A trend in CL

[Masamune]

Ok, so I've been perusing CL for awhile and I've come accross a trend of low-mileage, like-new cars/trucks going for stupid small amounts of money. All use the same type of posting. Any thoughts on what's behind this? Sounds and looks like a scam...

http://spokane.craigslist.org/ctd/1562350099.html

2001 BMW X5 3.0i for $2890

http://spokane.craigslist.org/ctd/1562451692.html

2006 Civic EX for $2980

http://spokane.craigslist.org/ctd/1562278609.html

2005 Altima for $2960

[DJ metadelic]

Of course it's a scam. My input, is don't buy anything from a dealer unless they're a small operation yet reputable, or a larger operation and have pics of the dealer lot, with other cars, and you can tell that both ads were created by real humanstrying to sell legitamate cars, for low prices. Then it may be something worthwhile looking into, and thus trustworthy to some degree.

Most the stuff I buy off of CL, I try and look for private sale. That way you're only dealing with one person, directly. And the honesty is appreciated on both sides, on behalf of both parties. There's a lot of commercial ads listed as private sales. That's what flagging is for

[Bullhorn7]

Obviously these are related.. Notice the 3 cars are in 3 diffrent locations

Its a scam.

[Accrdwgnguy]

Dude thats been going on for years. Some of the ads in my area had pictures of cars that were obviously in the desert somewhere. Of course its a scam. The point of it, i'm not sure.

[Rusty]

Of course it's a scam. My input, is don't buy anything from a dealer unless they're a small operation yet reputable, or a larger operation and have pics of the dealer lot, with other cars, and you can tell that both ads were created by real humanstrying to sell legitamate cars, for low prices. Then it may be something worthwhile looking into, and thus trustworthy to some degree.

Most the stuff I buy off of CL, I try and look for private sale. That way you're only dealing with one person, directly. And the honesty is appreciated on both sides, on behalf of both parties. There's a lot of commercial ads listed as private sales. That's what flagging is for

well i'm sure he's not going to buy a car blindly on CL without going to check it out. And private people are just as likely to be a scam as a dealer would be.

There are multiple purposes for these types of ads. Most of the time they aren't true 'scams' b/c the purpose isn't to take money or anything from the person who responds. I'm not saying they are legitimate though.

I've bought 2 cars and a dog on CL in the last year with no issues. Really all you need to do is use half a brain when dealing with CL and you're not likely to get scammed out of anything valuable.

[DJ metadelic]

well i'm sure he's not going to buy a car blindly on CL without going to check it out. And private people are just as likely to be a scam as a dealer would be.

There are multiple purposes for these types of ads. Most of the time they aren't true 'scams' b/c the purpose isn't to take money or anything from the person who responds. I'm not saying they are legitimate though.

I've bought 2 cars and a dog on CL in the last year with no issues. Really all you need to do is use half a brain when dealing with CL and you're not likely to get scammed out of anything valuable.

Very true, I totally agree and that wasn't my implication at all. You can get buttzeckxed out of almost any deal whether it be on CL or not. The key is to talk to the person first hand, and if they seem honest and decent, go for it. I've bought many things on CL, I guess what I'm saying is that for some reason I probably couldn't bring myself to purchase a vehicle from those borderline-shadetree mechanics that sell $800 nissan altimas for $1900 with 200k on them.

[Accord R33]

I wont go into details, but like Val said, the point of most of these is not to scam you out of 1000s of dollars. Mostly, they want you to fill out some kind of "offer", for which they get paid $X amount of dollars for. If you knew how much money there was in doing this, you'd do it to

[93.4dr.22A1]

easiest way to tell its a scam. the plates are blacked out.

[owequitit]

Either information mining, or dealers quoting the down payment "out the door" costs. With a nominal monthly payment, of course.

[Rusty]

easiest way to tell its a scam. the plates are blacked out.

Why do you think that? When we put the Teg up on CL we blacked out the plates. Also a lot of people fear that if their plates are on the internet it will be tracked back to their personal info like address and stuff.

Either information mining, or dealers quoting the down payment "out the door" costs. With a nominal monthly payment, of course.

Another thing I recently noticed is that they have 'fine print' at the bottom that says something like Price is after $5,000 trade in. Pisses me off so much.

[DJ metadelic]

Another thing I recently noticed is that they have 'fine print' at the bottom that says something like Price is after $5,000 trade in. Pisses me off so much.

x2. I remember back in college when I first started using CL. For some reason I remember it being a much better community, there weren't so many people out to screw anyone over or something. Just like a lot of things, once anyone can gain access to something, it becomes a mixed bag. But there's lots of honest folks trying to sell nice stuff on there, and spammers just make it a PITA.

[owequitit]

Why do you think that? When we put the Teg up on CL we blacked out the plates. Also a lot of people fear that if their plates are on the internet it will be tracked back to their personal info like address and stuff.

I black out my plates all the time in ads. Especially for Honda stuff.

Another thing I recently noticed is that they have 'fine print' at the bottom that says something like Price is after $5,000 trade in. Pisses me off so much.

Yeah, it is just a tactic to get you on the lot.

[93.4dr.22A1]

Why do you think that? When we put the Teg up on CL we blacked out the plates. Also a lot of people fear that if their plates are on the internet it will be tracked back to their personal info like address and stuff.

Just stupid, IMO, to put a car up for sale without hosting the info neccesary to find out the history of the car. I do understand about the theft risk. But then again, you could get jacked when the guy comes to check it out.

[owequitit]

x2. I remember back in college when I first started using CL. For some reason I remember it being a much better community, there weren't so many people out to screw anyone over or something. Just like a lot of things, once anyone can gain access to something, it becomes a mixed bag. But there's lots of honest folks trying to sell nice stuff on there, and spammers just make it a PITA.

Where there are buyers, there will be shady salesmen looking to make a buck on those who don't know what is going on...