Using the Internet to Buy a Car (Part 4: eBay & Used Cars)

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Using the Internet to Buy a Car (Part 4: eBay & Used Cars)

Another true story: I bought a five year old Audi A8 on eBay.  I am not suggesting eBay is the superior way to buy used cars, but it is another resource.  It was useful to me b/c there were no used A8s when I was looking for one.  However, as with any purchase on the Internet, you need to be careful, more so when making such a large purchase.  Here are the rules I suggest for a successful car purchase on eBay:


1.  Buy only from a person or company that has sold at least five other cars on eBay with positive feedback.
2.  They must accept an escrow service, at your expense and of your choosing  Will cost no more than 250.  Use eBay's escrow service to be totally safe (Escrow.com http://www.escrow.com/).
3.  Seller must agree to let you inspect the car and allow you to return it. 
4.  Buy a report on the car from www.carfax.com

Every one of these conditions is a deal breaker.  There have been scam artists out there who create their own escrow services.  Use only a widely recognized one.  The car I bought came from a company that had sold 60 plus cars on eBay and they gave me 7 days to inspect.  I gambled the shipping costs of $700 each way, but worth the risk b/c I got such a good price.  Shipping costs varies with distance obviously. 

Here's an article from CNN.com.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/ptech/07/21/cars.ebay.ap/index.html