When the Ebay buyer aced me out of that '64 F250 the other day by hitting the 'buy it now' button, I have had to re-assess how I am going to pull off getting into my classic Ford truck. That truck was only 80 miles away- the trucks I am looking at now are 250- 400 miles of burning deserts.
The mere existence of Ebay motors proves there is a thriving market for long distance transactions and customers buying sight unseen aside from photos, goodwill, and faith.
My recent inquiries to sellers makes me realize I may need to be able to make a purchase long distance and will be traversing the deserts and heat of the PNW. Also, I am inexperienced- as probably the seller is also- for doing a long distance transaction. It would be nice to know how this is supposed to go down.
There seems to be 3 issues:
1) buying sight unseen
2) The long-distant transaction
3) The logistics of bringing a vehicle home.
As far as buying sight un-seen, I've done leaps of faith based on incomplete knowledge with varying degrees of success, so that hurdle is what it is- either I end up the fool, I get lucky, or I accept that I am getting into potential unseen costs and difficulties.
I think I can manage the logistics, as there are different options to pull this off.
It is the transaction part that I need guidance with if I am going to go down this road. Your experience, and insight is greatly appreciated.

 

There are members all over the country, some of who would be willing to check out a vehicle for another member, taking more extensive photos, etc. The best scenario, is if you can buy an already decent shape truck that’s in use: then, just fly-n-drive. I have done this. An amenable owner may even be willing to have any additional work performed on your behalf before you collect your vehicle.

I have found the overwhelming majority of eBay sellers to be above board and honest, I only deal with sellers that have nearly perfect reputations, though. I also find stuff using a nationwide Craigslist search engine.. Then, you just have to have a couple phone convos to establish trust between each other. A nice truck will come your way, if you’re persistent but patient, have cash in hand, and strike while the iron’s hot.

Make a deposit using Paypal, or Venmo, bring the balance.

 

I have bought three trucks from 3 to 8 hours away. They were all as good if not better than advertised. It is a little nerve racking waiting to get your hands on them.
As already mentioned, deposit with paypal and bring the balance.

 

Living down here in new Zealand means i have to buy everything for my truck on trust.members of this forum are the best people I've ever dealt with, very helpful and honest has been my experience. I wish I had known about it before I bought my f250 then I may not have had to get so many parts for it.

 

I contacted one of those transport companies for a price and probably had 7 other companies send me bids. They networked somehow and filled my email. In the end I never used the service, so I have no actual experience with them.

steve

 

Shipping can be an expensive problem. I sold a T-Bird through Hemmings and shipped it across Canada by rail. It was much cheaper than truck freight. However, the train stops only at main population centres, and the RR people will expect the vehicle to start and drive. The buyer didn't see the car until it arrived in Toronto.

I bought my F100 over the phone. I found a local car guy on CL who was preparing to deliver a car to Las Vegas. He agreed to pick up my truck in LA and haul it to Blaine, Wa for the cost of fuel, plus a few hundred.

Like Jimmy said, the most important issue is trust.

Eric.

As I write this we are awaiting delivery of a '47 Packard from about 500 km away on an open trailer for CAN$550 (300 miles US$450). We got this excellent deal - less than half of a normal commercial rate - because the hauler was coming home empty. In this case we drove to see the car before buying it. It's going to be an adventure to get it into a small garage with no brakes.

Eric.

 

When I was looking at an f250 in chelan WA, I got some bids which ranged from $695 to $1100. The one I've settled on is even further away, so I decide I will fly down and drive it home. I'll prolly save $800 on that alone. I'm still getting quotes on the chelan one.

 

The most important thing in making a long distance purchase is communication. I have bought 4 old trucks that I drove back home; my '66 f100 from San Jose California with a detour down to Yuma Arizona, a '76 F250 Camper Special from Waco Texas with a 460 and no working gauges, a '66 F250 where I met the seller in the middle (he drove from Montana to Michigan, I drove from Maryland to Michigan). It too didn't have a working gas gauge and it had 4.10 gears. Last was a '76 F150 with a 4 barrel 390 I drove home from Michigan.

I went to Utah to pull parts off of a '66 F250 Camper Special Custom Cab and left the carcass behind. That is the one with the most regrets because I wasn't able to take nearly as many parts as i wanted before I had to head back home. From that experience I had a non-running '66 F100 Ranger transported from Illinois primarily for a parts truck,

Most people are honest, again communication is key. Ask lots of questions. The guy I bought my '76 F250 from in Waco Texas told me he would not recommend trying to drive it back home to Maryland, but I did it anyway. One of the best adventures of my life, even though I ended up having to rent a truck and tow dolly for the last leg of the journey through Virginia. If you have to use a transport, find out if they can deliver with a small truck to your door, or be prepared to meet somewhere to pick it up.