Technical Deal breakers - What makes you stop a purchase?

I could care less how the seller is, not trying to make friends with them, if I like it, I buy it. If I travel to look at something I fully expect it’s worse than pictures show. So far I’ve never been disappointed

 

• Title issues
• Fresh coat of primer ( What are they hiding? Don't do me any favors by "starting" the restoration for me)
• Mega rust or bondo
• Ads that say "I know what this is worth", "I don't have to sell this", "over 50 k invested" (when it's clearly 10 k max), "easy restoration".

 

Bad paperwork, meaning, it has to be in the name of the person I am paying cash to, and it has to be for the vehicle I am thinking of buying. Bad paperwork=no deal. Some of the terminology in ads cracks me up, "ready for restoration", and, "I know what I have", those always get me laughing. Like I don't know what I'm looking at? I'm waiting for someone to be the first person to stop me from using a magnet, I know it's coming, but hasn't happened yet.

 

Titles on anythign that isn't just a body shell of a pre 55 truck or pre 35 car.
Donor hulks are too hard to get rid of around here without****les let alone the issue and flaming hoops you need to jump through to****le one. I'll jump through those hoops for certain rigs though.

Vehicle wise, the big turn off to me is rust, I don't want to deal with rust and no rust is not********* "great patina" it is rust and decay.

Fresh primer or fresh cheap paint on a car or truck with a jacked up price. Remembering seeing all too many of those at swap meets in Texas in the mid 70's. I remember going to look at a 57 Chevy 2 door post in Texas in the 70's and this guy and his kid were "restoring it" and had it for sale. They had done a scuff and shoot on it in the original pea green and when they drove it in the shed to paint it they must have spun the rear tire as there was mud that was thrown up on the fender that was painted over.
Deal killer phrases:
Testing the waters
Classic________
Rare

 

"Don't waste my tome" If I see that I don't......

 

Talking about****le jumpers and that kind of stuff .

I did it once .

got burned on a $600 buck***** box winter beater I sold to a young guy .

Dad was pissed I sold his son a*****py car .
I was an**** and said “ sold as is where is “ and explained I showed his son all the defects and what’s required to get the car on the road .

dad looked at me and said , car is in a woman’s name and from way out of the city .

I looked at him and said “ what’s it gonna cost me to make this problem go away ?

he said give my kid back $300 bucks .

so I did , I don’t sell cars that are not in my name any longer , to much can go sideways and become a real issue .

 

I don’t really care what’s in the add description that much. If I like the car, and I can deal with the price, I will go it over thoroughly and make an offer based on the unseen work needed that wasn’t described in the listing. Clean****le is a must…

 

When it says, "Easy fix"....

 

One big red flag for me is “engine recently rebuilt”. Why would you go through the time and expense to rebuild an engine then sell it?

The other is rust in areas that is a real pain to fix. Like drip rails, trunk seal area, windshield frame. Excessive frame rust, especially if it’s a boxed frame. Also unibody cars with rust issues.

Living in GA the no****le thing can be a plus for me. I can buy a vehicle from another state nobody will touch because it doesn’t have a****le and make it legal in GA.

 

After reading through this thread, I didn't see this one:

Arrogance.

I have called on several vehicles/ parts to be met with someone on the other end that's so overbearing you can damn near hear him patting himself on the back through the phone because he doesn't stop telling you how great he is and that "I've ran my own shop for years, built 1000s of cars. Your car is only worth 2k to me so I'd need the trade plus 60k on my end."

The same people think their cars are worth gold, but when they are interested in your car, it isn't worth jack, and they will tell you all about it.

I don't care how good of a car is or how sweet of a deal is, if you belittle me or treat me like a jerk for asking simple questions about your car. I'm no longer interested.

Sadly, there has been a few guys on here like that, but also some Rockstar's to deal with too. Its just sad you expect the worst on every call you make.

I try and treat everyone that calls about my stuff with respect and be as open and upfront with them as possible. I have made some great friends that way that still call me and thank me for the stuff I sold them. This includes a Hamber from Scotland and Canada.

Rant over...

 

On this one, the add said - “needs some work”


I bought it anyway, when I knew nothing about cars…….
I was only 18.

 

For me living in Southern California it's every car 1976 through 1995 because our smog laws are pretty stringent It makes a vehicle in this era hard to smog (vacuum lines and archaic computer systems like OBD1 are a headache) plus we aren't really allowed to modify them or do anything much to them so for the most part so they are neglected by me (besides My automobile passion is American brass era through the disco '70s American land yachts So ignoring '80s and '90s cars isn't a tragedy from where I stand but I digress) anyways I don't worry about paperwork As long as the car is out of the computer system (last tag sometime before 1999) or if the person is the legal registered owner, I don't worry about back registration fees there's ways around all that stuff as You just got to know the DMV paperwork (somebody needs to know this that lives in California how to get rid of back registration fees I can explain it I'm more than happy to screw the DMV out of money). Being in California I don't really have to worry about rust And since I know how to turn a wrench a lot better than I let on to my friends and family I don't really worry about major failures on a vehicle either It really is just the smog cars (76-95) that I stay away from.

 

"Great patina, with strong bones"
I have to admit stuff like that drives me up a wall, same thing with "ultra rare" (rare doesn't make it necessarily valuable) and about a million other things that you see on internet classified ads.

 

“Ran when parked” or “Can be made to run again”, shoot, so can the Hindenburg or****antic.

 

Not mentioned is the cost of transporting a car any significant distance. I split the cost of transport with a buyer recently. Last car I sold was pre-covid and transportation costs were well within reason. Now those costs can be pretty stiff.

 

What makes me run like after eating taco bell.

When the stories on the car change as you are talking to them.
Them wearing a gas monkey shirt.
Seller trying the "what will it take for you to buy it today" line.
Saying "one on barrett jackson just went for x $"
Blatant Lies.......

 

When the seller says, I have a guy planning to buy this tomorrow, but it’s still available. I just smile and say, I don’t want to cheat that guy out of his car and walk away. The seller usually goes into panic/recovery mode, but I’m already done at that point. Can’t stand a liar or deceptive tactics, indicator a lot more is being lied about.

 

Completely True Sir!

You can't pay me $5-$6K to transport a car from one coast to the other that is only worth $8K. That is why I have no problem quoting prices before hand, that way the prospective buyer can factor in the transport price when dealing with the seller.

For me these days it would have to be major rot in the floors, rockers and or cowl. I have built way to many that I had to replace said pieces & just don't feel like doing it anymore. It would have to be a really rare bucket list car for me to do it going forward.

God Bless
Bill
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/

 

Then there’s the “I don’t need help selling”. Well maybe you do, it’s been on Marketplace for 6 months.

I could never understand why a seller won’t fix a minor issue like a stuck choke on a carb or starter relay replacement to get the vehicle running. What does that tell you about the other work done to it?

 

When the guys wife walks outside and stands there with her arms folded with that snarly look on her face. And says, that's too cheap we need more than that for it. BYE. LOL.

 

I don't even respond to an ad that says the price is "FIRM"...no need to yell at me that your not willing to negotiate.....like 97% of the folks on the planet.

 

Atomic Rev, hope you mean doing the screwing legally.

 

Today - the deal breaker on a car purchase is me; no space to put it, no time to work on it.

But in a different lifetime, the only deal breaker was no****le (that including even looking at vehicles in non-title states).

Several decades ago, I purchased a truck at a public auction, with no****le. The guy had checked with DMV ahead of time (unfortunately, not far enough ahead of time). There was a highway patrolman present to explain the procedure.

The procedure then:

(1) The truck would be sold with a notarized bill-of-sale at the auction.
(2) The buyer could then present the notarized bill-of-sale to the highway patrol. The patrol would send a patrolman to the address of the purchaser to locate the serial number on the frame, and run that through stolen vehicle files.
(3)****uming the search was negative, the patrol would issue a paper stating this, and with this paper (serial number) and the bill-of-material, the state would do a search to find the last known****le holder.
(4) The buyer was now responsible for running a display ad in the nearest newspaper to the last known****le holder, three times, one month apart.
(5) If an individual did appear with a****le, the auction buyer would be required to hand over the vehicle, but could charge the****le holder a reasonable fee for storage. If the****le holder did not wish to pay the fee, the auction buyer could file a mechanics lien on the vehicle, and obtain legal possession of the vehicle, and then apply for a****le.
(6) If no****le holder appeared within a time frame that I forget, the auction buyer could apply for a****le.

In my case the truck hadn't been licensed in 30 years, and no****le holder appeared, thus making the application for****le easier.

So if the vehicle would have had a clear****le, then it would be a simple case of value versus price. Even a rusted out hulk can often be parted successfully. I bought one that had to be loaded on the trailer wih a loader because the frame pulled in two when we tried to pull it on the trailer. But it was cheap enough to part out.

Jon

 

Trust is the basis of any relationship
whether it be personal or business.

Jeopardize trust and you have no
reason to proceed any further.

Jim

 

Well said Jim.

 

The****le being clear and****igned to the vehicle is fine. All this whining about "Better be in your name!" looks like lame virtue signaling. Well kids I do in fact sell cars for people. Most often the****le is indeed in THEIR NAME, not mine, and they do not want to be bothered. Let me think, the old Ford makes 3 in the last 6 months. Am I a****le jumper? Do I now have to take possession of their vehicle, insure and register it my name to sell it for them?

If the VIN matches the car, clear with no liens, I don't care if the name is Donald James Duck. Or am I a car thief because I have the will to deal with prospective buyers on behalf of people I know? Some***** munch****hole did that to me on the Clipper, "...unless I see that****le in your name I'm not gonna complete this deal!" So tax, insurance and plates later the*****in mope changed his mind anyways. "Well it's not a Buick." If he was 10 years younger I might have even hit him. And you better believe he lost his deposit and it didn't come close to my expense. So if an open, legal, free and clear****le bothers you because it isn't in MY NAME? Look elsewhere. I'm no thief, and my personal arrangement with an owner is nobody's*****in business but mine. If that offends anyone well that's your choice too. Here, let me really***** up your****le fears. I HAD ALL 3****LES FOR THE RIVIERA. The OG, the 2nd owner, and me. Now what? Some of y'all need to check yourselves. This***** is as hard or easy as you make it on yourself.

What stops me from buying? Mrs Highlander sometimes...

 

I see those as leverage points, I am pretty brutal when buying a car, very polite and friendly but I have learned to use broken things as leverage and then talk about the cost of how much it'll cost to repair or the time to repair, sometimes people aren't flexible with their price but you got to ask a few key questions to feel them out have you had very many people come out and look at it?" If they answer yes and then they still have the car you can****ume it's overpriced that's why everybody has walked away Then you know if you should kick them in the ding ding and lowball the hell out of them.
A car with a bad starter or starter relay (or so they claim it's a bad starter) you don't know that You got to****ume worst case scenario and you make that clear to them, sometimes I will say I don't want it insult you so I'm not going to make you an offer and if they screw up and say you can insult me all the worst I could say is no That is where I hit them really low, sometimes they will negotiate a higher price or they may just plainly say no but usually if you come up with a car trailer behind your truck they know you are pretty serious and you are willing to take it right there That too is a bargaining chip.

 

The last Paragraph is probably the truth

I****ume you’re not selling 600 dollar heaps, so here’s a suggestion to make things go smoother for you and keep you from knocking someone out

Have the owner write and sign a statement that you are in charge of selling the vehicle, have him do it in front of a Notary, have them put the stamp thing on it and a potential buyer can see the signature on the****le and the one on the statement that is notarized match, might smooth things out and give the buyer an easy feeling.

Been a few years since I had a “mobile” Notary over, but recall it being about 75 bucks total to have my signature notarized and this was at like 8pm, many do the Notary thing as a side gig.

 

"Sorry, it's been sold."
Usually does it for me.

 

Several years ago I saw a '54 Ranch Wagon for sale near me at a price I could afford. BUT it was bill of sale only. However thanks to good advice from @gimpyshotrods I knew that getting a legal****le in my name would be a lot easier if the seller had some type of paperwork. Turns out he had a 1972 registration card. With that and I private vin verifier/title service I was able to get all the DMV paperwork sorted. It was a bit of a leap of faith on my part and without that 1972 registration card I never would have pursued the car. Now all I have to do is get the new floor panels installed.