$$Going once going twice$$

[pwd72s]

Originally posted by 87coupe
This was brought up earlier and I don't think it was confirmed, but here goes again:

In the pic above - as well as other pics, the VIN has what looks to be a half space on either side of the 3,
as in 911 3 100149 shown above. Can any of the RS owners who have posted here confirm that the half space is present on their VIN stamping next to the smugbox? The ebay car does not have the half space.

I see no reason why Porsche would stamp the RS plate any differently than the 911T number shown above. FWIW, my car has the same half spacing, but it's a "mere" 911S...

[randywebb]

Do NOT mention the other hidden places. Doesn't bother me - my car is a mosaic, but it could hurt all those with original cars. And, not all thieves are equally smart - your common thug is not nearly as brainy as Ken Lay, etc. - otherwise they would do white-collar crime -- it is easier and a lot more profitable.

Along this line, someone is apparently going to bring back the thin glass - I don't know about stampings but that might make RS frauds easier to do.

[lateapex911]

One thing i don't get, why would someone bid it up now, unless they wanted to jack up the price?
Whenever I want something on ebay, I decide what it's worth, what it's worth to me, then bid my price with 6 seconds to go or so.

But maybe I just don't know the game ...

(And I doubt I'd put a real RS or whatever on ebay without having a reserve that really IS my minimum if I were selling.)

[TRE Cup]

interesting comparison on e bay: check out the yellow RS advert , then go to the C4S lighweight advert. Note how the dealer is showing as much as possible (all the vin's , body stampings, engine stampings are shown- and giving as much information as possible on the car. Inviting inspection

if the bidders on the yellow RS are real, then the old adage of a "fool and his money are soon parted" is only too true

[jorian]

A fool and his money are soon partying.

[70SATMan]

[i] I'd be curious to see some VIN stampings from authenticated RSs. [/B]

?????? There are already pics of two in this thread.

[im4duke]

Did you all see this one?

http://www.paulrussell.com/cfs/D_73_p_911RS_01403/index.php

[fryardds]

Originally posted by jkarolyi
I'll bet the kneebar VIN under the radio would reveal the true car. Most VIN hackers don't know about that one.

Yes I believe it would but the good Dr. Anton will not produce the # or send it for verification.

Again I have verified the dash board production # of the RS out of Japan, that was on eBay last year, two different times with Dr. Kondradsheim. Once during the original auction and again last week. He looked at the photos of the stamped #s and agreed they were original (but commented that he has never seen either car in person).

For the Japan, now Austria, RS to be a fake the # would have to be known and stamped exactly like the factory. We have the seen the AL plate from that car and it looks spot on. I am still convinced the yellow car on eBay is a fake.

[TomTurtle]

Just discovered this very interesting thread! All the sleuth work and conjecture is very interesting to say the least and I am definitely hooked!! But one thing does bother me, I'm wondering why the owner of a genuine RS would resort to selling the car on eBay as opposed to selling it to the avid group of collectors and true cognicenti who could easily determine its authenticity upon a thorough inspection of the car and its paperwork. How many genuine 73RS's have been sold on eBay? I for one don't recall ever seeing one sold there. I do know a guy in the SF Bay Area who has bought and sold many (I assume genuine) RS's but I have never seen or heard of any advertised for sale since, as the average P-car owner, I don't move in those circles. Does the seller here think he could get more on eBay for the genuine article or perhaps if its not genuine the seller thought it would be easier to sell it on eBay to someone with $$ trying to get a "bargain" RS? Just my $0.10 (inflation).

[nesslar]

Right on. The stamping is a joke, the guy is beyond questionable in his actions, and he has friends perhaps who are looking to share in the spoils. I doubt he'll see any cash unless someone shows after the auction and gives him an attache' full of gold sovereigns. Hope not...
How in any world could this "western hemisphere" #406 be looked upon as legit at this point?

[lateapex911]

Well, I sure wouldn't bid the required amount without being absolutely SURE I knew it was the real McCoy, but then, I am not about to sell a house to raise the cash either, so I probably don't know how someone who DOES have that kind of cash thinks!

If you didn't know of the "other 406, and there are some who think this is a great fake, you might just think $180, 000 is a steal??

[dentist90]

I agree...this is the sort of car that should be at Barrett Jackson, not e-Bay. IF this is the genuine article the seller is cutting his own thoat thru his evasiveness. No collector in their right mind would fork out $180K without verifying it's heritage. Even a great forgery is just that... a forgery. The value evaporates once the truth come out.

[nesslar]

Sadly, nope.
Too many ifs that look more like uhuhs. I have no desire for one of those, anyway, just wish to keep "drivin' the snot" out of my Carrera and fixin' it if I have to. In the interim, I have the pleasure of following all of your folks' advice through this, the best forum this side of Duetschland!

KUDOS!

[kenikh]

Barrett-Jackson is insane; have you seen the fees?

[pwd72s]

IMHO, Barrett Jackson is more about being seen on prime time TV than the cars themselves. A pack of rabid tall dawgs, each trying to pee higher up the lamp post than the other. All in all, a pretty disgusting display. So, if the owner of the "other" #406 has been contacted, I'd sure like to read his comments, see some pics of his car....

[Wil Ferch]

This is both an interesting and (obviously) disturbing thread.....it's always nice to ferret out fakes.... whether intentional or not.

Noticed that the Gunnar Racing site has done two 72-73 RS's..the site doesn't allow copying the sub-chapters...you have to go the main site and look for "projects" and also for "completed projects"---> http://gunnarracing.com/, and start searching for RS titles....

Coupla things:
- notice the liberal use of replacement ( lime green primer ... galvanized?) body panels like rockers and fenders...how can you "verify" via metal thickness ??...

- VIN plate...notice that the notorioisly "correct" guys at Gunnar Racing kept the VIN plate white, like the rest of the trunk and car...and didn't do the plate matte black.

- The VIN close-up of the August '72 production RS touring M472 shows the half-space ahead of...and behind..the *3* in the VIN number sequence....

I hope we help noodle this one to the ground.....

- Wil

[911K]

What a surprise! It ended at $150k not meeting reserve.

[lateapex911]

I'm surprised it got that far. Something smeeled very funny on this one. Did anyone check out the bidders history?? One guy had zero buys/sells! Most of the others had no buys for more than $100.00.

What the heck are they doing bidding !?!?!

Shills?

The whole thing was suspect.

[randywebb]

Now that it's over...

I contacted the eBay Fraud Section several days ago and gave them this and the other two URLs on the car. It appears they either move very slowly or won't do anything without absolute beyond a criminal reasonable doubt proof...

I'm glad no one bought the car and got taken.

But we should all keep our eyes open for I am sure this car will surface again -- maybe the things pointed out in this thread will be modified...
As Porsche Henry said, Eternal Vigilence is the Price of not getting srewed on a Pcar deal.

[trader220]

What do you expect eBay to do? Do you really think they have any clue as the to the credibility of this car?