I'm assuming this is a scam....

[NW-Bound]

I'm glad that when you got there the second time to pick up the car that he and the car had not moved out with no forwarding address.

Gumby had the title. The guy and the stolen car can still be tracked down.

 

[dirtbiker]

I have bought and sold several cars, trucks, motorcycles, and dirt bikes on CL. I will only deal with cash. Absolutely no exceptions, no matter how sweet the offer sounds. I'm willing to wait longer to sell or to drop the price in order to make the transaction on my terms. And I also don't entertain any sort of long distance buy. As soon as I hear that the potential 'buyer' is deployed, away on business, etc. and needs any sort of special delivery, I don't even respond and immediately block them. It's just not worth the hassle to me.

I also bought a counterfeit marker just to be extra safe. I always meet in a public parking lot; never at my house or their house. And I always have my gun with me. This being said, I've never had any bad experiences, other than a lot of tire kickers.

 

[Fermion]

I also google stalk the buyers. It is amazing now with everyone posting when they poo on Facebook and other sources how much information you can find out. I generally find out where the person works, when/if they got married, where they went to college, how many dogs they have. If there is a general good background on the person with pictures of them, my level of comfort in the deal goes waaay up. I do this as a buyer too, stalking my sellers.

 

[ransil]

I also google stalk the buyers. It is amazing now with everyone posting when they poo on Facebook and other sources how much information you can find out. I generally find out where the person works, when/if they got married, where they went to college, how many dogs they have. If there is a general good background on the person with pictures of them, my level of comfort in the deal goes waaay up. I do this as a buyer too, stalking my sellers.

I do this too
looked at a tool box once the guy was registered on one of them lists.

 

[misanman]

My BIL made the mistake of selling his dad's truck by way of a check. The buyer owned a construction company and issued a company check which BIL thought would be good. Signed over the title and deposited the check at the bank. A few days later we found out the account was overdrawn and then subsequently closed by the bank. But the title had been signed over and there wasn't anything we could do to get the truck back. It was frustrating to see the guy driving around town in FIL's truck. This was not an isolated occurrence and he subsequently went to jail. But we never got the truck back or the money.

 

[freedomatlast]

The most secure form of payment is a wire transfer deposited into the seller's account opened specifically for the transaction. Then once the funds are deposited, the funds are transferred to the seller's other account. This can be done on the way to the notary you use to sign over the title.

Cashier's checks are way too easy to counterfeit and should never be considered.

Cash is fine if you can check with 100% validity that the bills aren't counterfeit. Some counterfeit bills are now coated so that the pens don't detect that they are counterfeit, according to a LEO I know. Also, cash can be cumbersome and an issue for vehicles with $10,000 and above purchase price.

I sold two vehicles this month. One for $8,000 and one for $26,000. One was a long distance transaction where I never met the buyer face to face. No issues with either one. When you do this regularly, your BS meter becomes fine tuned and the scams become obvious.

 

[Walt34]

I'd bet my next pension check it's a scam. That one is as old as checks.

 

[CaliKid]

It's one of many reasons I sold my last car to Carmax. Soooooooo much easier and not significantly less money than I MIGHT have sold it for had I waited it out.

 

[skipro33]

It's such a known scam you shouldn't have to ask. It's the #1 most common CL scam.

Yup, all it needs is the 'I'm in the military, stationed overseas, soon to be DEROS back to the states'. Usually some place in Montana they want the truck shipped.

 

[ckelly78z]

He will indeed have his shipper (paid by you) come and pick up your vehicle for transport. 2 weeks later when the certified check he gave you turns out to be fraudulent, you will be missing a nice truck, AND the cash you paid his driver to steal your truck.

It will probably be in a shipping container heading for a foreign port with no title, where he can re-sell it.

 

[Rianne]

It was not my intention to be the scammer, but some made me feel like it.
Early 80"s, I was in college. A college friend had this crazy idea he wanted an expensive high end camera. He was all into photography. The only way he could get the money for the camera was to sell his car.
Seriously, his car was:
1967 Volvo, no rust, leather seats, stick shift...the most beautiful car I'd ever seen.
$500. I bought it with my savings.

He made me feel guilty for months, trying to make me feel I scammed him. He set the price, he closed the deal. Followed me around wanting to renege the sale. I refused. Kept the car for years. Edit: the guys who changed the oil tried to buy it from me. I'll say a bit more than $500. Of course, I did not sell.

 

[Amethyst]

Yes. To some people who have never been in or around the military, and aren't too bright to begin with, this could actually sound convincing.

He might even be the same "master sergeant" who sent me a catfishing Facebook invite with a photo of a handsome, 40-ish U.S. Army warrant officer Sooner or later, some older lady with no self-esteem was bound to fall for his nonsense, too.

The car was in another state, and being a master sergeant in the US Air Force, he would put it on a USAF cargo plane to send to me.

Can anyone believe the above BS?

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

It's one of many reasons I sold my last car to Carmax. Soooooooo much easier and not significantly less money than I MIGHT have sold it for had I waited it out.

I've been thinking about doing that as well. Without being to nosy, can I ask do they even offer lowest blue book value or quite a bit less than that? I have three cars and now retired, it's time to cut back to just the one and looking for a hassle free way to deal with it.

 

[USGrant1962]

I've been thinking about doing that as well. Without being to nosy, can I ask do they even offer lowest blue book value or quite a bit less than that? I have three cars and now retired, it's time to cut back to just the one and looking for a hassle free way to deal with it.

CarMax routinely offers the high end of the blue book trade in value. So less than a private sale, but fair. And no hassle.

 

[TrvlBug]

CarMax routinely offers the high end of the blue book trade in value. So less than a private sale, but fair. And no hassle.

This was our experience 2 years ago.

 

[Sunset]

CarMax routinely offers the high end of the blue book trade in value. So less than a private sale, but fair. And no hassle.

And you are not committed to anything.
They tell you how much they will pay for the car on paper, and you have about 7 days to go and see if you can sell it for more if you like, or return and they buy it.

 

[CRLLS]

Agreed, the OP's buyer is a scam - big time!

My bank told me there is no absolute way to accept a large payment without the buyer reversing it later or in the event of counterfeit cash, the seller is on the hook for it. That goes for ANY method. Even bank transfers.

I did accept an out of country bank check for a restored car once. After a lot of checking. In my case, a Canadian buyer gave me his banker's name and telephone number. I checked that the number was in fact the bank's number. Then I called the banker and asked about the security devices on the check. Who was signing it, what amount it was for and, in this case, it was drawn on their affiliate bank in the USA, so dollars were in USD. There were some other protections we put into the deal for both his and my protection. Not to mention, I did google the buyer. He was a lawyer. I was very concerned about being scammed. It all worked out in the end.

 

[dixonge]

Sold two vehicles long-distance. Both *flew* in long-distance, gave a brief inspection, then paid on the spot. One was business that paid in cash, the other was I think a business check from a car dealership. I think I had listed them on eBay Motors, for some additional protection.

Actually I sold another one to someone about 3.5 hours away. We met in the middle at a branch of their bank, then they pulled out a plastic bag full of cash. We had the teller combine the cash with additional money from their account and give me a cashier's check.

 

[jazz4cash]

And you are not committed to anything.
They tell you how much they will pay for the car on paper, and you have about 7 days to go and see if you can sell it for more if you like, or return and they buy it.

I had a car to dispose of and was going to CarMax but a business set up shop across the street from them with a huge sign “WE BEAT CARMAX” so I went there instead. I should’ve gone to CarMax 1st because they had a hundred CarMax offers pasted to a wall that they had beat

 

[freedomatlast]

My experience with CarMax......On one of the two cars I sold in October, I gave both CarMax and Carvana a shot at it. CarMax said $21,500 and it took hours for them to cough up the quote with lots of wasted time. Carvana gives you a quote on line in literally seconds. They offered $23,050. I sold it privately for $26,000. Carvana kept pesting me with phone calls and texts even after I told them several times I wouldn't accept their low offer. YMMV.

 

[rodi]

I sold my last car at Carmax... but it was newer and not 'specialized'... They offered high blue book.

Unfortunately, that won't work with this truck... It's so customized for off roading it's value is not reflected by kelly blue book. I based the price on other sources - including what the mechanics at the off road specialists said. The price is lower than what I see on autotrader and carguru for similar trucks.

But carmax is definitely easier!!!! And I've now had 3 versions of the scam mentioned in the OP of this thread.

 

[freedomatlast]

My bank told me there is no absolute way to accept a large payment without the buyer reversing it later or in the event of counterfeit cash, the seller is on the hook for it. That goes for ANY method. Even bank transfers.

Would love to know how a wire transfer can go bad using the following method: A wire transfer is deposited into the seller's account opened specifically for the transaction. Then once the funds are deposited, the funds are transferred to the seller's other account and the first account is closed.

 

[CRLLS]

Would love to know how a wire transfer can go bad using the following method: A wire transfer is deposited into the seller's account opened specifically for the transaction. Then once the funds are deposited, the funds are transferred to the seller's other account and the first account is closed.

I am not a banking expert so I cannot answer you. All I can do is say that is what my bank told me. I asked about a special account at the same bank (something like you mentioned) and they said even that was not 100% scam proof. There are ways to reverse a wire transfer. I guess it is easier if the receiving bank hasn't yet posted the receipt to your account yet.

 

[Hamster]

CarMax routinely offers the high end of the blue book trade in value. So less than a private sale, but fair. And no hassle.

Had good experience with Carmax before so we went back to them again recently. Sold them a five year old Civic with low miles for $10K, which seemed low but not unreasonable. It showed up on their website the next day for $16,500.

I can't blame them for making a profit and no one forced us to take the offer, but we won't be using them again.

 

[Sunset]

Had good experience with Carmax before so we went back to them again recently. Sold them a five year old Civic with low miles for $10K, which seemed low but not unreasonable. It showed up on their website the next day for $16,500.

I can't blame them for making a profit and no one forced us to take the offer, but we won't be using them again.

Of course they may actually sell it for $14,000.
Basically they need to pay you less that what you could otherwise get for it, if you put in the work and risk of selling it yourself.