Is this the rare case of buying without a PPI?

[Nathans_Dad]

I have a line on a guy selling a 1988 Targa, looks to be all original. Over the phone he says it runs and drives well. He said he had a guy coming over to look at it but that guy never showed. I called him this afternoon and he said I can come look at it tomorrow morning.

Obviously the usual case would be to get a PPI on the car before making an offer. Here's the catch, he's only asking $20k. I'm a little concerned someone is going to just come snatch it up. Even if there are a few issues there is plenty of room at that price to make some repairs.

What do you guys think?

[matt930s]

Snatch it up.

MattR

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

+1 buy buy buy

[amg463]

link please?

[JMS935]

Originally Posted by Nathans_Dad

I have a line on a guy selling a 1988 Targa with 125k miles on it, looks to be all original. Front seats need recovering but otherwise the pics look ok. Over the phone he says it runs and drives well. He listed it last night and I called this morning. He said he had a guy coming over to look at it but that guy never showed. I called him this afternoon and he said I can come look at it tomorrow morning.

Obviously the usual case would be to get a PPI on the car before making an offer. Here's the catch, he's only asking $20k. I'm a little concerned someone is going to just come snatch it up at that price. Even if there are a few issues there is plenty of room at that price to make some repairs.

What do you guys think?

You can easily do both. So why wouldn’t you?

Write up a sales agreement with a down payment that is acceptable to both sides, and then both of you sign it. In the contract make sure that it states closing is dependent upon the results of a third party PPI paid for at the expense of the buyer. Make sure you notate on the agreement that the deposit is refunded to buyer if buyer walks away from the deal due to the PPI report.

That locks it up for you once he signs it and you pay him the deposit. It also allows you to take a deep breath and get it checked out without feeling flustered that others will grab it out from under you while you’re trying to do your due diligence. Do your due diligence! It’s stupid not to.

[specialtyoneinc]

A $20k 88 Targa will be gone in minutes if it's legit. Something sound fishy or the seller has no clue about the current market.

[Matt Monson]

That car won’t be there in the morning. Go tonight.

As for that contract with the ppi built in? I’d laugh you off my property. It’s not some six figure collectible. As-is. If you can get a ppi done before someone else buys my car more power to you but i’m not doing any contingent sale on anything v

[JMS935]

^^^It’s a bill of sale with nothing more than a line added to it. You’ll still need a bill of sale anyways to close the deal. I could care less what the OP does, it doesn’t matter to me at all, but he asked and I opined on how it gets done properly. IF the seller wouldn’t allow the PPI, then RED flags should be going up anyways, alerting to you that something is off.

[Nathans_Dad]

Originally Posted by specialtyoneinc

A $20k 88 Targa will be gone in minutes if it's legit. Something sound fishy or the seller has no clue about the current market.

Exactly. Either the seller has no clue what the value of the car is or there is something very wrong with it. From talking with him on the phone I don't detect anything now but I will have to look over it very carefully.

[sugarwood]

I predict OP does not buy the car.
He's already looking to be talked out of it.
A serious buyer would have been there tonight.

[Nathans_Dad]

Originally Posted by sugarwood

I predict OP does not buy the car.
He's already looking to be talked out of it.
A serious buyer would have been there tonight.

I predict you have no idea of my intentions.

What is it about the internet that gives people the idea it's ok to be a jerk to others?

By the way, there are massive thunderstorms in the area and flash flood warnings so maybe not the best time to test drive a targa?

[JMS935]

Originally Posted by sugarwood

I predict OP does not buy the car.
He's already looking to be talked out of it.
A serious buyer would have been there tonight.

I don't know where this car is located, but I'm pretty sure it's past banking hours everywhere in the country. Do people really keep 20k under their mattress waiting for these to pop up? I doubt this deal closes tonight regardless.

[SalParadise]

The Targa market seems to be ridiculously cool - but not that cool. No matter what the price it's important to buy smart - because time is pretty freaking important.

If it's a car you want it's a bargain. Sure it's a bargain to flippers et al, but at the end of the day if it's something you want to buy and keep you want to make sure it's good. Things come up - I mean a G body that late is a very sweet car - light years ahead of mine.

If you're in the mindset for something like this being 30 years old and all - then it would be worth it. I can see why you're putting it out there - I got more of a vibe of "should I be doing this and what should I look for" than being hesitant or anything like that. Seems the car landed in your lap and the door is wide open to land it. Life is interesting when this happens - when you least expect it. I see where you are coming from.

What do I think? Depends where you are mentally and physically. Good luck it could be sweet.

[jlex]

Just be sure to let us know....btw, I love my '88. That G50 transmission is great.
I see you have an '84. Had an '85 for 15 years before I got the '88..... you'll see what I mean about the G50.

[Nathans_Dad]

Yeah this would be my 2nd aircooled car in the garage. I used to own a 1984 Carrera targa but sold that one about 8 years ago.

I actually was not looking for another aircooled car, I was looking for a decent deal on a 996 but this car came up on my search and I was like "Whaaaaaat?"

[Matt Monson]

Match made in heaven. I hope you get it.

[JMS935]

Originally Posted by Nathans_Dad

Yeah this would be my 2nd aircooled car in the garage. I used to own a 1984 Carrera targa but sold that one about 8 years ago.

I actually was not looking for another aircooled car, I was looking for a decent deal on a 996 but this car came up on my search and I was like "Whaaaaaat?"

Then act on it, cause you’ve now notified the entire community about it. It took me a whole two minutes to find it. Good luck, I hope it turns out well, whether you choose to heed my advice regarding the PPI or not.

[Matt Monson]

Originally Posted by JMS935

^^^It’s a bill of sale with nothing more than a line added to it. You’ll still need a bill of sale anyways to close the deal. I could care less what the OP does, it doesn’t matter to me at all, but he asked and I opined on how it gets done properly. IF the seller wouldn’t allow the PPI, then RED flags should be going up anyways, alerting to you that something is off.

I'm not making a universal statement. It's a situational one, and when I say "I" I am assuming the role of this seller. Whether or not the car has issues or is underpriced, the guy has a dozen people or more ready to come over and do the deal. There's a queue and if the guy at the front stumbles or hesitates, I'm just off to the next one. He's got no obligation to go through any courtship dance under the circumstances. This is a car that first guy with the money gets it. There's no honor among thieves, and the seller and all buyers make the list.

And no, I don't have $20K in the house, but a couple grand will usually hold a car until the bank opens in the morning. When the market was crazy hot ten years ago, I did generally keep car buying money in my safe at my office. If you're a hunter, you make sure you can act. I bought cars in the middle of the night a couple times.

[JMS935]

Originally Posted by Matt Monson

I'm not making a universal statement. It's a situational one, and when I say "I" I am assuming the role of this seller. Whether or not the car has issues or is underpriced, the guy has a dozen people or more ready to come over and do the deal. There's a queue and if the guy at the front stumbles or hesitates, I'm just off to the next one. He's got no obligation to go through any courtship dance under the circumstances. This is a car that first guy with the money gets it. There's no honor among thieves, and the seller and all buyers make the list.

And no, I don't have $20K in the house, but a couple grand will usually hold a car until the bank opens in the morning. When the market was crazy hot ten years ago, I did generally keep car buying money in my safe at my office. If you're a hunter, you make sure you can act. I bought cars in the middle of the night a couple times.

Understood. So the 2k is the deposit that holds the car regardless till the following day. So why not draft the bill of sale and put a contingency in it for a PPI? The ad doesn’t state it’s as is. I’ve locked a car down like this, and while it was getting PPI’ed the seller got more than a half dozen calls on it. The seller couldn’t do squat but wait until my PPI results came back, at which point I closed on it.

[Matt Monson]

Like you said, the seller couldn’t do anything... I’m not getting put in that position. If I’ve got a queue why would I give the buyer any power? You can ask for that to be put in the bill of sale. Seller can tell you nope. We’ve all told stories here about deals going south because the buyer asked for too much and the seller said get lost.