Buyer beware - 97 M3/4/5 in PA

[Cobra Jet]

Came across this Craig's ad:

http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/ctd/3656910733.html

97 BMW M3, 75K MI ONLY, 1 OWNER - $8900 (NE PHILDELPHIA)
Tomlinson rd at Jamison street
Up for sale 1997 BMW M3 in pristine condition, it has 75K mi only. Fast and reliable. Rare 4 door sedan with silver exterior and two tones interior grey and white .
3.2L 6 cylinder engine,5 speed manual transmission. 240 horse power. Super clean inside and outside We took this car in trade and drove for about 100 miles, drives like new very smooth, no noises, warning lights etc. Has 4 new Michelin Pilot tires.

And current eBay listing:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1997-...item2a2a0c4dc9

I then was going to run its VIN to get a vehicle history report:
WBSCD9328VEE05516

And the first bit of info that came up in a Google search was this:
http://www.salvage-cars-for-sale.inf...97-MjE0MzI5NjE

Salvage BMW M3 1997 for sale

This vehicle is placed in North Billerica, Massachusetts. It was Normal Wear damaged. Are you looking for a salvage Bmw M3 car or Bmw M3 parts to restore your car in North Billerica, MA at a great price? You can buy this Bmw M3 vehicle at Massachusetts online auction or through private treaty. You may purchase the car for thousands less then you normally pay and then restore it, keep it, dismantle for Bmw M3 parts or sell it for a profit. Save money on buying this salvage Bmw M3 car!

Make: BMW
Model: M3
Year: 1997
Mileage: 74893
Color: SILVER
Vin: WBSCD9328VEE05516
Vehicle type: SEDAN 4D
Title type: CLEAN TITLE
Primary damage: NORMAL WEAR
Condition: Salvage
Price: 2750.00 (starting)
Location: NORTH BILLERICA, MA, 01862, USA

And this complete COPART vehicle info sheet (note the date of report, 2011):
http://images.copart.com/website/dat...1432961_E1.PDF



Just putting it out there for anyone who thinks they may be getting a "1 owner, pristine condition" M3/4/5... And take a good look at the "before" pics in both salvage car for sale and COPART links above...

[GIANUCCI E30]

That's grimey.

[Firefighter]

Funny, I made a post about this car too, I didn't see your post. I wouldn't touch this car for free!

[Jamesons Viggen]

With full disclosure and a salvage title price, if it drove right with no alignment issues, why not. But shady seller and non disclosure makes you want to keep 100ft away regardless.

[e30bimmer89]

buhahaha from the e-bay ad-

PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU WILL BUY THIS CAR IF YOU ARE PLACED BID ON IT, DO NOT WAIST OUR TIME!!!

Some things with that car. As bad as I want a low milage M3, I wouldn't even come close to THINKING about this one.

[93bmw325is]

glad i came across this im in the market for an m3/4/5

[Justbimmering]

Nice find. Good looks on the post.

[GG///M3]

From the ebay add the car looks mint. How was it salvaged ? EDIT just checked normal WEAR damage. Interesting. Never seen that before. I purchased my first m3 in 2001, and it was a flood car. The carpet was dried, and the only thing that needed replaced were the door panels. Car drove great, and no electrical issues. Not everyone has the same luck.

[GIANUCCI E30]

reply from the seller when questioned:

"When we took it in a trade we wasn`t that smart as you and we just run Carfax report.
It cost us $7000 so what are you recommend me to do?
I can give you original owner`s info and you can contact him and tell him about previus history of the car.
I am pretty sure he is more familiar with that. Thank you Vasyl"

Got to love sellers who play dumb.
Sounds like a Jerkoff to me. Anyone dropping coin on it good luck.

[iHOPEyouCHOKE]

reply from the seller when questioned:

"When we took it in a trade we wasn`t that smart as you and we just run Carfax report.
It cost us $7000 so what are you recommend me to do?
I can give you original owner`s info and you can contact him and tell him about previus history of the car.
I am pretty sure he is more familiar with that. Thank you Vasyl"

Got to love sellers who play dumb.
Sounds like a Jerkoff to me. Anyone dropping coin on it good luck.

Just the ghetto Ebonics and shit spelling would make me lose interest.

[Firefighter]

Just the ghetto Ebonics and shit spelling would make me lose interest.

Don't you just love the spelling!!! What a tool!

[l1ttlej7]

Sounds like the same guy that told me he wants to buy my car for double the price I just have to send him money first

[///mpowered1]

I placed a bid on this car when it first appeared on ebay. It appeared to be pretty clean other than the heavy rust pitting on the brake calipers, paint over spray on trim, and the fenders appeared to be a different shade of silver. Shortly thereafter the price eclipsed what i was willing to spend. I pity the high bidder, price is already $7,600 with two days remaining. The listing is a gross misrepresentation and the seller should be held accountable.

btw... a big thanks to the op. Info like this is what makes Bimmerforums such an excellent resource.

[EE05063]

From the ebay add the car looks mint. How was it salvaged ? EDIT just checked normal WEAR damage. Interesting. Never seen that before. I purchased my first m3 in 2001, and it was a flood car. The carpet was dried, and the only thing that needed replaced were the door panels. Car drove great, and no electrical issues. Not everyone has the same luck.

Is it possible the state labeled it that way simply due to age/mileage? Like when a title gets marked "mileage exempt/in excess of mechanical limits".

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

[redfoot]

Nice 4-door E36 M for sale by me if anyone is interested. Car looks super clean... tempted to buy it myself.

[Firefighter]

Details??

[strad]

From the ebay add the car looks mint. How was it salvaged ? EDIT just checked normal WEAR damage. Interesting. Never seen that before. I purchased my first m3 in 2001, and it was a flood car. The carpet was dried, and the only thing that needed replaced were the door panels. Car drove great, and no electrical issues. Not everyone has the same luck.

Copart sells a lot of cars that have not been wrecked/stolen. Normal wear is a common descriptor seen for those. I would agree that mr seller is a douchbag though. That ad goes way beyond puffing and into fraud. We'd be better off with a bit less caveat emptor lol.

[redfoot]

Details??

67k miles, auto

Asking $13.5k...

to be clear, I have zero interest in the car.

[mile1160]

Let me introduce myself. I am the new owner of this car. I was looking for other info by VIN and found this thread...after I paid for the car, but before it arrived. You can imagine how freaked-out I was.

I thought I had done my homework. The seller's (a European auto repair shop in Philly) eBay, yellowpages, citysearch, etc, ratings and reviews were all top-notch. The Carfax was good, and eBay has some pretty solid protection plans.

When I got the car, I wasn't thrilled. The description of the car was definitely a stretch. Not exactly "pristine". There were some minor issues (A/C and cruise didn't work, interior filthy), and one major: a sticker on the door jamb stating the odometer had been reset at 40k. Ouch. But the car ran and drove great, and there were no leaks, noises, or error codes. Whatever was wrong from the auction pics must've been replaced or repaired.

Fast-forward, and I would describe this transaction as acceptable. The seller claimed ignorance but offered to buy the car back (including shipping), or refund a large portion of the price for repair of the issues. I also had the eBay protection plan that would reimburse money for the odometer discrepancy. After driving the car for a couple weeks, the decision was easy.

P.S. I know it's been said repeatedly (and I had even done it on previous vehicles), but I will say that a PPI is a must.