Buying cars – eBay versus Autotrader

These days, is there any really any difference between the two?

eBay seems to have more of a selection of vans, but worries me that someone’s trying to offload a lemon, whereas Autotrader almost seems to hang onto the aura of respectability and safety, even though it seems to be slightly more expensive.

Would you buy a car/van off eBay, or would you go with the traditional choice?

Both of my last cars have come through Autotrader, but both of my last sales have come through eBay…

Only place im not keen to buy from is the motor auctions

Autotrader/ebay- just an advert…. Im not buying a car till ive inspected and test driven it

I’d say there was more chance of dodgy sellers on autotrader. Ebay has some buyer protection and you can look at history and feedback. That said I’d expect ebay to be top dollar these days.

Its the vehicle you’re buying not the site its advertised on – so buy the thing you want wherever you can actually find it.

If I can, I prefer to buy from a classified ad – Autotrader or similar – but sell on ebay. Simply because the tendency is to haggle down on classifieds but bid up on ebay. The result is I can usually sell after a year or so on ebay for within £50 of what I bought for on a classified site. Not so much the case with my current van as I’ve kept it for longer, but my previous 3 vans were all practically free to own.

Both, + Gumtree. I bought my last car from Gumtree, it’s more of a classic classifieds ad. Sold my last through ebay, it’s the best place to clear things in a hurry.

Look on eBay and autotrader then go to the dealer having checked the rest of his stocks quality then spend an hour plus looking at the car static, test drive for 20 mins over all road speeds then go back and make my demands for what needs sorting before I will part with the cash. In the case of my R32 that was new front discs, new pads all round, Haldex service and full standard service using VW parts, four new Bridgestone tyres, a re do of the poor stone chip repair on the screen, new wiper blades all round, full mot, and tank of fuel. All done with £500 off screen price for cash.
Pretty similar for my van too.

Suggsey, are you available to find me a van then? I seem to have inherited a poor imitation of my dad’s negotiation skills…

Actually, talking of Autotrader being a bit dodgy, I enquired about a London registered van advertised three times on Autotrader with three different phone numbers, all of which did not connect to an actual person. I e-mailed, sensing a scam and got a reply this morning:

<e-mail>
First of all I want to thank you for your interest for my van. I’ve almost reached an agreement with a potential buyer. Unfortunately, it looks like there are some problems and he doesn’t have all the money to pay, for the moment. The van is still available for sale, it is in extremely good condition,100% HPI Clear, full service history. Currently I am on a business trip to Italy and will have to stay here for about 6 months (this is why I am selling the van for a low price and I am looking for a fast sale to finance the Italian project ). I left the van in EBJ Transport custody ( http://www.ebj-transport.co.uk ) and they will handle the sale for me. The V5 log book is already signed on my behalf, the van will come with 2 keys, all service records and previous MOT’s. EBJ Transport will deliver the van directly to your home address and I will pay all delivery expenses.
If you are interested in purchasing the van just contact EBJ Transport department that handles the sale directly at: traffic@ebj-transport.co.uk and they will assist you with any questions you might have regarding the transaction
When contacting the EBJ Transport please specify my name ( Angela Robinson ) and the van make and model
Thank you
</e-mail>

Run for the hills?

Willard,
Have had exactly the same response to an enquiry that I made for a Lotus Elise. Only difference was the name of the person working in Italy. Other than that, is exactly the same email.

The advert was posted on Pistonheads last week, but isn’t on there any more.

I asked for more photos, which they sent over within 10 minutes.

Said I could call in and inspect the car as I was nearby, and haven’t heard anything for over 4 hours !!

Just had the Italy reply from someone about a VW Caddy i wanted… will avoid like the plague