Buying a Vehicle Remotely

[65Oldred]

Hello All,

This is my first post. I have a 65 long fleetside that I have been working on for a few years. I am thinking of getting a second project truck to serve as a daily driver. Something not crazy expensive. My wife would call it a money pit and a beater.

I am looking at trucks out of state. Do you guys have any advice on handing a remote sale and transport?

Thanks.
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[forestb]

When I bought my truck it ended up being in much worse shape than I thought and I saw it in person. Make sure you see it in person before you buy it. That's all I can say.

[Indychus]

I've bought many vehicles sight unseen from out of state... from a $500 parts donor to a $35k daily driver. The best advice I can give is to have someone on the other end inspect it. It's easy to find a local shop to have a look and it's well worth a few hundred bucks for an inspection. It's a bit trickier if the vehicle is not running and they can't get it to a shop, but you can still usually find someone willing to look.

Barring that, a parts truck is a relatively low value purchase... A few good walk around videos and pics may be enough.

Actually talk to them on the phone. This is a big one for me. I do most of my business via text or email, but this is one case where you need to talk to them as much as possible. You can really feel someone out if you can hear their voice. Some people are shady enough to hide something but you can usually tell if things aren't kosher just with a quick phone call.

[VictoriaHardware]

Originally Posted by Indychus

You can really feel someone out if you can hear their voice.

My rule is if they-
talk a lot, &/or
talk fast, &/or
keep emphasizing how honest they are,
then leave it alone.

[jocko]

if you can't find it locally, not much choice - I've bought several from across the country. Sometimes it was a pleasure, sometimes a nightmare.

Ensure you are very clear with the seller and confirm that the title is in the seller's name (not a skipped title, some DMVs will ruin your day over this). The best way I've found to do this is to insist on a bill of sale (in fact, send one to them, all filled out with the agreed to price, and a place for them to sign and mail or scan/email back to you). Bottom line, make sure the names match between the bill of sale and the title. Some people seem to be "ok" with not telling you the name on the title isn't theirs if you don't ask - and some may outright lie about it. When it comes to buying a truck, TrustNo1, as Fox Mulder says... That's why I ask for a signed Bill of Sale - folks are less apt to forge a signature (though it does happen). Also make sure it's the same name you're sending money to. This exact scenario absolutely ruined one transaction I was in the middle of (name on bill of sale was forged because the name on the title was the name of a dead guy - and the "owner" never bothered to transfer title to himself when he acquired it. The ONLY way I figured it out was because someone at the dealer was just brutally honest with me and told me that her boss told her to sigh "this guy's name" on the bill of sale. Unbelievable. The truck was halfway across the US at that point. Ended up sending it back and eating the shipping cost. The ONLY saving grace was that this was purchased thru a dealer (something I usually try to avoid) that had a reputation to protect - so he took it back and worked it out on his end (he was selling it for a buddy). I hope the lady didn't get fired... I was living in MD at the time and there was no way they were gonna register it. It was unfortunate. Was a nice truck too, a pristine 62 shortfleet bbw with 283.. Ugh. Ha.

If the seller has had the truck for awhile and it has been sitting outside - google the address when you get it and look for it on google earth. Confirmed one purchase I made that way.

Wal-Mart can handle point-to-point money transfers - but that still doesn't mean the seller isn't a 14 y/o hacker that just stole your money... Always good to ask for an extra picture of something specific that a snot-nosed kid that is just re-posting a truck pic as a sale ad doesn't have easy access to - like a SPID.

Lastly - arrange a quality shipper, just assume it's sunk cost for buying cross country. Shipping brokers don't own the trucks that deliver your vehicle - so they can bail at any time - especially RIGHT before the pickup date. I've had them tell me their arranged shipper bailed at the last second and that nobody else would do it for less than 1.5 times the original quote. They know you're in a bind (if they know you're moving, for example - so don't tell them that). I've even had one driver (that was arranged thru a broker) threaten to leave a truck on the side of the highway because I couldn't jump thru hoops with almost no notice to meet him a day early, but we did work it out eventually. Bottom line, I'll never go with a shipping broker again - first question out of my mouth is "do you own your own transport trucks?" If yes, we continue. I recommend Montway. Not cheap, but have had good luck. It has worked for some, but I'd say luck will eventually run out, it ran out on me the first time I tried it.

Bottom line - there's no way to eliminate all the risk - you have to be careful and, at some point, take the plunge. Ask intelligent questions that only a seller would know about his truck. Like VictoriaHardware said, if they are full of crap or just tell you how great it is - walk away unless you KNOW you know more than the knucklehead snake oil salesman. Never be afraid to just walk away if you get the heebie jeebies about a seller, trust your instincts. If you don't have instincts, post on here or pm someone on here you trust with the info and see if they can give you an assessment - even ask for a local member to check it out - folks have done that for me and it was very helpful. Good luck.

[65Oldred]

All,

Man. I have come to the right site for advice.

So the person that posted the ad on Craigslist apparently posted the wrong phone number. So I didn’t even make it to 1st base on this 61.

Thank you all for the great advice.

I will keep you posted as I scrounge through Craigslist, OfferUp, Letgo, etc etc.
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[oem4me]

First and foremost is be patient and do not let emotion get in the way of judgement. Next, know that a sellers honest take on their truck may be way different than yours, so you cannot rely on a verbal description only.
Then, ask lots of questions and insist on photos. Ask for pics of the ugly stuff, specifically. Any seller reluctant to provide shots of the worst aspects, however minor, is hiding things. What I say exactly is: "Save us both time and show me the flaws that I would be looking for if I was there in person".
Lastly, If you make a deal on the phone, do it contingent upon inspection by yourself or a known reliable third party. This last one can cost a few bucks, but the price of a plane ticket is cheap compared to getting stuck with a vehicle you wish you didn't own. Trust me ... I know.

[KJSR]

Why do you want to buy a truck outside of California? I ended up buying mine IN California as the selection in Utah was not that good. Make sure you buy from a dry state to avoid rust issues......

[DANTIP]

I like relying on other board members to put eyes on out-of state purchases. There's a very good network of experienced truck fans out there. Post a request to have someone nearby look at the truck and provide feedback and photos. Good Luck!

[andyh1956]

One other thing-
Make Damn Sure that the Title & the Vin Plate on the truck have the SAME XACT numbers on them!