Quick! Need Help/Advice ...

[internetheaven]

I'm selling my car on eBay (TVR Tuscan) and the highest bidder is a new member with no 'ebay references' who won't respond to my emails. Has anyone any experience with selling a TVR on eBay and been in this situation before? I've only got 30 minutes to decide whether to cancel the highest persons bid and take the lesser amount (the second bidder down is a well reknowned eBay buyer apparently) or whether to take the risk.

Please help!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=2483876679&category=18308

[chim_girl]

If I was spending £30k on a car, I would've been in touch with you by email before bidding. Assuming the new member hasn't been in touch I would assume you have a timewaster and revert to your previous highest bidder.

All IMHO of course.

[pzero64]

internetheaven said:

and the highest bidder is a new member with no 'ebay references' who won't respond to my emails.

If I had that sort of money, I would be all over you with emails like 'a cheap blouse on a barmaid' prior to final bid.

Previous member sums it up.

[millyad]

with a little luck, he might be pipped at the post!

[internetheaven]

Really? Do people actually bid this late on eBay auctions? I didn't figure on that, now I don't know what to do!!! I'd hate to short-change myself ... AAAAHHHHHH!!!!

[millyad]

aren't you supposed to be watching ebay!

[Ballistic Banana]

If he doesnt pay up then offer it to the next bidder?? or re-list it and then ban that bidder, you can do that in your services page.

BB

[internetheaven]

I am, I'm watching both, I just cancelled the bid, that loses me £500 but maybe it'll be worth it.

Thanks for all your advice.

[millyad]

....phew, he seems a better buyer. by the way hows your heart rate!!!

sorry didnt know you could do that .. thought someone had bid at last minute, best option IMO

>> Edited by millyad on Thursday 15th July 21:57

[Jarcy]

I see you played safe at the last minute. Let us know how it turns out. As a very new ebayer myself, I'm fascinated with how it works and how reliable the system is.

[internetheaven]

Okay, well that's done. I'll let you know if this goes through. Personally I don't recommend eBay as a method of selling. It takes up alot of your time as you're always going back to check how things are doing whereas an online/magazine ad states a single price so you sit and relax waiting for calls.

The car now went for £29,000 which is well below what it's worth and I noticed that many of the TVRs for sale on eBay are going for well below what they're worth. I suppose TVRs are a car people would prefer to buy from a dealer which I can understand.

Mike

[internetheaven]

Well, that was a big waste of time. The other 'highly' respectable guy who was supposed to buy it should the highest bid be cancelled has just emailed me to say he's changed his mind and he doesn't want the car. This means I've just wasted 10 days of worrying and checking.

My advice, don't bother wasting your time with eBay.

Thanks for all your help anyway

Mike

[mannyo]

I would report them as a non paying bidder and leave negative feedback, otherwise you will get stung by ebay for the fees involved.

I spotted this in there profile

Bid Retractions (Past 6 months): 15

Seems high to me.

>> Edited by mannyo on Friday 16th July 08:26

[schueymcfee]

Yep, selling an expensive car on ebay is a waste of time. Sadly because of the anonymity of it all you get dreamers bidding that just don't have the money. Nobody came to view my car before the auction ended which I always found strange, the reason being they never intended to buy the car.

[jvaughan]

you also get a number of dealers who bid when the price is stupidly low .. I even had one guy email me when I was selling the Volvo T5 saying its not worth £8000.. when I did some digging, and looked at his other auctions / items bidded on, they were all plus vat. In my attempts to sell the car, I contacted a number of specialists, when I described the car to one, he commented "It sounds like one I have been watching on E-Bay" (There was only one Black V70 with the spec of my car on Ebay).... it turned out he was the guy that had emailed me ( but didnt know it )
I sold the car 2 months later for £2000 more than he had offered... I guess that was his margin

[wedget]

I have bought quite a few things from ebay including my TVR, all went very well. and its very funny how the bids go up in the last seconds like loads of people are sitting it out. The bid can literally double in minutes

[zumbruk]

Do a Google search for "ebay sniping" and you'll see why the prices rocket up at the last minute...

[millyad]

sorry to see you've wasted your time, better luck in the future

[Chuckler]

It's a gamble. Sometimes works, sometimes not.
I had an old land rover Discovery to get rid of, knacked engine, battered etc etc. Asked my local dealer who offered me £200. (I'd have taken £600 if he'd offered it). Stuck it on Ebay £400 start no reserve. Went for £3050!!!!
Was worried that the guy would be disappointed but I had put a page on the web with lots of pics and discribed ALL the faults.
Anyway bloke turns up with the cash and is well pleased! Trailers it away and HAPPY DAYS!!

My guess is the 2nd hand car market generally gets awkward above about £12k with many people looking to buy from a dealer for piece of mind. Timewasters abound both on Ebay and using other methods.

Wandering off topic a bit:-
That's why if you turn up at the dealers looking like a peasant they mark you down as a timewaster. I never forget going into what is now Hawthorns before it was TVR to look at an Aston they had in there. The Blazer and cravat man comes over and asks me not to touch please, as it's summer and i'm wearing jogging pants and espadrills etc. Should have seen him come out those doors like Lynford Christie when he spots me heading back to the 308 GTS outside!! "What a lovely car sir! Are you interested in the Aston etc etc". Hehehehehehehe. Great Fun.

Hope you get a genuine buyer soon mate.

[internetheaven]

>>>> "I have bought quite a few things from ebay including my TVR, all went very well. and its very funny how the bids go up in the last seconds like loads of people are sitting it out. The bid can literally double in minutes"

Can't say I've seen that on ebay I'm afraid, the top two bidders I mentioned made their high bids on day 5, over the next four days no-one else bid although nearly 3000 people visited the page to look at the car. I don't get how people can be so blaze about messing up someone's life. The sale of the car was to coincide with the purchase of a car from someone else so that has now fallen through and I will have to look for another car. I am unable to drive the Tuscan anymore so am really car-less until it's sold. Plus it means that I've spent good money advertising a car for absolutely no reason. I don't get it? What a**eholes ..

>>> Chuckler - had the exact same experience at Glenvarigill in Edinburgh:

I walked in wearing scruffy trackie bottoms and a t-shirt with a Heavy Metal motif(I was helping a mate decorate his house) to look at a second had Ferrari Modena they had in stock. I opened the door of the Ferrari to have a look inside and the guy shot out of his office and ask me not to touch anything. He asked if I knew how much a 'car like this cost' and I replied that I did and that next time I'll come down with my bank statement printed on my forehead so that he doesn't have to worry about his precious car.
I left, and went 10 miles down the road to AMSportscars and bought a Tuscan instead. I tell you, the only places where I haven't been judged by my appearance was at Porsche and BMW in Aberdeen. In both instances a salesman dealt with me for well over an hour without ever commenting on the expensive nature of the cars or asking what 'price range' I was looking at spending in.

Mike

>> Edited by internetheaven on Friday 16th July 20:57