New scam - very cunning!

[Peter C]

Mate of mine is selling his mint 2007 Audi A4 TDi. The car came with original S-Line 5 spoke 18" alloys and recently fitted set of four brand new Fulda tyres.

 

Three Irish lads turned up to look at the car yesterday morning. Two kept my mate talking whilst the third went for a quick drive. He came back within 10 minutes, handed the keys back, said he'll think about it. Everything seemed fine, the car went back on his drive, no funny business.

 

This morning my mate noticed that instead of his mint alloys and new tyres his car was now parked up with scuffed alloys and a mismatched set of bald tyres. Rather than going for a test drive, matey (and co) swapped the wheels round, taking his mint wheels and tyres and replacing them with a matching knackered set. My mate has been calling their number (0207) - Central London, but there's no answer. Phonebox perhaps?

 

It's easily done, his internet ad had photos and he referred to new tyres in the text.

 

Watch out!

[retrogeezer]

He let someone take his car for a drive without going with them???

 

Asking for trouble then really.

[Negative Creep]

He let a potential buyer drive off unaccompanied!?

[dollywobbler]

I've done that only once - and the bloke left me the keys to his Audi TT. Which I thought was a fair swap for my Pug 306!

[autofive]

not really a new scam, but still, it pays to know about such scams

 

i wouldnt have let him take it unaccompanied, but each to their own

 

expect to see those alloys on ebay shortly

[Phrancofile]

Similar to what (I've heard) they used to do in Eastern Europe. Your FSO's engine is starting to get a little knackered and needs assorted other parts. What do you do? Hire a similar (but newer) FSO for the day and do an engine swap. Done and dusted...

[Peter C]

He let the potential buyer go for a drive unaccompanied because his two mates and their newish shape 5 series BMW stayed behind. Apparently they all seemed very friendly!

[retrogeezer]

He let the potential buyer go for a drive unaccompanied because his two mates and their newish shape 5 series BMW stayed behind. Apparently they all seemed very friendly!

 

Maybe so, but the car they left was probably hired anyway. What would your mate have done if the 'buyer' had a crash during the test drive??

 

You just never let someone you don't know drive off unaccompanied.

[warren t claim]

Similar to what (I've heard) they used to do in Eastern Europe. Your FSO's engine is starting to get a little knackered and needs assorted other parts. What do you do? Hire a similar (but newer) FSO for the day and do an engine swap. Done and dusted...

 

That used to happen here with the Ford 2.5Di engined Transits.

[trigger]

I'm sure he won't do it again, I told my dad off for doing the same thing last week, He had someone come round to view the Focus he was selling and he let him take it out on his own as he said it was too cold outside .

 

Fortunately the bloke was kosher and bought the car but you can never trust anyone these days.

[Lord Sterling]

As many have said here, your friend let someone he didnt know take the car for a quick test drive unaccompanied, the risk of his car having parts changed over, stolen or even swapped are greater.

 

You must never let anyone, no matter how friendly they are, take your car for a test drive, doesnt matter whether they turn up in a Jag, Bentley, even if they hand you the keys to "thier" car, theres no guarantee that the car actually belongs to them, it could be hired or even stolen.

 

Theives are alot more careful these days, they'll go a long way just to cover thier tracks.

[myglaren]

I took my daughter to test drive a SAAB that we had looked at earlier.

 

Sales manager handed over the keys and said it was all ready on the forcourt.

 

I asked if he wasn't coming with us.

"Oh no! Far to busy this afternoon, off you go and give it a good run".

 

Her held together with string and gaffer tape was left behind and we did around thirty miles in it. We were gone a couple of hours.

 

He hadn't even asked our names, never mind sought any kind of security. She did buy it when we returned it, paid for there and then and he serviced (?) MOT'd and taxed it for her the following Monday morning and she collected it later in the day.

 

It's the first time I have ever known anyone do such a thing except when they know them well.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Fuggin paddies. Hopefully various members of their families will be getting made redundant back across the water anyway, and lose their houses that they took on a €400k mortgage to buy.

[Peter C]

Fuggin paddies. Hopefully various members of their families will be getting made redundant back across the water anyway, and lose their houses that they took on a €400k mortgage to buy.

 

I suspect that the type of paddies that visited my friend don't actually live in traditionally built brick and mortar houses.

 

Do ya like dags? If you know what I mean.

 

[Lankytim]

This has happened to me, but the other way round. Left a deposit on a mint mk3 granada 2 litre auto with nearly brand new tyres on it. I collected it at night and in the morning I found it had a set of four bald tyres instead. Bastard! IIRC the spare was missing, too.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I took my daughter to test drive a SAAB that we had looked at earlier.

 

Sales manager handed over the keys and said it was all ready on the forcourt.

 

I asked if he wasn't coming with us.

"Oh no! Far to busy this afternoon, off you go and give it a good run".

 

Her held together with string and gaffer tape was left behind and we did around thirty miles in it. We were gone a couple of hours.

 

He hadn't even asked our names, never mind sought any kind of security. She did buy it when we returned it, paid for there and then and he serviced (?) MOT'd and taxed it for her the following Monday morning and she collected it later in the day.

 

It's the first time I have ever known anyone do such a thing except when they know them well.

 

This is exactly what happened when we went shopping for my sister's current car. Small dealer, he was expecting a delivery so he just gave us the keys. No names or driver's licence asked for and we didn't even have our own car to leave there. She bought the car too.

[cobblers]

It's not that cunning, really - Your mate is lucky the lad even came back with the car!

 

 

Last week I took a pal to look at an A class merc sold by an Indian sounding gent. I drive him from Rotherham to Bury to look at the thing which was parked up on some terraced street, in the end we find the house which was about 400 yards down the road. We knocked on the door and was greeted by a woman slamming the keys in my hand then immediately closing the door. Confused, we go and have a look round the car - it seems fine, starts up nice with no smoke or funny noises etc. We try the door again and ask if we can take it for a run, she doesn't seem to understand what we are asking, and just hands us the MOT and V5 and closes the door. We take it for a run, it drives fine but is missing the CD player and the "slight scratch" on the bonnet turned out to mean "someone has spent about 20 minutes keying the whole thing" so we now have to try and barter with her.

 

After standing on the doorstep for about 5 minutes getting no sense out of her other than her repeating "twelvivdy!" in counter to any amount we say to her (I even tried £1249.99), we ring the phone number in the advert, and hear the house phone ring. It is answered by her husband who can speak decent English, we manage to bid him down to £1150, hand her a pile of money (it could have been £80 worth of Pesetas, she didn't even look at it) and she slams the door.

 

Car seems fine though.

[AnthonyG]

That was very stupid and he is lucky the car came back at all. Even if they did own the BMW they turned up in, they are not likely to just give it to him after they have stolen his car, are they?

 

Sounds like he has learnt a surely needed lesson.