How do you go about buying a car on the other side of the country?

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ESP47

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I'm looking at a couple cars on craigslist that are about 1800+ miles away from me but I was just wondering how you guys go about making the purchase while protecting yourself from fraud?

I figured I'd pay a couple hundred bucks for an inspection and if everything goes well, I'd make the purchase and then pay a shipping company to get the car out here.

How do you guys go about making the purchase and getting the title? I can't seem to find any straight answers online other than "fly out there" but that's not really in the cards right now. There has to be some sort of way to do it to protect yourself from someone just taking your money but I'm not sure of what the cheapest and safest route is for that.
 
I drove over 7000 miles last November to get one I wanted & tow it home.

Results may vary, but I had a great trip. :)
 
I passed up a Dart not long ago that was a $1000 plane ride away. :BangHead::BangHead::BangHead::BangHead::BangHead: There was dozens of photos and I felt pretty confident it was a good car. Should have pulled the trigger.
 
I have only bought one car sight unseen, and it was as described and delivered before the promise date.
I bought it off this site, googled the guys address, and it was legit, but it was within 5 hrs of me.
 
I bought a car that was about 1100 miles from me. I Googled the city and found numerous car repair shops. I called a few until I found one that agreed to inspect the car (on a lift) 100 percent for $59. They even sent me an inspection report. I bought the car (had it shipped) and it was exactly as advertised and exactly as inspected. It was well worth the $59. I offered to pay more they wouldn't hear any of it. I don't think you'll have to spend $200. Shipping was $1100, but that was 3 years ago. treblig
 
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Being in Canada I have bought 2 cars for the US that were all over 1800 miles away. I bought when dollar was par or close to it.

I leveraged the members on this website to make the purchases. I asked for any local members willing to check out the car for me. People here are real helpful. Typically had 10 or more offers. Found someone in each case that was very qualified and mechanically savvy. I offer to pay them but they turn it down. So I ask for an address and I send them a little something for their time. Lots of dependable transport companies on here too. Both purchases went off perfectly.
 
I bought a car once in N.B. Canada 3000 (I'm in Calif) miles away everything that could go wrong went wrong; dishonest people, poor quality car, etc. But the trip was a gas! Made some good Canadian friends and it made for a great Good Guy article. If I ever were to do it again, I'd hire a local appraiser to look at the car first, its cheap insurance.
 
I finally learned my lesson to NEVER buy a car sight-unseen from the internet. But, it took me three separate car fiascos to "get it." Two were from back east and when they arrived here in SoCal they were rust buckets, one had a stuck engine. Another was a hot rod that turned out to be such a Frankenstein mess that it would never be road worthy. That was ten years ago that I decided never again.
Getting a professional or someone from FABO to thoroughly inspect it would be a minimum safeguard. Personally, I'd save until I could buy the plane ticket or just wait for a car to come up locally. You definitely cannot believe the sellers.
 
I offered to pay $150.00 for the inspection but the auto repair shop told me that there standard fee was $59.00. I didn't argue and I must say, they did an excellent job....in fact the guy that inspected the car told me that if I didn't buy the car that he would!! Treblig
 
Just curious on an inspection, do they perform a compression test?
 
TRWRacing said:
Just curious on an inspection, do they perform a compression test?
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They should for a little extra?? Like I said, it's worth spending $100-$200 in order to NOT LOSE many thousands!! Just make sure they put it up on a lift to check it out real good. I think the pics were free. treblig
 
Went across country once to get married
Went across country once to buy a car
slammed my fingers in a car door once
won't do that again either!!!
:rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
Ok. I won't be buy another used/vintage car without a compression test. I learned my lesson.
 
I've bought two cars off the internet. First one, I drove five hours and checked it out.
The second one, was across the country. For $220 I hired a inspection company who inspected the car, drove it, and looked at all the special things I asked for. They sent me a detailed report and 140 pics. I thought it was money well spent.
Be very, very, careful!! Shams are all over the internet!!
 
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X2 on all the above. A couple of things to think about. If the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is. There are precious few screaming deals to be had anywhere. Yes, give a shout-out for some local help off the forum. I'd trust a pair of FABO eyes far sooner than what a seller tells me. Watch for bad spelling, syntax, punctuation, capitalization, etc in the description. While we all have different levels of competence in life skills, tortured English is a red flag. Don't agree to a bank-to-bank transfer. Insist on an exact address where the car can be found, along with a name and phone number for the seller. And above all, pay attention to your spidey-sense. If something smells funny pass on the deal. I just this week passed on a killer 65 Belvedere because it was priced WAY too low, the seller wouldn't respond with how to get a local person to inspect it, and payment was requested as bank-to-bank instead of cashier's check or cash as listed in the ad. The email response to questions looked like it was written by a second grader. I hope the guy that bought it really winds up with the car - I don't think it will ever appear.
 
halfafish said:
X2 on all the above. A couple of things to think about. If the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is. There are precious few screaming deals to be had anywhere. Yes, give a shout-out for some local help off the forum. I'd trust a pair of FABO eyes far sooner than what a seller tells me. Watch for bad spelling, syntax, punctuation, capitalization, etc in the description. While we all have different levels of competence in life skills, tortured English is a red flag. Don't agree to a bank-to-bank transfer. Insist on an exact address where the car can be found, along with a name and phone number for the seller. And above all, pay attention to your spidey-sense. If something smells funny pass on the deal. I just this week passed on a killer 65 Belvedere because it was priced WAY too low, the seller wouldn't respond with how to get a local person to inspect it, and payment was requested as bank-to-bank instead of cashier's check or cash as listed in the ad. The email response to questions looked like it was written by a second grader. I hope the guy that bought it really winds up with the car - I don't think it will ever appear.
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You’re smack on! Had I done any of what you have suggested instead of following “ my woodie” I’d be thousands ahead . Every thing you have said is correct.
 
So here are some other thoughts on the matter. I'm going into a lot of detail in the hope that no unsuspecting member gets sucked into this ****-show.

A very new member selling a car who has few posts is something to consider. Not that new members have no value because we all started somewhere, but one all the sudden selling a car is a question mark that needs an answer. Red Flag. I've followed several cars for sale, where the OP never responds to email requests for more info. Hmmm, you're trying to sell your car, but you won't respond to a PM or to contact directly in your ad? Red Flag. Multiple requests for more info with no response. Red Flag. Pricing way out of line either high or low. Red Flag.

Here are some observations on a scam I was tempted to buy into last week. My next car will likely be a 65 Belvedere. I think they are just oh-so-cool. A big block with a 4-speed would have me spinning circles. I see this ad on eBay, it's a GORGEOUS car, currently listed at 11K with a day to go on the auction. I contact the seller for more photos, and receive more photos, but the response is odd, like they learned English at parochial school. The price is ridiculously low. This is clearly a rotisserie resto, and at 11K it's already passed the reserve. Really? This is a 35-40K car, selling for 25% of what it's worth? WTF? After a lot of get-a-grip-on-yourself conversations in my head, I decide not to bid. I haven't missed a moment's sleep over it - I think this was crap, and whoever won the bid at 13K will never see this car. Here are some photos of the car, and a copy of the email I got from the seller. Hell's Bells, just the engine and all the listed speed goodies are worth the bid price.

32840_63trs1.jpg
32865_63trs26.jpg
43365_5ec09f3763e0new11.jpg


All my questions were answered - sort of - except for how can I send someone local by to look at the car. That got no response. Here's what I got from the (supposed) seller:

Hello ,
This car is a pristine ,Fully restored to the highest standards, super nice! Always garaged, Excellent condition ,Looks & drives great . Very clean interior and exterior, very Well maintained. The Car comes with 2 keys, owners manual, and a clean/clear title ready for transfer to new owner .Totally free rust car . I can help with shipping to Battle Ground, WA

For payment I accept Bank to Bank Wire Transfer
Thank you and let me know


Note the awkward linguistic response.

So, bottom line, even though I am majorly jonesing for this car, I sit it out. I just can't believe this is for real. The takeaway from this story is, don't be sucked into an attractive deal if the details don't add up. Ask many questions. Insist on good answers. A legit seller would have no issue with an in-person inspection. And don't ignore your spidey-sense!!!

A final thought. Maybe I'm being a horse's *** being suspicious. If the buyer really gets this car for 13K, well yay! I will be forever jealous, and apologize to the seller for being unkind. But I suspect, the buyer got had, and the seller is laughing his *** off in Bosnia, or wherever scam artists live.
 
I only purchased 1 car from the Internet and it was here on FABO with the car located in south Ga. I live in southern NY. I asked for pictures in addition to what was posted. The seller posted excellent pictures of the spots I asked for. Those key spots that make doing anything anroyal pain.

Living in the rust belt I can handle certain things but I’m not into doing major structural repairs. This was only a shell with annasking price of $700. And it was worth it. It resides here now. Not a complaint!

If you can not get the pictures you desire in a good quality shot, pass on it. And since mine is a shell, it was an expense I could loose though I would t be happy with loosing $700, it’s not $7,000.

Follow the above advice.
 
The last 5 cars I bought were all done online with me sitting on my *** many miles away from the US across the pond.
I only transfer money when I feel confident I'm actually getting a car in return.
Only once I had the feeling I took a too big risc when I bought a car but it all turned out good.
Shipping was in most cases handled by a shipper which could also arrange a title for the car for export if it didn't had one originally.
 
ZMan67S said:
I've bought two cars off the internet. First one, I drove five hours and checked it out.
The second one, was across the country. For $220 I hired a inspection company who inspected the car, drove it, and looked at all the special things I asked for. They sent me a detailed report and 140 pics. I thought it was money well spent.
Be very, very, careful!! Shams are all over the internet!!
Click to expand...
BigBlockMopar said:
The last 5 cars I bought were all done online with me sitting on my *** many miles away from the US across the pond.
I only transfer money when I feel confident I'm actually getting a car in return.
Only once I had the feeling I took a too big risc when I bought a car but it all turned out good.
Shipping was in most cases handled by a shipper which could also arrange a title for the car for export if it didn't had one originally.
Click to expand...
Treblig said:
I bought a car that was about 1100 miles from me. I Googled the city and found numerous car repair shops. I called a few until I found one that agreed to inspect the car (on a lift) 100 percent for $59. They even sent me an inspection report. I bought the car (had it shipped) and it was exactly as advertised and exactly as inspected. It was well worth the $59. I offered to pay more they wouldn't hear any of it. I don't think you'll have to spend $200. Shipping was $1100, but that was 3 years ago. treblig
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How did you guys make the actual purchase and do the title transfer? At some point it seems like you just have to send your money and hope a car comes back but is there some sort of way to send your money and have some protection or security in case the person has no plans on sending the car back?

Also how was the title transfer done? You had to put pen to paper at some point. Was it just mailed to you or did it show up with the car?
 
Maybe I lead a blessed life, but of the many cars I purchased sight unseen (no physical visit), I never had an issue. Everything was pretty much as I was told. My one caveat is that I will not buy unless I can personally speak to the owner who is selling. My payment is always by Bank Draft in registered mail, not by courier. I make sure they know that the USPS does not like mail fraud and takes it very seriously. In regards to titles, the only way a vehicle title matters to me is that I need it to clear out of the USA. Importing into Canada, they could care less about the title except to make sure it has been cleared by US Customs. I do not need a title to register a car in Canada. The signed, original title must be in the car when it crosses the border. All I really want is a Bill of Sale, stating clearly what the terms of the deal are and how much I paid. As I understand it now, each vehicle must have an export number and the SIN of the US seller or its a no go. Only a US broker can supply a export number (cha ching$$). All in all, I've generally had no issues and with the always minor exceptions in details, the transactions have pulled off well, and I generally got what I thought I was paying for. I agree though, scams are definitely on the rise, and maybe I was just lucky over the years.
 
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