GS' on eBay?
06-14-04, 03:09 AM
#1
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GS' on eBay?
Has anyone ever bought/sold a GS on eBay before? Did the transaction go smoothly and were you satisfied with what you got? How come there are so many that are so cheap?Seems like some auctions are too good to be true. If anyone can help me out, that'll be great. Thanks.
06-14-04, 07:03 AM
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"Too good to be true" That's what you have bear in mind when shopping Ebay. Sure, there are some good deals on Ebay, but I would never buy a car site unseen from an Ebay auction. You run the risk of buying a car which has been wrecked and repaired or flooded or god knows what else. Now, if the car is within a couple of hours drive of you, then you have the option of inspecting it first. I bought my car sight unseen, but it was from Lexus of Ann Arbor and a CPO car. Be careful and good luck.
06-14-04, 08:02 AM
#3
I purchased mine from an ebay auction. Orlando Infiniti (Orlando, FL) was selling the car so I flew down to pick it up. There are some good deals to be had and I felt a little better about buying the car from a franchise dealer rather than an individual. I did do my homework on the car before I bought it. I called my local dealer and had him pull the service history and had him go over EVERY repair order that he could find. Turns out that the car all records up to date and got a clean bill of health from the lexus dealer who performed an inspection for me. A clean carfax helps but I felt better once I got the inspection and the service history. Besides, the Lexus dealer didn't even charge me for the inspection. Here is the link to my auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...RK%3AMEWN%3AIT
Just do your homework because there are some good deals to be had. Also, think about buying an extended warranty for added piece of mind.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...RK%3AMEWN%3AIT
Just do your homework because there are some good deals to be had. Also, think about buying an extended warranty for added piece of mind.
06-14-04, 11:13 AM
#4
Driver School Candidate
My cousin (bananags) bought his really nice GS on Ebay from out of state. I bought mine on Ebay, too, but in my home town. I'd like to test drive before I buy. I think Ebay got the best prices and is the best place to buy a preowned GS. Find one in your home town.
06-14-04, 11:58 AM
#5
I've checked some cars on Ebay, a couple of things:
1. Check out the sellers feedback rating, and pay special attention to the negatives, they could tell you a lot about the sellers. Contact those that left negatives to get their side of the story on why the deal went bad.
2. Read the seller's terms very carefully. If they want FULL payment before you even check out the car, don't do it--it will commit you to the car. I can understand a deposit, but not full payment. For some franchise factory dealers (i.e. Lexus or Infiniti dealers that have Ebay ads), it might be OK to pay them in full ahead of time.
3. A handful of sellers (I'd say about 5%) will allow for a FULL refund if you don't buy the car once you inspect it. That is, you give them a 10% deposit and after you check it out and don't like it, you aren't locked into the purchase. If they don't, then only buy from a franchised major dealership to help ensure good followup. Also, those 5% that allow for a full refund, they tend to be more honest and have the better feedback ratings as they want you be happy before, during, and after the sale. The others tend to try to sell you the car, and get you into a binding contract on the car sight-unseen (which is potentially a very bad thing to get yourself into).
4. Talk to the seller via phone, so you can get a feel for what sort of seller they are--honest, pressured, or even sly? That will give you an idea of the ad they posted.
5. Pay attention to the quanitity, quality, and size of pictures on the ad. The more and the higher the resolution of the pics, you'll get a good idea of the shape the car is in. If you need more pics, ask the seller for more--the good, responsives should easily and quickly comply.
6. Do a Carfax (Ebay has somethign similar for $5.95, on each car Ebay ad there is a link to the car check--it utilizes the same public database as Carfax). If the car has been in an accident, I'd probably shy away from it (depending on how major of a wreck it was). If it has "SALVAGE" or "RECONSTRUCTED" title, don't even bother looking at the car. Also, Carfax (and other car checking services) only get about 60% of what's been reported, so don't have blind faith in them.
7. Call a local Lexus dealership to run a service history check (you just supply the VIN number), and they'll tell you what's been done to it (so long as it was serviced at any national Lexus dealership)--this should be FREE. If the car has a good service history, then you should be that much better off in buying it (less maintenance cost for you).
8. Check out the other cars they are selling on Ebay. If they are selling other high-end cars, you can get a feeling what sort of operation they are running.
9. Lastly, but more importantly, just because you want a certain car--be PATIENT and the best car for the best deal will come. It may take up to 3 months to find the perfect car (like it did for me). Make sure if you are planning on buying a car, it has all of the features that you can NOT live without and it is the right color that you want--have be sure to have both the MUST HAVE options list and also your color preferences BEFORE you start shopping (as you'll have a clear mind then). If you start shopping without either list, you're asking for trouble and will be tempted to sell off what you just bought later on for somethign you should have bought in the first place--trust me on this one.
An Ebay seller like "icckk" is great place to start, as they have great terms and great selection and quality of cars--they get the factory lease returns. I actually bought my car from them about a year ago, although I negotiated even further down offline (as the same car was also listed on AutoTrader).
1. Check out the sellers feedback rating, and pay special attention to the negatives, they could tell you a lot about the sellers. Contact those that left negatives to get their side of the story on why the deal went bad.
2. Read the seller's terms very carefully. If they want FULL payment before you even check out the car, don't do it--it will commit you to the car. I can understand a deposit, but not full payment. For some franchise factory dealers (i.e. Lexus or Infiniti dealers that have Ebay ads), it might be OK to pay them in full ahead of time.
3. A handful of sellers (I'd say about 5%) will allow for a FULL refund if you don't buy the car once you inspect it. That is, you give them a 10% deposit and after you check it out and don't like it, you aren't locked into the purchase. If they don't, then only buy from a franchised major dealership to help ensure good followup. Also, those 5% that allow for a full refund, they tend to be more honest and have the better feedback ratings as they want you be happy before, during, and after the sale. The others tend to try to sell you the car, and get you into a binding contract on the car sight-unseen (which is potentially a very bad thing to get yourself into).
4. Talk to the seller via phone, so you can get a feel for what sort of seller they are--honest, pressured, or even sly? That will give you an idea of the ad they posted.
5. Pay attention to the quanitity, quality, and size of pictures on the ad. The more and the higher the resolution of the pics, you'll get a good idea of the shape the car is in. If you need more pics, ask the seller for more--the good, responsives should easily and quickly comply.
6. Do a Carfax (Ebay has somethign similar for $5.95, on each car Ebay ad there is a link to the car check--it utilizes the same public database as Carfax). If the car has been in an accident, I'd probably shy away from it (depending on how major of a wreck it was). If it has "SALVAGE" or "RECONSTRUCTED" title, don't even bother looking at the car. Also, Carfax (and other car checking services) only get about 60% of what's been reported, so don't have blind faith in them.
7. Call a local Lexus dealership to run a service history check (you just supply the VIN number), and they'll tell you what's been done to it (so long as it was serviced at any national Lexus dealership)--this should be FREE. If the car has a good service history, then you should be that much better off in buying it (less maintenance cost for you).
8. Check out the other cars they are selling on Ebay. If they are selling other high-end cars, you can get a feeling what sort of operation they are running.
9. Lastly, but more importantly, just because you want a certain car--be PATIENT and the best car for the best deal will come. It may take up to 3 months to find the perfect car (like it did for me). Make sure if you are planning on buying a car, it has all of the features that you can NOT live without and it is the right color that you want--have be sure to have both the MUST HAVE options list and also your color preferences BEFORE you start shopping (as you'll have a clear mind then). If you start shopping without either list, you're asking for trouble and will be tempted to sell off what you just bought later on for somethign you should have bought in the first place--trust me on this one.
An Ebay seller like "icckk" is great place to start, as they have great terms and great selection and quality of cars--they get the factory lease returns. I actually bought my car from them about a year ago, although I negotiated even further down offline (as the same car was also listed on AutoTrader).
Last edited by SeattleGS400; 06-14-04 at 12:31 PM.
06-14-04, 12:22 PM
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Ebay makes me smile
Really it does I was on the hunt for my GS for over 6 months no dealerships in my area were giving imo fair deals (Lexus is a very popular brand in my area) I looked and fell in lust w/ her. Luckily she was in a suburb of Baltimore about 15 mins away and I was able 2 test drive her and lust turned into love. The previous owner was the 1st and only owner and it was a lease all the service records were up to date and had a remaining 52K left on the extended warranty he had purchased. If I had not been able 2 see the car I would not have bought the car from a private owner my first choice was a 300 in Fl. that fell thru but it was a very reputable dealership.
The most IMPORTANT THINGS:
*Do your research use multiple sources
*Use Carfax but do not put all your faith in it ( my car was in an accident front passanger side fender replaced and bumper painted carfax didn't show up)
*DO NOT RUSH
*Check feedback and responses from disgruntled buyers
*Email the people who left negative feedback
*keep an open line of communication w/the seller (they should all ways be available get a home, cell, and/or work # if they are hard to catch up with before you pay for it imagine the things the car hides)
*if out of state get a third party inspection of the car ebay has some recommended services
*If out of state use an escrow account which allows for your money to be dispursed once you receive delivery and is satisfied w/the car (if you refuse delivery because something is wrong w/the car you keep your money)
The most IMPORTANT THINGS:
*Do your research use multiple sources
*Use Carfax but do not put all your faith in it ( my car was in an accident front passanger side fender replaced and bumper painted carfax didn't show up)
*DO NOT RUSH
*Check feedback and responses from disgruntled buyers
*Email the people who left negative feedback
*keep an open line of communication w/the seller (they should all ways be available get a home, cell, and/or work # if they are hard to catch up with before you pay for it imagine the things the car hides)
*if out of state get a third party inspection of the car ebay has some recommended services
*If out of state use an escrow account which allows for your money to be dispursed once you receive delivery and is satisfied w/the car (if you refuse delivery because something is wrong w/the car you keep your money)
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