Since a number of you follow BaT closely, maybe you can educate me on the following questions. 1 month new to rennlist, 1 week new to BaT.

1. Since there seem to be a regular stream of buyer disasters due to lack of PPI, I am curious how many BaT buyers conduct PPI's before closing on the deal. Any sense? I am not seeing any BaT sellers volunteering PPI results, or even overspeed reports. Are BaT buyers crossing their fingers and hoping? Or do they often fly to Madison, WI to inspect the current red turbo before bidding? I doubt the latter, and I'm not sure how many BaT sellers would even allows a PPI during bidding.
2. Any stories of seller stiffing winning bidder? Buyer pays 5% to BaT for "winning", then it's up to seller and buyer to consummate the deal. As best I can tell, Seller is not legally obligated to live up to their end of the deal.

In any case, I find BaT entertaining and educational!

I think I am starting to dream about picking up a Speed Yellow or Guards Red TT or GT3. Do I need an intervention?

 

Friend and I have sold 20 cars there so far
No-one has ever gotten a ppi on any car (5 996's)
I think 3 people total have come to see 20 car auctions in total (in southern california) not BFE
Ppi's are around 400 dollars. Not many good shops can fit you in that quickly. If a car shows up Monday you might get in by Friday if you time it perfectly. Very rare
Ppi's are never really volunteered people don't normally do their own for obvious reasons. Even a DME check can cost 75-100 bucks if you don't have a Durametric
You should probably look to see how many cars the seller has sold and google the vin number to get as much info as possible. And call him and get information about how he operates, like how he takes care of the car, who he is etc to get comfortable.

Seller stiffing the buyer. yes about 1% of the time. You are using a credit card so I am sure BAT has to refund the money voluntarily or the credit card company will swipe it back for services or products not offered on a chargeback. Someone gets banned. Theres zero risk there. Just get all of the information you can about the car and seller.

 

Super helpful. So you're saying speed dating followed by unprotected sex, right?

 

Bought my low mileage 996 there. Seller did his own PPI from a independent garage. Called and talked to the garage owner and he said the car was the real deal. Paid a little more for the car than many thought I should have but I did the IMS Solution and haven't hd an issue except for tires and normal maintenance for 18k miles so far. I'm happy!

 

I think this is the smart move, at least for an independent seller. The fees are already low for the seller, arent they? So having a PPI done and then letting anyone see it or call the garage makes it seem more trustworthy.

 

Generally the BaT cycle is pretty short so not a lot of time to get a PPI scheduled and done. I bought my 996 on Bat and I got as much info as I could from the seller and other customers of the seller. They would have let me have a PPI done but then there's no guarantee that I would have been the winning bidder, so if you are bidding on a car you have to be willing to forgo the PPI expense or be prepared to bid to win.

Look very closely at the pics that are posted and ask lots of questions. even ask for photos of areas you might have questions about. I missed some cosmetic items and didn't think to question some areas not shown in the pics and that cost me some money to repair. e.g. both visor mirror covers were broken off that weren't in the photos - it was a cab so not uncommon for that to happen. A reported clear coat failure on a bumper was actually caused by a hit to the bumper so it needed more than clear coat. That sort of stuff.

If you don't see something you are comfortable about, ask for more details. If answers aren't forthcoming, stop bidding and look for another car.

 

BTW, no intervention needed if you opt for a GT3 :-)

I just drove a friends new GT3 today up the twisties here and OMG! Need to talk with wife about her taking a second job.

 

There was a comment in one of the current BAT auctions that I saw today - someone bought a car with $14,000 in undisclosed accident damage. Apparently BAT would not let them out of the deal. Sorry that I don’t have more info. Other than that incident, my opinion is that the disclosure is usually pretty good. I bid on several cars before I found my ‘99 at a dealer. Prices can get high on BAT but I have seen some good deals too.
Daryll

 

You need to realize that no cars this old have warranties and there is no “protection” if you are looking to not get screwed over buy a new Corrola or Honda. The classic or out of warranty German cars are a wild game. You might not be up for it. There are no guarantees and caveat emptor with ANY used CAR. Also be prepared for mid to high 40’s on that twin turbo 996. It might not be the site for you. A Jake Raby ppi does not include a crystal ball that can reveal the future. You can at best get as much information as possible to make the best decision. Good luck

 

I did see an E30 with some serious mods and a nice engine swap go with out reserve and the seller flat out refused to sell it.

 

I'm about to do my 19th auction on BaT. I've had a lot of great auctions, along with a few duds. In several cases of Reserve Not Met (RNM) I've still found my buyer via BaT. I always offer to have someone look at the car or do a PPI. In some cases, I've paid my mechanic to do a "courtesy inspection" to look for obvious stuff, (1 hr of labor), but I've realized I can do much of the same myself, except I don't have a Durametric to do a DME dump. So far, I've had two people show up in person for test drives during the auction. In one case the test driver was the actual winning bidder.

I've also met some great buyers on BaT - one had me and my Daughter take a VIP Tour of his architecture firm in San Francisco. Another is building a car barn in Colorado and keeps me updated on his acquisitions. If anyone is hesitant to sell their car themselves on BaT, (and they are near the SF Bay Area), DM me and I can help you out.