Jerry Seinfeld sues classic car dealer over allegedly fake $1.54 million Porsche
Jerry Seinfeld has filed a lawsuit against a classic car dealer alleging that it sold him a Porsche with a bogus backstory that he was accused of flipping to another collector under false pretexts.
The “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” star purchased the 1958 356 A 1500 GS/GT from European Collectibles in Costa Mesa, Calif., for $1.2 million in 2013, after being assured it was all original and the only one produced in Auratium Green with a black interior.
Seinfeld then resold the car at a Gooding and Company auction in 2016 for $1.54 million to Channel Islands-based Fica Frio Limited, who filed suit against Seinfeld on Feb. 1 looking to force him to buy the car back and pay damages after it determined the car wasn’t authentic.
The Fica Frio complaint alleges that Seinfeld verbally agreed to repurchase the Porsche and cover all costs after the matter was presented to him last June, but failed to do so in a timely fashion. Seinfeld’s action against European Collectibles seeks to hold it accountable for any damages that he is found to be responsible for.
“Jerry has no liability in this matter, but he wants to do the right thing, and is therefore bringing this action to hold European Collectibles accountable for its own certification of authenticity, and to allow the court to determine the just outcome,” Seinfeld's lawyer, Orin Snyder, told The New York Post.
European Collectibles has not yet commented on the lawsuit.
Really?? REALLY??
You're going to spend $1.2M on a used car and actually going to believe the used car dealer instead of having the car checked by a trusted mechanic who knows this type of vehicle?
Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
"If dogs don't go to Heaven, I want to go where they go" Will Rogers
The definition of the words we used, carry a meaning of their own...
February 26, 2019, 03:10 PM
rusbro
February 26, 2019, 04:21 PM
shovelhead
It would seem that for 1.2m I would want third party verification (on my own) that the car was as represented for rarity.
Apples to oranges but if I sold my '67 2+2 I would definitely inform the new owner of the non original issues verbally and in writing as to preclude any misunderstanding.
-------------------------------------—————— ————————--Ignorance is a powerful tool if applied at the right time, even, usually, surpassing knowledge(E.J.Potter, A.K.A. The Michigan Madman)
February 26, 2019, 05:53 PM
LS1 GTO
quote:
Originally posted by shovelhead: It would seem that for 1.2m I would want third party verification (on my own) that the car was as represented for rarity.
Apples to oranges but if I sold my '67 2+2 I would definitely inform the new owner of the non original issues verbally and in writing as to preclude any misunderstanding.
Egg-zactly!
Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.
"If dogs don't go to Heaven, I want to go where they go" Will Rogers
The definition of the words we used, carry a meaning of their own...
February 26, 2019, 05:57 PM
BamaJeepster
quote:
Originally posted by LS1 GTO:
quote:
Originally posted by shovelhead: It would seem that for 1.2m I would want third party verification (on my own) that the car was as represented for rarity.
Apples to oranges but if I sold my '67 2+2 I would definitely inform the new owner of the non original issues verbally and in writing as to preclude any misunderstanding.
Egg-zactly!
True, but keep in mind that Seinfeld can probably pull 1.2 million out of his sofa cushions...
quote:
Jerry Seinfeld is the richest comedian in the world, being worth almost a billion dollars as things currently stand. In 2019, Jerry Seinfeld's net worth is estimated to be $950 million.
“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” - John Adams
February 26, 2019, 06:33 PM
darthfuster
You see this gasket? I have NO confidence in that gasket!
Jerry Seinfeld sues classic car dealer over allegedly fake $1.54 million Porsche
Jerry Seinfeld has filed a lawsuit against a classic car dealer alleging that it sold him a Porsche with a bogus backstory that he was accused of flipping to another collector under false pretexts.
The “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” star purchased the 1958 356 A 1500 GS/GT from European Collectibles in Costa Mesa, Calif., for $1.2 million in 2013, after being assured it was all original and the only one produced in Auratium Green with a black interior.
Seinfeld then resold the car at a Gooding and Company auction in 2016 for $1.54 million to Channel Islands-based Fica Frio Limited, who filed suit against Seinfeld on Feb. 1 looking to force him to buy the car back and pay damages after it determined the car wasn’t authentic.
The Fica Frio complaint alleges that Seinfeld verbally agreed to repurchase the Porsche and cover all costs after the matter was presented to him last June, but failed to do so in a timely fashion. Seinfeld’s action against European Collectibles seeks to hold it accountable for any damages that he is found to be responsible for.
“Jerry has no liability in this matter, but he wants to do the right thing, and is therefore bringing this action to hold European Collectibles accountable for its own certification of authenticity, and to allow the court to determine the just outcome,” Seinfeld's lawyer, Orin Snyder, told The New York Post.
European Collectibles has not yet commented on the lawsuit.
Really?? REALLY??
You're going to spend $1.2M on a used car and actually going to believe the used car dealer instead of having the car checked by a trusted mechanic who knows this type of vehicle?
Not the best source for this story. This car from European Collectibles (EC) came with a Certificate of Authenticity. Seinfeld relied on this Certificate when he sold the car. He tried to get European Collectibles to deal directly with the new owners. They haven’t. Now Seinfeld is in turn suing EC. If I understand correctly, calling European Collectibles a “used car dealer” is like calling Sotheby’s a 2nd hand store.
_______________________________________________________ despite them
February 26, 2019, 06:40 PM
Balzé Halzé
quote:
Originally posted by BamaJeepster:
quote:
Originally posted by LS1 GTO:
quote:
Originally posted by shovelhead: It would seem that for 1.2m I would want third party verification (on my own) that the car was as represented for rarity.
Apples to oranges but if I sold my '67 2+2 I would definitely inform the new owner of the non original issues verbally and in writing as to preclude any misunderstanding.
Egg-zactly!
True, but keep in mind that Seinfeld can probably pull 1.2 million out of his sofa cushions...
Just keep Poppie away from that sofa!
~Alan Acta Non Verba NRA Life Member (Patron) God, Family, Guns, Country
Men will fight and die to protect women... because women protect everything else. ~Andrew Klavan
February 26, 2019, 06:46 PM
0-0
0-0
"OP is a troll" - Flashlightboy, 12/18/20
February 26, 2019, 07:07 PM
OKCGene
I’ve been watching “Lehtos Law” on YouTube as he’s been discussing this from a legal point.
Very interesting case.
The judge may get all 3 parties in court at the same time to get this figured out.
It will probably an easy and quick decision for the court.
February 26, 2019, 10:37 PM
rburg
I never watched Jerry Seinfield, it just didn't interest me. About 9 years ago I retired from my employer. We had a lying piece of shit that was the General Manager. Much like newscasters or local weather guessers he never told the truth. So just like used (or new) car dealers, You'd be best advised to not trust anything they say. My former employee could be assumed to be lying. I knew he was lying whenever he spoke. I wasn't smart enough to know what he was lying about, only that he was lying. He did have an advantage on me, because he knew what his lie was and I didn't.
If you deal with a salesman, listen carefully and don't rely on what they say to you. There's a good chance buried in their spiel there was an "untruth". For your own defense, just assume there is an untruth hidden somewhere in what they're telling you. Then don't act in a way that thier lie can hurt you.
I know its a terrible way to live your life, never trusting others. Experience has taught me that others will do it to gain some kind of advantage, or at least they feel they are.
Unhappy ammo seeker
February 26, 2019, 11:41 PM
smschulz
quote:
Originally posted by OKCGene: I’ve been watching “Lehtos Law” on YouTube as he’s been discussing this from a legal point.
Very interesting case.
The judge may get all 3 parties in court at the same time to get this figured out.
It will probably an easy and quick decision for the court.
Yeah, I saw that too.
February 27, 2019, 12:12 AM
zoom6zoom
quote:
came with a Certificate of Authenticity
I have a template for those in MS WOrd. Buy the car, not the story.
I have my own style of humor. I call it Snarkasm.
February 27, 2019, 06:24 AM
kz1000
European Collectibles:
------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Yidn, shreibt un fershreibt"
"The Nazis entered this war under the rather childish delusion that they were going to bomb everyone else, and nobody was going to bomb them. At Rotterdam, London, Warsaw and half a hundred other places, they put their rather naive theory into operation. They sowed the wind, and now they are going to reap the whirlwind." -Bomber Harris
February 27, 2019, 07:49 AM
Floyd D. Barber
quote:
Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
quote:
came with a Certificate of Authenticity
I have a template for those in MS WOrd. Buy the car, not the story.
__________________________________________________________________________________ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Always remember that others may hate you but those who hate you don't win unless you hate them. And then you destroy yourself. Richard M Nixon
It's nice to be important, it's more important to be nice. Billy Joe Shaver
NRA Life Member
February 27, 2019, 08:08 AM
Rick Lee
Jerry has his own agent who does his buying and selling for him. But, no matter how much money I had, when forking over seven figures for a vintage car, I'd be pulling the carpet up to check the grease pencil markings, poring over every casting and serial number on every component and verifying its build date. If Euro Collectibles pulled a fast one on Jerry, they're gonna have to pay up. But the car in question did slip past some other experts too. Pretty sure Porsche kept very meticulous records even back then, so they may have to get involved.
Following a multiyear restoration, the car was shown at several events garnering a First in Class at the 2012 Dana Point Concours d’Elegance hosted by the 356 Club of Southern California. It also earned a Best in Class finish at the Quail Motorsports Gathering later that year.
quote:
Seinfeld claimed to have his experts inspect the car and if it is fake, it looked real enough to fool not only them but many concours judges. The car also is claimed by Gooding & Co. to have come with a Porsche Certificate of Authenticity
quote:
Right now, the case hinges on differing expert opinions of the car’s authenticity and will rely on proof—possibly via an inspection by Porsche itself—to determine what the true story is.
I was surprised to learn we have so many forum members that know more about multi-million dollar collectible automobiles than those that buy and sell them all day long.
