I received emails purporting to be from an escrow service that the money was deposited by the buyer and that it would be released when I provide the tracking number after I shipped it. The email was from a bullshit account like pay@pay.com or something but was structured to look legit.
I got emails from Ebay and Escrow.com. So far, everything seems legit, got buyer's address and phone number. We'll see how far this goes....
Go see how ebay recommends doing escrow. use that service. see how ebay will protect you with that escrow service they recommend.
Thinking of getting a boat. Surprisingly, the wife is the one pushing for it and who am I to argue? My parents had a boat for a bit when I was a youngster and we've had a few friends that have had boats, but other than that, we're complete newbies. If I recall, there are a few people on here with boat experience. Where should I start? What are some things to inspect when looking at a boat? Is this a bad time to buy because holy shit are used boats expensive. etc Looking at a 20-22' open bow with an I/O motor that will primarily see river use just cruising around. Maybe pull a tube or wake boarder every now and then.
Expect to shell money out of your asshole and friends that want to use you for your boat. I had two friends that went in on a boat together and as fun as it was they got rid of it because the whole enterprise is a money pit. Im pretty sure my aunt and her husband havent saved anything off of two electrical engineering careers because they are sailboat people. No kids.
I hate I/O boats. What that drivetrain does is combine all the cons of an inboard drivetrain with all the cons of an outboard powered boat into one expensive to maintain package. However, due to typical recreational boater preference for looks and ease of maneuvering, they are the dominant drivetrain for boats manufactured for those boaters. That said, I do own one. A 3.0 liter 4 banger with a mercruiser alpha one in our pontoon. The good thing about that drivetrain combined with a pontoon is it removes the chance of sinking due to busted bellows, one of the cons to an I/O boat. I like the reliability of that particular engine over an outboard. Main thing you want to look for in a used I/O boat is maintenance records. If they can't prove the bellows were fully done within the last five years, do them first thing after purchase. Plan on doing them every five years, religiously. Plan on doing impeller at least every two years, every one if you use the boat a lot. Thermostat, I usually do mine every two years for the peace of mind. I prefer the Mercruiser line of marinized engines and outdrives over volvo penta and older omc stuff. Modern boat construction has improved. Generally, many manufacturers have stopped coring hulls and cockpit soles with balsa or plywood, something that would rot when water intrusion occurred. For example, MasterCraft stopped doing wood stringers in 1983. Correct Craft, a direct competitor, kept using wood and a lot of them have needed to be gutted for stringer replacement. I've gutted and repaired an old ski nautique, it is a sucky job. I think CC stopped using wood in 93. If you find a boat you're interested in, do some googling and see if you can find manufacturer publications about hull laminate schedule and construction methods. Look for things like closed cell foam core, avoid boats with balsa or plywood core. What's your budget and location?
Ovoid bayliner boats, they are cheap as shit for a reason. Mercrusier is the only way to go for inboard engines. That said I hate them and would never own one but my friends who have them all swear by them. I prefer Mercury outboards for ease of service and ease of winterizing. Crownline, Four Winns and Tahoe all make a quality boat. I believe Tahoe offers an outboard bow rider that will pull skis/tubes. If I had to buy a used one I would go with a well kept crownline or four winns, lots of them for sale for pretty reasonable.
That is certainly true for many Bayliner models, most of the older ones. I've worked on enough of them to say I wouldn't entirely rule them out. Some of the newer ones felt pretty solid. They would never be my first choice, but would do in a pinch. Tahoe had much the same reputation when they first came out, yet they're another manufacturer that stepped up their game started building better stuff. If you can afford it, I love Cobalt boats. A step above just about everything else, those boats.
Was looking at this one but it's 500+ miles away and the salt water concerns me. https://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/bod/d/san-diego-2000-cobalt-252-bowrider/7289752338.html
It can be a concern. Find out from the owner if that boat is freshwater cooled. It doesn't look like it is from the engine photo. But the owner's manual says there may be some freshwater cooled boats out there. Freshwater cooled means the engine is cooled by a mixture of coolant and freshwater, only the exhaust is cooled by raw/salt water. I've only every had outboard or freshwater cooled boats in a saltwater environment. Cleaning and replacing heat exchanger, water pump and exhaust risers is an added expense. However, you'll spend more on gas than on those items.
Can someone explain to me what exactly is the scam that these Craigslist people run? Are they just wanting people to arrive to see the car and then they steal their organs or something? I don't understand the angle or how they close the deal on the scam. I am trying to help someone find a used car for a teenager for less than $3000. So, I found a listing outside Atlanta for a 2007 Toyota Rav4 Limited. It looks perfect. It's posted for $1300 which is WELL below it's value. So, either something major is wrong with it, or it's a scam. I have bought and sold vehicles through Craigslist, and one of the quick ways to spot a scam is just ask a simple question: how long ago were the tires replace? Can you send another picture of the interior? The back right quarter panel looks like it's showing rust - can you send a closer picture? If they can't reply with some kind of normal response, I know it's not legit. Anyway, here's the original notes on the listing: Then, the listing mentions all the features and options. There are two very small pictures. I texted the person and asked for pictures on the interior. They replied with "can you give me your email address and I'll send you more?" Which is weird, since the listing says "text or call, NO email." I provided my email. The sent no pictures and this information: Obviously, that's all bullshit. I'm just curious if anyone knows what the angle is. Are they going to just mug the person that is dumb enough to show up alone with cash in hand, and that's it? Is it that simple?
Someone with more IT experience than me can weigh in...I'd be worried they were trying to get your email address. Make sure that account you sent them is locked tight (or, a burner) and that it's not associated with any banking or credit cards.
The over-explaining of their situation is a bit of a red flag. There is a warning notice on the Cars and Trucks section of CL, so maybe check that out carefully. There is no reason why they can’t provide you another picture via text, and don’t give them your email. I would ask again, maybe for something very specific just to see if they can send it. Make sure you don’t buy it “sight unseen” and don’t send any cash via WU or some other money order service and you should be fine. I tried selling a MacBook Pro on FB Marketplace and had to wade through a mountain of scam attempts before I found a legit buyer.
Meh, I don't know... I once bought a band saw from a widow who had no fucking clue about what it was or how much it was worth... she'd never dealt with buying or selling shit before, never mind machinery out of her husbands workshop or garage. Worked out OK for me. And I don't see the value in getting the email address, really, especially through a BS CL ad. If it's an older woman who's selling the car, then maybe she only knows one way to send a pic... I know my mom is like at (early 70's). She learned how to do something one way so that's how she did it. Once you have a hammer everything becomes a nail kind of thing. Like Juice says, as long as you're not being asked for cash, and the title is truly clean, and the car really is hers.... it may be different, annoying even, but no red flags to me.
There are a few scams that could be at play here. They could be harvesting email addresses, either to try and scam those emails directly (phishing, or trying to pull Venmo/Paypal scams with them) or to try and skim 2FA codes off the email address. I always use a burner phone number and burner email when interacting with these people, something that's not tied to anything in my life. More common, is that people get desperate when they see a screaming deal and start acting irrationally. You pursue the sale, and suddenly they want a $200 deposit because they've got a bunch of interest, but it's such a good deal that maybe it's worth it just this time... Or they're straight up trying to rob people and won't agree to meet in a safe place. There's little danger in pursuing these deals usually, because if you're smart you'll never send the deposit and never agree to meet in Murderer's Alley behind Joe's Plasma Donations and Pawn Shop. But don't use your real phone number or email address. The word that jumps out to me most is "final." I've never seen anyone say it was the "final" price unless it was a scam.
Oh, big part of that is that I forgot to mention I have a "CL-only" email list that I use only for online selling/buying. Gmail is free. So if you ever see 98trailerforsale@gmail.com, pretend you don't know me.
Yeah, I used a burner email and just didn't follow up after "her" reply. Thanks for the input. I was just curious. If it was a legit vehicle at that legit price, some dealer would have long since snapped it up, which was another of my red flags.
I'm going to use that email to start a Facebook group that likes to stick their wieners in the knots on trees.