Buying a car sight unseen from another state - advice needed!

private9 · 24-08-2007, 10:39 PM

Hi All,

I'm looking into buying a car from another state. I can't be stuffed flying to look at it and then drive it back, so I'd basically like to just buy it and have it transported over.

While I am looking into transport costs now from Sydney to Melbourne, the main thing that I can't quite get my head around, is how do I get the money to the owner?

Paranoid or not, I'm certainly not going to transfer the money to him, and then trust a complete stranger to load it onto a transporter for me, so I'm wondering if there are any services that can help with this?

Does anyone have any other advice on how I could get this done?

Thanks,

Justin.

nb_351 · 24-08-2007, 10:49 PM

well mate i did the same thing, bought my xe off a guy in qld off ebay...
cost 600 for transport from brisbane to sydney...
i still see the problems that could arise, but im glad i did it, cause to get my car the way it is now would have cost many thousands of dollars, that i just dont have lol
but theres the view that your just buying someones headache...
but i love a challenge so im glad to do it...

NGN 351 · 24-08-2007, 10:49 PM

Hi Justin

Try VIP inspections

http://www.vipinspections.com/contact.html

I just bought an EB GT but did it myself however if you dont have the time I have heard these guys are good.

All the best

Justin

Yellow_Festiva · 24-08-2007, 10:51 PM

In terms of the inspection, just organise a regular RACV style pre-purchase inspection and ask that the results be faxed to you.

With transport / payment??? hmmm dont know about a "service" but i would be asking around some relo's or friends if they know anyone local that can help out?

LUXO_8 · 24-08-2007, 11:18 PM

know anyone in sydney?.......

example.... a mate of mine, who lives in perth, bought an EL XR8 from melbourne...... he paid the owner a deposit, then sent me a cheque for the car.......i then went and picked up the car, paying the remainder then......and delivered it to the transporters..... that way, it took out the worry of trusting a complete stranger, and i was able to give the car a bit of an inspection to make sure the car was as advertised etc.....

XCGS351 · 25-08-2007, 12:23 AM

I bought my car from a guy in country NSW. He faxed me a copy of his drivers license, Rego, a document from Revs and his bank account details.

I deposited the money to his account via electronic transfer and organised TNT to collect the car.
It would be cheaper to have the car transported to and picked up from a depot but for the extra $130 it was worth having to car picked up from the sellers house and then delivered to my front door.

1 week and $1350 later the car arrived in Perth.
That was in Dec 2005 so price may be a little higher now.

ZA-289 · 25-08-2007, 10:51 AM

I just used Autotrans to get my ZA from coffs harbor to adelaide for $700 door to door.

Cheapest I could find.

Super Roo 1970 · 25-08-2007, 12:45 PM

I bought a newer car interstate recently, just got one of the RAC checks done, plenty of pictures, spoke to the owners and amassed as much information as i could, then flew down and drove it home. Cost was bugger all. Flights are cheap as, and a Sydney to Melbourne drive is a leisurely days drive and will be cheaper than transport, and by the time you get home, you will have a fair idea of any niggling things that you will want to address.
VIP do pretty good inspections, and handel themselves very professionally. I had one of their inspections done when I was selling my old Group A a few years back, they use local people to come and inspect the car, then report back to the purchaser.
The big thing I dont like about transporters is the cars can be moved on and off trucks as other cars are delivered, or if transferring to diffrent trucks/areas etc and you dont know who is moving them or how they are being treated etc. I know of a Phase 2 that was on a transporter, the HO was parked under another dunger that had leaking brake lines, well the brake fluid leaked onto the HO. They had insurance on it, but there were loads of hassles to get it sorted. Easier to fly down and drive it home, unless its unregistered or undriveable, and undriveable cars cost more to transport too.

DBourne · 25-08-2007, 01:53 PM

ill go grab it for you. depending which part of melbourne of course....and which part of syd. if you're in lismore and the cars in philip island, get stuffeD!

JBomb3000 · 25-08-2007, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yellow_Festiva

In terms of the inspection, just organise a regular RACV style pre-purchase inspection and ask that the results be faxed to you.

With transport / payment??? hmmm dont know about a "service" but i would be asking around some relo's or friends if they know anyone local that can help out?

I recently bought a territory ghia, but not interstate. Any way looked at the car and it looked sweet to me but thought i better get a RACV check done as well. Came back with no problems. Had the car in getting a 45,000km service done just after i bought it only to find out it had a stuffed ball joint which is apparently a known problem area with the territorys. So not only did they miss the fault they missed one in a know problem area. Not worth the paper it was printed on let alone the $160

:

351hardtop · 25-08-2007, 04:54 PM

Justin,
I have used VIP for transport. I'm pretty sure they also offer a cheque handover facility where they go to collect the car and if it is in the same condition as when they inspected it for you, they hand over the quids. Definitely one of the inspection people I talked to offered this, pretty sure it's VIP. If you're interested I'll go back through my file for the info.

It all depends on how much you want to spend. Inspection + money handover + transport all starts to add up but it does give peace of mind. I spent heaps on inspections but got saved from two nice "rust free" cars that turned out to be heaps of c**p - they also email photos which helps as well.

Rick.

private9 · 26-08-2007, 09:40 PM

Thanks for all the advice everyone, much appreciated!

Pretty sure I'm going to grab the car, and get VIP to do a secure handover. Unfortunately no family in NSW (every other state in AUS though!) and my friends from Sydney are on holidays!

Can't believe how cheap transport is though, have done a few online quotes and looking at $500 max from Sydney to Melbourne.

apolloxbgt · 26-08-2007, 11:41 PM

What sort of car are you looking at?

private9 · 18-09-2007, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by apolloxbgt

What sort of car are you looking at?

Sorry Apolllo, completely missed your post.

Well, I was getting an AU Fairmont Ghia. Got some nice detailed pics, spoke at length over the phone, agreed on a price, said I'd 100% take it and would transfer deposit that day - and the stupid smacktard won't give me details!

It's been roughly 3 weeks, didn't hear from him for a week, left messages, PM's etc, then I heard from him every few days saying he'd send details through that night etc - never received them. In the end I sent him a message saying please just let me know, as I need to buy a car, and he never responded!

I really hate buying/selling cars because of all the socially retarded morons that seem to be out there.