What is the best way to buy a truck sight unseen?
im looking at a 2005 tudra 180k miles limited trd off road for $6500. But it is four hours away.
The only time I’d ever do that, is when buying brand new.
Even then, I’d want to do the pre delivery inspection myself, or by somebody who I know I can trust, to carry it out properly.
If you’re talking about used, just forget about it. Unless you’re feeling lucky & don’t mind writing off the money.
Ultimately; Don't buy any used vehicle unseen.
i think it would be alright. My dad said he only cares about the engine or transmission...
i think it would be alright. My dad said he only cares about the engine or transmission...
rust can be an expensive repair bill, here in oz no one buys cars sight unseen.
This!
the truck i was looking at had a brand new frame installed last year. It is an 05 tundra limited v8 4wd 178k miles for $7000.
Only if I had a trusted/knowledgeable agent/mechanic to do the inspection and transfer of funds and paperwork for the vehicle. There are SO many scams and scammers out there, and it's easy to steal or doctor photos.
Don't.
If you value your money.
i thought you said dont be afraid to buy a car that is far away and how your dad bought one far away and he just sold it. Just because it is far away, doesn't mean it is a bad truck.
yes, don't be afraid to travel for a vehicle. I never said hand over your money before seeing it.
unless you use escrow
the vehicle is 4 hours away though. What do you think is the fastest way to travel to get it?
rent yourself a chevy spark to get there, how else are you going to get there?
Or you could burn your money on United snacks
Planes are the fastest. But for that short distance I would bribe a friend into driving us on a mini road trip and buy him lunch.
@mountainmanjoe how do you use escrow and what is escrow?
Joe, panes are expensive, you need to go through security and crap like that...
basically a broker
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escrow
it gurantees the car isn't a lemon and it even ships it to you. That's rad.....
you asked me the fastest way. A flight from Washington to Pittsburgh is only $100. Some people would rather pay that then drive. Are you scared of security?
uhh no. Escrow is a service that holds your payment in trust until all your conditions are met.
Of course im not scared of security, but it takes hours from what i remember last time i traveled. Is it really $100. That's cheaper than ny. I'm probably just going to use escrow.com to make the transaction. But thanks...
Oh I get it. Escrow ships the seller's car to your house for a couple hundred dollars and if I reject it, the money goes back to the seller...
what? escrow has nothing to do with shipping. It is a PAYMENT BROKER
oh.
I agree with the others to hire a mechanic to inspect it, especially if you are not there in person. Some mechanics can be shady, too... there are frauds and scams all over the place in the used car world.
You could consider contacting a used car inspection service (like “Lemon Squad”) though they are not available everywhere and you have to do a background check on them too. They are going to be expensive but they are working for you, not the seller and they have nothing to gain whether you buy the vehicle or not.
Even better would be to hire a car buying service, though good ones are really hard to find. But if you can find a good one they can not only do an inspection but also give you a valuation. Definitely an expensive service but you might come out ahead on the net transaction.
Lemon Squad claims to cover the whole US
https://lemonsquad.com/local
I heard lemon squad was awful and writes fake reviews about themselves. Are there better traveling mechanics?
You can always ask on a new question if anyone knows a good mechanic where you are going to look at trucks, and if you get some recommendations bring it to there...