Advice on buying a car from a distance?

[PurpleMystique]

I'm looking to buy a new car, and I wondered if you had any advice on what to do if the car is too far away to check out in person. I've seen a few cars within a ~6 hour drive that's close enough to go only if it's a sure thing. I'm a bit gunshy of spending thousands on something I haven't had a chance to see or drive in person, but only buying locally reeeally limits what I can get. Any suggestions?

 

[LauraSVT]

I know exactly what you mean. I bought my SVT in North Carolina, and live in Massachusetts. I strongly recommend at least being able to see the car before you pull the trigger. One compromise may be to put a small deposit on a car that looks like a winner, thus buying you a little time until you can get down there to see it in person. This way, you're not out the ranch if you're wrong.

 

[Tisby]

I live in northern Indiana and bought the Mystique from Florida. I actually had a guy from CEG go check the car out for me. I paid him like $50 to do it... (time, gas, etc.)

 

[Honkeytonk Monkey]

Try to get as many pictures as you can before you make the trip. I had never seen my ZX3 before buying it, but I had seen it in alot of car shows so I knew what it looked like and what condition it was in.

 

[TourDeForce]

Any suggestions?

I've purchased all 3 of my Contiques via Ebay. Closest were in Georgia, but I went all the way to Connecticut to get my Mystique. The one requisite I had was to go only to a new car dealer. You have some recourse if the car is not as described and they are generally willing to let the deal slide if they are shown to be in the wrong. In other words, they have something to lose if you *****.

The Ct Lincoln-Mercury dealer I dealt with actually mailed a dash warp fix kit to me after the fact because they 'forgot' to leave it in the trunk - it was part of the deal.

 

[ButtonPuncher]

I've gotta agree with the others. Get a boatload of pictures and only put down a small deposit. Only pay in full after a thorough test drive and inspection.

I bought a 'tour on ebay a couple months ago and it turned out to be a nightmare. The pictures were taken in a way that they didn't show the hail damage that it had. It also had a bad wheel bearing, a dead radio, a broken fan speed switch, and a massive electrical problem with the gauges. But it had a 50 point inspection by the dealer.

BP

 

[mikeswartz]

don't do it unless you can have a fellow CEG'er check it out for you. i did recently and there can be just too many dilemas, booo craigslist, it seems like a good idea but overall people are just too dishonest and they don't share your passion for these rides! to them these are just old fords!

 

[catfish]

pay by credit if you do, if at all possible. That way if things get sour you can deny/contest payment if things get sour (car not as described, etc.) Credit cards are very good with this kind of thing, because of all the fraud and such they have strong policies to protect their clients money, its probably the safest way to buy if your worried about a scam.

Its always much easier to fight someone if they don't have the money in their hands yet, and it will force them to justify their handling of the transaction and how they described the vehicle (ie, was it misleading?)

Do visit it if at all possible though.