Crazy/Unusual Things You've Done To Buy a Vehicle

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It was more crazy and unusual for the time period given it was 2001, but I had worked out a deal on a new 2001 Nissan Sentra for the bride, including the trade in, entirely online. It was from a local Nissan dealer as well. Just had to show up to sign the papers, give them the trade and drive home the new sentra.
 
Paid a dealer to do a pre-purchase inspection before even seeing the truck (prior owner dropped it off.)

Drove several hours to inspect and test drive it myself. Paid seller and did paperwork at dealer. Paid dealer to deliver truck on a flatbed 150 miles away to my house the next day.
 
Bought a 1-way plane ticket to Alabama to buy a used Buell XB12XT...very rare motorcycle. The owner of the bike even picked me up at the airport. I paid cash, grabbed the title and started the 12+ hour bike trip back home smiling from ear to ear. This was all arranged on an internet forum much like this one.
 
Bought a used 1997 Crown Vic P71 off of an Ebay auction at age 18. Of course, had no money to ship it so drove to California to pick it up sight unseen. Learned a valuable lesson back then; by wary of online car purchases. Didn't pay alot for the car but it needed the front end rebuilt and the trans rebuilt within a couple of months!
 
Originally Posted by DriveHard
Bought a 1-way plane ticket to Alabama to buy a used Buell XB12XT...very rare motorcycle. The owner of the bike even picked me up at the airport. I paid cash, grabbed the title and started the 12+ hour bike trip back home smiling from ear to ear. This was all arranged on an internet forum much like this one.

I'm now picturing you flossing 12 hrs worth of bugs out of your teeth upon arrival back home. . .
laugh.gif
 
Originally Posted by ekpolk
Originally Posted by DriveHard
Bought a 1-way plane ticket to Alabama to buy a used Buell XB12XT...very rare motorcycle. The owner of the bike even picked me up at the airport. I paid cash, grabbed the title and started the 12+ hour bike trip back home smiling from ear to ear. This was all arranged on an internet forum much like this one.

I'm now picturing you flossing 12 hrs worth of bugs out of your teeth upon arrival back home. . .
laugh.gif


Peroxide gargle?
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My current GSW was:
-drive to WI
-get told no
-walk out
-come back a month later after emails and txt conversations
-drive Yaris to Carmax apraiser
-drive to VW dealer to pickup car
-drive 2 cars to Carmax
-leave Yaris to Carmax (they sold it after 3 months for being on the lot for $9,958, they give me $4k, still better than local craigslist)
-drive home in the GSW
-next Monday give the state of Illinois their taxes...
 
Originally Posted by ekpolk
Originally Posted by DriveHard
Bought a 1-way plane ticket to Alabama to buy a used Buell XB12XT...very rare motorcycle. The owner of the bike even picked me up at the airport. I paid cash, grabbed the title and started the 12+ hour bike trip back home smiling from ear to ear. This was all arranged on an internet forum much like this one.

I'm now picturing you flossing 12 hrs worth of bugs out of your teeth upon arrival back home. . .
laugh.gif



Funny! I wear a full face helmet - ALWAYS!
 
Nothing crazy but kind've funny.

I went to go look at a 1987 Olds Toronado Trofeo FE-3. I think he was asking maybe $2500 for it. I took my dad with me so I could get a 2nd set of eyes on it to look it over and drive it. Car was mint,drove like a dream. I took out $1800 cash and laid it in from of him. He immediately says "NO!!" and walked away. We left. A month or so later my dad is in HEB buying groceries and he says this old man grabs him from behind and says "I'll take it!!". The guy who was selling it recognized my dad at the grocery store from that day when we looked at the car haha.

Well we went back out to his house later that day but my offer had dropped to $1500. I handed him the cash and he says "SOLD!!" Haha.
 
The selection in Dallas leaves a lot to be desired, for such a large city. I finally got fed up in 2017 and flew to Kansas City, where the perfect car, and a much better deal awaited. Can't beat bonding with your new car with a road trip.
 
I bought my Explorer at an abandoned vehicle auction. Per Alabama's abandoned vehicle law, the vehicles must be offered to the public, so I was able to bid on vehicles just by showing my driver's license. They can't restrict these sales to dealers only.

I found out about the Explorer two days before the auction from a friend and knew it was in really rough shape, but also knew it was 4WD figured at worst I'd have a pile of parts for my '94 Ranger if I won it. Since it was non-running/no keys and everyone was paying attention to the running Tahoe with police evidence tape all over it, I won it for $250 and had the towing company who ran the auction tow it to my house.

Now a couple months and another $1200 or so in work to get it into shape and I'm driving it. It still needs some odds and ends, but ironically drives as good/better than the Rangers now. It was abandoned at I think a Crazy Bill's fireworks store (paint marker said "abandoned @ Crazy Bill's" on back window) after the belt tensioner fell apart and the belt came off, but it had a long list of things that were way overdue...all four tires were bald, brakes shot all the way around, cracked radiator, etc. It was rough, but nothing that couldn't be replaced and it's 100% rust free.

Early December 2018:
[Linked Image]


Current:
[Linked Image]


Aside from the whole uncertainty of buying a non-running 25 year old truck, it was actually one of the smoothest purchases I have ever made as far as the transaction. The paperwork process was very efficient and straightforward. The tow yard just printed out a standardized bill of sale from the "Alabama Abandoned Vehicle Portal," and I submitted that with the title application, and a couple weeks later I had my title.
 
Took a ferry to buy an elderly couple's Subaru XT Coupe with 39k on Nantucket for a steal(<$800) in college. Not watching weather got stuck in a Noreaster but at least my girlfriend was there to keep it interesting.
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by Alfred_B
Bought an expensive car on a dealers auction from New Jersey.

Will never buy a car from New Jersey car dealers again.


Interesting, I always see super cheap cars in NJ that are cheaper than the surrounding states.

Last car I bought was in New York. Private seller though. Called him up, got the vin got a bunch of info. Went down to the bank the next day and got a cashier's check and then drove about 4 hours to see the car and another 4 hours back. It was fine and we did the paperwork there. Went home and got the plates and paperwork done and went back a few days later. Took a bus, subway, commuter rail and cab to pick it up and drive back home, that took all day.


They didn't include the start button even though it was in the description and then refused to send it. Granted, it was a 35 dollar part but the dishonesty upset me.
 
Originally Posted by Alfred_B
Originally Posted by Wolf359
Originally Posted by Alfred_B
Bought an expensive car on a dealers auction from New Jersey.

Will never buy a car from New Jersey car dealers again.


Interesting, I always see super cheap cars in NJ that are cheaper than the surrounding states.

Last car I bought was in New York. Private seller though. Called him up, got the vin got a bunch of info. Went down to the bank the next day and got a cashier's check and then drove about 4 hours to see the car and another 4 hours back. It was fine and we did the paperwork there. Went home and got the plates and paperwork done and went back a few days later. Took a bus, subway, commuter rail and cab to pick it up and drive back home, that took all day.


They didn't include the start button even though it was in the description and then refused to send it. Granted, it was a 35 dollar part but the dishonesty upset me.


That's funny, mine was missing the start/stop button too. But I picked up a used one on eBay for $16. Either seller was playing dumb or he really didn't know it was missing the button, he had no clue when I mentioned it. He did have full maintenance records as he took it to the shop for everything including oil and transmission fluid changes.
 
Originally Posted by ecotourist
When I was a university student one of my friends really wanted a Triumph GT6 but the seller wanted far too much for his limited means. So he had 2 friends go and kick the tires and make really low offers. So when my friend came along and offered a low but not too unreasonable offer the seller accepted.

But he didn't get to keep it very long. He did have limited means and the car was a Triumph. Enough said.



Heard a variation on that. Place two ads for same model car. The higher mileage car (or a year older of the same car) has your accomplice's telephone number. If anyone calls, he tells them that the car already sold.
 
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