quite a bit. He is a very respectable guy and honest. He didn't want to sell it to me without having someone look at it. My credit union worked with him for the titlework. I couldn't find a shipper so I drove the 2200 miles each way to pick it up. the bike was nicer than I expected. I still keep in contact with him.
I bought my audi sight unseen from a dealer in Connecticut as a certified used, it had a few issues that I had the nearest audi dealer fix (2 hour drive away)