I messed up somebody's auction!

[rrockchrger]

Hello all. I've been looking for a '70 charger for awhile now. I scan ebay every night and bid every so often.  Well the other night I saw this car on ebay and made three bids; first for $15,000, the second for $16,00 and the third for $165,000!!! .  Yup. I only meant to bid $16,500 but it was very late and I was tired and didn't catch my mistake until it was too late.  I immediately sent emails to the seller and tried to get him to cancel my bid but his auction ended that morning and I "won" the car for the reserve price of $29,900.  There's no way I could pay that much especially for a base model car.  I explained to the seller what happened and he's been pretty cool about it so far but he did ask me to pay $40 for ruining the auction.  I feel really bad about messing this up but I was wondering if that's what ebay charges sellers to list their cars even if the transaction doesn't happen?  If it cost him $40 then I will pay for it but if it didn't cost anything, i'm not sure I would owe anything but an apology? 

What do ya'll think?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270403726517&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT

[Hemidoug]

Just retract your bid.....

[69*F5*SE]

That's a very nice "base model" Charger and some people might be willing to spend good money on a nice one these days. Maybe the time has come where very nice "base model" Chargers are picking up in value.  Look at this "base model" Charger and tell us if you think the cost is too much: 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Dodge-Charger-1969-dodge-charger-survivor_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ65Q3a12Q7c66Q3a4Q7c39Q3a1Q7c72Q3a317Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a1Q7c293Q3a1Q7c294Q3a200QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem4ce9a35f38QQitemZ330337312568QQptZUSQ5fCarsQ5fTrucks

It costs money and time to sell on Ebay.  Maybe you made a $40.00 mistake bidding on a very nice "base model" Charger.  I don't think you'll find a car that nice for $16,500 so why even bid.  Save your money for a car that nice.

[Belgium R/T -68]

30000 for a nice "base" Charger could be a better deal then a rutten R/T for 20K and putting 40K in a resto if you just want to have a Charger
to enjoy. That's my experience after what I've been thru.

Per

[FLG]

It does cost money to list cars. I dont know the exact price im sure someone will fill in but 40$ dosnt sound that far off.

Its a nice car though!

[b5blue]

Just pay the guy  you know you screwed up, he could be suing you right now. Think how pissed you would be!

[451-74Charger]

How the heck did it jump from 17k to 29k in 1 bid?
I smell something fishy, and think there may have been others shill bidding this up

what do you think?

y***b( 35)     US $29,900.00 Jun-15-09 02:13:21 PDT 



h***n( 23)     US $17,000.00 Jun-11-09 12:49:06 PDT 



h***n( 23)     US $16,000.00 Jun-09-09 02:59:47 PDT 



y***b( 35)     US $16,000.00 Jun-15-09 02:13:02 PDT 



y***b( 35)     US $15,000.00 Jun-15-09 02:12:47 PDT 



o***a( 54)     US $12,500.00 Jun-12-09 07:24:40 PDT 



n***r( 61)     US $12,200.00 Jun-10-09 10:48:22 PDT 



n***r( 61)     US $12,000.00 Jun-08-09 13:27:06 PDT 


Starting Price US $11,000.00 Jun-05-09 18:12:45 PDT

[Belgium R/T -68]

Because the reserve was set to 29K and after bidding 165K the owner agreed to let it go for the reserve.

[FLG]

Read his post. He bid 165k instead of 16,000...because of the reserve he won 29,900.


NVM Belgium beat me.

[Landonsrt]

I just sold my SRT4 on ebay three weeks ago. It cost me $29.95 to list the car.  Thats the cost of setting up the page, adding pics, discription.  If the car would have sold through ebay, they ask a certain percentage for whatever the cars final selling price is. The bids never got to my reserve so I sold it to one of the high bidders outside ebay so i wouldnt have to give ebay a commision for selling the car. His $40.00 is just a listing fee. Not the final price they would charge him if you bought the car from him for almost $30K!

[PocketThunder]

Why would you be buying a car off ebay sight unseen?  If you're gonna shell out $16,500 for a Charger at least drop $300 on a plane ticket to go inspect it yourself.  Or at least come on here and look for someone that lives nearby to go look at it for you.   

[451-74Charger]

Because the reserve was set to 29K and after bidding 165K the owner agreed to let it go for the reserve.

Me bad, i skipped that part
Whats the worst that can happen, he relists, or offers a 2nd chance to the 2nd place person.
If he files a non paying bidder, you get the neg feedback.

[lisiecki1]

depending on how the car was listed it could've been well over $40 for a listing......if he'll call it good over $40 i say take your lumps and send him some cash....make sure that ebay knows the entire situation so he doesn't try to bone you with "he sent me $40 to hold the car" or something like that.....document everything!

[Charger_Fan]

Just retract your bid.....

But you have to do it before the auction ends.

[1970Moparmann]

I would suggest you and the seller call Ebay together and let them know what happened.  The customer service agent will see what you did, and relist the car at n/c to the seller.

Good luck!

[ACUDANUT]

I would suggest you and the seller call Ebay together and let them know what happened.  The customer service agent will see what you did, and relist the car at n/c to the seller.

Good luck!

Yea, they have wonderful customer service.   NOT
You won't get anyone the help you at e-bay.

[ACUDANUT]

 What's with all these green Chargers.  haha

[1970Moparmann]

I would suggest you and the seller call Ebay together and let them know what happened.  The customer service agent will see what you did, and relist the car at n/c to the seller.

Good luck!

Yea, they have wonderful customer service.   NOT
You won't get anyone the help you at e-bay.

I've used the online help (like IM) and works great.  Never had a problem with this....

[bull]

Well, $40 is a lot less than $29,900. Still, it depends on the seller but I've heard of many instances where the sale is not final until the buyer actually sees the car in person. A friend of mine sold his Cuda on Ebay and when the winning bidder showed up he didn't like what he saw so my friend just contacted the next guy in line and sold it for what that guy bid.

Which is exactly what this seller could/should do. Obviously the bidder in line behind you bid somewhere around $29k but your $165k bid automatically upped the top bid beyond what he was willing to pay. All the seller has to do is call that guy and give him a second chance offer, unless he's thinking that by charging you for the auction he can relist it and get more money. That said I don't think I'd pay the guy $40 myself. If I were him I'd be pretty happy with $29k for that car considering the interior issues. The paint/body looks good but you're looking at another $1k-$2k to restore that interior IMO.

[1969chargerrtse]

What's with all these green Chargers.  haha

I think it was the most common color?  I remember 4 green 69 Chargers in my town back in the day and we had a green big old Olds.  That short for Oldsmobile, a car company from many years ago.

I don't care for green.
I paid 40.00 to list cars I've sold on ebay and do think you should pay him back.

[chargerrt]

That's the original color for my car.  I like blue.

[69charger2002]

send him the $40 and be done with it. your mistake, and btw it does cost to list, maybe $20-30 depending on how he set it up. but i've had people offer me $100 to back out on a car they won. it's the right thing to do(giving him at least $40 for his troubles).. he now has to relist(easy enough), wait at LEAST another week to sell his car(that sucks), and now worst of all he has to field potential questions from bidders asking what happened the first time around, and why the car isn't sold, which has a negative impact on the seller... i.e. people now think something may be wrong with the car since he had to relist, or that he had it shill bid to begin with etc. nothing good comes of it from the seller, but yet you will get off scott free. so yeah send him a few bucks for his troubles
trav

[1970Moparmann]

Why would you be buying a car off ebay sight unseen?  If you're gonna shell out $16,500 for a Charger at least drop $300 on a plane ticket to go inspect it yourself.  Or at least come on here and look for someone that lives nearby to go look at it for you.   

Did it once, and it cost me!  I did get out of it though... I AGREE!!   Never again.

[Daytona R/T SE]

From the ebay ad:

"This is a resently completed frame on  restoration of a very correct car. We believe it to be numbers matching but don't gaurantee it therr  is just too much liability  but you are welcome to inspect the car and match numbers yourself. There is no rust or rust repair that I can see and all glass and bright work is in good to great condition."


My thoughts:

The trunk floor has been replaced with a two-piece reproduction one. (weld seam right down the middle)

The only reason to replace a trunk floor is rust.

The ad says there has been no rust repair.

I would suspect there has been a lot of it done.

Ask him what else on the car has been missrepresented? 

I wouldn't send him a dime.

[jaak]

Last car I sold on ebay cost me 95 bucks...45 to list, then 50 for a final fee after it sold. Ebay will probably charge him the final fee, because it looks like you bought it. Unless he explains it to eBay (assuming they believe him) you might owe him a little more, which would be the right thing to do, and you guys can at least leave each other positive feedback.

Jason

[rrockchrger]

Ok, I've asked him to send me a paypal invoice for $40 to pay for the listing.  It sounds like i''ve cost them that much.     

The seller is a car dealership and not a person it appears.  It's still a very nice car but they are definately leaving out some facts about this car.  I too noticed the new truck pans and wheel wells.  There is also alot of painted over rust on the undercarraige.  No telling what else.  I live in Texas and the car is just a few hours away from me so I had planned to drive up and have a look before I paid for it. The sellers said to me in his last email, "Good luck finding a charger this nice and original for $17,000".  I'm sure he's right.    

Anyway, I'll just keep looking and be more careful with my typos in the future.   

[bearbqd]

, "Good luck finding a charger this nice and original for $17,000".  I'm sure he's right.    

   

I dunno, my Charger isn't quite as nice as that one appears, but I got a decent looking, running, driving '68 only ten months ago for $12,500 through Craigslist. That's what I drive almost every day.

[1970Moparmann]

From the ebay ad:

"This is a resently completed frame on  restoration of a very correct car. We believe it to be numbers matching but don't gaurantee it therr  is just too much liability  but you are welcome to inspect the car and match numbers yourself. There is no rust or rust repair that I can see and all glass and bright work is in good to great condition."


My thoughts:

The trunk floor has been replaced with a two-piece reproduction one. (weld seam right down the middle)

The only reason to replace a trunk floor is rust.

The ad says there has been no rust repair.

I would suspect there has been a lot of it done.

Ask him what else on the car has been missrepresented? 

I wouldn't send him a dime.

Good point.  I would say screw you also.  For someone to make the statements that they did and it clearly isn't the truth, screw them!  I can't stand people that do this!!!

[RAC95054]

That car has a lot of problems that can be spotted if you look carefully, and isn't worth anywhere near $30K.  I'd say $40 is a reasonable request for you to reimburse him for your screw up.  You should have immediately noticed you met the reserve after you bid, unless you were using some snipe program.  In any event, I'd say walk away from it.  At $16.5K, it's not a bad price, but not $29.9K.  Just my 

[451-74Charger]

Did you look at the ad on their website? it still shows as "For Sale" for Price; $29,900.00
http://www.vaitx.com/10201-10250/10242/index.html
anyone tell me what a Fram Restoration is?
I have seen 5 year olds write better sales info (better spelling too)

[451-74Charger]

So did we get any closure to this?

[C_stripes]

I have posted several cars on Ebay and it costs anywhere from $40 to over $100 depending on what you do.

[69*F5*SE]

It's all in the title "I messed up somebody's auction!" enough said.   

[aussiemuscle]

Just retract your bid.....

If anyone else does this, retract it immediately. it's all automated, so you don't have to wait for the seller to approve it. i've done it once this year (mistyped a auction price) and with the bid retracted, the auction continues uninterrupted.

[ACUDANUT]

 We all make mistakes.  I don't know if this is a new policy or not, but it says confirm bid twice.

[rrockchrger]

Well the seller ended up letting me off the hook even though I offered to pay him for the trouble.  He did offer to sell me the car for $250,000!... and then he said that was a typo, he meant $25,000, so at least he has a sense of humor.