Buying a Car, etc.; sight unseen:
I have purchased cars sight unseen before. The only way to do it without
problems seems to be this....
Pick up a yellow pages for my city (Wichita, Kansas) at your local
library. Find a mechanic in my city that will closely examine the car,
then report back to you. This usually costs around $75 (cheap!) By
having an unbiased professional third party involved you are actually
better off than if you came and looked at it yourself. Unless you are a
trained mechanic you might miss something. I have done this several
times and was pleased with the outcome.
If you don't want to have a mechanic check it out before you bid,
then bid accordingly. There will be no tire-kicking, questions,
concerns, complaints, discussions, whining or further negotiations once
the auction has closed.
Similar actions could be used if you're purchasing a high dollar item on eBay.
Find an expert local to the seller to go have a look and give you an opinion or
valuation on the item. Expect to pay him a reasonable fee, mutually determined,
for his efforts.
..back..