Morning,
I came across a 1998 GSX on Autotrader.com last week, not to unusual, the unusal part was the guy was asking $4,120 USD for a 98 GSX that looks to be in pristine condition and has around 60,000 miles on it. So of course I jumped all over it and sent him an e-mail asking that he consider it SOLD. Well now three days into the process I get the following e-mail....

Hi again,
As you can see the car is in excelent condition. The pictures show its exact shape. Garrage kept, no scratches, excellent condition! This car runs and drives great. The transmission shifts like a dream. This vehicle's engine is in perfect working condition, no mechanical problems. Oil pressure is good. All mileage are highway mileage. No accidents. No paintwork. All power and optional equipment work perfectly. This vehicle is perfectly sound, no known defects. It has a clean exterior that looks new. Interior is clean and well taken care of. All electrical and optional equipment on this vehicle are in perfect working condition You will receive the car along with all papers and recipts that you need, everything signed, ready to register it in you name. You will receive the TITLE,keys,owner manual...The car has a Clear Title and it is in Showroom Condition. I am an US soldier deplyed in the UK (i will be deployed in Iraq soon, but i can not give you such info) and I will not be able to sell the car in person. So I am ok with a lower price than have the car sitting for nothing in the garage till I return. My only request is that we complete the deal with Autotrader.com's supervision. I work by the principle that everything will be supervised by autotrader and the deal will be closed under their safe guidance. I hope that you are ok to make the deal through Autotrader.com since this way is the only way that I can move forward. Since I saw a strong interest from you and because I need the money I have contacted Autotrader.com and asked them to send you the invoice hoping that I
can speed things up a bit. Please wait for the Autotarder.com invoice and contact me after you read it with your questions. The car is in California and it will be shipped from there on my expence. Shipping will take no more then 3-4 days and it will be delivered directly to your address. I know that autotrader said that u were supposed to pay me the total amount (4120USD) but you'll just have to pay me 2200USD now and the rest only upon delivery and only if you'll be 100% satisfied with the car (i'm sure of that).

Autotrader.com must have contacted u by now with all the details regarding our transaction.
I will wait your reply.
Thank you, John Purdin
P.S.: I will also reply u with the tracking number from the delivery service, so that you'll be able to track the car for yourself.
Please check your bulk mail folder too...



I did get an e-mail from [email protected] that looks like this:






Dear Buyer,


John Doe has agreed to finalize the following deal with you:




1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse (VIN #4A3AL54FXWE028114)
Your Price :
US $ 4120.00

Date :
Feb-14-06



Don't let this get away!







It's that easy to get your car!


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Instructions (please read carefully)

Complete your Autotrader.com transaction in 5 easy steps:

Buyer and Seller agree on the transaction terms and a selling price. Seller contacts Autotrader.com with the transaction details; Autotrader.com accepts the transaction and offers purchase protection to the buyer (if the transaction is declined, no further action is required from either the buyer or the seller);
The buyer sends payment and the seller receives it. After the payment is cleared, the seller must notify Autotrader.com. Buyer will send the payment details directly to the seller's email address. The seller has three business days to send the buyer and Autotrader.com the tracking number of the shipment. If no tracking number is provided, a full refund is immediately sent to the buyer;

Buyer receives the car and has 30 days to inspect it.
If it is complete and as described, the buyer should accept the car.
If he refuses the car, the buyer must ship the car back to the seller within three business days. After the inspection period is over, the buyer must contact Autotrader.com with the result of the inspection on seller expenses. If the buyer refuses the car, the refund will be sent to the buyer after the tracking number for the returned shipment is verified. To enjoy the purchase protection, you must send the payment by the insured payment method below. Attention: Sending the payment by any other method will void this transaction and your right to refund.
Details and instructions of this transaction:


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Item insurance policy:


The following car is clear for Autotrader.com's insurance policy:




1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse (VIN #4A3AL54FXWE028114))


Seller's verified payment address:

John Doe
***/*** ********* Road
London, NW6 6RG
United Kingdom

Buyer's shipping address:

Please give the seller your full name and address.


Your Order: 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse (VIN #4A3AL54FXWE028114)
Amount Insured: US $ 4120.00

Shipping: US $0.00 (paid by seller if delivery is in USA)
Shipping: seller's obligation Status: Ready to ship
Payment: Western Union Status: Pending

Payment must be sent by Western Union Money Transfer
Next step to be taken: The buyer must send the payment to the seller.


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Payment instructions:


To submit the payment with Western Union Money Transfer you have the following option:
Pay for the transfer with cash at a local Western Union agent.
Click here to locate the agents in your area :
http://www.westernunion.com
Once the payment was sent, email the seller the following information:
1) 10 digit MTCN (Western Union Money Transfer Control Number);
2) Exact sender's name on file with Western Union;
3) Your street address on file with Western Union;
4) City and country where you sent the money from;
5) Amount sent;
Then wait for the confirmation the payment was received. Within 3 business days, you will receive the tracking number for your car.





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PURCHASE PROTECTION AND REFUND:

Currently, this seller has a US$ 5,000.00 deposit in an Autotrader.com managed purchase protection account (bank account). Transactions with this Autotrader.com seller are covered by purchase protection against fraud and description errors.
For your safety, this account was locked today, for 30 days time. The seller is unable to withdraw any money from it, within this period. Should you need a refund for this transaction, the insured amount will be taken from the seller's purchase protection account and sent to you. The refund is sent to your bank account, or by check or money order.
The way you are refunded is at your choice. You have 30 days from the above verification date to request a refund. Refund requests are processed within 3 days.
The insurer of this transaction is Autotrader.com Corporation.

CONDITIONS TO BE MET BEFORE YOU MAY ASK FOR A REFUND
Here are the situations suitable for a refund request:
1) If the item(s) doesn't arrive and/or the seller stops communications after the payment was received;
2) If the car you receive has different specifications than the ones you agreed on;
3) If your car arrives in a much longer period than the one you agreed on (more than 15 days from the payment clearance day);
For cases 2) and 3) you have to send back the car to the seller prior to ask for your refund. If you did not pay the seller by the required payment method, your refund request would be declined.
Important Usage Guidelines:

1. The contact information should only be used for resolving matters related to Autotrader.com. Any other use is strictly prohibited.
2. This transaction is protected by Autotrader.com services such as insurance, feedback and dispute resolution.
3. You may buy and sell with confidence in all transactions with this Autotrader.com member.
4. If you need to dispute this transaction, keep all the transaction info at hand when contacting Autotrader.com. Any complaints must be filed within 30 days from the verification date.
This e-mail message was sent to you from Autotrader.com.com Corporation.
The seller was informed about this transaction being started and is awaiting your payment. It is recommended to send the payment as soon as possible, because your purchase protection is valid for 30 days only.If you encounter any problems with this transaction, please contact us.
When contacting our support team, use the reply feature so that all previous correspondences are included in your email. Otherwise, we will not be able to process your request.
To ask for a refund, simply reply to this notification and enter in the subject line:
Refund request for Autotrader.com Transaction #645434


So does auto trader actually know if this guy even has this car???
Has anyone else been in this situation before???
I sent him an e-mail asking for an address so that someone I know can visibly check it out before I send any money......
Need advice....
Thanks

Here are a couple of pics....

More....

It's bs. Why would you pay for a car that you have never seen? Why would he only want half of the money? Do you really think he trusts you that much? Find another car.

Yeah i also saw that car and emailed him, its bs.

-nick

I read that again and the way that person uses the english language makes it seem like it is not their primary language, which would be pretty odd for a U.S. soldier.

P.S.: I will also reply u with the tracking number from the delivery service

Click to expand...

A lot of people on the net say U instead of you, but " I will reply you", that's pretty odd.

You should email him back and say that your "cousin" or whatever lives in the same city as him and is gonna come take a look at it before you buy it, then see what he says.

-nick-

Amazin' Wasian said:

You should email him back and say that your "cousin" or whatever lives in the same city as him and is gonna come take a look at it before you buy it, then see what he says.

-nick-

Click to expand...

That's exactly what I done Nick. I e-mailed him asking for an address so one of my buddies in California can check it out. I really do and he will go check, actually I'll have him pick it up then if it is real. But I think it's a scam...I'm going to e-mail auto Trader and ask them to look into it as well.
Does anyone know if that buyer protection crap is even real???

Yea, just be careful, that seems to be quite a steal for only $4100, that is almost 1g prices so I dont know if that seller is legite. I'd definately have someone either personally look at it or really look it into it before you dig the wallet out. Derek

Edit: Just looked that he wants Western Union, there is usually no buyer protection with Western Union, I know many people that have been shafted from them but I see that Autotrader has a $5000 protection plan but I would carefully read the terms on that, this sounds very fishy. BE CAREFUL

it sounds really sketchy but the car seems to be uber (ooo`brrr: Super, a lot, very.) nice. definetly make sure it is or is not a scam. if not, sweet car man! if so, take jon doe to court! and off the subject completly, why cant he tell you more about iraq? its not like its a secret we are over there anymore. he's going to iraq, he's going to fight, and shoot, and blow stuff up. how many secrets can be kept there. also, the guy could not type half way through the e-mail. i say tell him you will bring cash to him in cali, and then, only if you meet him, tell him how to type!!!! i didn't make any error's there except for capitalization and some spelling here and there right? !

scam scam scam. How are people still thinking this kind of stuff is real?

i can't believe people fall for this kind of scam...

If you read the autotrader site it will say they have nothing to do with the people selling the cars.

THIS IS A SCAM!! The first rule you should always follow when looking conduct a major purchase on the Internet is, "If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is!!" Also, beware of buyers asking you to send money or asking you to get involved with complicated transfer shemes. In almost every case I've come across, these are scams!

Well at least they have a return/refund Policy. Tell him to ship the car, and well if no car is ever shipped, then you know what’s going down.

“Buyer and Seller agree on the transaction terms and a selling price. Seller contacts Autotrader.com with the transaction details; Autotrader.com accepts the transaction and offers purchase protection to the buyer (if the transaction is declined, no further action is required from either the buyer or the seller);
The buyer sends payment and the seller receives it. After the payment is cleared, the seller must notify Autotrader.com. Buyer will send the payment details directly to the seller's email address. The seller has three business days to send the buyer and Autotrader.com the tracking number of the shipment. If no tracking number is provided, a full refund is immediately sent to the buyer;
Buyer receives the car and has 30 days to inspect it.
If it is complete and as described, the buyer should accept the car.
If he refuses the car, the buyer must ship the car back to the seller within three business days. After the inspection period is over, the buyer must contact Autotrader.com with the result of the inspection on seller expenses. If the buyer refuses the car, the refund will be sent to the buyer after the tracking number for the returned shipment is verified. To enjoy the purchase protection, you must send the payment by the insured payment method below. Attention: Sending the payment by any other method will void this transaction and your right to refund.
Details and instructions of this transaction":

seems like a nice safety blanket.

You should e-mail autotrader and ask them if they actually do this and if it is legitimate. Last time I checked I didn't think they had an kind of policy like that.

Wow. Doesn't anyone do any research on their own? Within 5 minutes I found the following on the Autotrader website:

We don't get involved in transactions between buyers and sellers.
Don't respond to any email that appears to come from AutoTrader.com (for example, by displaying our logo) and urges you to complete the sale or purchase of a car listed on our site. Such emails are a sure sign of a scam.

Other signs of fraud are emails that:

Claim the security of a transaction is guaranteed by AutoTrader.com.
Imply we've verified information about a particular buyer, seller or listing.
Describe a "preferred" or "pre-approved" buyer or seller program.
AutoTrader.com doesn't guarantee or endorse transactions, and we don't have preferred or pre-approved buyers or sellers. We'll never encourage you to buy any particular vehicle listed on AutoTrader.com or to sell your vehicle to any particular buyer. If you receive a suspicious email such as the ones described above, report it to us and to law enforcement.

Click to expand...

http://www.autotrader.com/research/shared/article_popup.jsp?article_id=12124


It's a scam, pure and simple, move on and find another car.

This is not a General Tech question. Moved to the Hangout.

Ive seen this car somewhere else. It was a web page someone created for it and it was like 12 or so grand. This guy stole the pictures from that page probably and is trying to rip some people off. Funny someone actually took his bait for a minute. There is no way that car can be 4100. . Think about it.
-Anton-

Saw this exact same car on Ebay a few weeks ago being sold for 13,000. The "seller" obviously ripped the pictures from there and is trying to make some quick money off of some stupid people. Don't be one of them.

Yeah,
I know, I was hoping that I might have found a diamond in the rough (an old lady seller) until I got that e-mail this morning. Oh well, it was a nice thought.
As for doing research, I only have net access at work and have been extremly busy since I first posted. But as usual you guys are great, on the ball...I thought he was a scammer, but didn't want to burst my own bubble. Thanks for the gentle let down.....

Unless you are a blind idiot, and that car is a rolling shell... You're going to be losing your money. Step back for a minute and look at exactly what is going on, and the car you see in the pictures for only 2grand? If you send the money, You deserve to lose it. Just keep looking, And save up for something that you can go pick up.

Very very nice car. Too bad he is trying to rip you off. I saw the same car on autotrader, only it was posted in New York. The guy said he was in Italy. It felt wrong from the 1st time I saw the price. A car like that will easy reach 10k, if not more. Don't do it, he is a bad man

Im sure its safe go right ahead...


If you have to ask... your better off not doing the deal, if something is too good to be true, it either is or its stolen.

GinNBoost said:

Saw this exact same car on Ebay a few weeks ago being sold for 13,000. The "seller" obviously ripped the pictures from there and is trying to make some quick money off of some stupid people. Don't be one of them.

Click to expand...

I saw it too.