Is this advert a scam??

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TR4man
Joined: Wed 24 Oct, 2012 13:34
Posts: 431

  Z4 coupe 3.0si
Location: Woore, Near Nantwich, Cheshire

Is this advert a scam??

Post by TR4man »

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/ ... 99/1442427

If its seems too good, it probably is?

What do you think?

Regards

Peter
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Robert T
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Joined: Mon 12 Jun, 2006 10:35
Posts: 10170

  Z3 roadster 1.9
Location: Cheshire

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Robert T »

Almost certainly, judging by the "email me directly" and the difference in names between the seller and contact email!

Cheers R.
Arctic Silver '99 Z3 1.9 & Black '59 Frogeye 1275cc
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freds dad
Joined: Thu 18 Mar, 2010 15:28
Posts: 532

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Macclesfield

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by freds dad »

DAVE P
Joined: Fri 13 Aug, 2010 17:39
Posts: 46

  M coupe S50
Location: STOCKPORT

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by DAVE P »

Its been advertised about 5 times with different seller details and pulled after a few hours every time.
Eastsix
Joined: Mon 08 Nov, 2010 00:53
Posts: 279

  Not specified

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Eastsix »

Ive seen this kind of thing a few times while ive been looking for a car - pardon my ignorance, but what exactly is the scam? if they don't have the car to show to people, I don't geddit?
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freds dad
Joined: Thu 18 Mar, 2010 15:28
Posts: 532

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Macclesfield

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by freds dad »

Usually they tell you that the cars is overseas but they will send it back to the UK at their expense if you buy it. You just have to pay the money into their bank account but hey will refund it fully if you don't like the car.

Of course the car never arrives and you they become "difficult" to contact .
ZedAintDead
Joined: Tue 12 Mar, 2013 10:12
Posts: 96

  Z3 roadster 2.2i

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by ZedAintDead »

Just googled the email address and they have a whole heap of things for sale on different websites all with the same story, I'd certainly be very sceptical.
ZedAintDead
Joined: Tue 12 Mar, 2013 10:12
Posts: 96

  Z3 roadster 2.2i

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by ZedAintDead »

Seems I'm a little slow off the mark, paying too much attention to the Formula1! :oops:
Batchem1
Joined: Tue 23 Apr, 2013 08:17
Posts: 128

  M roadster S50
Location: Taunton, Somerset

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Batchem1 »

Sorry, folks, I don't mean to be confrontational - but what does it matter if a seller has 2 different email addresses or has other cars for sale?
If I were looking for a Z3, as I was until quite recently, why wouldn't I look at the positives in this ad (the single photo looks OK, the claimed FSH, the relatively low mileage, etc) and contact the seller?
It would surely become apparent quite quickly if (a) the car exists, (b) the seller is genuine and (c) the car is worth a look or not. I certainly trawled through enough ads before I bought mine to understand that there are both good and bad Z3 sellers out there, as there are in most aspects of life.
By all means let's enjoy our cars, but let's not be too precious about owning them.
Batchem1
Joined: Tue 23 Apr, 2013 08:17
Posts: 128

  M roadster S50
Location: Taunton, Somerset

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Batchem1 »

freds dad wrote:Usually they tell you that the cars is overseas but they will send it back to the UK at their expense if you buy it. You just have to pay the money into their bank account but hey will refund it fully if you don't like the car.

Of course the car never arrives and you they become "difficult" to contact .
Well, I'm sorry, but if anybody looking for a Z3 falls for this sort of scam they're going to be turned over in so many other ways. That doesn't make the scam any more acceptable, but it does mean that perhaps we all need to be a little more worldly-wise.
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Jonttt
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Joined: Sun 28 Dec, 2008 16:32
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  M roadster S54
Location: Liverpool

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Jonttt »

Batchem1 wrote:Sorry, folks, I don't mean to be confrontational - but what does it matter if a seller has 2 different email addresses or has other cars for sale?
If I were looking for a Z3, as I was until quite recently, why wouldn't I look at the positives in this ad (the single photo looks OK, the claimed FSH, the relatively low mileage, etc) and contact the seller?
It would surely become apparent quite quickly if (a) the car exists, (b) the seller is genuine and (c) the car is worth a look or not. I certainly trawled through enough ads before I bought mine to understand that there are both good and bad Z3 sellers out there, as there are in most aspects of life.
By all means let's enjoy our cars, but let's not be too precious about owning them.
But its a scam so there is nothing to be confrontational about :head:

We've had some fun with these over the years :D but they soon get boring as there are so many of them. You can usually get them as far as confirming a false bank transfer and even then they still cling onto the belief you may pay them :twisted:
Happiness is not around the corner........happiness is the corner
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Robert T
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Joined: Mon 12 Jun, 2006 10:35
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  Z3 roadster 1.9
Location: Cheshire

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Robert T »

Mike, I don't normally comment on these things, but even I smelt a rat the moment I read it. For one thing the car is ridiculously cheap (coupes normally command quite a price premium over roadsters), the whole email me directly thing is a classic prelude to a scam and the seller purports to be female (Josephine), but the email address is for a Susan - now it is not impossible that it could be a female owner, but I find it highly unlikely that it would be two female sellers!

It may be true that some people don't have a clue how to phrase an advert, but this is a prime one to get Jonttt in to have a little game with the seller - I'd bet on the seller having moved abroad recently and is after a quick sale, etc., etc. We should frame this one and use it as an example of what to avoid!

Edit: And Jonttt has beaten me to it - I should add, that I wrote that bit before I saw his reply!

Cheers R.
Arctic Silver '99 Z3 1.9 & Black '59 Frogeye 1275cc
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TitanTim
Joined: Mon 23 Jun, 2008 18:56
Posts: 5488

  Z3 roadster 1.9i
Location: Stafford

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by TitanTim »

It's common sense at the end of the day, the photo has probably been lifted from somewhere else, only one image :roll:

Tim.
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2001 Z3 1.9 Roadster Sport - 2012 Z4 sDrive 2.0 M Sport
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Mad Max
Joined: Sun 28 Feb, 2010 11:18
Posts: 442

  blank

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Mad Max »

Deefinitely a scam, it's been done with this car many times and is well documented here.
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jessicafay28
Joined: Mon 22 Apr, 2013 13:18
Posts: 88

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by jessicafay28 »

It is a scam. The links invalid because pistonheads have removed it.
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Del
Joined: Sat 19 Nov, 2011 18:35
Posts: 2136

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Is this advert a scam??

Post by Del »

I expect they put these sales on the Pistonheads (or similar) system to run over a weekend when the Pistonheads staff are off-duty for the weekend. :roll: As Pistonheads say very clearly on their anti-fraud notes, an ad that asks for contact outside of the Pistonheads system alleging a problem receiving emails via Pistonheads, "this is a scam".
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