txdoglover

What do you all think about buying a car from a classic car dealership such as Streetside Classics in Dallas? I know they may charge more, but do you think the cars are mostly kept up?

Easy Mike

How would anyone know that?

LoneStarV

I would. I just inspected a car at that dealership for a member. In the dealership's defense i think most of the cars are on consignment so the prices reflect what the seller wants. That being said i think most of their cars are overpriced for what they are. Guys were easy to deal with no pressure no sales pitch they put me on the car and left me to it. Your best deals are going to be from a private seller.

73C3TX

Check out Classic Car Liquidators in Sherman. They have a few C3's in stock at a reasonable price.

Whether you are buying from a private seller or a dealer make sure you have the car looked at by someone that knows these cars and knows what to look for. Parts for these cars get real expensive real fast.

gq82

My 1st choice in buying a C3 would be a private sale from someone local to me or that I knew. 2nd would be a private sale from someone I didn't know and or not local to me. 3rd choice would be from a classic car dealer with a good reputation such as http://www.contes.com/en/ and my last choice would be from a car auction.

Never buy a car sight unseen or that can't be test driven and inspected.

vettebuyer6369

No one can say cars are "better" or more kept up at one venue vs another. Private sellers are nice sometimes; other times they lie to you worse than any dealer, and have no worry about the consequences that a business would.

The bottom line is, no matter where you buy: dealer, private, auction, anywhere, the entire purchasing responsibility is on you and no one else. Never, ever buy sight unseen, always do your homework, personally verify any claims about numbers and if you are not capable to perform a real inspection, pay someone to help you.

LeMans Pete

I have been to places that all their employees are NCRS members and use that as a sales pitch. No knowledge is required, just $35.

Point is, they are just another used car dealership. As VB says, the responsibility is yours to verify the car.

What you get is to view a large selection of corvettes in one location, test drive what you want, all for a mark-up. I'd rather do the leg work and research a few select cars online and go see each in person.

Alan 71

Hi,
I believe that if the person looking at the car has some pretty good knowledge about the car being checked out, the car will tell it's own story. It doesn't matter where the car is sitting.
Regards,
Alan

LeMans Pete

Hi Alan,

I agree for the most part, but the difference is, at least in my perusing, you cannot get the car for a good price (relative). Private owners also set poor prices, but they will be more inclined to move the car at some point sooner rather than later by dropping their price.

7T1vette

Whenever you buy a used item from anyone, "Let the buyer beware" is the best rule-of-thumb. The buyer should "hear" what the seller is saying, but put no weight to its truth, until he/she makes their own assessment of the vehicle. If the potential buyer does not have the experience and/or knowledge to make that kind of judgement, they should take along a friend who does or hire someone in that area to assist them. Spending more than $10K on an item deserves a thorough evaluation and assessment, if one does not want to get burned .

U17

Not sure about the Dallas store but we visited the Streetside in Ft.Worth to look at a XR7-G .... Like you said.. Nice folks, no pressure...But you are dealing with the "middleman" as already said... There is also a nice shop up near the Denton airport that sells cars.... They also work on the cars...

theblackvette

My experience and I have a lot that a lot of these cars at these dealerships are 1. Not as advertised and 2. Are way overpriced.

It does not mean that you will never find your classic at any of these places but you must inspect the car or have someone take a look at for you. NEVER buy one of these cars unless you have at least had someone look at it.

Even private sellers. You must have it checked out.

MANY of these sellers at these dealership have little knowledge of the cars they are selling. All they want is $$$$!!!!!!!!!! Keep that in mind when you are shopping.

Good luck on your search and join the club!!!!!

vettebuyer6369

I agree with this Pete, but while it's true dealer prices are more routinely higher (they should be, right?), I have found that more private owners are flat out willing to lie or misrepresent a car. I know the prototypical "used car salesman" has a terrible stereotype, but in a niche market like Corvettes, a handful of horror stories about fraud, etc will kill a dealership business, especially these days. Everybody knows everybody else's story.

Conversely, Joe Blow doesnt particularly care what happens after he cashes your check, and wont hesitate to lie about restamping, frame repair, car being totalled, games with the VIN, etc.

I caught a private seller in a blatant lie about a frame repair very recently, and its not atypical. Wasted a plane ticket to the East Coast.

Not defending dealers... (yes, dealers lie too) just saying, the car is what it is, regardless of where it sits and its up to the buyer to properly determine price and value. If its too much at a dealer, dont buy it, just like any other seller.

LeMans Pete

Very true, you do have some better security and a better chance at recourse against the dealerships. That's part of the trade off with the price I suppose. Maybe a more novice corvette buyer would feel safer with the dealerships.

txdoglover

Thanks, guys. I think I will try private first, and get it checked out by a non-biased vette guy or mechanic. Have the one I'm looking at, will get someone to look at it. We'll go in 2 wks and see it in person.

zwede

I looked at Streetside Classics website. Looking at the cars I have a good idea on what they should cost (C3s and 2nd gen Camaros) I'd say their prices are almost double a good private party price. So adding a bit for dealer overhead a car they have for $30K would be a good buy around $20-$22K.

cor66vette

My C3 isn't in the high end category like some of the cars mentioned here, but I bought my '75 from a private seller, so I thought I would bore you guys with my short tale. I got it from a husband and wife in town here. When I went to look at it they gave me the keys and let me be. No talk, no stories, no pressure. The car spoke for itself. Had my questions answered to my liking, and got it for a steal because the wife wanted the garage space for the new Jeep she ordered. I answered the ad, and checked out the car within an hour after it appeared on Craigslist, and was the first to view the car. Whoever commented on private sellers willing to lower their price was correct- at least in this case. No regrets.

3JsVette

Lots of good advice here. All I'll add is a little good luck wouldn't hurt either.

txdoglover

Cor66vette, sweet old Weimaraner girl? They don't call me Txdoglover for nothin'

Commodore

I bought a very sharp looking 1968 'restored' 302 Mustang fastback from Streetside in Atlanta (via the phone - my bad ) a while back. Nice folks but the car was totally misrepresented. After it's paid for and shipped to you it's yours, period. You could hire expensive legal aid to represent you in a court battle attempting to void the sale or receive, at minimum, compensation to correct all that was misrepresented - but you will loose.
If you don't ask every question imaginable or neglect to get a sworn affidavit stating that all your questions have been answered honestly and by a qualified inspector not under contract to the selling retailer (not going to happen folks) you could get screwed.
At minimum find a licensed [outside] inspector to verify what the sales folks are telling you if you can't personally inspect the car.
I don't think Streetside is out to screw anyone but I don't think anyone there (based on my experience with them) really knows how to look at, inspect, value or judge a classic or collector car.
Are there professional folks in the classic car resale business? Absolutely, but expect to pay them handsomely for making sure you get what you are paying for.
RB