Potential sellers, please read this! (warning:Rant inside)

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shadango

shadango

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I have to vent a bit, and as a newbie here, I hope y'all (or YUNZ, in Pgh lingo) don't mind. :)

(rant mode ON!!!)

I have been looking for an old Mopar for just a little while now....a few months I guess. I am checking ebay, craigslist, the for sale area here, etc daily, waiting for the right one to come along.

I am willing to travel 3-5 hours to find the right one, but only after doing some screening. I have already gone to look at a couple that were 3 hr drives.

But, in this economy, it is EXPENSIVE to go and see every car in person without doing some pre-screening. Your ad is not the only ad I am looking at.

If someone posts an ad on the internet, I assume that they can and are willing to provide MORE info via the internet.

Why are so many sellers NOT understanding that? Why do so many say "If you are serious, I can send more pictures." or "I have had quite a few inquiries about this car."

They post a 12 word ad on craigslist and then balk about my asking for photos and more info, or insist that we talk on the phone.

Before making a multi-hour road trip to see a car, I would like to see floors, trunk floor, door jambs, under the car, various angles of the body, interior details, etc. Basically stuff that you would look at if looking at a car before you buy it. The more pics the better.

If I stumbled upon a 1970 hemi Cuda that is said to be in good shape for $5,000 I might jump in the car and get there ASAP with only a pic or two. But I am looking at Dusters and such in the $5-8k range and there are a LOT of people who believe that their beater is worth every penny of that. Well, I say, prove it with pictures and a detailed description and I will buy.

Is it a pain for the seller to take and post all these pics? I guess to some degree...but how bad do you want to sell you car? After all, YOU are the one who posted the ad offering your car for sale to begin with. YOU are the one who wants to sell ME something.

Another way to look at it, you only have to take the pics ONCE...you only have to write a detailed description of the car ONCE. If I pass on your car, you can use those pics and that detailed explanation to present your car to the next potential buyer.

I am (very) serious about finding a car....however, I won’t know if I am serious about your car until I can get more detailed info....pictures speak a thousand words and answer even more questions. You are X hours away from me.....I have no problem making that trip to see/buy a car that is worth the trip, but again, I can't know that until I can see more.

If I like what I see in the pics, then a more detailed phone call would be in order.

After looking at a few cars, I have learned that what is said on the phone isn't always as accurate as pictures. True, pictures may not show everything either, and thats where an honest phone call is great.

If you prefer selling to someone who is close to you who can be over at your place in 10 minutes, or if this is too much of a pain, I understand and nothing more needs to be said. Just tell me that in the email and we can both move on.

Or am I way off?

Thanks for listening folks. :toothy10:

(rant mode OFF.....:) )
 
hey man its easy just stick with us here. ive learned more seen more and got my best deals right here! we help everyone most all of us have cars dont need another(as our wives say)so i like passn a deal! or someone with good mopar back ground to maybe check it out first! what exactlly are u lookn for and where u located?
 
I can for sure understand how you feel. I have even gone so far as have cut a deal with some one and while I was making shipping arangements, they called to say "well someone drove up and handed me more cash than you were paying so I sold it sorry".
The car I eventually bought I dove 9 hrs to look at it and make the deal.
I might suggest another place to look ( racingjunk.com) I saw yesterday there were quite a few dusters and demons on there for what I thought were some real steals.
Good luck on your quest, not all sellers think its a pain in the a$$ to supply a potential buyer with added info!
 
Thanks guys, and again, sorry for the rant.

I am looking at Dusters (70-72) mostly....though I would love a Challenger or Cuda....I responded to a couple of craigslist ads for Cudas (one was supposed to be in nice shape for $6,000 due to divorce) and they turned out to be scams...no surprise there.

I am also considering older Barracudas and B body cars. (KOCUDA, yours is sharp!)

Basically, if its an old Mopar I will consider it.

Dont want to get into heavy bodywork...obviosuly I would like as much car possibel for the least cash....LOL

When I see the car I will know I guess.

I am in the Pittsburgh, PA area....
 
I was looking at Dusters/Demons/Darts for about a year. It's true everyone with a Slant 6 A-body thinks they have an original 1-of-16 Hemi car. That's Ebay and BJ for you. It's OK to make a buck on your stuff, but these days people seem to have this sense of entitlement like they're doing you a favor by selling you their car.

I bought my Dart off Ebay in Dec. The seller posted a link to a webpage with over 80 pictures on it, all clear and well composed which basically sold the car. There were some dings and dents but I could see them clearly and felt he was not hiding anything. Luckily I was correct and got a good deal. Never got in my car to drive anywhere but I don't think that's the norm. I've been burned a few times driving several hours one way to look at complete junkers some seller claimed was a great car.

Why not use the tools you have to sell your vehicle, it's so easy to do. And if you're not computer savvy get one of your kids to help out.
 
Wow, you go guy! The only problem is the bad guys don't care! The people trying to sell and decieve you. People are so lazy like quite often these days they post on craigslist HEMI. Too lazy to say 5.7 or 6.1 or 426.

Pictures or phone sales, quite a number of years ago I drove 1,100 miles because the pictures looked not bad, the phone conversation went something like how are the frame rails? Oh, GOOD shape! Only to get there and find this 67 Hemi RT has rot in the frame and transm. tunnel. I was so depressed and upset. I brought the car home anyway though I should have left it.

You have to do your homework very carefully!
 
I hear you. I took a few long trips after seeing quite a few pictures and having long conversations about how "rust free" the car was. I was absolutely livid a few times driving for hours to look at a car that was more plastic than sheet metal. Hang in there, in this economy the right car will come along. My advise is make sure you get the most complete car you can. Chasing down parts will nickel and dime you to death as I've found.

Good luck
 
Short answer - people are LAZY!! I have the same frustration - even more so when i shoot them a very specific e-mail with specific questions, and they reply and only answer half of the questions i asked. That seems to happen to me 9 times out of 10. I even go so far as to "bullit-point" every question so it is clear and concise.

There is NO security risk from scammers when you post pics of the item and a complete, detailed description - there really is NO reason people won;t post pics or give details other than that fact that they are lazy.

I feel ya brotha.
 
I know what your saying,I bought my 66 Dart over the net.The car was in Alabama and I,m in Toronto,pics. were sent but avoided d.side inside trunk,found out PO had back into a pole and it had been repaired(bondo)seller stated 99% rust free.Yah O.K.Also car drives straight down the road.I think 1 light worked on the car,no blinkers,taillights,not to mention he had offy 4 bbl. and headders with the lokar linkage for throttle and kickdown that were totally screwed.How could he possibly drive this car true(lied about that one)overall I,m happy with the car,only because I know how to work on them and have the parts to correct everything.Sorry about the long rant.I was looking for a rust-free A-body(hate bodywork)everything else bolts on or off.Good Luck with your search.
 
I have traveled a bit myself. There are some lame people out there.

I scored a great deal on my second little Valiant here on FABO. Good people on here. I took a flight all the way to Sacramento and the owner picked me up in the car. I got a screaming deal considering all the wok that went into the car.

It sounds like you are doing in the right way by no getting too hasty and buying the first car you come across. Due diligence pays off.
 
I Disagree With All Of You.

I Have Never Seen A Guy Want To Sell A Car So Fast He Wont Take It Off The Trailor Before He Takes The Pics.

All My Questions Are Answered Precisely With No Exagerration About The Condition.

All The Cars I Look At Are 1 Of 1.

They Are All One Owner Cars.

Last I Know The Seller Only Wants To Make A Couple Hundred Dollars.
 
Hey Shadango
I contacted a guy that was 1500KMS from me because I seen an add and one picture for a car. The car was the same color as I had when I was young and was very interested in the car. I got the same song and dance about serious buyers and having a number of buyers, so I explained that I was very interested and was interested in making the trip if the car was in decent shape. He finally relented and sent me a number of pictures and I did make the trip and did purchase the car. I also know from selling some cars and parts you do get a lot of tire kickers, but people have to realize that many of those tire kickers are you buyers. My thoughts if you are not interested in sending pictures and information, you are not interested in selling the product very much.
RANT DONE
Hang in there and enjoy this sight, many great people and lots of great experiences and information.
 
72Swinger340 said:
Hey Shadango
I contacted a guy that was 1500KMS from me because I seen an add and one picture for a car. The car was the same color as I had when I was young and was very interested in the car. I got the same song and dance about serious buyers and having a number of buyers, so I explained that I was very interested and was interested in making the trip if the car was in decent shape. He finally relented and sent me a number of pictures and I did make the trip and did purchase the car. I also know from selling some cars and parts you do get a lot of tire kickers, but people have to realize that many of those tire kickers are you buyers. My thoughts if you are not interested in sending pictures and information, you are not interested in selling the product very much.
RANT DONE
Hang in there and enjoy this sight, many great people and lots of great experiences and information.
Click to expand...
True, but as you said, those tire kickers might have been turned off by the lack of info or pics. the buyer has more to lose in most cases, so if you won;t answer questions or send pics, you're going to scare off the potential buyer. The way to fix that problem is to post all pics and details IN THE ORIGINAL AD. That way the buyer doesn;t have to go through the hassel of sending pics and answering questions from a bunch of "tire kickers."

For the record, I live in PA (north of Philly area) and have driven to Grand rapids Michigan for my Bee, North Carolina for my Dart and a set of fenders 3 hours across that state, Up to Boston for a bench seat for my Bee, 6 hours across state to Pittsburg for 68 Dart buckets, over to West Virginia for a 340 engine, and farthest of all, I drove out to Oaklahoma with my wife's uncle to pick up a car trailer he bought off Ebay. I am ALWAYS willing to drive for a good deal, as long as I know what I find when I get there. I also had a Duster shipped to me from Texas. So, prospective sellers - never underestimate the will and determination of a rabid MOPAR lover and his ability to make a deal work. :toothy10: We're crazy about our cars!!
 
Its funny how non-serious sellers want "serious buyers only".

LOL!
 
If some one is to lazy to give info like. Where they live, pics, or how much they are asking for what they are selling (that happens more than you would think) I just pass on buy and don't give them another thought.
 
When you come across these no-pic producing idiots, keep this in mind; most of you out there think these idiots are lazy and stupid, or can't drive a computer, or whatever. 99% percent of these guys DON'T WANT YOU TO SEE ANY MORE PICS!! They take fuzzy cellphone garbage, or have bad lighting. They blame that on their equipment too. They are fundamentally full of ****, and you know it. If you let yourself believe that they are lazy and stupid, they pretty much got you wrapped up--stroke the check. I know we all want the car REAL BAD, and that's why WE are stupid enough to drive 4 hours to stare at a bag of **** for an hour in disbelief. Then most of us buy the damn thing anyway, cuz we can fix all that stuff, right? These con sellers need their asses whipped. Since it's frowned upon, the best advice I can give is DON'T BUY CARS FROM THESE HUCKSTERS! Move on, something worth your wait and hard-earned money WILL come along. Trust me.

"Rust-free and everything works"
 
"If you prefer selling to someone who is close to you who can be over at your place in 10 minutes, or if this is too much of a pain, I understand and nothing more needs to be said. Just tell me that in the email and we can both move on."
You said a mouth full.
True, a picture is worth a thousand words.
If some calls from out of state to inquire about a car, that tells me they probably are not just a tire kicker. It would get my attention.
On the other hand, just by talking to somone "local" who is selling a car, I can get a good feel about things they don't even tell me.
Does that make sense?
 
This post is exactly what I was was thinking when I made this craigslist ad a short while back after much frustration from vague ads by stupid sellers.
And the guy with the purple Barracuda, don't get me started.
Did you see this guys youtube video, oh man he is taking some heat from the critics..LOL.

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/pts/1006479991.html

I wonder how many guys passed on the ad for the 69 "Barricuda."
 
I once drove from Jax to Kingsport, Tn. (550 miles) to look at a 75 Dart Sport sunroof /6 car.
The seller said that it had a little bit of rust but it ran good, had some American Racing Daisy wheels on it, etc. And the pictures showed just a little bit,
When I pulled into his driveway my heart sank.
Yep, it had a little bit of rust.
No floors, lower 1/4s (inner and outer), etc.
Even the hood, front yoke, cowl and firewall, inner fenders had rust thru.
You could stand off to the side about 30 feet and see the gas tank!
There were only 3 pictures so you could not see everything and they were angle views.
The engine and tranny were pretty good and the sunroof worked.
He was asking 1500 obo for the car. I started backing my R/T and trailer out his driveway when he asked me what I was doing. I told him that he failed to mention that a 'little bit of rust' was surrounded by a huge amount of air and it was just a parts car and not many parts were usuable. And it had 2 Daisey wheels and 2 Cragers-all 4 terribly corroded.

I finally flashed 3 $100 dollar bills and said that he had 30 seconds before I left.

I took home a very ratty Dart with a working sunroof.
 
Shadango, I know how you feel; it took me almost two years of looking on eBay and other sources to find and buy my Dart. I had the same B.S. with Sellers who seemed insulted merely because I wanted additional photos of their cars. The guy who sold me my Dart in 2006 listed it on eBay and provided a detailed description of the car which I found to be totally accurate when the car arrived on the shipper's trailer.
Don't get discouraged, there are still honest people out there willing to behave in a reasonable fashion when selling their Mopar.
BTW, I'm from Greensburg originally. Spent some time in and around McKeesport.
GO STEELERS!
 
we bought our no rust calif. 1968 dart roller 2670 miles from us.

craigslist

1.5 years surfin/saving/learning..unless you ternimal ill..take you time, know your product.

Cars that need work, across the board are droping in price....

ready rides go FA$T..be well.
 
You guys are great! All this feedback is exactly what I needed to bolster my resolve a bit.

The guy did end up sending pictures. Mostly of the trunk and floors...few of the interior, none of door jambs et as I had asked...no pics of the undercarriage up front....but he did make the effort i guess to send something.

Would you guys mind giving me yet some more feedback on a car? (Or should I start a different thread for this?)

I guess i would clasiffy this car as a "20 footer".... ?

There is a hole in the top of the front fender (rust) and what appears to be bulges from bondo (or else REALLY bad rust) in the rear quarters...which means body work and paint needed right away.....I am not a fan of doing major bodywork...was originally a blue interior (lots of those I guess) and the dash was sprayed black and it is coming off in numerous spots....looks like it has a leaking tailshaft on the tranny.....some rust stains seeping down from the seams where there is undercoating....it looks like there is undercaoting on the floorpans but NONE on the frames where it meets them at all..is that "normal"? Seems like there would at least be overspray?

He said it was originally a blue/blue car......But I think the blue was a second paint job...there are spots hwere the frame was blue and then undercoated...and in spots where the undercotting has been worn away you can see blue and then black under it....(see the pics)....that would seem to indicate that it was repainted blue before it was red....

I also think that the exterior pictures of the car (the wide shots) are pictures of when it was first redone....and the closeups are newer pics.

I hate that.....give me CURRENT pictures...not pictures from 10 years ago when it was first done.

So a lot of work....but is this what I should expect for a $5k car? Maybe I am being unrealistic in my expectations....

Here is the description he gives and the pics he sent....

70 Plymouth Duster
-Small Block 318 with 340 “X” Heads, Aluminum intake and Holley 4bbl
-Headers with brand new exhaust
-904 Trans with reverse manual valve body
-8 ¾” 3.55 Sure grip rear
-Large 4.5” Bolt pattern Weld Draglite wheels, skinny up front BFG Drag radials on rear
-Black bucket seat interior
-Runs high 13’s ¼
$4995.

http://s349.photobucket.com/albums/q391/shadango_bucket/70 duster maroon/?albumview=slideshow
 
That is EXACTLY why I took the time to craft the nice ad for my Swinger project. Unfortunately, I spent more time constructing the ad than I did working on the car over the years that I've owned it :) I wish more people would put this kind of effort into selling their cars.
http://70swinger.blogspot.com/
 
shadango said:
You guys are great! All this feedback is exactly what I needed to bolster my resolve a bit.

The guy did end up sending pictures. Mostly of the trunk and floors...few of the interior, none of door jambs et as I had asked...no pics of the undercarriage up front....but he did make the effort i guess to send something.

Would you guys mind giving me yet some more feedback on a car? (Or should I start a different thread for this?)

I guess i would clasiffy this car as a "20 footer".... ?

There is a hole in the top of the front fender (rust) and what appears to be bulges from bondo (or else REALLY bad rust) in the rear quarters...which means body work and paint needed right away.....I am not a fan of doing major bodywork...was originally a blue interior (lots of those I guess) and the dash was sprayed black and it is coming off in numerous spots....looks like it has a leaking tailshaft on the tranny.....some rust stains seeping down from the seams where there is undercoating....it looks like there is undercaoting on the floorpans but NONE on the frames where it meets them at all..is that "normal"? Seems like there would at least be overspray?

He said it was originally a blue/blue car......But I think the blue was a second paint job...there are spots hwere the frame was blue and then undercoated...and in spots where the undercotting has been worn away you can see blue and then black under it....(see the pics)....that would seem to indicate that it was repainted blue before it was red....

I also think that the exterior pictures of the car (the wide shots) are pictures of when it was first redone....and the closeups are newer pics.

I hate that.....give me CURRENT pictures...not pictures from 10 years ago when it was first done.

So a lot of work....but is this what I should expect for a $5k car? Maybe I am being unrealistic in my expectations....

Here is the description he gives and the pics he sent....

70 Plymouth Duster
-Small Block 318 with 340 “X” Heads, Aluminum intake and Holley 4bbl
-Headers with brand new exhaust
-904 Trans with reverse manual valve body
-8 ¾” 3.55 Sure grip rear
-Large 4.5” Bolt pattern Weld Draglite wheels, skinny up front BFG Drag radials on rear
-Black bucket seat interior
-Runs high 13’s ¼
$4995.

http://s349.photobucket.com/albums/q391/shadango_bucket/70 duster maroon/?albumview=slideshow
Click to expand...
While that car doesn't look too bad, I personally wouldn't pay that much for it. Maybe if it was a 340 car. I today's economy, I wouldn't pay more than $3k for that car.
 
Shadango It is hard here in the north-east to find a good a body. You will sort through lots of rust buckets to find the right one. The one is out there just keep looking. Good luck
 
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