buying sight unseen..
10-26-2004, 09:55 AM
#1
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buying sight unseen..
Hey all,
Just looking for a little advice on buying a car sight unseen... There's a CPO '01 allroad that I'm interested in, but there's no way that I'll be able to actually see the car until it gets here (MN) from the dealer (CA)... Am I nuts?
Ken
Just looking for a little advice on buying a car sight unseen... There's a CPO '01 allroad that I'm interested in, but there's no way that I'll be able to actually see the car until it gets here (MN) from the dealer (CA)... Am I nuts?
Ken
10-26-2004, 10:03 AM
#2
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I'd ask for a pic of every inch of the car...
and service records. I'd also spend the few $ and run a carfax vehicle history report to check for major accidents and just to confirm that the car came from where the dealer said it did (e.g. leased vehicle).
People do it all the time on ebay...and you're getting the CPO status from Audi USA which is a good insurance policy.
People do it all the time on ebay...and you're getting the CPO status from Audi USA which is a good insurance policy.
10-26-2004, 11:11 AM
#3
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Frequent flier miles are your friend.
You can book a flight on short notice for no more miles than if you plan ahead, IIRC. Fly out, check out the car, dip your toes in the Pacific, and go back home. It'll be fun.
So what's so special about this one, anyway? Just curious. There are currently 368 2001 allroads for sale on autotrader.com.
-df
So what's so special about this one, anyway? Just curious. There are currently 368 2001 allroads for sale on autotrader.com.
-df
10-26-2004, 12:02 PM
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Re: Frequent flier miles are your friend.
If only I had enough...
Its a Certified 6sp (only 4 on autotrader) with under 30k miles in the color I want (black). I grew up in the Tule fog of central CA, grey/silver/white scare me...
Its a Certified 6sp (only 4 on autotrader) with under 30k miles in the color I want (black). I grew up in the Tule fog of central CA, grey/silver/white scare me...
10-26-2004, 12:15 PM
#5
Lemme tell ya...
I did exactly that - bought a CPO '01 ar from a dealer in NJ via ebay; I live in CO.
My thinking was, any mechanical issues would be covered under warranty so all I really needed to be concerned with was the aesthetics and wear condition. When I was 'checking out' thru ebay, they had a recommended partner service provider which performs remote inspections. I paid them ~$85 to visit the car at the dealer, inspect "every inch", fill out a complete inspection form, and photograph any damage or blemishes.
I got the report, and it was unimpressive but didn't raise any red flags. When I got the car (delivered via a hauler I arranged), the driver pointed out all the curb rash on the wheels. There had been NO mention of this in the inspection report, of course.
So then I was stuck with the dealer saying, "Of course those damaged wheels were on the car when they inspected it - that is one reason the car was so cheap." And the inspection service saying, "There is NO way our inspector could have missed such obvious damage." Of course, there was not a single photo of any wheel in the inspection report, and I also noted later they didn't correctly note tire tread depth. And I found a few very minor body blemishes they missed.
I demanded my $85 refunded, and did not get it. Went on to badmouth the inspection service as loudly as possible to ebay, and they never responded or seemd to give a rip. Got a few hundred $$ worth of comp out of the salesman, in his effort to get a good ebay eval (I'd already given him a neutral - and detailed - Audi eval about which he was moaning).
Summary: the paid inspector wasn't worth crap. Don't accept any inspection report unless it has a photo of every inch of the vehicle. Or, go see it yourself.
Cheers.
My thinking was, any mechanical issues would be covered under warranty so all I really needed to be concerned with was the aesthetics and wear condition. When I was 'checking out' thru ebay, they had a recommended partner service provider which performs remote inspections. I paid them ~$85 to visit the car at the dealer, inspect "every inch", fill out a complete inspection form, and photograph any damage or blemishes.
I got the report, and it was unimpressive but didn't raise any red flags. When I got the car (delivered via a hauler I arranged), the driver pointed out all the curb rash on the wheels. There had been NO mention of this in the inspection report, of course.
So then I was stuck with the dealer saying, "Of course those damaged wheels were on the car when they inspected it - that is one reason the car was so cheap." And the inspection service saying, "There is NO way our inspector could have missed such obvious damage." Of course, there was not a single photo of any wheel in the inspection report, and I also noted later they didn't correctly note tire tread depth. And I found a few very minor body blemishes they missed.
I demanded my $85 refunded, and did not get it. Went on to badmouth the inspection service as loudly as possible to ebay, and they never responded or seemd to give a rip. Got a few hundred $$ worth of comp out of the salesman, in his effort to get a good ebay eval (I'd already given him a neutral - and detailed - Audi eval about which he was moaning).
Summary: the paid inspector wasn't worth crap. Don't accept any inspection report unless it has a photo of every inch of the vehicle. Or, go see it yourself.
Cheers.
