EBAY Reatta Promo car

[Cargirl]

I notice there is a Reatta Promo car listed on EBAY currently. I bid on it earlier today and have already been outbid. Is there anyone on this site that has one of these Promo cars that wants to sell it? If so please email me at "brengirl@aol.com." Am I the only one to notice, but why is it that EBAY sellers charge so much for shipping these items? The seller wants almost 8 dollars for shipping an item first class the post office would charge you a buck or two? One more thought, do you think there's alot of shilling on EBAY? I always suspect that is the case, am I just paranoid?

[Guest EDBS0]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> why is it that EBAY sellers charge so much for shipping these items? The seller wants almost 8 dollars for shipping an item first class the post office would charge you a buck or two? One more thought, do you think there's alot of shilling on EBAY? paranoid? </div></div>

Duh, it is called profit.

Shilling YES, paranoid NO!

[Cargirl]

I did not think my query would provoke a "duh" from the gathered masses. I will endeavor to ask more intelligent questions in the future.

[juddev]

Many people add the paypal fees and ebay fees that they expect to pay into the price they charge for shipping.

[Guest Reatta1]

Good response 'girl'. Don't be shy about speaking your mind here. Some of the old timers get a little jaded.

[ALF1]

CARGIRL: Check your private message.

<span style="font-weight: bold">-- ALF</span>

[Guest tempest68]

Cargirl,

Funny how eBay works. There were three promo cars listed at the same time about 1.5 weeks ago. One listed in the title "MIB" (Mint-In-Box), another was MIB but not listed in the title, and the third had just been removed from the factory-sealed box to take the photo for eBay.

Well, I bid on the second one. It seems that the first one was drawing alot of bidders because of the MIB designation in the title. So its price was quickly going above where I would have paid. But the one I bid on was also MIB. It just wasnt as obvious as the first one until you read the listing carefully.

Ultimately I won the 2nd one. Final Price - $27.00. Shipping - was determined after the auction - $4.00.

The first one was bid upto $125.95! And shipping was a flat $6.50. Total of $132.45.

And the third one ended for, I believe, $18.50 w/$6.00 flat-rate shipping.

So vs. the first promo, it looks like I saved $101.45 And after the auction, I learned it's coming from another Reatta Division member that Lisa and I met at Flint last year.

[padgett]

E-bay has some specific differences between it and a "real" auction. For one thing you cannot see whom you are bidding against. Second it is very easy for a person to have multiple identities.

Must admit I rarely buy anything there and when I do it is even less likely to be car related because just about anything is available locally. Not everyone is that fortunate and I have always felt the a lot of the high bids are by people who have no other way of getting the item.

My wife often asks why I do not sell things and the simple answer is that I never know when I am going to be home. If I ever retire that may change.

Shilling ? Obviously but as with a fixed starting value or a reserve, the seller is taking a chance that the shill will be the high bid. Know that some can get caught up in bidding and go beyond sanity but I usually have a good idea of the value to me and limit bidding to that.

The key is that there will always be another one.

[Guest]

The key to Ebay , is

A. Know what you are buying

B. read the feedback, if they have bad feed back or are very new seller with only little feedback I dont buy from them.

C. if the seller comesback to you after you are outbid and offers you the item at your "losing" bid price they either had numerous of the same items or they had a shill bidding going on. I keep a list of them and dont bid on their items

again.

D. read the desciptions VERY carefully and ask questions if not sure.

E. If you have a bad experience with a seller make sure you leave NEGATIVE feedback.

I have bought hundreds of times on ebay , have had only two bad experiences and eventually they both were restricted from the site.

rgds

[Guest dukeofo]

Cargirl

I agree with you totally how sellers are ruining Ebay as a bargain hunters auction. I have been on for years n years and have recently stopped buying only those things I have to have strictly because of the outrageous shippintg and handling costs.

Fool me once.............

I only have one promo because they aren't that cool but I wanted one for my collection. I want a pewter model.....

Happy shopping trials

[Shelby]

I also sell and buy lots of stuff on ebay.

I use the "sniping" software to bid jst second before the auction ends. It is within the rules of Ebay and it keeps the price on items way down.

Ask questions early and figure out what the lotal cost you really want to pay(including) Shipping.

On the selling side, I sell with a Fixed cost of shipping. And 95 % of the buyers are happy because cost. But the other 5% drive you nut wanting $.30 back a $12.70 actual cost that charged $13.00.

The cost of boxes, packing material and tape is really a pretty big expense.

I had one fellow that didn't like the $23 shipping based on weigh of an item. So I shipped it via the UPS store and had them pack , ship it and charge it to him. They cost was $ 79.67 .

Just some of the thing I have learned.

[Cargirl]

Wow...I had no idea about "sniping" software. That makes sense to me as I have often thought I was about to get a bargain and then "poof," at the last second I am outbid. Knowing that, it makes me even less hopeful about getting things for below average cost. I thought EBAY was a bargain basement site but perhaps it is really a site to find hard to get items and not much more.

[reattadudes]

the best place for sniping is www.esnipe.com it gets very frustrating at times to see people bidding against themselves over and over again. the bids are sometimes only seconds apart.

we have noticed many prices on Reatta parts on ebay have increased dramatically within the past few months.

its kind of strange how certain items can be priced all over the place. I was looking thru our esnipe account for the past month a few days ago, and it was comical. we purchased four left window regulators, and the prices went from $16.22 to $101.00. it just seems to depend on who else is bidding. the 1990-1991 outside mirrors were the same way. the vent glass have really gone up, too.

Mike

[Guest DTerry]

I think Ebay is the neatest thing that ever came along. It's the greatest re-cycling facility in existence. I have sold several things that I had no use for but wouldn't trash because there's someone out there that needs them. For instance, see http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2475836014&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

It's not for profit, just to make them available to other folks. Sometimes it turns profitable, though. I had an old Austin Healey manual (20 years old but still new) that I listed in the same manner, and was startled when it sold for $65. And when I've bought the wrong thing by mis-bidding (duh), they've without fail sold for more than I paid.

Where else could I find a mint - and I do mean literally "mint" - 1977 Technics receiver? Or same era Jensen speakers? (We don't need no robot-assembled, computer-controlled black plastic throw away stuff pretending to be audio gear.)

It's the same 'ol Caveat Emptor. Know what you're buying (see previously stated "duh"), and know what it costs to ship. In the receiver/speaker example, I had to contact the seller to find out exactly what shipping would be...each speaker weighs 25 pounds.

Shilling? So what? Know what it's worth...or at least what you're willing to pay. Don't get caught up in the "I gotta have it!" syndrome. There'll always be another one.

I'm an Ebay junkie.

[Guest wally888]

Dave, me too!

Once while considering buying an Allante I saw a brochure for sale in Germany.

Paid $40 and elected for boat shipping.

Month or so later sold brochure for $150+ on Ebay. Have done same w/ several sets of golf clubs. Been burned once out of 150 or so buys/sells.

Once from Indonisa I took CC pymt., charged $880+ to card but didn't immediately ship. Found out was not card owner, cancelled charge, notified card issuer.