I get so tired of this -ebay listing

[bobc]

Note the "dealer option" louvered hood, overspray on the paint job, filled in area in the rear hatch panel area, suspect rust in the drivers door sill area. Suspect battery area, etc. etc. etc. And this is a 2?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Datsun-Z-Series-240Z-1973-Datsun-240-Z-61K-MILES-Super-Nice-Sports-Car_W0QQitemZ260190369499QQihZ016QQcategoryZ6187QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Sorry for the rant, but I would hate for someone entering our hobby to get a lemon and then drop out of the Z community because they got burned by a description like this. I've seen it done twice before to young people and it just really ticked me off. We've lost them to what could have been the next generation of Z owners because of the bad experience they had with junk cars someone sold them. It broke my heart to tell them that their $8,000 purchase wasn't even worth half what they paid for it.

Anybody disagree?

BTW, I wrote the seller, but I doubt he'll respond or do anything to change his listing.

Best,

Bob

[xray]

The market will do the deciding on how that car is sold...doubtful he'll meet his reserve unless it's 4000, which is not that bad considering everything as a package. IMO, that's a solid #4 car on a 1-5 auction scale---far from a #2, but everyone's allowed an opinion....

Could use some reasonable pics, though. I don't like that battery area, and the driver's dogleg definitely looks funky.

[sblake01]

He forgot to mention the dealer option louvered inspection lids. Seriously, ads like this are the main reason I only look at Datsuns for sale on eBay for amusement and entertainment.

[MEZZZ]

He forgot to mention the dealer option louvered inspection lids. Seriously, ads like this are the main reason I only look at Datsuns for sale on eBay for amusement and entertainment.

Had I only found this site before I won an Ebay auction, I too could have been spared the pain of getting screwed over by someones fraudulent listing and follow up emails to my questions and concerns.

I have finally received the title a couple week ago from an auction that ended on 8-17 and paid for on 8-18! Turns out the title wasnt even transferred in to the PO(S) name until 10-03!

Of course he then left me a feedback calling me a piece of dog feces since I had the nerve to tell him I wanted to sue his lame a$$

And a word of caution, Ebays buyer protection/fraud program is a sham as well. I can say they did finally assist me in getting a title, but only after many calls and letters.

Now to spend the extra $$ to fix the car up and try not to be so discouraged about the whole affair in the process. It has dampened my spirits about finally getting a Z but I am determined to follow through on this endeavor.

[bobc]

Mark, after reading your post, I rest my case. Exactly the type of discouragement we don't need in the hobby. I hope you hang in there. I'm sure the people on this site will be glad to assist you whenever you need some advice or encouragement!

Bob

[WingZr0]

I smell PhotoShoping on there.

Deffinately looks like he went heavy on the Color Balancing,

that car's borderlining on a water color painting !

Hatch wetherstrip has MAD overspray.

IMHO this is a nice interrior with a quick resale paint job.

I too feel your pain MEZZZ,

I found my baby up the street from me and began to figure there

was something wrong with the engine which I was never told.

The fix it bill to find the problem was almost as much what I

paid for the car,

But after Maning Up, buying tools and doing the workmyself and

finding the problem which was a 18 Dollor part my

spirits are also up again.

The best part is I now know more about cars working on my

Z then I ever did just by reading magizines.

And the feeling you get from meeting other Z'ers on the

road and kids who say

"Look at the car Mom! Thats a cool car Mom!", is 2nd to none

~Z~

[76Datsun280z]

Looks like he like he takes really bad pictures like me or like you said photoshoped. The pictures of the outside of the car look really glossy and fuzzy. You gotta admit though, those pedals sure add the extra touch.

[yor5150]

I bought my '73 on eBay in 2005 and to the seller's credit the car was pretty much as advertised. I flew from the Bay Area to Burbank, CA. and drove it home. I know more about these cars now then I did then but do not feel even the slightest bit of buyer's remorse. I guess I was lucky. Since then I found a '74 260Z on Craigslist in the next town over. I bought it to drive while I finish working on my 240 & plan on selling it when the 240 is back on the road. I've been bitten by the "while I'm at it" bug so progress isn't being made as fast as I'd like...

I would have been suspicious of this ad back in 2005 and am suspicious of it now. Living in Calif., I don't think I'd buy a Z that wasn't from CA or AZ anyway.

Just my 2cents...

eBay Motors_ Datsun _ Z-Series (item 260190369499 end time De...pdf

[DougN]

While I agree with you Bob, unfortunately, this issue is not unique to Z cars or eBay. I see it with every other type of classic car for sale these days, no matter where they are offered for sale. However, with information so easily accessable, doing some due-diligence should not be that hard for anyone, expecially a younger person, as most of them pretty much live in cyberspace anyway.

I remember many moons ago buying cars (well before the internet), and always taking someone who knew more about cars with me to check it out before parting with $$$. I would hope that the same common sense is applicable today. Unfortunately, my feeling is that there are quite a few people out there that believe anything they read on the internet, and even more who are used to the "instant gratification" society and don't take the time to do their homework before making any type of major purchase. Sometimes, the only way to learn a lesson is to get burned.

I too bought my '73 off eBay a few years ago. But, I had 100's of photos of every inch of the car, talked at length to the seller, located a Z expert (from this board no less) who lives near me to help assess the value of the car, and even talked to the previous owner of the car (who did the refresh) before making the bid/purchase. I was (and still am) satisified with my purchase.

As with any type of purchase, the phrase "buyer beware" is still as true today as it was 25 years ago!

[76Datsun280z]

Mine was bought off Ebay too, as a project car.

[bkelly]

I almost got burned on ebay on a purchase. I found a 73 with tripple webbers and some suspension mods that looked to be in great shape. The owner wanted a ton for it and the reserve wasn't met. I emailed him with what I thought the car was worth in that condition and said I'd buy it if he met that price, he agreed. I bought my plane ticket to go fly/drive it home. In the mean time, I asked for a couple more photos. All I got were the same ones that were listed in the auction, but in high res....fishy. The night before I never slept because I had to get up at 4am to get to the airport anyway. So I get out photoshop and start going through the pictures at 2 in the morning. Blowing up the interior, I saw that the dash was totally cracked, steering wheel was shot, and there was no radio. (Just was I need, an 8hr drive and me signing to myself the whole way!) The exterior of the car was in excellent condition. One thing I always look for when looking for a car is check for uniformity. Does the car look "aged" the same all over? Something just wasn't right. I wound up calling the guy at 6AM leaving a message i would not be picking the car up. I was out $250 for a plane ticket, but I saved THOUSANDS in fixing that car up.

After that I gave up trying to buy a Z and started looking at Porshes and Bimmers. I got a phone call about a month later about a local Z for sale and wound up buying a low vin 70 for much less than that 73 I was going to buy.

Given my experiences with ebay, I'd highly recommend looking elsewhere to buy your car. There are many Z forums on the web with classifieds, that I would trust 10X more than ebay. The most important factor in looking for a car is BE PATIENT!!!! Most of the time, the car finds you.

[Weasel73240Z]

The photo of the open drivers side door is scary. Look at the rot at the bottom right corner. What do you think that looks like close-up?

However, this one looks like a pretty damn nice Z, especially for New England.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1973-Datsun-240Z_W0QQitemZ110202666900QQihZ001QQcategoryZ6187QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Unfortunately, no pics of the floor, frame rails, etc. but if someone around here is looking, this may be a great car. If it is as good as advertised, it'll probably sell for pretty good money. Good Z's are getting impossible to find out here.