Hey guys,

Hopefully joining this wonderful forum soon. Wanted to get your inputs on buying a car sight unseen. Do you guys think relying on the photos/dealer's words and having an authorized mercedes benz dealer do a ppi (pre-purchase inspection) on the car is enough to buy it without being there? Car is in Houston texas and I am in california. Debating whether the plane ticket may or may not be necessary. around ~$900 for a nonstop flight. Just wanted to wager the risks.

Thanks for the input!

 

I've done bought cars sight unseen before and have sold them the same way.
A PPI is a must!
Also, you can reach out to the car community to see if you can find someone local that can check it out for you.

I'm sure you can find someone in here willing to help a fellow enthusiast out.


Good luck!
Drew

 

Thank you very much drew. Hopefully i can find a trustworthy enthusiast!

 

Dude just stop with all the new threads already. You come in here all excited, and that's really great, but you create a brand new thread every single time a thought comes into your little head. We all see you. Why not keep all your little thoughts in one of the other 4 threads you've created in the past week new guy? Have some common sense.

 

Probably not just new to the car, but new to online forums entirely. Lol sometimes you just gotta to get the idea in xD

 

Bro, didnt you just post about a deal thats too good and if you should pull the trigger? Well, same sh*t goes for this. I wouldnt do anything without knowing the car, which means seeing the car.

Or just buy it, take a chance. F*ck it, it'll stop all these threads.

 

If the owner is willing, I'd certainly get a ppi before I dropped $900 on an airline ticket. Cost from an independent ppi business is probably in the $150 range. Dealership pricing - probably not a whole lot more. Only hassle is figuring how to get it to the inspector.

 

I have 2 threads in this forum during my time here so don't get your panties in a bunch and exaggerate Kim Kardashian. My first question was pretty specific, this question is a broad general question and i definitely know it will be useful for someone who would be in the same position as me in the future. So why don't have some common sense and not exaggerate your little drama queen butt off. Thx

 

Isn't it right to make a thread if you are looking for opinions on another topic? I've been a pretty active member on 6speedonline for the porsche section. Thanks for the reply.

 

I apologize if my 2 threads bother you. I did not plan to make any more since these two have different purposes. This thread can actually hold some pretty valuable information to future buyers whom have a car in mind that is out of state. However, I can see some forum users are pretty salty. Thanks for the reply!

 

Thank you for the reply! Would it be in my best interest to have an authorized Mercedes Benz dealership do the ppi? or have an independent company do it?

 

Is this the SAME car as in the other thread, and you've started another thread? Or do you just really want to buy car from Texas, even though you are in California.

No matter. You seem like a great guy.
Im going to start a GoFundMe page and we'll put together the funds for your airfare, and if we raise enough we will get you an extended warranty, just in case. If we really put together some cash we will buy a plane ticket for mommy too. Sound good, tiger?

Now, in the event you are not a total doofus (Not sure whether owning a a 2012 Porsche increases or decreases the chance of that - given that I haven't seen the Porsche its a 50/50 call) I will give you some actual advice.

1) Whether its the same car or not - this should be one thread. As BLKROKT said, dont fire one up for every thought.

2) If its for the 2015 in the other thread you have a warranty. No problem. Fire away.

3) If its for a different car, you either have a warranty or you dont. If you do, fire away.
If you dont, that $900 will become $1500 in expenses and you could use that to do things - either repairs or mods. So just get the independent PPI and ship it on out.

4) If you are pinching the pennies on the $900, don't buy the car. They are reliable but maintenance is pricey. If you are having a hard time dropping a grand get used to the fact it will be a common occurrence.

I managed to buy my car without asking several thousand people for help.
You can do it too. Believe in yourself. Conceive it, believe it, ACHIEVE IT!
Go forth, young man.

EDIT: Since you just entered the room, so to speak, I will tell you that we have had more than our share lately of talkers. Talkers who suck up time and then become walkers, and not C63 drivers. All full up on crazy round here right now. Go gitcher Texas car, then 'mon back.
Use the search function for any info you want (AND I REALLY MEAN IT - USE THE GAWDDAMN SEARCH FUNCTION FIRST! lol) and if you dont see what you need and are an actual C63 owner we will help.

This is a forum for C63 owners, not shoppers, thats all.

 

I don't have enough experience to answer this one well - hopefully others will chip in. The advantage of using a dealership is that the techs all know what the car SHOULD look like and are more likely to catch something abnormal. However, my perception is that the dealership guys are accustomed to looking for maintenance-related things that they can bill for, and their ppi inspection may be less likely to catch things like a straightened frame or a little paint overspray. The dealership guys spend most of their time doing service and only a fraction of their time doing inspections, while the ppi guys are probably the opposite. I'd look for a good ppi company.

 

Word. Look for a Benz specific shop, more so, if you can find a shop that does aftermarket work, (ie, coilover installs, corner balancing, tuning, etc) I find those techs far more attention to detail oriented than your regular run of the mill oil change shop.

I'd ping Eurocharged and ask them who in Texas is a) close to the car and b) good enough to know what to look and hear for.

Where in Texas is this car? Any chance it's in Austin?

 

Multiple posts? Jeez, we're all a little cranky this morning.

First post asked about a specific car. Second post asked about the long distance purchasing, something that many of us have wrestled with. Two different topics, and its certainly not unreasonable to post 'em separately. Can't see this worth getting wound up about. Can we lighten up a bit?

 

Are you aiding and abetting the infiltrator?
JK. JK.

Ok maybe you have a point. G-ZUZ tho we have a lot of window shoppers right now. Its like bloody whack a mole. I figure if we smack em down hard and early only the real dudes will stick around. Otherwise you gotta admit they get pretty outta hand then disappear.

 

Thanks for the tips. I figured since its a new car, maybe i can take the dealers word and not have to spend a day in houston as I am pretty tied up here and can save myself a grand. (im a money saved is money earned kind of guy) Warranty doesn't cover for any exterior imperfections but I just wanted some additional opinions. I plan to buy another car out of state as well as its time to get a new suv so its not just based off the car from the other post. And yes, I did search before i made this post, nothing about buying a car out of state.

Thanks for the reply!

 

Great idea! If the car is still at the 10870 Alcott Dr, Houston, TX 77043 from ebay, that's just a couple blocks away from Eurocharged. Hell, I'd ask THEM about a PPI!

 

Makes sense now... Good luck with the search.

 

I gotta hand it to you OP, you have the knack for ignoring the bitterness and responding to the sweet stuff.

 

You have a great point there. I am definitely going to look for a PPI company. Turns out, the nearest authorized mercedes benz dealer doesnt even do PPi inspections. Just got off the phone with mb houston of greenway

 

Not intentional but yup, aiding and abetting the infiltrators!

You're right about the surge of newbies. I've never seen em so thick. And I'm afraid that Mr. Duckbootz did irreparable harm to everybody's patience with newbies here. Sometimes all it takes is one a**hole. Damn shame.

 

I agree we should cut this guy a break. Seems like two different questions to me.

OP, I bought my C63 sight unseen from a shady used car lot. I was nervous, to say the least. I had a PPI done, and unfortunately they missed one or two minor things (slight tear in the driver's seat side bolster, one missing floor mat). Not trying to dissuade you, just want to point out that a PPI is only as good as the shop performing it. I love my car, and even if I had known about these minor issues still would have pulled the trigger.

 

LOL okay, now I see why I am so impatient. Mr. Duckbootz already stole it all. OP sorry for snappin

 

Just have the owner drop the car off at our location in houston for the inspection. We know the cars as good as anyone and would be able to spot a ton of stuff regular dealers won't.