Ok guys! i've found a few 94-96 C4 vettes that i like. A few here in illinois and a few out of state. Has anyone bought a car out of state? had it shipped and bought one with just looking at it online. How do you trust someone to whom you've only talked to over the phone....Let me know what you think about this situation
Ive done that several times and the results varied a great deal, occasionally youll find some guy whos in financial trouble through loss of a job, forced to move or a divorce, that lost interest in a project and will unload it for pennies on a dollar to recoup some of his investment, but more often, I find the cars are not worth what the guys asking and local buyers won,t touch it, a few really carefully angled pictures that don,t point out the flaws as much as the good points makes a car far easier to unload on-line as there rarely a close personal inspection done before the title and money exchange owners.
always verify ownership and a clear title with the LOCAL STATE D.O.T. before you hand over money>I've generally suggested car buyers, meet me with cash in hand, I take several clear detailed pictures of the cars condition as its being sold, at the local DMV.
SO THEY CAN,T COME BACK AFTER WRECKING THE CAR SEVERAL DAYS LATER LOOKING FOR A REFUND,
and the bill of sale states , the date, time and cash price and SOLD AS IS, WITH THE VIN # LISTED.
in bold print with a date and place for the buyer to sign.
with the buyer and seller signing it with both DRIVERS, licenses photo copied,
AND A PICTURE OF THE BUYER STANDING NEXT TO THE CAR,HOLDING THE BILL OF SALE. and SMILING)
and we sign over the title,
at the DMV once the cash is verified, at the local DMV ,
ALL fees and taxes are taken care of on the spot,
by the buyer,as he agrees too ahead of time!
and I then immediately call my auto, insurance company ,
to let them know the cars title has changed hands.
I also generally take pictures of the guys drivers licence and the guy buying the car,
as secondary security, thus theres less of a tendency for scams or attempted robbery etc.
it PAYS to do a car fax, check the title and owner match and that there's no financial leans on that title with the local DMV and
do a title search, and vin check and carfax report,
CHECK FOR TITLE LIENS
on any car or project you are thinking of purchasing,
ESPECIALLY out of state,
make damn sure you get a noterized bill of sale stating the make, model,
year, vin umber of the car, and,
a photo copy of the sellers drivers licence, and of any checks,
or title documents,registrations, etc. you exchange
obviously take lots of clear pictures,of the car,
get a valid title and get a legibly signed bill of sale,
ideally a photo copy of the sellers drivers licence,
verify the vin and engine numbers,
casting numbers and hopefully find a car that runs
THEN TRANSFER TITLE AT THE LOCAL DMV
NEVER ALLOW THE SELLER TO TELL YOU HE WILL MAIL THE TITLE OR FAIL TO LEGALY TRANSFER OWNERSHIP
that's not a rolling rust pile.
http://www.autocheck.com/vehiclehistory/autocheck/en/vinbasics
http://www.dmv.org/vehicle-history/find-vin.php
https://www.carfax.com/company/vehicle-identification-numbers-vins
http://www.vinnumberlocation.com/
It generally pays to take precautions, like going with several friends, all of which are concealed carry permit holders
(that's rarely an issue, around here, as I can,t think of any of my close friends that are not!)
You always need to keep in mind that your at a disadvantage, dealing with people you don,t know who expect your carrying cash! simply because you can potentially run into thieves, and rip off scams,
insisting on transferring a car title at the local dmv and having good documentation, and running a car fax report, and taking lots of pictures, of the car and seller, and documentation, helps lower your risks.
being observant, asking lots of questions, verifying the owner's ID, copy the guys drivers licence number , and insisting on the title transfer, and cash exchange on a car purchase happen at the local DMV during a m-f 9am-4pm time frame
and its always best to go to any potential project car purchase with, either a truck and car trailer available, or having made prior arrangements to rent a car trailer, that can be used on a one way rental, if you don,t own a car trailer and remember to ask if theres any other parts, engines or tools that they may be also be selling, you might be amazed, at the results, of asking that simple question, I've had guys suddenly remember that they no longer need a spare differential or a couple extra engine parts that they either throw in or sell cheaply
I get calls asking for a bit of advice, all the time and I have built a good reputation among a group of the older local guys building engines , and for doing race car mods,for a rather select crowd , Im always amazed at the number of times I see guys who jump into projects without doing a moments research into the car they just purchased or parts availability or even if the car they bought is in decent mechanical or cosmetic condition,now we all start out that way but after being "burnt" a few times you might think that we would gain some experience and learn to "look before you leap"
you might be astounded at the number of times that asking a few questions or putting a car up on a lift and doing a detailed inspection, or doing 30 minutes research into casting numbers could result in your having a far FAR better idea as to what your looking at, and what might be required in the process of that cars restoration, etc.
I'm certainly not especially skilled with a lap-top computer or smart phone but these modern tools allow fast on site verification of the cars legal title,
AND you should always do a vin, and title check, and pull a carfax report on any car you might purchase after putting it up on a lift for a detailed visual inspection and a test drive
http://www.vincheckpro.com/vin-go?sems=google&sem_net=g&sem_campaign=373606699&sem_adgroup=26150655619&sem_cre=95800849819&sem_targetid=kwd-24567962568&sem_feed=&sem_key=car facts report free&sem_mat=p&sem_issearch=1&sem_iscontent=&sem_ismob=&sem_dev=c&sem_mod=&sem_pla=&sem_ran=4824098978257390774&sem_tar=&sem_adp=1t1&sem_ace=&sem_geo=9012039&sem_interest=&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_fHiyZuY1QIVlLrACh1sVAkSEAAYASAAEgKKW_D_BwE
if you don,t read links its sure to cost you a good deal of extra time and money
http://m.wikihow.com/Calculate-Diminished-Value
https://www.carfax.com/cfm/general_check.cfm?partner=GMS_3&CMP=KNC-Google
http://www.vincheckpro.com/vin-go?s...MI_fHiyZuY1QIVlLrACh1sVAkSEAAYASAAEgKKW_D_BwE
http://www.autocheck.com/vehiclehistory/autocheck/en/vinbasics
READ THROUGH THese LINKs, and sub links
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/finding-a-machine-shop.321/
https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/gm-heritage-archive/vehicle-information-kits.html
READING THE LINKS WILL PROVE VERY USEFUL
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-state-muscle-or-project-car.4318/#post-29221
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...ll-of-receipts-is-not-proof.10281/#post-41565
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-you-to-locate-project-cars.10126/#post-39694
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...roject-cars-are-they-kidding.9953/#post-38383
http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=25&p=33&hilit=trailer#p33
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/engine-swap-source-info.12068/
http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=649&p=879&hilit=trailer#p879
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/source-for-muscle-car-bodys.8457/#post-29663
any time you've purchased a new(too you) used muscle car,
you should start by carefully inspecting a car,s basic systems like brakes, cooling ,suspension, alignment, tires , power steering, hoses,belts, after all you'll generally have little or no idea how the cars been maintained, that's easily 45 plus years old in most cases,
its will generally save you some potential problems if you take the time and effort,
if you change out the fluids,radiators can and frequently are filled with either plain water,
( which caused corrosion, or old anti-freeze that can cause particulates to form and clog the radiator interior tubes)
Id especially change the oil, and filter, and slap a big magnet on the base of the oil filter
clip on a decent magnet to the base of a long oil filter helps it trap metalic trash more effectively, and while $29 may sound high its good extra insurance that potentially reduces the chances of metalic debis from getting to the bearings and valve train.
consider the cost of bearing replacement?
http://www.magnet4sale.com/n42-3od-x-1id-x-1-2-neodymium-rare-earth-ring-magnet/
change the oil, and filter, and slap a big magnet on the base of the oil filter
http://www.magnet4sale.com/n42-3od-x-1id-x-1-2-neodymium-rare-earth-ring-magnet/
and a couple high heat tolerant magnets,
near the oil drain back cylinder head drains in the rear of each head , and its smart too change the brake fluid
(which has a nasty habit in older muscle cars of absorbing and holding moisture in suspension.)
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...himmer-in-the-oil-catch-pan.11397/#post-52207
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/c4-corvette-rpo-codes.14821/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/magnets.120/#post-49771
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-with-fuel-in-the-lines-tank.4111/#post-72082
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-you-looking-at-what-you-think-you-see.14373/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/oil-filters-related-info.2080/#post-54352
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/c3-no-brake-pressure.10261/#post-41225
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/brake-fluid-info.1848/#post-16080
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