73 replies to this topic

[Carlos W]

good

[Cooperman]

i messaged the seller about my thoughts of his dodgy mini and he replied with a snotty message saying that if i was not bidding then i should keep my thoughts to myself.

here is my reply to him.

i was only letting you know...........also the vin number of that car will be stamped into the bodyshell in at least 4 different places (as all mini's were after around 1991) so if that car is subject to a dvla inspection then the real identity of that car will be revealed. i trust that you will let the winning bidder know this before their new car is impounded and crushed!

Well done. I bet that made him think as he won't know whether you are going to call up DVLA on Monday.
One might guess he'll try to sell it through the local classifieds now to avoid those who know what is going on with this.

[orangeboy]

well done, i did consider a message myself but no need now.
disgraceful

[1275john]

I also have been in touch and here is the reply I got


Johnp

Thanks for the heads up, as you can probably make
out from my items for sale and feedback that I am not into minis. It was a
genuine buy from east lancs motor auction. The registered keeper is in
blackburn too but I am unable to get his number from bt due to it being ex
directory.

I may pay him a visit tomorrow as i'm roughly 40 miles away.
Failing that, I will be in touch with the auction house as soon as they are
open.

What do you suggest i'l say to the reg keeper? Ive never been in
this situation before and do I ask for a refund? Compensation?

You(and
a few other ebay members) obv know what to look out for on these cars as
this is the 3rd email about the true identity. Have a look through my
feedback, I am not out to con anybody or rip anybody off and I wouldn't
like it done to myself.

Regards

[oltonlad]

if he has purchased that car legitametely then the auction house are legally bound to give him a refund as they are the ones that sold the car to him.

[chrscmbs]

Hello Everyone,

So its not just me that thinks the whole matter of buying classic log books and newer cars been sold off as older ones is shady to say the least! It so wrong that I dont care how people try to justify it, its simply wrong in my book.

After reading the many posts in this thread about the example on ebay that has just been taken of... and I'm pleased it has as I was admittidly nieve about mini's before joining this forum and if it was not for all of you, I might have been tempted to place a bid on a similar car and might have been conned even. Thankfully I ended up with a very nice little Automatic 1984 Austin Mini Mayfair which is streight and thats all that counts.

Going by what the seller initially said on the lines of "Keep your thoughts to yourself" then saying "I'm not out to rip anyone off" seems like he's gone from nasty to nice and from my experience, people just dont act like that unless they are trying to distract others away from the truth? Acting all nasty and macho then suddenly acting all friendly, expressing how he ended up with it and adding lots of other info (waffle) sounds like he's telling stories to distract, but thats just my thoughts mind, lol

There is actually a log book auction on e b a y right now for a Mk1 1961 mini, and I guess its sale is perfectly fine, its just what you do with the plate and log book afterwards that makes it legal or illegal I guess.

Chris.

Edited by chrscmbs, 19 May 2012 - 08:44 PM.

[Ethel]

I'm pretty sure it's against Ebay's rules too. The V5 isn't the car owners to sell, any more than you could sell your passport!


To my mind the worst thing about this nod 'n wink collusion to blag free road tax is it creates another easy way for crooks to cash in on stolen Minis.

[matt615]

There is actually a log book auction on e b a y right now for a Mk1 1961 mini, and I guess its sale is perfectly fine, its just what you do with the plate and log book afterwards that makes it legal or illegal I guess.

No, selling log books without a vehicle is illegal. If you report it to E bay they will remove the listing.

[chrscmbs]

There is actually a log book auction on e b a y right now for a Mk1 1961 mini, and I guess its sale is perfectly fine, its just what you do with the plate and log book afterwards that makes it legal or illegal I guess.

No, selling log books without a vehicle is illegal. If you report it to E bay they will remove the listing.

So it is illegal then! Right... It's sickening and it beggers belief that people can sell log books like this as its clearly too tempting for some people to use them to make their vehicle older and thus avoid paying VEL (road tax).

[mk3 Cooper S]

Ther auction house should provide a full refund.
But if not suggest that he breaks the car and he will make more than his money back

[Shifty]

i saw this earlier and had a chuckle.

[Simont]

if for example i didnt have a logbook etc for my 1976 mini, i might consider buying a 1976 logbook, but i would never risk the mini i put so much effort into, by buying a older one

[Cooperman]

Someone who found themselves 'lumbered' with this car, which in truth doesn't have an identity, could buy a late 'wreck' of a car and use that as the basis for a later car which is not tax exempt. The shell of the 'wreck' could be used as the 'basis' of the re-build and, although a bit 'dodgy' no-one would ever know or even care as it would be liable for road tax at standard rate.
Now the buyer would also have a log book for a Mk.2 Cooper. Ah, so what could he do with that? Buy a scruffy Mk.2 850 and build a 'Cooper'. That's been done a few times!
I'm not suggesting that this should be done, but I know some who would be tempted, don't you?

[daddy2coull]

whats the difference between selling logbooks and selling shells without logbooks. these shells are equally as likely to be stolen. i may be wrong, but thought i'd seen shells with no logbooks for sale on this very forum

[Cooperman]

A logbook (V5) is the heart of a car's identity. A body shell is just a component part of the vehicle and re-shelling has always happened, mainly completely legally until the legislation was changed for reasons other than the restoration of classic cars.
Virtually every rally Mini has been re-shelled at some time or other due to accident damage.

Edited by Cooperman, 20 May 2012 - 09:23 PM.