Buying a car overseas - Advice?

SquireD

Well lads, little bit of advice needed!

I'm currently on the lookout for a Lexus IS220 D. Searching around Ireland i stumbled upon this 2008 IS220D for €4,000!!
Straight away i thought it was a joke but said i'd e-mail him for the laugh anyway...

As it turned out, he was forced to leave the country for work commitments and took the car with him. He's currently living in Hungary with the car parked up as 1. No insurance company will cover it as its RHD and they drive on the left and 2. It's Irish registered so no one wants the hassle of registering it there.

He said if i go ahead with the deal, he will only accept payment through E-bay. He also said that i dont even have to release the funds to his account until i am fully satisifed with the car and if i find some fault with it, he will look after shipping the car back to him with no funds transferred in the meantime.

Does this seem a bit suspicious or what's peoples opinions on it?

Don't want to miss out on a bargain opportunity here but also dont want to get screwed!!

colm_mcm

Google 'scam'

SquireD

I can see where it looks dodgy, just from what he says about me not having to fork out any money until im happy with the car that gets me thinking. He even recommended getting a mechanic to look over it for my peace of mind and if something is found to be wrong with it, then he will look after the shipping return of it himself...

He just says that we get into an agreement with e-bay that the funds are giving to e-bay(like some sort of security account, PayPal maybe) and that they hold the money until i authorise them to release the funds to him, if i dont then it's given back...

Has anyone any experience doing something like this??

ASOT

SquireD wrote: »

I can see where it looks dodgy, just from what he says about me not having to fork out any money until im happy with the car that gets me thinking. He even recommended getting a mechanic to look over it for my peace of mind and if something is found to be wrong with it, then he will look after the shipping return of it himself...

He just says that we get into an agreement with e-bay that the funds are giving to e-bay(like some sort of security account, PayPal maybe) and that they hold the money until i authorise them to release the funds to him, if i dont then it's given back...

Has anyone any experience doing something like this??

It doesnt exist mate its a known scam.

Ebay doesnt operate like that. Sorry to get your hopes up.

colm_mcm

It's 10000% a scam.

You know the car is worth way more than that.

Any pics of this car in Hungary, any reg number disclosed, any reason why he didn't just send the car home and sell it there for 10k more?

SquireD

Ah bo**ix!!:rolleyes: Thought i was onto something...

Sound for the heads up lads!!:D

SquireD

colm_mcm wrote: »

It's 10000% a scam.

You know the car is worth way more than that.

Any pics of this car in Hungary, any reg number disclosed, any reason why he didn't just send the car home and sell it there for 10k more?

Yea he e-mailed me a few photos of the car on request, inside and out and said the car is on Irish plates but their not on the car in the photos.
Was tempted to ask for the reg as my uncle is a guard and could do a full check on it...
He said the problem selling it in hungary is it's RHD and they drive on the left and with the cost of transferring the plates, no one would be interested in it over there....

colm_mcm

They drive on the right in Hungary...


Any link to the ad?

romperstomper

SquireD wrote: »

colm_mcm wrote: »

It's 10000% a scam.

You know the car is worth way more than that.

Any pics of this car in Hungary, any reg number disclosed, any reason why he didn't just send the car home and sell it there for 10k more?

Yea he e-mailed me a few photos of the car on request, inside and out and said the car is on Irish plates but their not on the car in the photos.
Was tempted to ask for the reg as my uncle is a guard and could do a full check on it...
He said the problem selling it in hungary is it's RHD and they drive on the left and with the cost of transferring the plates, no one would be interested in it over there....

Every minute, there really is one born every minute .....

166man

Why is the OP typing in bold?

SquireD

colm_mcm wrote: »

They drive on the right in Hungary...


Any link to the ad?

Apologies, your right they drive on the right..got mixed up there!

I'll see if i can locate that ad, nearly certain it was found on the CarBuyers Guide website...

challengemaster

A 08 lexus for 4k would probably look like this

Delancey

SquireD wrote: »

Was tempted to ask for the reg as my uncle is a guard and could do a full check on it...

.... and thus breach the Data Protection Act , Gardai are not authorised to check out cars for themselves or relatives in this way.
It goes on and nothing happens when its discovered but it is nonetheless illegal.

pcardin

166man wrote: »

Why is the OP typing in bold?

Maybe he has a problem that only Specsavers can sort out?

pcardin

ah, yeah....it's a scam.

166man

pcardin wrote: »

Maybe he has a problem that only Specsavers can sort out?

Jesus was not expecting that as I scrolled down the page, hit me like a train! But your statement is plausible alright!:D

pcardin

166man wrote: »

Jesus was not expecting that as I scrolled down the page, hit me like a train! But your statement is plausible alright!:D

Well, the first post in Bold could be an accident but every next one in bold just confirmed that a deep problem lies somewhere

bazz26

SquireD wrote: »

Ah bo**ix!!:rolleyes: Thought i was onto something...

Sound for the heads up lads!!:D

With all due respect, did you honestly think that you could actually buy a 2008 IS220d for €4k?

I cannot believe people are still being dupped by these scams.

SquireD

bazz26 wrote: »

With all due respect, did you honestly think that you could actually buy a 2008 IS220d for €4k?

I cannot believe people are still being dupped by these scams.

Yea i know what ya mean, i know one lad from Lithuania who says it might well be legit to a degree as in his home country they cannot register Irish or UK vehicle at all so this is where this lad might be finding a problem.
I'm gonna get the reg and see what info it turns up in the meantime...

Also what's the big deal about posting in bold???

bazz26

SquireD wrote: »

Yea i know what ya mean, i know one lad from Lithuania who says it might well be legit to a degree as in his home country they cannot register Irish or UK vehicle at all so this is where this lad might be finding a problem.
I'm gonna get the reg and see what info it turns up in the meantime...

Also what's the big deal about posting in bold???

You seem to be still blinded by the cheap price. This is what these scammers hope for.

The car's reg will not tell you if it is a scam or not. They most likely just stole the photo from a genuine advert. These scams are all over the likes of carzone, you will just be wasting your time and money doing checks.

I bet if you tell them you are in their country on business and you can arrange to meet with them to test drive the car then you will either be met with a bigger excuse for not being able to meet you or a wall of silence.

CiniO

SquireD wrote: »

Yea i know what ya mean, i know one lad from Lithuania who says it might well be legit to a degree as in his home country they cannot register Irish or UK vehicle at all so this is where this lad might be finding a problem.
I'm gonna get the reg and see what info it turns up in the meantime...

Also what's the big deal about posting in bold???

Did you at least check how much is that kind of lexus in LHD version worth in Hungary?

Most likely if it was really for sale for 4 grand, then someone from Hungary would buy it and convert a RHD to LHD. Would still cost way less, then buying normal LHD lexus there.

mullingar

SquireD wrote: »

Also what's the big deal about posting in bold???

Its not the done thing, its only used to highlight something in a sentance.