How Far Is Too Far...

[xjrev10]

I find it interesting that you guys have been successful in negotiating prices down over the phone. I absolutely will not talk money over the phone about any item. If the interested party trys, I give them one chance to shut up or I just hang up. Sounds brutal but Ive never had a issue, neither has the interested party.

 

But I know what I'm selling and what its worth too the folks that I'm attempting to sell too...

[terrawombat]

If the seller isn't interested in negotiating over the phone then I'm not interested in their item and will move on to the next.

 

I will only make a sight-unseen offer on something where I have been provided a sufficient amount of photographs that I can make an educated guess on its worth. This generally only applied to Comanches, Cherokees, Grand Cherokees, etc. I have been around them enough to know their worth based on descriptions and photographs.

[Automan2164]

I will sort of open the door of negotiation over the phone if the distance is over an hour to the object... I won't dive straight in without looking, but I test the waters. Ask if there is room, bring up some comparable sales or examples. If there is a stone wall, I don't waste my time.

 

Rob

[terrawombat]

:agree:

 

Yea, that. I will lead into the negotiations with a, "how much are you willing to wiggle on price?" If they say yes, then I'll throw out what I'm willing to pay. You usually get a "eh, that's kind of low" response, which they'll often counter with a more reasonable offer. Other times you'll get a "yea, I can do that." The best are when you get a "no way, it's worth way more than that." I like that response because I'll usually get a phone call or e-mail a month down the road asking if my offer was still on the table.

 

I just don't like dealing with people that aren't willing to move on price and like Rob said, if they're a fair distance away, it's just not worth my time. I like when the seller knows that I'm going to come in an lowball them :)

[Automan2164]

To think that selling a vehicle or anything without being retail is a set price, or that you will get exactly what you are asking is unreasonable. I am notoriously cheap, and will even ask at stores. Most recently, I went to the car audio/accessories place by me and bought the tweeters for the XJ. He told me the price, and I asked if that was the best they could do. Was I expecting to hear no? You bet. Instead, he said that he offered a better price for certain accounts, and that he would be able to match that. Not a whole huge difference on price, but hey, still less than if I wouldn't have asked.

 

Rob

[Blue88Comanche]

I drove 4 hours one way to look at dads MJ before we bought it and a week later I made the trip again with the F-250 to tow it on its 245 mile journey from Auburn, AL to Grand Bay, AL..

 

I like to drive, that and I had family in auburn so that was a plus.

[86FUBAR]

When i bought my PW i had to get 2 one way tickets , one for me and my dad and we flew down to San Diego to pick it up and road triped it the 10 hrs home. Had the owners pick us up at the air port and we went to a parking lot to look it over . The best part is they stoped at a gas station on the way to the parking lot and "FILLED THE TANK" so that saved me about $130 . Rember its never to far if its exactly what you are looking for.

[64 Cheyenne]

Kind off topic but I always ask for price breaks at motels, and is one of the reasons for ordering over the phone when

I could just as easily ordered from their website.

"penny saved is a penny earned" Doesn't take many nickle and dimes to add up to a dollar, or in our world ones fives and tens to

Make a Franklin.

HA! Just found the rest of the emoticons :banana:

[mvusse]

With three exception I bought all my vehicles locally. Booger (94 rust bucket 4.0/AX15/231 2 door XJ) was an hour away. When I traded it for the Purple People Eater I drove 90 minutes as did the previous owner so we met in the middle, and my Suburban came from TX. I paid $500 to have it transported to Ohio, the seller paid the rest (about $1700).

 

But I drove 700 miles round trip to pick up a pop up camper. Then a year and a half I made the same trip to pick up a camper van. Drove the Purple People Eater there, drove the van back with the MJ on a dolly behind it. Including Canadian plates, gas, dolly rental and a letter from GM stating this Canadian van met US EPA and safety standards (over $100 for a frigging form letter!!!) this free van cost me about $500 to get home. Cheapest part was the import papers at the border, as they were free. Then when I got home I needed to have a vin search done before I could get an Ohio title for it.

[johnnyc]

When I negotiated the price over the phone, I wasn't doing it totally sight unseen. I have a friend in Vegas and he went over to check the truck out for me. So I knew it was in very nice condition. I asked the lady if she would go $2K because I was taking a 4-hour bus ride. She was asking $2.5K.

 

One thing my friend did not notice when he went to look at it was the presence of a D44. I noticed it and had to fight hard to contain my surprise.

 

Interesting note - the PO recently e-mailed me and asked how the truck was doing. I sent her a link to my build thread here on CC. She said that she was very happy that I love the truck as much as she did.

[Alexia]

I drove over five hours one way in horrible rain to pick up my LJ. I drove past two wrecked Jeeps along the way and saw a Wrangler rear end another vehicle during the drive. One of the wrecks was bad enough that they had people holding up blue tarps.

 

Interesting note - the PO recently e-mailed me and asked how the truck was doing. I sent her a link to my build thread here on CC. She said that she was very happy that I love the truck as much as she did.

 

Yeah, I have to be responsible about upsetting the previous owner. RockinMJ hangs out on here. :D

[xjrev10]

If the seller isn't interested in negotiating over the phone then I'm not interested in their item and will move on to the next.

 

I will only make a sight-unseen offer on something where I have been provided a sufficient amount of photographs that I can make an educated guess on its worth. This generally only applied to Comanches, Cherokees, Grand Cherokees, etc. I have been around them enough to know their worth based on descriptions and photographs.

 

I agree with what you are saying and I probably would do the same thing. But when you get CL morons like crazy on certain things... Tough to deal with. More then once I've told people to just get the hell outa my yard. Last one was actually someone coming to look at my 5YP jeep.... Ha

 

Guess I should have specified. CL brings out lots of different folks. Forum folks are a lot better to work with then the general public!

 

Also within a few minutes on the phone you know if you are talking to a enthusiast or just someone looking for some wheels....

 

[JENSSEN]

I drove 3hrs there and 3 back on pictures of a damn near rust free 88,.. For a final production year eliminator in good shape,..I would go way farther

[jimoshel]

The worst experience I ever had from buying something over the phone wasn't a Jeep. I had a nice '52 Cadillac Coupe DeVille, 100% all original, except for the gas tank that had been replaced. A fella out in Calif had a 1947 Piper J3. I took my first flying lessons in a Cub and had been looking for one for awhile when I saw his ad. We had several conversations on the phone and swapped pics. According to him the Cub was 100% original, never been wrecked or damaged, never used as a trainer or duster yak, yak, etc, etc, The pics he sent showed a showed a factory fresh show room condition A/C. We agreed on a price. My Caddy and a 'couple bucks' for the Cub. Left Raton, NM and drove straight thru 1,050 miles to San Diego in 23 hours. Met him at the airport and saw the plane. My Gawd. Two completely different birds. Engine was covered in oil with a puddle underneath. One wing was warped. The fuselage looked like heat waves coming off a Southern Texas highway in July. Poorly applied patches everywhere. Faded, cracked plexiglass windshield. You get the idea. I thought maybe I could still salvage the deal work something out but then he started bad mouthing the Caddy. Paint was faded, scratched. Upholstery shot, etc. It wasn't. Finally I got royally p*ssed and told him where he could park his plane, and it wasn't in the hanger. and left. Been leery of phone deals, sight unseen ever since.

[snakedoc67]

the day I picked up my MJ, I started by picking up my 89 Winnebago from 191 miles south of home, parked it in front of the house and jumped in the chase vehicle to pick up my 87 MJ from 181 miles north of the house. all together about an 18 hour day and 744 miles.

[darkenfire]

Holy crap you guys are making me appreciate my Comanche so much more!

 

Drove about 20 minutes for it, trailered it home ... paid $700 for it... Didn't run, but had an engine ready for it ... rust free rockers and wheel wells ...

[wurst]

I got the guy to come down $150 because I had to tow it home. Borrowed the tow truck from work and loaded it up. It took about 45 minutes to get there and I got lost twice. Knocked him down some more when I got there. I gave him a 12 pack and his wife gave me a tomato plant that already had fruit on it. I've spent all the money I saved buying tools and parts, though. Whoops.

[redcomanche]

Mine was in Illinois and i live in Michigan, it was about a 7 hour drive both ways and i quickly found out the MJ's breaks weren't to good on the way back. :doh: But it was totally worth it :yes:

[HOrnbrod]

In 1997 I flew from Kwajalein, Marshall Islands to Waynesboro, VA (7205.9 miles) to pick up my first MJ from the original owner. Then drove it from there to Alabama (645.2 miles). As said above, it was totally worth it. :thumbsup:

[jimoshel]

So why didn't you drive it back to Kwajalein? After giving it 'The black goop' treatment first of course. :rotf:

[HOrnbrod]

No private cars/trucks allowed on the island or I would have tried. :yes:

[jimoshel]

You disappointed me Don. I thought you'd make a comment about the 'Black Goop Treatment'. I've still got some clothes with that crap ground into them.

[HOrnbrod]

You disappointed me Don. I thought you'd make a comment about the 'Black Goop Treatment'. I've still got some clothes with that crap ground into them.

 

No entiendo............ :hmm: :dunno: :dunno: :hmm:

[jimoshel]

Referring to that Black tar, paint they had around the doors, fenders, rockers etc. Supposed to keep the vehicles from rusting out so fast. Get just a little bit on you or your clothes and it never cones out. Remember all the vehicles were White with Black trim? They all arrived White and the Black was added at the motor pool. Or anyway they did in '72-74. Maybe they quit by the time you got there.

[HOrnbrod]

They were not doing that when I got there Jim. Kwaj has to be one of the most corrosive places in the world. It makes the rust belt seem like a desert. Five years max for a vehicle and one year for a bike is the average lifespan. I finally wised up and got an all aluminum and stainless bike.