The guy selling his MB has the title. He says the title is under his company name. He says the car is from another state and was owned by a celebrity. It does not have in state plates. But he is selling it on the celebrity's behalf and the title is under his own company name now. I get the feeling he bought it from an auction since he says his buddy goes to them "sometimes".

But whats a good way to verify everything before purchasing. If I call the company on the title. It could be his home as people work out of their homes. I did go to his house and things seem ok. But you never know. I do think the celebrity story is bogus. Any advice you can give me? thanks

 

If the deal smells to you, I'd walk away. (I must say, be careful with this one.) If you want to pursue it, check with your state's division of motor vehicles. Talk to someone there who's competent and he/she should be able to tell you how to protect yourself. Following that, get a Carfax (owner, accident, mileage, etc. history) for the car and see if you can get a print out from MB regarding service/warranty work. If you are still unsure about the deal, I guess you could also talk to a lawyer. Good luck.

 

Try carfax.

 

The carfax looks fine. He just some maintenance and brake service at a MB dealership near us. I called them and gave the VIN number. They told he has 9 months left on the warranty but that they are limited as to what they can tell me. What do you think?

 

I assume you'd be paying alot for this car so the last thing you want is to find out you've purchased a stolen vehicle. IMO, if you'd like to buy the car, you need to verify that the actual owner signs the title for it's sale so that it can be properly transfered. If someone has stolen the vehicle and title and you pay this individual, you could end up out the money and the car. Again, your state's local division of motor vehicles should tell you how to protect yourself. A Carfax and getting info from MB are excellent things to obtain regarding the history of the car, but they won't protect you from buying a stolen vehicle.

 

hmm. He told me he will sign as owner of the company which is shown on the title. DMV told me to call the company and make sure he is the owner of that company. But for all I know, he could be working out of his house and will answer the phone. I dont know what else to ask of him since he said the car is celebrity owned and he is selling it on the celebrities behalf and thats why the title is under his company name.

 

Something seems amiss here. I attend various car auctions and from what I've seen, celebs want prospective buyers to know they own the car in an attempt increase bid prices. Another thing is why would this celeb transfer title to the individual you are dealing with. In Florida where I reside, there are sales tax consequences (6% of sale price) on all title transfers such as this. If one is a dealer, tax is not due on a resale but such dealer would hold the title (in the celebs name in this case) until the vehicle is sold, and then give it to the new owner for transfer of ownership.
Another thing is why is the car being maintained at your local MB dealer if the celeb lives in another state?
If you are truly interested in buying the car, perhaps you could do some independent research and find something on his company, (Dunn & Bradstreet, for example) and see if this individual is listed as the company's owner/president. Also, you could ask for his company's bank references and call such bank(s) to check him out. If this proves okay, and you decide to buy the car, you could then take him to your own notary where he would have to prove his identity prior to signing the title. I wouldn't advance any money until all these steps check out.
From what I'm gathering here, though, you do not have complete trust in this guy. If you can't get rid of this feeling, I'd walk away. There are plenty of deals out there. Good luck!

 

Thanks alot. I get the feeling he bought it at an auction and is simply trying to make profit on it. He never would disclose which celeb owns/owned this.

 

Is he asking a "premium" for the car (i.e. due to the prior celeb status)? If so and the celeb is not being made avilable until after the sael (if at all), it's probably just a line to get the price higher than it should be. A car that previously belonged to a celeb is not great thing. How would you like it if you found out it was the wrecked Lindsey Lohan car he's charging you full boat price for? I did consider a CLK in my prior efforts that had belonged to that girl that stared in "16 candles" (I can't rememeber the name). The dealership was sellign it and they did not make a big deal out of it, I only discovered it from a title search and they acknowledged it. In the end it had had the "coke in the shifter" experience twice already and that was a problem so I passed. The DMV search SHOULD tell you if it was EVER in a celebs name.

 

To many stories and trouble with this one! It's a car, not a baby. Don't fall in love........move on!

 

Who cares if it were a celebrity's car though? I would never pay more for that. The exception would be people who maybe buy the cars for collecting purposes...like if a big Elvis fan wanted one of his old cars.

 

If the guy claims that he is an owner of the company, ask to see the articles of incorporation of the company showing him as an owner. These articles should have been recorded with the county recorder in which the Company was created (evidenced by a stamp on the articles). Otherwise, I like the bank reference idea.

Also, does he have a copy of the title that he sent in? or a bill of sale from prior owner?

Don't pay more for a celb. car, in many cases this just means that they beat up the car, or failed to get it serviced. Do you really think hanging out in the service department is high on the list of most celebs?