Rockhead261

I'm just beginning to show the GTI in my sig in order to get some cash (and room) for the future Cutty rag.

Now, don't get me wrong - I love showing off my car to prospective buyers.... but this one guy has practically stalked me since I posted a feeler thread on another forum. I finally invited him for a look and he came up this morning. I fully expected him to have a spare plate and wad of bills in his pocket. Instead, he spent most of the time telling me about HIS cars. He obviously knows dubs well and took mine for a ride and all, but the only time he mentioned money was when he texted me upon his arrival to give me a heads-up that he told his GF that the car was $4K, not the $7.5 that I'm asking.

I'm thinking he was just on an ego trip and wanted to compare his car to another.

Anyone think I'm wrong?

1970supremevert

maybe he thinks he is Fast & Loud, good luck with the sale

RetroRanger

I agree he just wanted to compare his to yours. That said I used to love the 83-84 GTIs and owned several, I also believe the market for a 7.5k 83 VW will be small at best

Rockhead261

Small? I'm thinking minuscule to non-existant, but you can never be too sure with dubbers!

rustyroger

If he had texted me I would have told him unless he showed me the full asking price money he wasn't welcome on my property.

Roger.

MDchanic

Tire kicker. He got a free amusement park ride.

Don't entertain him again unless he flashes the cash.

- Eric

jensenracing77

Just part of the fun of selling. You never know anything for sure till you have cash in your hand.

Bernhard

That's why when I sell a car I put in the add serious inquires only. I have seen many adds with no test pilots. Now when people call about a car or part I do my own interview , this helps me weed out the time wasters. I never mind showing a car or part to some one if they are serious.

I have been jerked around many times by test pilots and low ball offers.

olds style

I show em the cash, but have to move one of the pistols out of the way first, to get to it (when it's a sizable amount).....

oldcutlass

I'm blunt, if I had gotten that text and my price was pretty firm, I would have talked to the fellow first. If we were that far off, whats the use of a test drive, or any conversation after that.

z11375ss

Done this myself. Especially when in an industrial park by myself at night.

RetroRanger

LOL does that work ....

many times it can be the test drive that defines the amount of seriousness

Rockhead261

Well, I'll be damned... the tire kicker called me and made a respectable offer. I'm considering it and will probably make a halfway counter-offer tomorrow. Still not counting the cash until it's in my hand, but I've got to say I didn't think I'd ever hear from him again.

Rockhead261

I guess I had the guy pegged wrong; he came up yesterday with a stack of $100's and drove the car away.

Definitely a bittersweet moment, hearing about his plans for my GTI and watching it being driven away. BUT... this means I now have the seed money for my Cutty rag. On to the classifieds!

MDchanic

I guess that answers your original question: "How do you know when a "buyer " is for real?"

You can't ever be completely sure.

Glad you sold it!

- Eric

67strocker

I've found that the one you think is going to walk away,is the one that buys.
It surprises me every time. You just never know.
Congrats on your sale!

Olds442redberet

I would recommend to people, not to be too much of a jerk with any prospective buyer. I have recently purchased, not one, but two cutlasses, and every seller I spoke with thought I was wasting their time. I had three possible sellers take there time sending pictures, and one jerked me around with an interview to see if I was serious or not. And let me tell you, I refuse to beg someone to buy their precious car. Or to show them any money before they show me their car.
The Mercedes I sold in order to fund the purchase of my two cutlasses was posted on Craigslist. And let me tell you, I entertained every caller. Fortunately for me, it was a Mercedes and not a Cutlass or 442, so there weren't to many callers. LOL. The new owner called me with questions, a lot of questions, and I had to struggle to understand his broken english while not pissing him off. Language barriers!
When he came to look at the car, he drove over two hours to see it, and he didn't bring any money. But in the end, he did agree to buy the car, and he put a deposit on it the very next morning using PayPal.
Yeah, there are a lot of quacks out there, I ran into many of them while shopping for my Cutlasses. Well, actually one Cutlass and one 442. Oh, and buy the way, I had no intention of buying either Cutlass. But I am very happy that I did. Just my opinion, and thank you for allowing me to share them.
I attached pics of the two cars that followed me home.