TheSamba.com :: View topic - 1500S Notchback auction on Bring a Trailer

Thu Feb 19, 2015 10:03 am

Has a few issues. Wonder what it will bring?
http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1965-volkswagen-1500-s/

Thu Feb 19, 2015 10:54 am

t3kg wrote: Has a few issues. Wonder what it will bring?
http://bringatrailer.com/listing/1965-volkswagen-1500-s/

A trailer? :lol:

Thu Feb 19, 2015 12:19 pm

Ouch. :D

Thu Feb 19, 2015 4:26 pm

Looks nice. But does have a few flaws. Will make a nice driver.

I am also curious what it will sell for.

Hard to get back what you put into these cars.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 2:08 am

Amazing how someone can spend thousands of dollars on a restoration and not buy the correct front window trim.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 6:07 am

HenrikL wrote: Amazing how someone can spend thousands of dollars on a restoration and not buy the correct front window trim.

You can cease your amazement HenrikL - I purchased the correct trim twice. The first set was bent when the original front window broke during installation. The second set (brand new from ISP with a fresh window seal) will convey with the sale.

What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 7:43 am

Hey bweiner32 I think your car looks great good luck with the sale!

Then again it looks a lot like mine so I may be biased 8)

Fri Feb 20, 2015 8:19 am

EasternNotch wrote: Hey bweiner32 I think your car looks great good luck with the sale!

Then again it looks a lot like mine so I may be biased 8)

Thanks EasternNotch! You are obviously a man of exquisite and refined taste :wink: !

Fri Feb 20, 2015 8:39 am

bweiner32 wrote:
What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Seriously? 279 hits as I write this, and 1 comment about the windshield trim. Yeah, I'd say just one "smart a$$ rock-chucker" IS pretty amazing

Fri Feb 20, 2015 9:05 am

Erik G wrote: bweiner32 wrote:
What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Seriously? 279 hits as I write this, and 1 comment about the windshield trim. Yeah, I'd say just one "smart a$$ rock-chucker" IS pretty amazing

You're right - I didn't mean to paint The Samba community with that brush, who have been very supportive and helpful through the restoration process.

I think I was reacting to a number of the rocks that were chucked on BAT yesterday, and I probably should have finished my coffee before posting.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 9:35 am

bweiner32 wrote: Erik G wrote: bweiner32 wrote:
What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Seriously? 279 hits as I write this, and 1 comment about the windshield trim. Yeah, I'd say just one "smart a$$ rock-chucker" IS pretty amazing

You're right - I didn't mean to paint The Samba community with that brush, who have been very supportive and helpful through the restoration process.

I think I was reacting to a number of the rocks that were chucked on BAT yesterday, and I probably should have finished my coffee before posting.

I have not read all the comments on your auction but in the past I have found that BAT comments on VW cars are often massively misinformed on the reality of owning a VW.

It seems like 1/2 the people who comment have owned a VW that was clearly not taken care of properly. They blame the car instead of themselves or the previous owner(s).

I had not noticed this car up for auction on BAT so I am glad to see it posted here so we can view the outcome.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 9:55 am

EverettB wrote: bweiner32 wrote: Erik G wrote: bweiner32 wrote:
What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Seriously? 279 hits as I write this, and 1 comment about the windshield trim. Yeah, I'd say just one "smart a$$ rock-chucker" IS pretty amazing

You're right - I didn't mean to paint The Samba community with that brush, who have been very supportive and helpful through the restoration process.

I think I was reacting to a number of the rocks that were chucked on BAT yesterday, and I probably should have finished my coffee before posting.

I have not read all the comments on your auction but in the past I have found that BAT comments on VW cars are often massively misinformed on the reality of owning a VW.

It seems like 1/2 the people who comment have owned a VW that was clearly not taken care of properly. They blame the car instead of themselves or the previous owner(s).

I had not noticed this car up for auction on BAT so I am glad to see it posted here so we can view the outcome.

BAT is a place where the ignorant often have a lot to say. The opinions mean something if you give them value.

Overall, I think the car turned out pretty well, with the exception of the door.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 10:44 am

bweiner32 wrote: Erik G wrote: bweiner32 wrote:
What I find amazing are the number of smart a$$ rock-chuckers who can't even read ad copy before opening their mouths.

Seriously? 279 hits as I write this, and 1 comment about the windshield trim. Yeah, I'd say just one "smart a$$ rock-chucker" IS pretty amazing

You're right - I didn't mean to paint The Samba community with that brush, who have been very supportive and helpful through the restoration process.

I think I was reacting to a number of the rocks that were chucked on BAT yesterday, and I probably should have finished my coffee before posting.

No worries dude. Like has been said, BAT is a bunch of facebookers, and while i do like some of the cars they post, I almost never read the comments. Too many people to correct them all. Car came out nice, best of luck. I'm curious about BAT auctions, fees etc if you'd like to elaberate on their process

Fri Feb 20, 2015 11:31 am

Erik G - This is my first sale through BAT - but I can share what I have gathered so far. The auction fee is a flat $250 for sellers. While higher than e-bay listing fees and most online advertisers, it is pretty reasonable as far as auctions go. No other fees to the seller, and you pay the fee up front, sale or no sale. Sellers can set a reserve, though BAT has to agree to the reserve amount. They are selective in the cars that they put up for auction, and don't take all comers...they are looking for cars that are a good fit with the BAT brand. You submit photos and your details and they get back to you. It was pretty quick in my case, I submitted Thursday last week and we were on the block this Wednesday.

They take a 5% buyers fee (up to $5K) from the winning bidder, and bidders have to register their credit cards up front to bid so there's less of a chance that a winning bidder is going to welch - as they're on the hook for the buyers fee.

The cars that I have seen sell have sold at or above market, and they seem to have a good following of up-market enthusiasts - which is the audience I was trying to get in front of. We'll see what happens. I'm curious to see if I get leads if the car doesn't sell. This is often a successful strategy for me when I list cars on e-bay. They didn't tell me much about that, but I have seen posts on cars that didn't sell that indicated that deals were being pursued.

I'll update the thread next week with the results, and my impressions.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 2:42 pm

Good Luck with the sale. Really interested in what it goes for outside the Samba community. I guess its self interest due to owning a notch as well. :D

Fri Feb 20, 2015 5:23 pm

I looked at the auction and saw a really nice car, I was surprised by the negative comments.

Fri Feb 20, 2015 7:38 pm

Actually for a BAT auction I think the comments have been unusually positive (except for one particular sorehead :? ). Usually VWs get completely trashed in the comments, and there's a lot of love there for this notch.

I think the car looks great and it's clearly well built. The few minor issues it has could be addressed easily and if the buyer wants to go back to 100% stock it wouldn't be hard to do. I'm watching and hoping it brings in a healthy winning bid. GLWTS

Wed Feb 25, 2015 11:38 pm

Topped out at $15,650 today without meeting the reserve.

Wed Feb 25, 2015 11:42 pm

Wow, it jumped.
I checked this morning and it was in the $8K range.
Nice to see some active bidding, even if it did not sell.

Thu Feb 26, 2015 5:34 am

An interesting experiment. It got exciting in the end there, but it didn't bring what I would need to let it go. I wasn't looking to get my money back out of this one, but I was holding out for top dollar on a Notch. I think that I will spend a little time perfecting it (fix the door gap, hook up the radio, install the window chrome, etc.) and then try the Charlotte Auto Fair in April. I did end up with a number of leads, which I may also work, but in talking with the leads, I got the impression that a sight unseen sale for a car like this may be challenging. Most of the bidders wanted to make some kind of arrangement to lay down a deposit and come see the car, even though the buyers terms clearly state settle up on your bid within 3 days of auction close. I understand the trepedation, having bought and sold many cars sight unseen, there's always something that you don't like, and that's when buyers remorse starts to set in. I appreciate the support from everyone here - I'll update this post if/when it sells with the sale price. I'm happy to share market data with the Samba community.

A couple of thoughts on the BaT auction process. Overall, it was a good experience and I'd use them again. It would be nice to see some kind of credit back if the car doesn't sell, IMO they should put skin in the game when they dictate reserves, but I can also see where $250 would keep the hacks and jokers at bay. I loved the clock reset function as that let's the buyers slug it out in the end. I would like to see an automatic notification when bids reach the reserve - some kind of "Reserve Off" comment, but Sellers can monitor bidding and add that comment if they want to I suppose. I do think that Sellers should have something like triple weight on comment flagging on their post, to help dispatch the trolls quicker. In looking over some of the other cars on auction, they do have an issue with thread hijacking, trolling and other harrasment that detracts from the sales process.