We put a deposit down on our CR-V without sitting in it. We already had a CR-V though so knew how it drove and the seller was a main dealer so I guess that’s different lol.
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The Car Thread ... !
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Yes agreed. If it’s an upgrade you know what to expect. But if it’s a totally different car, then I’d rather see how it handles, feel where the controls are and do they work for me.
I’ve several times ordered a car “blind”. Actually you have no alternative when you preorder a new model. It’s not like it is there ready at the dealers for a test drive or anything like that. No regrets so far. Besides if you don’t like it, just get rid of it
You made a comment earlier about how it’s kind of fun to ‘blind buy’, and I’ll be honest with you, it’s almost like you get this ‘natural high’ when you know you’re buying something for the first time and you haven’t had a chance to put your hands on it and it’s on its way to you (But you know it’s ‘the one’), you’re literally like a little child on Christmas morning, so excited to see it when it arrives. So that’s one of the things that might sound strange to somebody, but it’s a very euphoric feeling when you see the car trailer pull up, the ramp goes down and the car backs out for the first time hearing the exhaust note, I can’t explain it, it’s an amazing experience. No regrets as you said.
Oh gosh yes. Most definitely. Not only seeing that hockenheim silver on my car, but pulling away for the first time and feeling that pull from an M car. And then being reminded you can’t open it up yet. So lucky me, I’m at BMW at the moment for the running in service, so I can experience it all again after this and finally unleash all power.
The Golf R MK7 was another one like that. A friend of mine told me about them, half an hour later I ordered one via the telephone before their release. Mine was number 9 in the UK and when that new colour arrived on the back of a trailer, and then had it started up it was a very excited moment.
Had a few more of those; our Mercedes AMG GLC43. The car wasn’t released yet, we were downsizing from the GLS63. So first time we saw it and heard it was after the unveiling of the AMG cloth in the showroom. Ok, three months later the car turned out to be a pile of rubbish, but nobody could have known that upfront and four years on people are still contacting me that have just bought one and have the same issues.
But it can also go wrong, very wrong. Toyota Prius. My moment of madness when I wanted to be greener. Order the new shape unseen and absolutely fully loaded. It was horrible; lots of scratchy plastic inside, terribly JBL sound system. And an engine not fit to climb hills and screaming it’s head off. We didn’t have that long, and got an anti Prius to replace it. Mercedes AMG GLS63 🤣 but we did test drive that.
Anyway it’s fun and sometimes you got to take a chance. Hehe nearly forgot that I bought my Range Rover supercharger also unseen over the phone, and had a one way train ticket to pick it up.
I ordered my Model Y online and am extremely pleased with it. Just because YOU wouldn't be happy doesn't mean it applies to everyone.
Exactly. Just because YOU are happy with it, doesn’t mean everyone would be.
We are all different. I was expressing my opinion.
Mechanically, you take the risk when you online order with a used vehicle, because obviously when the car is delivered, you can’t find every possible problem wrong with it, you just have to have the vehicle pre-inspected if possible.(Unless you have a warranty attached.) There is a company called ‘Lemon Squad’ that does pre-inspections and travels directly to the vehicle location.
The big thing when you online order and have it delivered, is the visual inspection. Especially the wheels where the straps are secured to the trailer/bed of the truck. When I had both my cars delivered, I specifically requested that the driver put microfiber cloths in between the wheel and the strap, so that way they’re not rubbing and scratch the finish on the wheel. That’s a common area that buyers overlook and the wheels are damaged, and once the delivery driver drives off, it’s completely on you.
Also, before you have the vehicle delivered to your house, have pictures sent of all angles of the car/all four wheels sent to you before arrival, that way it’s documentation for insurance purposes.
I know this seems like all common sense tactics, but I think these key points really will help avoid any problems.
The big thing when you online order and have it delivered, is the visual inspection. Especially the wheels where the straps are secured to the trailer/bed of the truck. When I had both my cars delivered, I specifically requested that the driver put microfiber cloths in between the wheel and the strap, so that way they’re not rubbing and scratch the finish on the wheel. That’s a common area that buyers overlook and the wheels are damaged, and once the delivery driver drives off, it’s completely on you.
Also, before you have the vehicle delivered to your house, have pictures sent of all angles of the car/all four wheels sent to you before arrival, that way it’s documentation for insurance purposes.
I know this seems like all common sense tactics, but I think these key points really will help avoid any problems.
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Any photos on how it's progressing Bunns? Do you plan on retaining the SU carburettors? I had them on my 'C', and found it a pain having to top the damper dashpots up with oil quite frequently on both carbs. Plus the terms, 'Fill below the top of the hollow piston rod' and 'not below the top of the chamber neck' I found confusing before I became familiar with the frequent task.
The only eyes I trust are my own when it comes to inspecting a car. Photos are easily edited!
This was a joke. My point stands though. Every car I ever bought I took for a test drive first. Inspected first. That’s never going to change for me.
AFB,
The important thing when off site buying, is you need to know the source that you’re buying from, rather it’s a reputable dealership or an honest/straightforward-responsible seller. Editing photos would probably be a bit extreme, and I’ve never even heard of that happening from my ‘car community’ surroundings, not saying it can’t, but that would fringe on fraud, and I don’t think most people would risk that given the buyer has your information when they buy the car from the seller.
The Camaro that I purchased, (80 year old man), his photos were not that great when I initially looked at the car, then I requested some more, and the retake photos even still weren’t what I was looking for, which I could tell he was rather inept with technology. So I asked him to take a video and I did a FaceTime call for a 360 walk around of the vehicle with it running, looked great, Idled amazing.
If you’re a sharp person, you can always tell if somebody’s being honest or dishonest, especially if you had purchased cars multiple times in the past, you know what to look for. Just to give you an idea of how much I trusted this old man, I asked him to test the remote start feature for me and he didn’t even know his Camaro had remote start, and I had to specifically tell him how to use it over the phone. That’s when I knew dishonesty wouldn’t be an issue with this seller.
{Also, like I said before, if you’re not sure of the vehicle body condition, you can always hire a third-party source to look at a vehicle for you that is certified with an appraisal report.}
The important thing when off site buying, is you need to know the source that you’re buying from, rather it’s a reputable dealership or an honest/straightforward-responsible seller. Editing photos would probably be a bit extreme, and I’ve never even heard of that happening from my ‘car community’ surroundings, not saying it can’t, but that would fringe on fraud, and I don’t think most people would risk that given the buyer has your information when they buy the car from the seller.
The Camaro that I purchased, (80 year old man), his photos were not that great when I initially looked at the car, then I requested some more, and the retake photos even still weren’t what I was looking for, which I could tell he was rather inept with technology. So I asked him to take a video and I did a FaceTime call for a 360 walk around of the vehicle with it running, looked great, Idled amazing.
If you’re a sharp person, you can always tell if somebody’s being honest or dishonest, especially if you had purchased cars multiple times in the past, you know what to look for. Just to give you an idea of how much I trusted this old man, I asked him to test the remote start feature for me and he didn’t even know his Camaro had remote start, and I had to specifically tell him how to use it over the phone. That’s when I knew dishonesty wouldn’t be an issue with this seller.
{Also, like I said before, if you’re not sure of the vehicle body condition, you can always hire a third-party source to look at a vehicle for you that is certified with an appraisal report.}
I’ll still be visiting and checking cars out in person before I buy one though. That won’t ever change for me.
@Apple fanboy and I think both know that, as photographers(or at least I can pretend to be one), even without actually overtly manipulating a photo it's easy to use lighting and the like to "hide" problems or draw your attention away from problem areas. I've noticed this a lot with many dealers, and I've especially noticed it with some higher profile classic car dealers(after seeing online listings vs. what the car looks like in person, I would never buy a car, in person or otherwise, from Gateway Classic Cars).
I HAVE bought cars sight unseen before, but at the same time I did spend a lot of time "buying the seller." Weirdly enough, a description that spends a paragraph telling me the good things about the car and 3 paragraphs describing every issue the seller is aware of is more reassuring to me than 3 paragraphs telling me how great it is. To me, I'm more comfortable buying something from a distance from a private seller than I am a dealership.
One resource that I have used, and this may not be possible depending on what it is, but if you're buying a classic, it's worth trying to find someone local who would be willing to look it over for you. When I bought my Marina, I actually called a contact in the same state(Delaware isn't a bit state) to see if I could get him to do that. That phone call actually rewarded me with a history of the car back to the mid-80s since the person I had called had been the one to put it back on the road then and had owned it up until he sold it to the person selling it around 2009.
I HAVE bought cars sight unseen before, but at the same time I did spend a lot of time "buying the seller." Weirdly enough, a description that spends a paragraph telling me the good things about the car and 3 paragraphs describing every issue the seller is aware of is more reassuring to me than 3 paragraphs telling me how great it is. To me, I'm more comfortable buying something from a distance from a private seller than I am a dealership.
One resource that I have used, and this may not be possible depending on what it is, but if you're buying a classic, it's worth trying to find someone local who would be willing to look it over for you. When I bought my Marina, I actually called a contact in the same state(Delaware isn't a bit state) to see if I could get him to do that. That phone call actually rewarded me with a history of the car back to the mid-80s since the person I had called had been the one to put it back on the road then and had owned it up until he sold it to the person selling it around 2009.
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@cyb3rdud3 @bunnspecial
Found my [previous] '16 GT convertible in DC (I'm in FL), the only one in the US with the specs I wanted (a rare 6-speed manual, Performance Pack, Premier red interior ...), bought new from a dealer, but without having driven it. Had it transported from that Ford dealer, directly to my door (on halloween evening). Ordered a new, never driven Z06 and did a museum delivery (flew from FL to KY, drove it home ~800 miles).
In both of those (and a few other cases), I could've actually driven (well, at least attempted) an equivalent car - and being new, dealer cars (and the Z06 being an NCM delivery), I was pretty much not worried.
Other cars, like used, out of production, older/classics, custom, etc,. well yeah, those come with a little more concern. Though when I bought my [current] '19 GT (it was 6 months old, had 4K miles) I had all the paperwork done, with only the original dealer pics, and it was close to 4 hours aways, so I showed up, did a quick lookover, drive it for 2 minutes, it starting raining, they got the two cars in bays (they swapped over my wheels), and I was done in like 20 minutes and back on the road (in a major storm ...), so I didn't spend much time on a PDI
Found my [previous] '16 GT convertible in DC (I'm in FL), the only one in the US with the specs I wanted (a rare 6-speed manual, Performance Pack, Premier red interior ...), bought new from a dealer, but without having driven it. Had it transported from that Ford dealer, directly to my door (on halloween evening). Ordered a new, never driven Z06 and did a museum delivery (flew from FL to KY, drove it home ~800 miles).
In both of those (and a few other cases), I could've actually driven (well, at least attempted) an equivalent car - and being new, dealer cars (and the Z06 being an NCM delivery), I was pretty much not worried.
Other cars, like used, out of production, older/classics, custom, etc,. well yeah, those come with a little more concern. Though when I bought my [current] '19 GT (it was 6 months old, had 4K miles) I had all the paperwork done, with only the original dealer pics, and it was close to 4 hours aways, so I showed up, did a quick lookover, drive it for 2 minutes, it starting raining, they got the two cars in bays (they swapped over my wheels), and I was done in like 20 minutes and back on the road (in a major storm ...), so I didn't spend much time on a PDI
re: the current GT convertible ...
Love it, it's setup fantastic (just the right amount of aftermarket), perfectly optioned (basically __all__), but the lease on the DD/RT is coming up, and I'm thinking about doing something different. Heck, I've got a few aftermarket parts I still haven't installed for several months, so while I do dig on it, I'm a touch ambivalent about doing anything new with it.
Basically I have my car, that's sort of my hobby/fun thing, I mean, it's the wife's too, she's always welcome to use it, but she generally doesn't (even with with an A10 this time for ease-of-use). Then we have the "family ride" we keep stock, usually a lease, it's always under warranty/maintenance coverage, so zero worries, and it's the only vehicle we take on any kind of drive that: has larger carrying or towing needs, more than 4 people, more than ~30 minutes (so any trips to Universal, The Keys), bad/inclement weather (including hurricane escape), it's big, safe, roomy, and very capable.
My idea is to maybe merge my car with the family car, swap the RT for an SRT, get rid of the GT, and get a less expensive, 2nd car as kind of a "backup", it would sit outside, thinking maybe a Golf GTI. Then I'd have a fun car, that's also the family cruiser, road trip car, tow vehicle, that also stays in the garage (so it stays cooler, warmer, cleaner).
Hmmm ...
Love it, it's setup fantastic (just the right amount of aftermarket), perfectly optioned (basically __all__), but the lease on the DD/RT is coming up, and I'm thinking about doing something different. Heck, I've got a few aftermarket parts I still haven't installed for several months, so while I do dig on it, I'm a touch ambivalent about doing anything new with it.
Basically I have my car, that's sort of my hobby/fun thing, I mean, it's the wife's too, she's always welcome to use it, but she generally doesn't (even with with an A10 this time for ease-of-use). Then we have the "family ride" we keep stock, usually a lease, it's always under warranty/maintenance coverage, so zero worries, and it's the only vehicle we take on any kind of drive that: has larger carrying or towing needs, more than 4 people, more than ~30 minutes (so any trips to Universal, The Keys), bad/inclement weather (including hurricane escape), it's big, safe, roomy, and very capable.
My idea is to maybe merge my car with the family car, swap the RT for an SRT, get rid of the GT, and get a less expensive, 2nd car as kind of a "backup", it would sit outside, thinking maybe a Golf GTI. Then I'd have a fun car, that's also the family cruiser, road trip car, tow vehicle, that also stays in the garage (so it stays cooler, warmer, cleaner).
Hmmm ...
To be honest, if I were to ever buy a new Corvette, I'd definitely opt for factory/NCM delivery. I've watched people come in to pick up their cars, and just seeing the look of excitement on their faces is something.
Of course I have a pretty boring trip back home now. I'd have to drive it to my parents house in Central KY(since Bowling Green/the entire Purchase region) is pretty flat and boring and spend a day or two tearing up the back roads. If my wife would indulge me, we'd head down to North Carolina in it and spend some time visiting family and enjoying the hills there before heading back west.
That's a pipe dream now, and of course I'm not about to drive out and visit my 90 year old aunt in Wilmington, NC(which is quite a haul) now.
German delivery would be a fun option on a BMW, aside from the fact that I don't like the massive grills that just happen to have a car behind them. I'm sorry I missed the E39 era, which to me was the pinnacle of BMW design.
A friend of mine bought a Porsche 914 from the stats a couple of years back. I don’t think it lived up to expectations. I think he’s driven it about once or twice. Currently it’s minus the engine as that’s in storage at the warehouse! At what point is the body part still original if it’s mostly made of welding rod?
You don't even have to post process a picture. You can choose location and lighting, angle and picture frame carefully enough to hide/highlight whatever you want without making it too obvious. At least if you know a little bit about photography and take your time.
I asked my dealer about that color, they say it doesn't exist ...
It was super fun, and I didn't even want to do it, I was motivated by the wife! Now, having done it, I'd very highly recommend it, if you're taking delivery on a new Vette. Not only is the whole experience pretty awesome, but there's a rumor that NVM delivery cars get a little extra TLC. Hahaha, yeah, you want the drive home to be pretty epic vs. a 30 minute trip
Mine was like 800+ miles, and we detoured through the Blue Ridge Parkway (which was amazing).An old acquaintance of mine did a Porsche delivery in Germany, it was one of the special 911s at the time (this was several years ago), a lot of the same thing as the NCM, but, of course, he didn't drive it home to the states
(basically it's received at the dealer and sort of re-PDI'ed ...)