Sometimes you can hit a home run and no one will even know it.
- Thread starter macarose
- Start date
Because the guys who know him didn't jump to a conclusion like you did. Lighten up, Francis.
BTW, If the Ranger had a 4L v-6 and 4wd drive, The only thing holding me back is the distance
I asked him if the transmission was bad (it's the second post in this thread). I am waiting for an answer. We know it's suspect for a twenty year old truck to end up at a charity with absolutely nothing wrong. He wouldn't have posted-I sold a truck with a bad transmission and doubled my money.
There are many, many posts on this forum where you don't get the full details-until you dig further. Due to my inquires-we get "the rest of the story".
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Where’s that music from The People’s Court ???
Where is the honorable Judge Wapner ???
Or where is Paul Harvey… “ with the rest of the story”???
Until we hear from the OP -that's what we need - a little levity!
This thread has run it's course unless we hear from the OP.You have been in this community for 10,696 posts and i'm baffled how you didnt run across him in the last 9 years. He is absolutely not the "other" car dealer on this forum who does things his own way. That's about all I can say at the moment about the "other" car dealer.
I'm out until then.
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Yeah @CKN is way off base here. I agree with you.
@macarose sounds like an awesome person. Aside from slight curiosity about why it was marked prominently "Bad transmission," it sure sounds like it was fine.. maybe a fluid change was done?? But an all-speeds all gears encompassing test drive seems to have yielded that it was fine (presumably all of them, even reverse) and yeah sometimes you really do hit a home run grand slam at an auction. I remember I once was at a dealer auction as a car jockey. A really nice what was it, 1998 ? Lincoln Continental with rear heated seats!!! Wow was asking to be sold for $500.. nobody bought it!!! Not even to put on their lot at $2000 or so.....
I'd buy a car from @macarose and that's another reason I'll never get rid of my main car. Too many new parts, not just giving someone like that auction buyer a freebie just so they can clean it up a little and sell it at a profit. That's my investment! Nope.
Excellent job, OP!
50 miles just happens to be the magical number to assure it passes all OBD2 emission tests in preparation for sale after a battery disconnect or swap. makes perfect sense to me. I've flipped about 30 cars over 15 years myself as a hobby and thats standard procedure.
It looks like I need to subscribe to the Paul Harvey philosophy and tell the rest of the story. For those few who may have assumed or misinterpreted, I apologize in advance.
When a charity loses a vehicle's keys and advertises the car as having a fatal flaw, it often times doesn't. When I find these rolling question marks I usually do two things. First, I use the Carfax history and contact the garage that maintained it last. If that information is unavailable I'll go where the vehicle physically is and inspect it myself.
I'm not a 'flipper'. Hate that term. I invest in what I know and spend a LOT of my money and time to make sure the vehicle I have is right before the customer ever gets the keys. If you ever see the show Monk, I'm pretty much like that when it comes to cars.
This Y2K Ranger was one of those unique cases of hitting 'em where they ain't. Most dealers these days don't personally go to inspect the vehicles anymore. Especially older models. They rely on the internet and use a condition report, images, and sometimes a video to determine the vehicle's value.
This truck was one of those unique situations where asymmetric information came into play. The Mercon fluid was actually pinkish red (brand new) and looked to be about a quart and a half overfilled.
The entire vehicle was immaculate. Nicer than many five year old trucks, and it had obviously been garage kept judging by the clearcoat and interior because here in Georgia, the sun and the heat will zap a Y2K era clearcoat and dashboard after just a few summers.
Then there was the entire owner's manual printed out from a personal printer, page by page, and kept underneath the passengers seat. You don't go through all that trouble to print out an entire owner's manual unless you are highly concerned about maintenance and longevity. I can go on about little things such as the radio which had no discernible wear along with the radio stations which had a light rock / NPR presets, or the bedliner that was actually a high-end job, but you get the general idea.
Finally, after I bought it and had everything done, I drove it about 50 miles before putting it online. My daily driving wasn't an emissions issue. It had no codes and nearly half my buyers are outside of the metropolitan area and don't require it. I actually advertise in four different markets and have a car buying service which has a national reach. What I didn't have with that particular vehicle is all the uncertainties eliminated. Which is why I drove it for several days in city and highway traffic to make sure everything was right.
My customer came from South Georgia. I kept it for an extra day or so after the transaction so his buddy could come with him to pick it up, and that was that. It was definitely a home run for all concerned. And that my friends is the rest of my story.
If you want to know who I am, here and here will answer your question. I love the car business but my work covers a far wider net than just buying, fixing, financing, and selling. I'm not Adrian Monk. Just a used car wonk.
When a charity loses a vehicle's keys and advertises the car as having a fatal flaw, it often times doesn't. When I find these rolling question marks I usually do two things. First, I use the Carfax history and contact the garage that maintained it last. If that information is unavailable I'll go where the vehicle physically is and inspect it myself.
I'm not a 'flipper'. Hate that term. I invest in what I know and spend a LOT of my money and time to make sure the vehicle I have is right before the customer ever gets the keys. If you ever see the show Monk, I'm pretty much like that when it comes to cars.
This Y2K Ranger was one of those unique cases of hitting 'em where they ain't. Most dealers these days don't personally go to inspect the vehicles anymore. Especially older models. They rely on the internet and use a condition report, images, and sometimes a video to determine the vehicle's value.
This truck was one of those unique situations where asymmetric information came into play. The Mercon fluid was actually pinkish red (brand new) and looked to be about a quart and a half overfilled.
The entire vehicle was immaculate. Nicer than many five year old trucks, and it had obviously been garage kept judging by the clearcoat and interior because here in Georgia, the sun and the heat will zap a Y2K era clearcoat and dashboard after just a few summers.
Then there was the entire owner's manual printed out from a personal printer, page by page, and kept underneath the passengers seat. You don't go through all that trouble to print out an entire owner's manual unless you are highly concerned about maintenance and longevity. I can go on about little things such as the radio which had no discernible wear along with the radio stations which had a light rock / NPR presets, or the bedliner that was actually a high-end job, but you get the general idea.
Finally, after I bought it and had everything done, I drove it about 50 miles before putting it online. My daily driving wasn't an emissions issue. It had no codes and nearly half my buyers are outside of the metropolitan area and don't require it. I actually advertise in four different markets and have a car buying service which has a national reach. What I didn't have with that particular vehicle is all the uncertainties eliminated. Which is why I drove it for several days in city and highway traffic to make sure everything was right.
My customer came from South Georgia. I kept it for an extra day or so after the transaction so his buddy could come with him to pick it up, and that was that. It was definitely a home run for all concerned. And that my friends is the rest of my story.
If you want to know who I am, here and here will answer your question. I love the car business but my work covers a far wider net than just buying, fixing, financing, and selling. I'm not Adrian Monk. Just a used car wonk.
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Agreed. A pan drop would definitely be in order for this...according to the OP the margin is certainly there.
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