Odd selling experience

So I have a guy interested in the Golf. He's in Massachusetts and asked his grandparents who live about 2 hours away to come look at the car. Very nice older couple show up and I have to explain why it's so low (suspension), why it's so loud (sport exhaust), why it buzzes (engine mounts). In the end, the gentleman looks me in the eye and says, "The kid is crazy, but I think he'll love it."

funny.

That is awsome.

So, does the purchase include a subscription to GRM?

Did we miss the Classifieds ad?

I got a pretty quick bite on a Vortex feeler. If it falls through, I can post it here. Or you can email me if you're interested as a back up.

I once had a guy come look at a car I had advertised for whatever amount or OBO. He made a low ball offer, I said no thanks, then he left. A couple weeks later he called and asked if I still had the car. I said yes. He asked if I had received any other offers. I admitted to him, as a matter fact, no. Then he proceeded to demand (I know, I know, you think I'm exagerating but I'm not) that I turn over the car to him since his offer was obviously the best offer I had received. And I do mean demanded.

Another time I went out to look at a car. The owner gave me the keys and then said take it for a spin. While out driving it, I stopped at the gas station to fill up the tires since the car had sat for a while. A guy came up to me, noticed the for sale sign and started asking me questions about it. I almost sold the car to him for twice the asking price and it wasn't even my car.

I had an old Datsun for sale that two college students (from Africa) were interested in. I had just replaced the clutch cylinder and I guess I didn't bleed it correctly.

45 minutes later they come pushing the car down my street as the clutch pedal was on the floor. "You guys still interested in the car" NO!

I think they pushed it 1 mile that day.

BTW I thought you just got this car? or is this the first one? or the rust free one?

I had an '89 Jetta(Digifant) that had been giving me fits & left me stranded a couple times in the cold. It really had me stumped for a while, so I bought a replacement. Eventually, I thought I had it fixed so I put it up for sale for $500(it was otherwise a good clean car) at out rummage sale. A guy came by, drove it & bought it(and the microwave in the trunk I couldn't get rid of).

It died on him the next day, but that was ok - he was the reason I spent the night in jail one time(long story...).

I've had it about a year....work is done, installments are in process...time to move on to the next.

one time I sold a car to a guy who never sat in it. he looked at it, listened to it but didn't drive it. After he paid me for the car I practically had to twist his arm to get him to drive it away. (he was going from a CRX into this STS)

internetautomart wrote: one time I sold a car to a guy who never sat in it. he looked at it, listened to it but didn't drive it. After he paid me for the car I practically had to twist his arm to get him to drive it away. (he was going from a CRX into this STS)

I had nearly the same experience when I sold my last miata. It wasn't listed for sale, the guy never drove it. He brought his wife by to look at it and then handed me the cash and drove away.

I've done that to a couple Miatae. Often people asking "You interested in selling?" Why yes, I am. Here's how much. They go to the bank, and bring back cash. Too bad they aren't all that easy.

Not the same thing, but my father started looking at houses for me a few days before I returned from a 6 month "visit" to Japan. What he thought I would want in a house, and what I thought were important.....well, next to no "cross-over" in opinion. I'm surprised the father recognized his son would like the car.

My strangest experience...

I bought a completely original (never painted, still in original colored gelcoat) low mileage SAAB Sonett III. In storage for years in FL.

My transporter brings it to Chicago for me... getting off the Interstate at my house, the car comes loose from the tiedowns and slams into the front of the trailer, destroying the pristine and original nosecome as well as the rad, etc...

Long story short, his insurance pays me everything i had in the car (plus his transport fee) then offers the car to me for $125. So of course I take it.

I put it for sale on Ebay and it sells for as much damaged as I paid for it. So now I've doubled my money.

Guy comes to pick it up... turns out he's an auto transport guy headed to San Diego. And I have a Lotus Europa and a F440 and race trailer that needs to go there. He quotes me half of the lowest quote I'd been quoted, so I make back about half the SAAB price again.

He has room for them, but not for the SAAB, too. So he plans to pick it up on his way back east.

He pays me in full for the SAAB, takes the title, loads up the Lotus and race car, then 3 days later delivers them to the buyer in San Diego without a problem.

He then disappears off the face of the earth. Email, cell phone, etc... all dead. I try for about a year to get in touch with him to no avail.

A few months later I'm moving from Chicago and need to dispose of the car. My storage place agrees to take the car in exchange for a year's rent that I owe them... again about what I paid for the car to begin with. They intended to get a storage lien on it for a title.

So I made about 250% on the car... without turning a wrench on it. My best car investment to date. ;-)

Bill

Sounds like me and Saturns, I sold my 07/08 challenge car for a grand. I had put in a trans, KYB struts, H&R springs, clutch and the usual misc. items. All told I had about $1700 into the car. When I sold it I took off all the performance bits and put it back to stock besides putting an additional 70k on the odometer. I sold it the day that I left for the 09 challenge.

Kevin

just sold my moms mini van that she has owned since 96 last week to 2 guys from over seas for $700.....we started off at 900 or best...they show up and ask hom much and i say make offer, they come up with the 7 and i say sold......they where from scotland and the other from aussie....at least the pos is gone...i really hated that thing over the last 20 years or so that she had it.....

I wondered if this was going to turn into one of these threads.

Keep them coming

i bought my cressida less than two weeks ago off a craiglist add i saw the day it was posted , it was a running 85 wagon for $500 , i called the lady the next morning ,arranged to look at it within the hour . As i showed up at this seaside trailer park and started to walk around she came out and saw the car i was in ( 07 charger) and with a weird face she said "well....do you still wanna buy it?" , i said "yeah , you said it runs and drives no problem right?" she said "yeah " and proceeded to show me the car in really, really, really detailed fashion and kept giving me that "are you for real?" look. she asked if i wanted to drive it around and i said no , i believed her about it driving fine and i knew that cars this old really were not to be nitpicked at ..... i didn't even haggle her on the price and the whole entire time she was super puzzled that i actually would want to buy this: "slight front fender damage-really dirty/ashy/dog hairy interior-old-funky-wagon-thing" when i showed up in a nice newer car... i could just see her scratching her head as i left the driveway and drove away smiling like a fool . she included most service papers since '98, the owners manual and , the toyota shop manual .... every one at home gave me the same puzzled look when i showed up with it too....haha

Per Schroeder wrote: I got a pretty quick bite on a Vortex feeler. If it falls through, I can post it here. Or you can email me if you're interested as a back up.

Just wanted to apologize for wasting your time before, Per..I forgot that the lead time on a magazine was so long, and didn't realize the car was finished. I thought you'd given up on it, and thought the time was right to strike...shoulda known better than to try it on one of the guys who taught me how to do that stuff in the first place!

I sold a 1984 olds cutlass with a V6 engine that had bad valve seals. I used to regularly change plug #1 until the parts guy sold me an anti-fouler for the plug.

I try to sell it for $750 and a guy comes over and buys it for his aunt. I told him 10 times to constantly check the oil as I only got 110 miles out of burning the first quart. he told me he didn't really care.

I wonder how long that car lasted......