eBay auction closing (no PPI), under what conditions would you bid?

Hi all, I'm searching for a 996 C2 coupe, preferably an 02-04 car. I'm having a really hard time finding a clean car priced right (I see old listings for great prices and threads here where people have paid great prices, but the sellers I see are asking a LOT more). So there's an eBay auction closing for an 03 C2 coupe with 80K miles, a clean carfax. The seller seems to have pretty good feedback, but obviously I haven't done a PPI. Under what circumstances would you bid?

I would not bid without inspecting the car and a PPI. If you are really interested in it, I would e mail the seller and tell him you want a PPI before bidding. If there is not enough time then tell him if the car does not sell to contact you after the auction and maybe then you can make time to go look at the car and get a PPI done. My best advice to you is don't be in a rush. Take your time and find the right car at the right price. My personal experience has shown that in general Ebay cars are higher priced than many other cars on the open market.

Can't think of a good reason to bid. I know it's hard when you're itching to get behind the wheel but try to be patient. A last second purchase can't possibly end well.

Agreement that there is no prior collision damage and car is mechanically sound - no money changing hands until verified through PPI.

Thanks, guys. It's a no reserve auction, so there's no chance the car will NOT sell. The seller claims clearly in the ad that the car has been inspected and is completely sound mechanically with no leaks. If the car needs brakes and tires and plus, I wouldn't be surprised or upset. If the car has real engine problems, that's another story. I emailed the seller to ask earlier if he'd be OK with me having a PPI done beforehand, and he said yes. But the car is on the other side of the country and I wasn't able to find anyone who could look at it for me locally...and at the time I didn't know what the price was going to be (again, no reserve auction) so I didn't arrange a PPI. I'm pretty sure I won't bid. But it's tough to see what appears to be a very good car go by the wayside for what might be an extremely good price. I'm not very picky in my search (just want a manual, a coupe, and a 996), but I haven't really found anything over the past few weeks that's not way overpriced.

Guess it just goes to show that more seller should list their cars on eBay as no reserve auctions...price ended up being bid up quite high, well more than I would paid for it without a PPI.

What did the car end up selling for? Was that the gray one with 80k miles in la? Was looking at that too but wanted it inspected first..

I bought mine on eBay. Contacted seller and told him if I got winning bid, that I would only purchase upon clean PPI. He agreed.

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It went for just over $24K. That's not an unfair price, but for a car with over 80k miles on it, it's certainly not a huge bargain -- and therefore it wasn't worth considering without a PPI. That's a smart strategy. In this case the listing said very clearly that inspections could only be done prior to the close of the auction. I see a lot of folks around here who bought clean 02-03 996s with under 70k miles on them for under $25K. But right now I can only locate either really high mileage cars, or cars with asking prices MUCH higher.

Check out Oregon prices. It's dropping out here like crazy. Wouldn't do anything without a PPI (a GOOD one too). I've seen a lot of cars that didn't move on CL locally that were "Well put together, maintained". And upon a look (just a look, not even a ppi), were ANYTHING but. Yet, poof. There they are, up on Ebay with bids. Be careful! I'd seriously join PCA (if you haven't already), and buy through the mart. Better odds on finding something well loved...

I have purchased 4 cars on Ebay. All have been very nice, one was local and I did my own PPI. It had a very bad rear diff leak and a foot and a half oil spot under it. It was US G'ment Jeep, been maintained well with all records. It went real cheap. The leak was a $5 rubber fill plug that shrunk and got hard. The others were a new Lexus and 2 Porsches, one that I'm driving now. I had the manager of my CU contact the sellers guaranteeing available funds. I then got the sellers OK that my winning bid was 100% contingent upon the car passing a thorough PPI as well as a test drive and physical inspection by me prior to delivery. I also had the seller agree that if any issues were found that were not disclosed in the auction that the sales price would be renegotiated or said issues rectified to my satisfaction. All the sellers I have dealt with fully agreed. In fact none of 4 I purchased from required a deposit of any kind upon me winning the bid. All cars have been wonderful and represent the most painless, simplest and quickest transactions I have ever had. It's fun driving your new car half way across the country home as well.

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Thanks, Nick. This is a really helpful reply, and makes me think that I should try to contact potential eBay sellers if I spot a car I think is right. Most eBay listings are written in such a way that they suggest one could not do what you've done, but perhaps those rules are likely to be loosened if a serious buyer calls the seller and talks it through beforehand. I know that if an eBay seller were to agree to these terms, then I'd be delighted to bid on their car.

I tried offering a seller on an 02 with 58k mileage and had done the ims, clutch, rms and other maintenance stuff 23k and he replied that he wished me luck finding a car in that mileage, clean title, and that maintenance for that price. I don't think that was an unreasonable offer... Do you guys think that was an offer out of the ballpark? I think i need some type of price list to go by.. Are these 996 prices going up? I feel when I make a reasonable offer the sellers say I'm out of the ball park..

Look at NADA.com, it will give you probably the most accurate book prices. Clean retail is $28,250 on an '02 with 58K miles. This is tops for a car with all books and service records, tools, 3 keys needs nothing, good tires, etc. You could also add up to $2k for the recent work. So if the car is mint $30K is not out of the question. I sold my '99 Cab with 61K miles for $30K in June '10. I got top dollar, but the car was in superb condition. The best cars out there will command a high price, the dogs, well, are just dogs and will sell for average trade in or there abouts. As we are getting toward spring and in some areas seeing signs of the economy improving the prices will be going up. My brother is in Porsche sales and he can't get enough nice used cars to sell. The clean cars go fast and the prices are going up. They hit botton a year or so ago.

Retail? Shouldn't it be private party?

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My only guess is that prices are going up. I wonder if you and I were talking to the same seller, because I also was talking with someone who had an 02 C2 coupe with 57K miles on it and all that recent work. I told him I thought $23K to $24K was a fair range, but he didn't even respond. Now, the thing is, this is a rennlister, and so from looking at old threads I know that he paid $19K for the car. And I know he paid less than $3k for the maintenance work. So I was offering him $1K to to $2K in profit on the car. Excellence has the prices on an 02 topping out at $25K, and ranging all the way down under $19K for a good car. I think based on previous sales up to now, your offer was perfectly reasonable. I also agree with you that private party sales should not be based on retail blue book. If they were, I'd sell all the cars I own right now. But having said all that, I can't find a car at the price you offered, and if I could I would buy it immediately.

I was heavily into the 996 market last year while searching for my current car. Just out of curiousity I did some research this week to see if the market and 996 pricing has changed. I found that in general the prices have stayed about the same and perhaps increased slightly overall. This is really good news for all of us 996 owners and hopefully values have somewhat bottomed out. I also do not think the 991 rollout is going to effect our prices nearly as much as the newer model 997's.

I'm not sure if it is same seller. I saw the ad on cl in sf. It was a nice dark blue coupe. I usually don't like dark colors but the dark blue has grown on me. I know I don't want a silver car though. I did find a white 02 with 80k and he wanted $23k which I thought was high as he hadn't done any type of maintenance such as clutch and stuff. I didnt think it would've been so hard to find a 996. I was hoping they were in the high 19-18k range now but even the 99s are still in the 20-23k range.

The odds of someone selling a car with no reserve, and not shilling their auction, is zero. Sorry. I don't buy it. I would say the odds are significant that "the buyer decided not to buy" for some reason in 99% of these auctions. Lots of second chance options for the under-bidder I am sure!

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I thought you needed a VIN to join PCA.

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I like the 991 styling & think it looks more 996 than 997. I believe 997 prices will drop & the 991 will help 996 values. I have always looked for the best car I can afford never the "best deal" & have never regreted what I paid or buying the car I did. Seems to me it takes $16k to get into a 996 & a 2002 or newer car is worth over $5k more than a 98-01 model.

fronesis47, Private msg. (PM) sent to you. Thx.