Most stupid things car sellers say
Most stupid things car sellers say
Author
Discussion

cantstopbuyingcars

Original Poster:

390 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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Do you ever read a car ad and think to yourself what a silly sentence or remark something was?

I'll start. 'Easy fix.' There are some genuine easy fixes like replacing a faulty sensor. Not Cat S write off damage that involves replacing the whole front end of the car. I've lost count of the amount of times I've seen an ad where the seller of a written off car remarks at how easy it will be to buy the parts and stick them on. Why don't you do it yourself and sell it for triple then?

Or overheating. Something that requires diagnosis and could be any number of things. Even if it ends up being cheap it's not an easy fix or you would have had it done already?

What other silly things do you read on a daily basis when scrolling?

BritishBlitz87

785 posts

79 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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"mechanically excellent, bodywork needs a little TLC"

Usually used to describe some old stbox that looks like it's been sat in the atacama desert for 10 years of existence and then parked in a swamp.
Conveniently ignoring the fact that repairing the peeling paint and "cosmetic" rust will cost about 10k.


The Road Crew

4,272 posts

191 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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Air con just needs a regas..

(and a compressor and condenser!)

Trevor555

5,552 posts

115 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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It'll sail through the MOT

A few scratches that'll polish out

Re advertised due to timewasters

Those engines go on for ever

cantstopbuyingcars

Original Poster:

390 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
BritishBlitz87 said:
"mechanically excellent, bodywork needs a little TLC"

Usually used to describe some old stbox that looks like it's been sat in the atacama desert for 10 years of existence and then parked in a swamp.
Conveniently ignoring the fact that repairing the peeling paint and "cosmetic" rust will cost about 10k.
yep, this is really common amongst the Escort Xr3i's I've been looking at. Bodywork needs a little TLC is a way to downplay the extensive work it will need doing. TLC is having the front bumper repainted or scratches buffed out, not several hundred/thousand pounds worth of welding!

InitialDave

15,155 posts

150 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
Trevor555 said:
Re advertised due to timewasters
No, that's one's fair, the amount of dicking about you get from people when selling stuff is unreal.

cantstopbuyingcars

Original Poster:

390 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
Trevor555 said:
It'll sail through the MOT

A few scratches that'll polish out

Re advertised due to timewasters

Those engines go on for ever
yeah, why not polish out those scratches yourself and take it down for an MOT yourself if it's so easy? Most likely because you know it'll fail. I had a similar situation where I contacted a a seller to offer him the asking price but only if he put an MOT on it. We spoke on the phone a few times and he kept going on about how adamant he was that it would sail through. I said, either knock a few hundred quid off or put it through the MOT. He eventually succumbed and put it through the MOT. Shock and horror, it needed several hundred quid's worth of work and he wanted more money for the car. I didn't buy it in the end. Funny guys.

cantstopbuyingcars

Original Poster:

390 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
InitialDave said:
No, that's one's fair, the amount of dicking about you get from people when selling stuff is unreal.
Honestly I don't know why anyone ever bothers with eBay auctions. I have not really ever seen auctions not get relisted.

Trevor555

5,552 posts

115 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
InitialDave said:
Trevor555 said:
Re advertised due to timewasters
No, that's one's fair, the amount of dicking about you get from people when selling stuff is unreal.
Nope, puts me right off.

Now, shall I spend this day getting on a train, travel for 4 hours, to see why the last buyer travelled, but didn't buy it?

Three years ago I was buying 5+ cars every week, and I just sailed passed any advert that said "relisted due to timewaster"

Having said that, it wasn't old cars I was buying, mostly under 5 years old.

Earthdweller

19,664 posts

157 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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Always garaged … always run on premium fuel ….

On a 16 year old car they’ve only owned for 2 years

steveo3002

11,236 posts

205 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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few dents /ripped seats / damage , but never bothered me

okay great it didnt bother you so those dents are totally acceptable now

cuprabob

19,824 posts

245 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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"First to see will buy"

"One lady owner"

"Always run on Shell V-Power"

"Tastefully modified"



Electrics not for me

69 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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Where do we start on this one?
First to see will buy. A ridiculous assumption and usually wrong.
Cosmetic work only needed. Only if you think that re-spraying half the car and repairing bodywork
counts as that.
I'm in no hurry to sell. But you've got the car advertised on 4 different sites and it's overpriced anyway.
Silly offers will be ignored. What's a silly offer? That is subjective big time.
Proof of comprehensive insurance needed before test drive and the full asking price in my hand if you drive. Like that is ever going to happen.
Etc.

M1C

2,241 posts

142 months

Friday 12th August 2022
quotequote all
Trevor555 said:
It'll sail through the MOT

A few scratches that'll polish out

Re advertised due to timewasters

Those engines go on for ever
Yep. All red flags

It'll sail through the MOT - just MOT it then and sell it with an MOT (will be able to ask more for it!)

A few scratches that will polish out - see above!

Re advertised due to timewasters - buig red flag - timewasters....or people who actually realised what they almost got into and decided against it


Electrics not for me

69 posts

52 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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I do love the ''always run on Shell 99''. (Probably correct for the last 4,000 miles out of 78,000!)
I actually saw that on an advert for an Audi A6 diesel!

Halmyre

12,658 posts

170 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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FIRST TO SEE WILL BUY

Unbridled optimism right there.

anonymous-user

85 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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cantstopbuyingcars said:
InitialDave said:
No, that's one's fair, the amount of dicking about you get from people when selling stuff is unreal.
Honestly I don't know why anyone ever bothers with eBay auctions. I have not really ever seen auctions not get relisted.
I've sold a number of cars via auction. Most to for less than a patient classified sale. Not one issue so far. But has always collected and paid.

That said, I always mention the elephant of turning up and if not happy walking to away. I have no issue with that. In theory if the car is described well with videos and photos, there should be no surprises.

GroundZero

2,085 posts

85 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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The "careful lady owner" line is always a good one.
Usually means alloys kerbed to the nth degree, parking scratches, doors dinged, run on low oil level during ownership, suspension tired due to half parking on kerbs, tyres also likely 'blebbed' on the inside due to half parking tyre on kerbs, dashboard lights lit up like a christmas tree, missing "710" cap, dropped lipstick tubes stuck between the seats etc.
whistle
wink

M1C

2,241 posts

142 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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Another one i've seen a few of recently:

"MOT just out, don't know if it needs anything, won't need much"

A quick look on .gov MOT check and there's a list longer than your arm......from yesterday....when you've just taken it to get MOTd.

Scumbags.

r1ch

2,956 posts

227 months

Friday 12th August 2022
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"Mint interior, rear seats look like they haven't been sat in"

Yeah that's because they haven't been.