My girlfriend has been looking for a Miata for about a month now. She found exactly what she wants in Austin, TX. We are in Chicago so I Abby go look at it. What is the process of trying to make this happen? If anyone is in the area and could check it out for me her I would be willing to pay for your time($75). Suggestions advice are welcome.


https://austin.craigslist.org/...-low/6576707487.html

Ed

I’ve bought long distance, new and used.

For used, I find a reputable shop through forums and pay to have the car taken there for a full pre-purchase inspection. It’s normally $100-$200, but well worth the hassle!

Can't help directly, as I'm about 3-4 hours from it, but it looks like a solid NB to me.
If I were Austin local, I'd gladly check it out for you. Lots of good roads around there to make sure it's all in order.

Yeah, watch out for flood cars that came out of Houston.

I think we have enough Austin members here to help you out. I'd offer $50-100 in gift cards or something. However, that's a clean Miata and likely won't last.

Not sure how you could make a decision based on those pictures, I think it needs more exterior pictures!

I'm in the market for a used Tahoe/Yukon. Last night I went to look at a Yukon in Colorado Springs, about an hour and half away from me. Once I looked at it in person I decided to pass. Sellers can be real creative on what they don't show or tell in their ads/pictures. It had dings/paint chipped all over. The aluminum wheels were corroding, probably from not washing it over it's life. Headlights had some funky corrosion issues as well. My point is I would never, ever buy a car sight unseen.

I had looked at several on ebay to get an idea on prices outside of the Denver area, but after what I saw last night, I'll stick to local.

Sounds like a good reason to fly down with the GF on Southwest for a weekend getaway, sure it costs more than paying a few bucks but then again, you get out of Chicago for a few days

Test drive and look it over, buy it and drive it home if you like it, if not, have a great couples weekend in Austin, eat some BBQ, enjoy the city....

That’s what weee thinking but this is my busy time of year.

Valpo, I've looked a few old cars for my online Chevy friends. In one case, the seller was selling a convertible but the majority of the body was a 2-door hardtop Biscanye vs Impala. Kind of Frankenstein.

If you can't find someone local, you may be able to hire a service for this type of inspection. Perhaps AAA Club has a service.

On the surface the add is a bit funky to me.
Have you talked to the owner? Spidy sense?
I cannot help as I am not near there.

I have a rig located but is a couple thousand miles away. Trying to figure out if I can afford to move it?

Edit: I would say scam on second look.

I talked to the owner seemed legit, moving up to a 911. I would feel better if I could get eyes on prior to sending the money.

has it been in any hurricanes?

Car fax is clean.

Moving up to a porsche. Another red flag VF. I would not send a dime.

I would never buy a car sight unseen or motorcycle online, negotiate, come up with a price, send no money and go to see the car, if you want to find out if it's a scam or not tell them you'll be in Austin in the next few days and want to test drive it and check it out.

Even if you agree, don't hand over money until you see the car, title, make sure there are no liens and perhaps take it to a shop to verify.

I would look on a Miata forum for someone in the area, see if they know the seller/car or can recommend a shop to inspect it.

All that can weed out problems.

The Carfax doesn’t necessarily tell you everything that ever happened to a car. Mostly just what a dealership did to it, and where/how many times it was registered. I’ve looked at numerous used cars that obviously had body work done that didn’t show up on Carfax.

I wouldn't buy a used car I couldn't look at first. Unless, I had someone I trusted that could look at it for me and take a bunch of photo's. But barring that, I wouldn't take the risk.

Thanks guys for the thoughts. She found the almost exact same one 3 hours away.