Gman

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98BLKLSC

Active LVC Member
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Recently, I flew down to buy GMAN's black 97 Mark VIII.

It's always a gamble buying a car sight unseen, except for pictures. Unfortunately, I lost the "bet" on this one.

When I got there to pick up the car, it was pouring down rain, so it made it difficult to inspect anything on the car, including the paint.

I paid $4500 for the car, 213k on the odometer and 154k on the engine.

What I did not know was that the paint was terrible and the car had very many mechanical issues that did not present themselves during the ~45mph test drive in the rain. The interior is also quite "rough" when referring to trim panels.

I won't go into what all is wrong with the car, but enough to where I should have paid closer to $3,000 or possibly less.

I proceeded to drive the car back to my home in Ohio, which after getting it back, was completely unsafe to do.

The kicker to everything is that Greg (GMAN) will NOT respond to me when I ask about the issues and what he can do for me. I would not be so upset if it wasn't a respected forum member, but it surely leaves a bad taste in my mouth for my introduction to Mark VIIIs. I just don't know anyone that could sell a car with that many problems and tell the buyer that it's "good" to drive ~1400 miles and have a clean conscience.

Short version: Car not as expected / told, seller won't respond
 
Wow $4500 for a body that has 213K and 154K on the engine? A good 98 with a lot less miles is only worth around $5K ... Sorry to hear of the problems hope they get remedied. I'll see if I can get GMAN to repsond.
 
mespock said:
Wow $4500 for a body that has 213K and 154K on the engine? A good 98 with a lot less miles is only worth around $5K ... Sorry to hear of the problems hope they get remedied. I'll see if I can get GMAN to repsond.
Click to expand...

Being a southern car and supposedly being professionally repainted, I didn't have an issue with the mileage on the body.

I was told that this car was "good" and that pretty much everything was replaced. His rebuild thread says the same thing.

I've already gone through the whole front suspension and will be going through the rear once I get a chance. I already have parts.
 
98BLKLSC said:
When I got there to pick up the car, it was pouring down rain, so it made it difficult to inspect anything on the car, including the paint.

What I did not know was that the paint was terrible and the car had very many mechanical issues that did not present themselves during the ~45mph test drive in the rain. The interior is also quite "rough" when referring to trim panels.

I won't go into what all is wrong with the car, but enough to where I should have paid closer to $3,000 or possibly less.

I proceeded to drive the car back to my home in Ohio, which after getting it back, was completely unsafe to do.

. I just don't know anyone that could sell a car with that many problems and tell the buyer that it's "good" to drive ~1400 miles and have a clean conscience.

Short version: Car not as expected / told, seller won't respond
Click to expand...
-----
-no one controls the weather, I bought my Ivory 96 on a rainy night then discovered the undisclosed oil leak and leaky bags the next day; granted that car had 109k and I paid $700
-did the seller provide all the photos you asked for before making the deal? if you didn't feel you were able to thoroughly inspect the car, maybe you could have spent the night in a hotel and waited for the rain to stop
-please ''go into the problems that made the car unsafe to drive 1400 miles"-it sounds like you have buyer's remorse and I sympathize with you, however...used cars are as is- no returns and no refunds;
-unless you can show where the seller was blatantly dishonest about specific, objective details I'd say it's wrong to publicly suggest GMAN has no conscience
-as others have suggested, even 3k for a car with >200k and >150k on the engine is a lot
-I can see it from Gman's angle- in the past I've sold guitars and the next day the buyer calls back and wants to renegotiate....no deal, right to inspect, as-is, cash and carry
-----
personally, I've had my own problems buying used junk from a 'respected member' on LVC...bottom line: I'm constantly working on one of my two Marks, constantly buying used parts,and that dude won't see any more of my cash
 
dnsherrill said:
98BLKLSC said:
When I got there to pick up the car, it was pouring down rain, so it made it difficult to inspect anything on the car, including the paint.

What I did not know was that the paint was terrible and the car had very many mechanical issues that did not present themselves during the ~45mph test drive in the rain. The interior is also quite "rough" when referring to trim panels.

I won't go into what all is wrong with the car, but enough to where I should have paid closer to $3,000 or possibly less.

I proceeded to drive the car back to my home in Ohio, which after getting it back, was completely unsafe to do.

. I just don't know anyone that could sell a car with that many problems and tell the buyer that it's "good" to drive ~1400 miles and have a clean conscience.

Short version: Car not as expected / told, seller won't respond
Click to expand...
-----
-no one controls the weather, I bought my Ivory 96 on a rainy night then discovered the undisclosed oil leak and leaky bags the next day; granted that car had 109k and I paid $700
-did the seller provide all the photos you asked for before making the deal? if you didn't feel you were able to thoroughly inspect the car, maybe you could have spent the night in a hotel and waited for the rain to stop
-please ''go into the problems that made the car unsafe to drive 1400 miles"-it sounds like you have buyer's remorse and I sympathize with you, however...used cars are as is- no returns and no refunds;
-unless you can show where the seller was blatantly dishonest about specific, objective details I'd say it's wrong to publicly suggest GMAN has no conscience
-as others have suggested, even 3k for a car with >200k and >150k on the engine is a lot
-I can see it from Gman's angle- in the past I've sold guitars and the next day the buyer calls back and wants to renegotiate....no deal, right to inspect, as-is, cash and carry
-----
personally, I've had my own problems buying used junk from a 'respected member' on LVC...bottom line: I'm constantly working on one of my two Marks, constantly buying used parts,and that dude won't see any more of my cash
Click to expand...

I wouldn't say buyer's remorse whatsoever. I love the car for what it will become.

What bugs me the most is that he won't respond to my messages. Yes, I could've stayed in a hotel and/or flown back.

As far as what made it mechanically unsafe was the braking issue which I have a thread about. Emergency stops were not happening. Not to mention the car pulled left so hard when stopping harder than normal, it'd almost pull off the road or into another lane.

Sure, it all boils down to me not handling it better. I guess I'm just bothered that there is no communication after the sale.

Posted via Topify using Android
 
mespock said:
Wow $4500 for a body that has 213K and 154K on the engine? A good 98 with a lot less miles is only worth around $5K ... Sorry to hear of the problems hope they get remedied. I'll see if I can get GMAN to repsond.
Click to expand...

Not cool.
Sold with known issues, and not on the cheap.
It sounds like it has a poorly installed brake booster.
Good luck 98blclsc
 
Still no response. I know he won't and I'm not surprised.

For the record, here are the parts I've already had to replace that were "good".

-DS/PS Front Lower Balljoints
-DS/PS Front Upper Control Arms / Balljoints
-DS/PS Front "Struts" to include top strut mount
-DS/PS Front Strut rod bushing (frame to rod)
-DS/PS Front Hydraulic brake lines (soft lines)
-All rear bushings (upper inner control arms, knuckle, lower control arms, sway bar links and toe compensators)
-DS/PS Rear shocks
-Plugs / Air Filter / Fuel Filter
-Front bumper mounting hardware
-Out of round tires (cheapo Primewell)
-DS/PS Front hubs / wheel bearings
-DS/PS Rear wheel bearings

Still needing to be replaced / fixed:

-Paint (painted in his driveway, another member came forward to inform me, all pictures of paint process were falsified to show a paint booth)
-Oil Filter Adapter Gasket
-Oil Pan Gasket
-Rear bumper mounting hardware
-Battery hold down
-Inner / outer tie rods

Yes, it's partially my fault. However, during the test drive (I was very unfamiliar with the area and it was rain VERY hard) I was unable to get the car over 45 MPH to bring most of the issues to light and all roads were very smooth.

These are not issues that a car in "good" shape as it states on my Bill of Sale and paying $4500 should be. Swindled is an understatement.

EDIT: I have so much to do, I forgot all of the stuff I still need to do.

-Complete interior panels replacement (seats are the only good part)
-DS/PS Front brake rotor replacement
 
that stinks, sorry for your loss of cash
---
(imo) he's not responding b/c you negotiated a deal, you inspected and tested the car, and bought it...cash and carry....
with used private seller deals it's always: "right to inspect, as is, no warranty and no returns"
- if a seller intentionally misleads the buyer, that's another story...expensive lesson, others take note
 
I'm not saying who is right or wrong here ... but this is a learning experience. Know what you are buying, negotiate, $4500 was his asking price did you offer him anything lower? I'm not a fan of people taking advantage of another, but it's hard when you list something for sale and a person jumps on the price right away. Personally I look at LvC as a family who takes care of each other in the family but that's me, and for others selling is a business and the purpose is to get your highest dollar. That's not me but I walk away from things sold for a price that I feel is too high.
 
I had kept a personal experience with GMAN about a year ago concerning the purchase of LSC side moldings. It eventually worked its way out, but it took 4 months to sort it out. Bottom line, lesson to everyone, don't buy from GMAN. If you search the forums, you will find that this is a VERY common occurrence for Greg to screw people for parts. I even read in a thread where I stood up for GMAN against a very personally respected member before I knew who he was... That was my bad.

Bottom line, if Greg ever does show back up, nobody needs to buy parts from him. Nobody is going to change my mind as far as he is concerned.
 
I'm sorry to hear this OP. Greg has been here a while but is far from a respected member in my honest opinion. I wasn't very pleased with either of the dealings I had with him. After the second time I just made a mental note to never buy anything from him ever again.


Best of luck, hope you can get something back.
 
He sent me the wrong door part even after I showed him exactly what I needed. I was so disgusted I just trashed it and let it go losing $40 in the process.
 
dnsherrill said:
that stinks, sorry for your loss of cash
---
(imo) he's not responding b/c you negotiated a deal, you inspected and tested the car, and bought it...cash and carry....
with used private seller deals it's always: "right to inspect, as is, no warranty and no returns"
- if a seller intentionally misleads the buyer, that's another story...expensive lesson, others take note
Click to expand...

When I get home, I'll pull out the bill of sale. It does not read that way and I was definitely mislead.

Posted via Topify using Android
 
Is this the car you bought?
http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/fo...Another-300-Progress-Thread&highlight=project

003-3_zps9f273db7.jpg
 
Man that's rough. Did you know about the prior damage? Did he mention it?
 
Hmm, doesn't sound like GMAN at all. Maybe he got tired of the whole Mark VIII thing, and just decided to screw everybody over really quick and jump ship. For 4500, I would have not bought that car at all! What a rip off. Hell 96-98 cobra can be found for that price. Sorry for the bad experience though, hope everything works out. It's people like that, who aren't honest, and just want to make a quick buck, that I have no respect for. Please post pictures of this professional paint job, because apparently he took it to the wrong guy and didn't care.
 
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