Re: Did I get burned? (long) (archive)

Assuming everything is okay I still wouldn't let that check clear until a first rate independent shop looks at that car and scrutinizes it. I firmly believe any paperwork can be faked if someone wants to badly enough. My independent rejected 3 cars that I brought him that looked great and had good pedigrees. The smartest money I ever spent was for his inspections. Get a pro in your corner and then make a deal. When I got frustrated and thought I would never find a 535 5 speed that passed muster, a club member said " Be patient. There's an anal retentive owner out there somewhere with the car you want. Be patient, wait for it and it will come" How right he was. Good luck
Karl
I bought a 525iT with 44K miles from a small dealer for $15K. I had BMW do their 21 point inspection on the car and they found no major problems expect for thrust arm bushings. However, BMW states that this is not a pre-purchase inspection and that they do not do pre-purchase inspection. I ran carfax and found no reported incidents. From what I could tell the car looked fine. All the body panels fit fine and VIN decals were on the doors and hood, but I didn't see one on the rear hatch.
I found the name of the previous lessee in the service records and called him. He had the car from 18K miles to 42K miles and had no problem with it other than A/C not cold enough (I fixed this by replacing the microfilter).
Now, I've taken it to an independent mechanic to have the thrust arm bushings replaced. The mechanic says that the the car shows signs that it was in an accident. He hasn't given me any real details yet, and I can't see the car until tomorrow. The thing that's fishy here is that the dealer I bought it from went ahead and applied for vehicle registration for me. When he first told me that he does this as a service I thought it was ok and convenient. But now I realize that I don't get to see the previous title and the new one will be issued and sent to the lien-holder without my seeing it. This would be an easy way to "title wash" the car.
I'm not sure what to do. I'm going to the shop that has my car tomorrow to take a look for myself. The check that I sent to the dealer has not cleared yet and probably won't until tuesday. Can I or should I cancel or stop it?
Any advice, or similar stories would be appreciated.

Follow Ups:

[ Follow Ups ] [ 5-series (E34) Message Board ] [ Msg. Board FAQ ]

Questions, comments, or problems, please visit the Roadfly help desk.