OT: consignment sale of car?
05-08-2003, 03:38 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
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OT: consignment sale of car?
Unfortunately, the moment i have to part with my beloved p car has come.
there comes a day where all of us will have to part with such a wonderful car <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" />
mine has come, and i will be selling it through a dealer through consignment.
it seems awefully questionable to simply ship my car to a complete stranger without someform of liability contract. in my part of the world things often go "missing" quite easily... so not that i want to sound paranoid or anything
Just curious to see what the "seniors" have to offer in experience. Good or bad both welcome <img border="0" alt="[jumper]" title="" src="graemlins/jumper.gif" />
there comes a day where all of us will have to part with such a wonderful car <img border="0" alt="[crying]" title="" src="graemlins/crying.gif" />
mine has come, and i will be selling it through a dealer through consignment.
it seems awefully questionable to simply ship my car to a complete stranger without someform of liability contract. in my part of the world things often go "missing" quite easily... so not that i want to sound paranoid or anything
Just curious to see what the "seniors" have to offer in experience. Good or bad both welcome <img border="0" alt="[jumper]" title="" src="graemlins/jumper.gif" />
05-08-2003, 10:04 AM
#2
The most important thing in this situation is you have to know the dealer and the dealer's reputation. I would have no problem shipping my car to an appropriate dealer for consignment if I could verify the integrity of the dealer. If the dealer specializes in P-cars or other high end cars I am sure somebody on this board can give you a candid response regarding the dealer. You could also ask a local rennlister to check out the dealership.
I had my Boxster on consignment with dealer that specializes in high end cars and did not have any type of written contract, just a verbal communication on what the terms were. I don’t know if I would recommend this arrangement to everyone, but in my case I knew the dealer and the dealer was in town so I could stop by and see the car any time.
A contract is great but nothing beats the knowing integrity of the dealer. This comes from a guy who drafts contracts for a living. Just my $.02.
I had my Boxster on consignment with dealer that specializes in high end cars and did not have any type of written contract, just a verbal communication on what the terms were. I don’t know if I would recommend this arrangement to everyone, but in my case I knew the dealer and the dealer was in town so I could stop by and see the car any time.
A contract is great but nothing beats the knowing integrity of the dealer. This comes from a guy who drafts contracts for a living. Just my $.02.
05-08-2003, 12:16 PM
#3
Racer
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Contracts are only as good as the person who signs them. If the dealer is bad, at best you buy yourself the heartache of a lawsuit! Agree with Brian, get good recommendations. Finally confirm with your insurance agent that you will be covered under your own policy (to cover worst case situations).
05-08-2003, 02:56 PM
#4
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As someone who was nearly burned on a consignment deal in the past few weeks, I'd be very careful. Here's my story:
I had put my '88 928 S4 up for sale in the papers as I just didn't have time for it now that I'm focused on the 993 track car. I got a few nibbles and then a call from a guy at a local dealer who offered to put it on consignment. These guys have been here for a few years and sell lots of Porsches, Mercedes, BMWs, Ferraris, etc., often on consignment.
I met with a guy at the dealer on a Saturday to discuss the car, spending a couple of hours going over the details. I couldn't put my finger on it at the time, but my "sixth Sense" meters were going off, and in hindsight I should have just walked away. But I've know the owners for a while and figured I was just being put off by the usual sales-guy sliminess (no offense to any sale-folks, but you know what I mean.)
Things started to get weird when he said that he wanted to buy the car, and he wanted to pay me $1500 per month until it was paid off. I told him that I wasn't a bank and didn't want to worry about collecting the money. He gave me the "you can trust me" spiel, which immediately makes me even more suspicious. No, I told him, I came in because you guys wanted to sell the car on consignment.
I sign a consignment contract, give the guy the $300 fee, and he takes the car after dropping me off at the house. During the next couple of weeks he would call every now and then to say that he had some interest in the car, and how much would I take for it, etc. I wasn't looking to make any profit on the car and simply wanted to sell it to someone who wanted to give it a good home, so I told him I'd take $10K minimum. The car needed $2K to $5K to make it near perfect, so I figured that this was a fair deal.
Two weeks ago he calls on a Tuesday to say that he was going to buy the car and needed to get the title. I was on a business trip and told him that I'd be back in town on Friday. No problem he says.
On Thursday another guy calls and says that he bought the car and needed the title. I'm amazed because I haven't sold the car yet, so both of us start to realize that something is fishy. The buyer had written a check to the sales-guy personally, not to the dealership, as the sales-guy claimed the car was his. The check had been cashed and naturally the buyer is wondering where the title is. At this point the buyer, who is also a dealer, calls the owner of the dealership and threatens to get the dealer board after them if they don't straighten things out.
The owner calls me to say that the dealer was out on bond and that they were beginning to suspect that he had been up to something. They call his parole officer and the guy is arrested, and now is sitting in jail. The officers refer to the guy as a "walking crime wave" and said that this crazy car theft thing was just one of the things he had been up to lately.
The owner of the dealer had been led to believe that I was a "friend and neighbor" of this crook, which is what he was telling them. He told them that I wasn't interested in selling the car on consignment, and didn't give them the contract or the check. He was driving the car daily, and at some point the windshield was badly cracked by what he claimed was a bird hitting it. I haven't the foggiest idea what else he may have been doing in the car, but visions of the parking attendants in Ferris Bueller and Bonny-and-Clyde style getaways have crossed my mind.
The good news is that the buyer's check was returned and he is buying the car directly from me now. The dealer had initially said that they'd fix the windshield, but have now said that they won't. They have been pulling the "we are victims as well" bit, which really pisses me off. Frankly, I'm not expecting anything from them, but it would be nice if they'd at least pretend to be decent about the whole mess.
In short, I'd be very careful about selling your car on consignment. Make sure you know and trust the dealer, get a contract, and make sure that your car is being well cared for. I'll probably ask them for their rap sheet if I ever do something like this again.
I had put my '88 928 S4 up for sale in the papers as I just didn't have time for it now that I'm focused on the 993 track car. I got a few nibbles and then a call from a guy at a local dealer who offered to put it on consignment. These guys have been here for a few years and sell lots of Porsches, Mercedes, BMWs, Ferraris, etc., often on consignment.
I met with a guy at the dealer on a Saturday to discuss the car, spending a couple of hours going over the details. I couldn't put my finger on it at the time, but my "sixth Sense" meters were going off, and in hindsight I should have just walked away. But I've know the owners for a while and figured I was just being put off by the usual sales-guy sliminess (no offense to any sale-folks, but you know what I mean.)
Things started to get weird when he said that he wanted to buy the car, and he wanted to pay me $1500 per month until it was paid off. I told him that I wasn't a bank and didn't want to worry about collecting the money. He gave me the "you can trust me" spiel, which immediately makes me even more suspicious. No, I told him, I came in because you guys wanted to sell the car on consignment.
I sign a consignment contract, give the guy the $300 fee, and he takes the car after dropping me off at the house. During the next couple of weeks he would call every now and then to say that he had some interest in the car, and how much would I take for it, etc. I wasn't looking to make any profit on the car and simply wanted to sell it to someone who wanted to give it a good home, so I told him I'd take $10K minimum. The car needed $2K to $5K to make it near perfect, so I figured that this was a fair deal.
Two weeks ago he calls on a Tuesday to say that he was going to buy the car and needed to get the title. I was on a business trip and told him that I'd be back in town on Friday. No problem he says.
On Thursday another guy calls and says that he bought the car and needed the title. I'm amazed because I haven't sold the car yet, so both of us start to realize that something is fishy. The buyer had written a check to the sales-guy personally, not to the dealership, as the sales-guy claimed the car was his. The check had been cashed and naturally the buyer is wondering where the title is. At this point the buyer, who is also a dealer, calls the owner of the dealership and threatens to get the dealer board after them if they don't straighten things out.
The owner calls me to say that the dealer was out on bond and that they were beginning to suspect that he had been up to something. They call his parole officer and the guy is arrested, and now is sitting in jail. The officers refer to the guy as a "walking crime wave" and said that this crazy car theft thing was just one of the things he had been up to lately.
The owner of the dealer had been led to believe that I was a "friend and neighbor" of this crook, which is what he was telling them. He told them that I wasn't interested in selling the car on consignment, and didn't give them the contract or the check. He was driving the car daily, and at some point the windshield was badly cracked by what he claimed was a bird hitting it. I haven't the foggiest idea what else he may have been doing in the car, but visions of the parking attendants in Ferris Bueller and Bonny-and-Clyde style getaways have crossed my mind.
The good news is that the buyer's check was returned and he is buying the car directly from me now. The dealer had initially said that they'd fix the windshield, but have now said that they won't. They have been pulling the "we are victims as well" bit, which really pisses me off. Frankly, I'm not expecting anything from them, but it would be nice if they'd at least pretend to be decent about the whole mess.
In short, I'd be very careful about selling your car on consignment. Make sure you know and trust the dealer, get a contract, and make sure that your car is being well cared for. I'll probably ask them for their rap sheet if I ever do something like this again.
05-08-2003, 03:55 PM
#5
Burning Brakes
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thanks guys,
i think there's a wealth of wisdom to be gotten from the advice.
"a contract is only as good as the person who signs it" leaves alot to be thought about. i guess trust... be it on paper or in word amounts up to the same thing in application.
which really kinda sums up our existence in the illusion we create... whom we affectionately refer to as life
cheers all!
better to learn what not to do first then learn it the hard way later
i think there's a wealth of wisdom to be gotten from the advice.
"a contract is only as good as the person who signs it" leaves alot to be thought about. i guess trust... be it on paper or in word amounts up to the same thing in application.
which really kinda sums up our existence in the illusion we create... whom we affectionately refer to as life
cheers all!
better to learn what not to do first then learn it the hard way later
