Strangest Seller I've EVER Encountered

[iceokie]

So, this will be my first post on this site. Here's how it starts: my wife of almost forty years has a birthday coming up. Her first car was a beetle, her second car was a beetle, both met their demise as we went through college together.

This year for her birthday I thought I'd buy her a Vdub for her birthday. We have two garage spots and live in the downtown area of Memphis. So it's the street or our two garage spaces. She parks her Honda in the garage and I parked my 2002 Corvette in the other space. My daily rides the street parking.

I sold my beautiful blue 40,000 mile Vette to a) make space in the garage and b) get the funds to buy her the car of her youth.

She is often with our two granddaughters and wanted a squareback instead of the beetles from the past.

We find a nice clean 71 model in another state on Craigslist. I email the guy a couple of times and ask a few questions on condition and history. I kinda let the seller tell me about the car, if they give a lot of info positive and negative I usually think they are square shooters. For the record, I've bought and rebuilt a half dozen hot rods from a frame off to just upgrading them in the last ten years. Not a vintage car noob at all. Always worked on her VW's too.

So . . . I say, "I'll take it." No negotiation, just agree to the asking price.

I email him for his info, all I know at this point is his name is Brian. I tell him that I want the car and all he needs is to tell me is how he'd like to receive his money. He's had on every email I sent him, my full name, my employers name (a large national company) my employers physical address and my phone number, my email address added at the bottom and emailed from our corporate server.

I offered to:

Wire the money into his account and after its cleared take possession.
Send a certified check and when it's cleared take possession.
Pick another method that he was comfortable with.

Here is his response:

-----Before we move towards any money transaction I want to get some more information about you as per my lawyer. I'll need full contact information to include your physical address, phone, DoB, DL with expiration, and employment contact information. My lawyer has also advised that will only release our car once funds are fully cleared. We will hold the car until then. Upon notice by our bank that these funds have been fully received, we will then notify you that the car is ready to be picked up or shipped at your expense, however you ultimately want to handle that portion.

Once we have started funds transfer we will hold the sale of this car until this process has been completed or within 30-days, whichever comes first. If after 30-days and the transaction has not completed, we will cancel this intent to sell to you and we will retain the right to sell or keep.

I hope you understand our desire to protect this sale. We are willing to sell but have never sold a car this way before. This much oversight should give us both a solid piece of mind. And, for what it's worth, I work at a church so you can trust my word. ----

What?..... Who askes for private info like that, calls his lawyer and expects a cash buyer to deal with that? And what's really funny to me is that of course he didn't know we moved where we are now to help start a church in urban Memphis.

Literally the craziest seller I've ever dealt with. I know he thought I was trying to scam him, but he had to be the most paranoid dude I've ever dealt with. Normally your out of state BUYER is all worried that he's the one that's gonna get ripped off. I then (against my every inclination, but because my wife loved the car) offered to send the money PayPal if he paid the fee or drive down in the next two weekends and hand him the cash (14 hour drive each way) if he guaranteed he'd hold the car.

It's still on Craiglist and no response from him in two days.

So, the search continues. The next time you have at totally flakey buyer asking for everything remember, there's some weird sellers out there too.

Doug

[OB Bus]

Run run as fast as you can. Seller is nuts.
_________________
Larry in OB
Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery!
69 Westfalia and 2002 Eurovan Camper.

[iceokie]

I guess I should have added that I did not "opt" to send him him my personal info.

D

[vwinnovator]

its one of the new scams...


BTW, I have a nice square back for sale in Maryland, 21122
PM or email me if interested.

[iceokie]

[quote="vwinnovator"]its one of the new scams...

Nope, he's a real guy, with a real job and family. I traced him, (he thought he was safe behind a craigslist address I guess) found him on FB, LinkedIn, got his address. He was just sure I was scammer for some reason. I could tell he was hinkey by his responses.

[[email protected]]

Please do not do business with this guy, I have bought and sold many quality Vdubs, and there are times when the loonies seem to come out of the woodwork, literally. I know VW folks have a well deserved reputation for being cheap, and fussy, I am a living example. But this whole scenario screams "run away". My opinion, Cliff W. in western Pa.

[EverettB]

I have seen some weird stuff regarding lawyers being involved in a sale in the past with a couple people.
All of those people were crazy or completely unreasonable.
AFAIK in all of the transactions I heard about they fell through due to craziness involving requirements from "their lawyer".

[hitest]

Pass on this guy. Sure you are buying a car, but you are handing a person your money for it. Does this guy deserve your good money? No.

Nothing discolors the thrill of new car ownership more than the gutwrench you feel when you handed an undeserving guy money for it.
_________________

[KTPhil]

[Zundfolge1432]

Sounds like a flake and or someone fishing for info,surprised he didn't want birth certificate, proof of citizenship and credit card numbers too. I was on the other end last week as seller after sending the prospective buyer about 30 to 40 photos he drives 700 miles one way, looks at the car for 2 and 1/2 hours then drives home 700 miles driving a truck and trailer. Rejected because of scratch on door glass and some perceived damage under front apron, minor at best. This guy never sat down just kept circling and talking. May have been a tweeker. You meet all kinds. Don't get discouraged your chances of meeting a sane person are in your favor.

[gt1953]

Do not make this purchase. What a pain in the rear. Forget about it. Keep looking.
_________________
Volkswagen: We tune what we drive.
Numbers Matching VW's are getting harder to find. Source out the most Stock vehicle and keep that way. You will be glad you did.

72 type 1
72 Squareback
({59 Euro bug, 62, 63, 67, 68, 69, 73 type ones 68 & 69 type two, 68 Ghia all sold})

[Bob Loblaw]

[pb_foots]

I wouldn't buy or sell a car to someone who thinks their religion makes them a better person and feels the need to tell me about it.

Good luck with your search, that's a really nice thing you're doing for your wife.
_________________

[TDCTDI]

The more someone touts their belief in a higher power as a reason to trust them, the less inclined I am to believe a damned thing they say.
_________________
Everybody born before 1975 has a story, good, bad, or indifferent, about a VW.


GOFUNDYOURSELF, quit asking everyone to do it for you!


An air cooled VW will make you a hoarder.


Do something, anything, to your project every day, and you will eventually complete it.

[iowegian]

[iceokie]

I didn't want or mean for this become a thread about religion. I was less concerned that he said he worked at a church so I could trust him than I was about his un-founded distrust of me. It was just funny that he had no idea about my relationship with God, but he commented on his.

And to pb_foots:

The good part is that I'll get to do all the work on the new VW. My wife is a car girl so I know it'll mean something to her to have it to drive. But that doesn't mean I loved giving up the parking space or the car . . .

I'll miss that ride.

[KTPhil]

[babysnakes]

Leave this car and seller behind. Take more time,there are other good/great cars out there. Many have owners who aren't raving loons. Good luck.

[Sharp64]

CL brings out the kooks. I had a guy a couple of years ago listing some items that I wanted to buy. I emailed him asking for more pics and such. He gave me his phone number which I called and got a VM. I left a message and then texted him that based in the pictures I was willing to send payment via PayPal. All I needed was his PP address. Didn't hear back, so texted again the next day and get a string of obscenities thrown at me about how I'm some scammer and if I don't leave him alone he's going to call the police and file a report on me? I got home, emailed him my info again, told him to verify me on Facebook or whatever and he proceeds to blow up at me again. Some people are just paranoid nuts.

[Zundfolge1432]