sugarwood

Someone talked to the owner here:
http://986forum.com/forums/514125-post51.html

Quadcammer

Ok, gang, here's the scoop. owner was a nice guy and enthusiastic but was more of a cruiser than someone who revs it out.

The car drove very nicely and the engine sounded good. That's honestly where the good ended.

The exterior is frankly very rough. almost every panel had a dent or similar damage. the front bumper got a backyard respray, hence the black bra. the condensers were white too if you get what I'm saying. carfax shows a major accident, without airbag deployment on the left front. left headlight clearer than right. the cover for the top didn't click into place on the drivers side...Sat up high....potentially accident related. top is manual, with some patches and the plastic window is opaque.

Rear bumper has about a 6 inch round spider crack and the bumper is just nudging the spoiler rubbing the paint. exhaust tip is bent down potentially from impact. tiny bit of rust starting on passenger door sill.

Achilles tires in decent shape.

I intended to use this car as a track car, so I wasn't too particular about paint. despite all this I offered $4500, he declined, no counter. in the end, I'm not sure the car is even worth 4500. the owner spent a bunch of money on parts, but really he poured money into the wrong car.

Given his unwillingness to negotiate, I think he'll own this car for a while.

sugarwood

Interesting update.

It's funny hat the car looks very clean in the photos
http://hudsonvalley.craigslist.org/cto/5885454194.html

Great reminder why I will never buy a car from the internet.

gfl

*myself*, i wont touch it. Too many fish int he sea to get attached to the "great deal". if its too good to be true,... QED

Quadcammer

It's amazing. the owner has RAISED the price to 7800.

He's crazy.

Macster

Maybe. Or just taking a lead from dealers. I remember back in mid-2009 when shopping for a car to repalce my totaled 2008 Cayman S and coming upon a 2003 Turbo the price was up and down sometimes by $2K for no apparent reason. In fact often the price was different depending upon where I looked. At the dealer the car was listed for one price. On line on a car for sale site at another price. And online at the dealer's site another price. In fact on the dealer's web site when I hovered the cursor over the car's link a pop up appeared offering the car at yet another price, and lower price.

The seller is hoping for someone not market savvy and coming in and if not paying his asking price "talking" him down a bit and thinking they got a "deal" and yet paying at maybe even a bit above his initial asking price of $6900.

This change in price is one reason why I like to google the VIN of a car for sale to try to find where it has been offered for sale, for how long, and the prices that were asked.

Quadcammer

I get it. then agsin, 2k on on a $40k car vs. $1400 on a 7k car is a big difference. furthermore, this guy was getting offers in the 3,000s. Car is in poor condition and was vastly over priced at 6,400. I don't think I would have even looked at this car at this price point

Macster

Uh, back in mid-June 2009 that Turbo (10K miles, pristine with CPO warranty) was a "$62K" car. (I bought it for $57.7K. In 2003 it stickered for $120K.)

Still I take your point.

With private sellers you just have to consider the seller might not have a clue or worse have the wrong clue.

'course, the seller can ask whatever he wants for his car. Whether it makes any sense or not that's something else.

Sometimes these situations work out where the seller just gives up and lets the car go for a more reasonable price. Trouble is being there when this happens. If one has the patience, and is blessed with a bit of luck, he can keep an eye on the car or an eye out for the car and note the new selling price is close enough to where it should be given the car's condition and move in and buy the car.

Trouble is there are so many Boxsters to choose from who wants to go to the trouble?

So the odds are someone will just happen to be at the right place at the right time, if there is of course a right time, and pick up this car for something close to what it should sell for.

Luck runs both ways though. Maybe the seller gets lucky and someone shows up and offers to buy the car if not at the asking price close enough to it that the seller lets the car go.

mikefocke

How often do you get a hit on a VIN? I sure don't see many in the ads I see.

Macster

Often times I get a number of hits when I google a VIN. I haven't googled this car's VIN so I don't know what if any hits it will have. A one owner car sometimes doesn't have any hits.

Let me google my Boxster's VIN...

Done. No real hits. Just a number of hits of sites that offer VIN look up services.

'course, my Boxster is a one owner car and has never been offered for sale other than by the dealer.

But whenever I come upon a post by someone asking about a used car one of the first things I do is look at the ad and google the VIN.

It is just a way to try to increase one's knowledge about the car in some way.

sugarwood

What a weird ad:
http://newyork.craigslist.org/fct/cto/5913919948.html

mikefocke

I asked because I googled mine (sold 5 times) and the only valid hit was one I posted. The others, like your experience, were sellers of information.

ryanjboutin

I see junk ads like that all over San Diego and Las Vegas CL. Hablas Espanol?

Back to the OP, I bought a 1999 5-speed with 166k miles and some mods.
For me, they were the right mods; I'm told it's because I'm young(er).

But yeah, got it for $6k and all it needed mechanically was new tires and an inner CV.
Still working on the cosmetics and creature comforts, but it still gets looks.

Happier than a pig in shyt with my purchase, too.

Macster

More often than not when I google a VIN of a used car someone's asking about I get several hits, mainly consisting of websites with an ad for the car. These sites give a mileage, price, a location, and sometimes a date.

But once in a while I get no hits of any real value.

This google search of the VIN is just "tool" in a used car buyer's tool box. Sometimes it is a helpful tool other times not so much.