Buying a Charger

[hollywood1336]

This is more a worning than anything else guys. Make sure when dealing with anyone over the phone or internet you do what ever it takes to check out the car they are selling. I purchased a 1968 Charger from Texas Toy Box and when it was delivered to me in California it was obvious that they completely misrepresented the car. I was told the car was rust free (no cancerous rust) and accident damage free. When I get the car out here there is cancerous rust the the usual places or evidence that rust has been bondoed over and the front right corner of the car has been hit. They also said it drove straight but when I got it and drove it it takes all my effort to keep the car straight when I apply the brakes. I even had a comment from someone else who said they had heard of issues with these guys. Be careful out there, it's a dishonest world. (P.S. I have all the email traffic and the fake appraisal which was sent to me to back up my discussion above).

[Back N Black]

Man, sorry to hear that you got ripped. I have not heard good things about Texas Toy Box.

[Khyron]

sorry to hear about your misfortunes..... but...

that your rod? pics?

That looks beautiful!

[Troy]

That sucks. You should have done an internet search for them before spending any time or money.

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,60487.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,43242.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,4095.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,46064.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,26761.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,55214.0.html

http://www.dodgetalk.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-61485.html
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/archive/index.php/t-51655.html

Troy

[chargd72]

Should have searched on here to see if someone would have checked it out for you.  I live in Austin and would have helped you out.  Bummer deal though.

Just checked their 'sold' page.  Is it the 440?

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

I wondered about those folks, too... Thanks for the links 

[PocketThunder]

Should have searched on here to see if someone would have checked it out for you.  I live in Austin and would have helped you out.  Bummer deal though.

Just checked their 'sold' page.  Is it the 440?

Those lower quarter panel corners are the dead giveaway. 

[tan top]

i keep looking at that Red 69 charger R/T four speed they have , says matching numbers  , had it for a few years 

[PatrickPeeters]

Sorry to hear that......

I bought a Charger 1969, the previous owner bought it from TTB. He has owned the Charger for 1,5 years and then I bought from him.
I don't wanna say he got ripped off, but I surely think that.
He tought that he bought a fully restored car........
Basicly they sell Chargers for top dollar which at first glance look pretty good and seems nothing wrong with them.
All they did is cover up "Bad things" and they did that pourly.

You can expect that a 40 year old car has it's skeletons in the closet, fair enough.
I didn't expect to buy a top dollar car from the previous owner and he was pretty honoust about it.
I know what he payed and know what I payed for it, He lost a lot of money and must be somewhat sick of it.

I'm trying to fix the car the right way, there's a lot to be done to it, but first wonna drive it for a while and fix my other project.
And the car isn't that bad, in comparison to what I've payed. but hate to see somebody getting a bad deal and paying way to much for a fixer upper.

You should be aware and double double check and keep asking questions, before you make a sealed deal with TTB

   
 

[999specialorder]

I heard somewhere that Texas Toy Box does not let or strongly discourages people from looking at their cars before purchase. Can one of you guys that bought from them confirm this or someone that lives close by!!!!!

[moparstuart]

I heard somewhere that Texas Toy Box does not let or strongly discourages people from looking at their cars before purchase. Can one of you guys that bought from them confirm this or someone that lives close by!!!!!

I also heard that and that they really liked shipping cars out of the country .

[chargergirl]

Heard the same here...they don't want you to come and look.

[jb666]

I heard somewhere that Texas Toy Box does not let or strongly discourages people from looking at their cars before purchase. Can one of you guys that bought from them confirm this or someone that lives close by!!!!!

Funny you'd say that, but the thing that made me "check them out" was when I wanted a buddy of mine, in Texas, to go check out the car they had for sale. They said "Sorry, only the person interested can come out, and it's appointment only". Really? Ok thanks....

[PatrickPeeters]

Agree!!!!! They don't want you to see the car.
My car isn't that bad, but very pourly repaired and covered up.
The asking price and or sale price is everytime way way to high.
For sure I won't pay them what their asking, if they deicide not to lower the price, you probably be better off buying another find!

Take look at First two pics these pics where made by TTB.
Last is my pic after stripping of all bondo and "tin can" metal (really crappy) stuff (both sides the same, and i've allready replaced the front floors)
The guys at TTB bolted metric bolts on Inches studs , so had to replace all studs...........
They pulled out all the stuff needed for the E-brake....guess they didn't knew how to fix the parking brake.

Haven't got the time right now to fix it the right way, now I'm going to repair the inner metal the right way and the quarter will wil be replaced next year...

Can't mention it enough, be aware. guessing they have cars which the price might be correct. If you find it out after you bought would be not be a blast.

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

Agree!!!!! They don't want you to see the car.
My car isn't that bad, but very pourly repaired and covered up.
The asking price and or sale price is everytime way way to high.
For sure I won't pay them what their asking, if they deicide not to lower the price, you probably be better off buying another find!

Take look at First two pics these pics where made by TTB.
Last is my pic after stripping of all bondo and "tin can" metal (really crappy) stuff (both sides the same, and i've allready replaced the front floors)
The guys at TTB bolted metric bolts on Inches studs , so had to replace all studs...........
They pulled out all the stuff needed for the E-brake....guess they didn't knew how to fix the parking brake.

Haven't got the time right now to fix it the right way, now I'm going to repair the inner metal the right way and the quarter will wil be replaced next year...

Can't mention it enough, be aware. guessing they have cars which the price might be correct. If you find it out after you bought would be not be a blast.

Wow!!!!

Well, fresh paint ALWAYS makes me nervous - no matter what the seller says...

[Richard Cranium]

How anyone can buy a car sight unseen is beyond me.

[SRT-440]

Yea it happens to the best of us...my 70 RR (clone) was misrepresented also. Said it was rust free, new paint, new interior...and reality it was all done very cheaply and needs body work and a better paint job. Also, dude bragged about how "strong" the 383 is and how he knew it ran 12's (or whatever)...wouldn't even shift out of 2nd gear and mechanically has had to have everything replaced...even the windows are being replaced cuz some bone-head used a welder inside for something and pieces of the metal got all over the glass and melted little black spots all over the windows. Lesson learned...NEVER trust anyone when it comes to the condition of a car...

[Iron Chef]

How anyone can buy a car sight unseen is beyond me.

Well, I purchased my car from a gentleman in PA.  He supplied several photographs and was willing to send more if needed.  He also had video of the car running and close-up photos of the rust spots that were present.  He and I spoke on the phone several times and I felt very comfortable and when I received the car it was just as advertised.  Were there some issues?  Yes, but I made that assumption based on age of the vehicle and so forth and it was my plan to rework parts of the vehicle anyway.

My point is that it is indeed possible to have a successful transaction on the internet (or as you put it "sight unseen") but it's very much "caveat emptor" or buyer beware.  Do your homework, get documentation, ask questions. 

[Brock Samson]

 

How anyone can buy a car sight unseen is beyond me.

Well, I purchased my car from a gentleman in PA.  He supplied several photographs and was willing to send more if needed.  He also had video of the car running and close-up photos of the rust spots that were present.  He and I spoke on the phone several times and I felt very comfortable and when I received the car it was just as advertised.  Were there some issues?  Yes, but I made that assumption based on age of the vehicle and so forth and it was my plan to rework parts of the vehicle anyway.

My point is that it is indeed possible to have a successful transaction on the internet (or as you put it "sight unseen") but it's very much "caveat emptor" or buyer beware.  Do your homework, get documentation, ask questions. 

                 Yeah, but far more the exception then the rule. 

[hollywood1336]

I talked with the owner of TTB, he's the one who answers the phone. He told me his son and partner is a mechanic and completely inspects the cars and refuses the ones that don't meet their standards. I bought the 68 yellow 318 from them. I told him I had a friend in Austin that would come up and look for me but he discouraged it by saying just call me and I will tell you anything you want to know. He came off as really straight forward and honest. I asked them would they reimburse me for the panels that weren't in the condition they said they were in but that was a no go. I think I mantioned this as well, I asked for an appraisal of the car and they printed one off the internet, filled it out and forged some guys signiture on it and sent it to me. Then I was supposed to submit this false and forged document to a financial institution. The car is repairable but I would not have payed what I payed had everything been disclosed.
If you are currently dealing with them on the purchase of a car my advise is to Run Silent and Run Deep, because you will not be getting the car they are saying it is and you will over pay. The best way to put these guys out of business is to get the word around so no one buys from them, even the over seas guys who hopefully read thie forum. Bottom line here is that it is my fault for trusting the guy.
My thinking is the only type of car they would refuse to take on and sell would be one that was pulled from the bottom of the ocean having sat there for 40 years.

[chargd72]

Just did a google map street view on these guys.  Looks like they run this business from their home.  Probably why they don't want you to come see for yourself.  Also, it looks that they keep all the cars UNCOVERED in their back yard.   

[LoneStar Mopar]

Thanks for the heads up. I live in Texas and will be looking for a Charger as soon as I get enough money saved. There is a chance I could have run into these guys. Now I know to stay away. Sorry to hear they pulled one over on you though.

[hollywood1336]

I completely agree with the sight unseen comment (so does my wife) but I also agree thet you can still find honesty out there, just not at TTB. The pictures they send you are so low resolution that when you enlarge them they are blurry. I really believed the owner though, I called a dozen times and must have 2 dozen emails I wrote to him, and all replies were positive, and he came off really honest. Lessons learned, and my wife took the fish hook out of my mouth. But as I said we can stop any furthers misrepresented sales by spreading the word and putting them out of business.

[PatrickPeeters]

I talked with the owner of TTB, he's the one who answers the phone. He told me his son and partner is a mechanic and completely inspects the cars and refuses the ones that don't meet their standards. I bought the 68 yellow 318 from them. I told him I had a friend in Austin that would come up and look for me but he discouraged it by saying just call me and I will tell you anything you want to know. He came off as really straight forward and honest. I asked them would they reimburse me for the panels that weren't in the condition they said they were in but that was a no go. I think I mantioned this as well, I asked for an appraisal of the car and they printed one off the internet, filled it out and forged some guys signiture on it and sent it to me. Then I was supposed to submit this false and forged document to a financial institution. The car is repairable but I would not have payed what I payed had everything been disclosed.
If you are currently dealing with them on the purchase of a car my advise is to Run Silent and Run Deep, because you will not be getting the car they are saying it is and you will over pay. The best way to put these guys out of business is to get the word around so no one buys from them, even the over seas guys who hopefully read thie forum. Bottom line here is that it is my fault for trusting the guy.
My thinking is the only type of car they would refuse to take on and sell would be one that was pulled from the bottom of the ocean having sat there for 40 years.

Basicly you pay to much for a lesser car.
The fact that you can't make a good opinion on the car is the problem, because you simply don't know what the price should be.
Spread the word, agree!!!!
I made a good deal so I can't complain but I feel bad for the previous owner, the only thing he wanted was to drive a beautifull classic. Who doesn't want that.