PhatCat Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 http://www.ebay.com/itm/1953-Buick-Skylark-Convertible-/232406060628?hash=item361c7b0e54:g:Mx0AAOSwvjdZWWz~&vxp=mtr What do you guys think ? New seller and a silly low price on the reserve. $74,900 . I think I smell a rat ......this car should be worth double that and just look at the trouble they went to writing the description. Does anyone know who's car this might be if the photos were stolen from the internet ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 Seems fishy eh? Maybe a clone being sold as a Skylark? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 I asked for a pic of the body tag... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 If it's a concours winning car, as stated, there ought to be a record of what show it won at. Perhaps not in line with the description, but I could see a car like this with older or poorly executed workmanship being in the $75k range. Or perhaps the seller hasn't got that much into it and needs to sell. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 He [ or she ] does need to get the story right. One place indicates "4 wheel power disk brakes". Later indicates drums. ?? Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZRIV Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 Seller has zero feedback. Anyone expecting to sell a car for $74k on ebay with zero feedback is overly optimistic. Though ebay has fraud protection on car sales, one still must exercise caution 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janousek Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 I'd be skeptic but they aren't bringing what they once were. That market is really soft right now. Grandfather in law tried to sell his for 3 years before settling in the ballpark of this guys asking price. It has awards from Meadowbrook and a few other concourse shows. It was a mid90's resto but was holding up well. This car presented doesn't look really fresh either. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim65 Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 I would buy at that price , so have sent message to buyer ,for location to arrange viewing , watch this space? 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1953mack Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 (edited) Do your homework. This Skylark is listed in my 1953-1954 BUICK SKYLARK OWNERS REGISTRY and was up for sale on eBay last year by a Collector Car House in a different state and listed with a BIN price for low-mid six figures. Whether the current seller bought it then and is trying to resell it now, I do not know. The VIN listed under the Items specific heading appears to be the original Engine Serial Number (V433787) which falls within the Body Production Number range for that Skylark and appears it was used for title registration purposes in lieu of the Car Serial Number. But, the descriptive under the ENGINE paragraph mentions an E.S.N. of V2248507 (a later 1953 engine). An engine transplant is not a big deal but thought I would mention it. If you are willing to write out a check for $75K-$100K there are quite a few Larks to choose from. Expect to dump a few more $$ into it after you buy it. Good luck. Al Malachowski BCA #8965 "500 Miles West of Flint" Edited July 13, 2017 by 1953mack (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 The article description is poorly written, reflecting current nomenclature for several items. It almost looks like someone trying to start out in business of consignment sales. Perhaps this vehicle is now being sold by someone who inherited it and who is just interested in the money, not maintain a historic vehicle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim65 Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 (edited) Personally think the title of the thread is most probably correct ,and sent owner a message to find out. but I would love a skylark , but wouldn't buy without a prior inspection unless from a trusted member . I been offered 50k couple of times for Ruby , so another 15/20 k for a skylark would be great , but if it is genuine it will probably sail past my budget . Keep you posted ? Edited July 13, 2017 by Pilgrim65 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 I asked for a photo of the body tag and got this response. It came directly to my email and not through eBay somehow. Same photos as eBay, no pic of body tag. When I look up instant motors group in Atlanta there are no google results.... Hello,My name is Robert McCarthy and I am one of the Salesmen here at Instant Motors in Atlanta GA. My general manager gave me your information and she said you were interested in a vehicle we have. It is about the 1953 Buick Skylark, selling it for $74,900, clean title and history, no accidents, no issues at all. Clean carfax, too.This stunning car will take your breath away!! The classic car runs and drives extremely well. It starts immediately and the engine runs with vigor, making good power and no smoke. The transmission works smoothly and the brakes are effective, pulling the car up straight. The car rides firmly and the chassis feels solid. Overall, the car is a pleasure to drive. Please note that the price is lower than the market because we are looking for a cash sale, we are not able to accept loans or financing for this one.Attached you have some photos, feel free to check them out.Thanks,Robert McCarthy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 For sure scam: https://www.carsforsale.com/vehicle/details/31833745 same dang car! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest parkisw Posted July 13, 2017 Share Posted July 13, 2017 A lot of cars on e-bay are also on Craigs list- good idea to consult club members. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 1 hour ago, old-tank said: For sure scam: https://www.carsforsale.com/vehicle/details/31833745 same dang car! Same pic for sure. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim65 Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 (edited) We have sust it , scam as we thought ,250k ! Real price i had the exactly same email as above , also direct not to messages and no response to my individual question, funny thing though it deleted itself as soon as I opened it , but found it again on another device. i apologise to any I misled in my postings , although I would love a skylark for £60k , my wife wouldn't like me dipping into our pension fund to that extent for another car, others would have to go first. However I appreciate the concerns and advice from you guys. My posting about buying was a subtrafuge in case scammer was reading my posting . Happy to have my 'baby skylark ' Ruby. Though ! ? Edited July 14, 2017 by Pilgrim65 (see edit history) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim65 Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 (edited) Just to finish , have alerted real dealer. Hope they catch the scum. Edited July 14, 2017 by Pilgrim65 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine Gun Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 (edited) I've alerted eBay as well. I confirmed that it's the same car. I requested the VIN from the LI dealer, and it's the same as on the eBay listing. Unless the LI dealer hasn't updated his web page to show that the vehicle might have been sold, it sure looks like a scam to me. I wonder though, how would a scammer get away with something like that? Who would be intelligent enough to have that kind of money, yet dumb enough to bid on a high ticket item without first inspecting it? I can't imagine anyone transferring money or handing over cash if there's no car. Perhaps they're only after the deposit, but PayPal is pretty good about protecting their buyers and themselves against fraud. Speaking of which, there's another funny thing about the listing: they will accept a PAyPal deposit, but there's no mention of how much the deposit must be. Edited July 14, 2017 by Machine Gun Incomplete (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine Gun Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 Update: Apparently the supposed dealer, WeBe Classics, isn't what they appear to be. Go to their home page and look at the photos under "Our Collection." The cars shown cars that have different photo backgrounds, with some photos even having the selling dealer information in them. Read their About Us description where they say "...and as a car dealer we enjoy the challenge of meeting and exceeding those standards..." Then go to their inventory page and read the fine print at the bottom: "WeBe Autos Ltd. is NOT a Dealer. The independent partner/member is representing the owner of this item..." The whole thing smells, but now I'm not sure from which end. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 2 hours ago, Machine Gun said: The whole thing smells, but now I'm not sure from which end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billorn Posted July 14, 2017 Share Posted July 14, 2017 Its not a scam but its not perfectly legit either. These guys called me when I had a car for sale last summer. They dont do anything but take your pictures and put them on the internet. If you call them about the car they take a message and call the owner and get the answer and call you back. Sometimes they put you in touch with the owner but they dont want you cutting them out of the loop so they dont want to do that and make it hard for you. Parasites as far as Im concerned. They cant tell you anything about the cars because they dont know. They just take whatever ad the owner posted on cragis list and spread it around in other places then charge the owner a few hundred bucks for the privilege. It sounds great on the phone when they first call because they use words like professional marketing staff but then I looked and saw they just reprint the owners words and pictures. They dont do anything. Then they get really aggressive and when you tell them no thanks they call back and get mean like their personally insulted or something. I wonder how real dealers feel about these scumbags? It gives the whole hobby a bad name. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhatCat Posted July 19, 2017 Author Share Posted July 19, 2017 Thanks Guys for all the home work it looked too good to be true........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_S_in_Penna Posted July 24, 2017 Share Posted July 24, 2017 On 7/14/2017 at 10:45 AM, billorn said: ...They don't do anything but take your pictures and put them on the internet. ... Parasites as far as I'm concerned.... I've gotten that impression, too, of a few "dealers." "Classic Car Deals" is another one that apparently does the same thing--taking text and/or pictures from hundreds of other ads and simply relisting them, even while the original ad is still on the internet! And they list their OWN contact information, with a asking a higher price than the owner does! I think there's a third one that does the same thing. Isn't it great when friendly club members can buy and sell among themselves and by-pass all the shenanigans? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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