buying car sight unseen

[toplessvw]

I am looking for a 2006-2007 a4 avant and all the ones I can find at a decent price are from Quebec or the states. Has anyone bought a car with out seeing it? How has it worked out for you? Also has anyone shipped from Florida or Texas to Sweetgrass and what was the cost?

[Danaldson]

buying car sight unseen

I got my r from Thunder Bay without seeing it in person. I communicated with him for a good month before I went and got it. (Flew out and drove it home, didn't ship)

I called him 3-4 times a week, letting him know updates on stuff, asking for info, pics and records.

Just feel the owner out. If you have any doubts, just walk.

Get the owner to get the car inspected, be careful about the road salt Over in the east. Other than that, it's not that bad of a process.

Good luck. But from what I've seen
('Which is not much) seems lien you should be able to find one local.

[Ponto]

Re: buying car sight unseen

I picked up my last A3 from Miami... worked out well until BC killed it. haha

Bought it sight unseen, few little nuances and stuff that were a bit off. Would I do it again? Maybe.

Shipping from Florida was going to be about 1500-2k to the border. Flight to Miami = 270 dollars. haha

Don't forget at the border you will have 6.1% Duty and 5% gst to factor in.

[Ponto]

Re: buying car sight unseen

Just feel the owner out. If you have any doubts, just walk.

Yes, yes yes. I technically should have walked from my Last A3 but the deal was too good. And in the end came out alright.

[Kg810]

Re: buying car sight unseen

Bought my R from the States without seeing the car beforehand and without ever seeing the owner. The previous owner worked at the Hospital so I dealt with his roommate when I flew down to pick up the car.

We exchanged probably close to 100 emails and 10-15 phone calls.

Like Danny stated, you really have to get a good feel about the owner and the whole situation.

Any concerns should be discussed immediately and possibly drafted into the bill of sale terms and conditions. Any legit seller will understand your concerns and be willing to put in place a few extra steps to ensure your confidence in the purchase. If they complain about you being too anal and rush you at any point to commit to the purchase and wire them money, well you prob should run the other way.

[P Arkus]

Re: buying car sight unseen

Bought both my old R32, my E30 and Tracy's R32 sight unseen. Although Tracy's was from edmonton and we could have easily walked away if something was wrong and we didnt like it, we followed the same procedures each time. Not much I can say that hasnt already been said in this thread. Feel the owner out, do your homework, ask for details/pics, and get a PPI if you feel you need it. Dont be too excited or it might lead to disappointment!

[graham_f]

Re: buying car sight unseen

i picked up my beetle unseen, had it shipped and delivered to my place while i was away. It was far better than expected, but i did ask a ton of questions before hand. Plus it was only 3k. not a huge loss if things went bad

[liquid]

Re: buying car sight unseen

Bought my S4 out of Denver, and my M-Coupe from Sacramento without ever seeing them. For the S4, the seller picked me up from the airport, and then I started the drive home.

A few things I did well:
- Exchanged a lot of emails and calls
- Got a ton of pictures of the car
- Had the seller arrange to drop off the car at a dealership for an inspection (which I paid for)
- Had the seller send me all their ID (Drivers License, etc).

Things I did poorly:
- Although the dealer inspected the car, they missed a lot. Pay the extra money and have a detailed inspection done. They missed a bad shock-mount and extremely worn out brakes.
- Have them send you their work email address (it'll tell you a lot about them). The MCoupe owner was a senior exec at a large CPG company (some credibility).
- If they pick you up from the airport and they tell you they "forgot the floor mats at their place and will ship them to you"..... don't believe them!

[R-Audi]

Re: buying car sight unseen

How about this one?

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/c...ationFlag=true

[toplessvw]

Re: buying car sight unseen

Nice but like 5-7 thousand more then what I have been looking at from the states. Thats why I am looking south.

[R-Audi]

Re: buying car sight unseen

After currency conversion, GST, duty and transport/travel is it worth the hassle? Its gotta be within1-2k...

[Ponto]

Re: buying car sight unseen

After currency conversion, GST, duty and transport/travel is it worth the hassle? Its gotta be within1-2k...

I did all the math when I bought my last A3... When the dollar didn't suck I figure you needed at least 6-8k difference in price to be worth while.

With the dollar the way it is now. I'd say it's closer to ten grand. If not more.

The only other real good reason for buying a us car is if you can't find it in Canada..

Sent from my Igloo

[Ponto]

Re: buying car sight unseen

But man it makes for an awesome road trip and story.

Sent from my Igloo