Test Drive Gone Wrong...

Cisc0 · #1 03-08-2013, 04:28 PM

So as you all well know, my beloved X is up for sale. Placed an add on CL and got a couple of hits. One of the hits wanted to "test drive" the vehicle. I didn't opposed to it because it is for sale. So he comes up to the town I work at (Armonk, NY) and we talk for a bit about the vehicle. He tells me that he has an '01, 3.0i and that he has had to rebuilt tranny twice. I sympathy with him and ask "why do you want another X5". Tells me that he just loves the vehicle. Pretty understandable, as I too love mine. So I show him the binder with all the receipts from everything I have ever done, bought, etc... We go out on a "test drive". I kid you guys not, I wanted to punch him in the fooking face. This asshole decides that he wants to do 80-90mph from a complete stop, then brake down to about 20 and start all over again back to 80-90mph. Now radio is off and I ask him "is this how you normally drive your vehicles?" and his reply is: "I am testing the transmission to see if its up to par". I say to him "if testing is what you want to do, not in my vehicle. You can always pay for a PPI and call it a day." Now he's upset because I said that and says "how do you expect people to buy your car if you cant test drive it?". I say "this ain't no mofucking test drive, this is reckless driving in MY vehicle. If you want to test drive I am fine with it, but not this fuckery you're doing." So we go back to my parking spot and he shakes my hand and says "I was going to make you an offer but I see you don't wanna sell". I just shook my head and left him standing there admiring what could have been his X.

End rant...

Naz24 · #2 03-08-2013, 05:03 PM

Frustrating to say the least....

I rarely let my friends drive my X, never mind strangers.. It sucks when selling because its all you can do!

I let my brother use my X5 for 3 days because he was a RE broker and needed a "nicer" car than his explorer (that looked like a pinata exploded inside).. To say the least, hes a slob.

Regardless, it comes back, 400 more miles, empty water bottles, broken DICE cable, dirty, and less gas than i gave it to him with. Lets just say, he never got to drive my car again...

jsoto · #3 03-08-2013, 05:03 PM

Most tire kickers are like that....
I recall on my E39 M5, I drove it for a good 25 minutes just to warm her up.
Met some guy during his lunch break in the finance district. He was doing the same sch1t on the West Side Highway.....

X5SND · #4 03-08-2013, 11:19 PM

I could definitely see how that would be extremely frustrating. Glad you managed to keep your cool though, its not worth lowering yourself to their standards!

bmwbmwuser · #5 03-09-2013, 03:28 PM

You need to screen the potential buyer before a test drive.

rebound · #6 03-09-2013, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmwbmwuser

You need to screen the potential buyer before a test drive.

How do you propose a normal person do that?

deanblue9 · #7 03-15-2013, 05:00 PM

Wow. I would have been extremely pissed. I would have made his ass walked or get a taxi back to his car. NO RESPECT!!!!!!!!

rayxi · #8 03-15-2013, 05:14 PM

I hate selling anything privately as I can't deal with these types of morons. Just be glad he didn't crash your vehicle. As deanblue9 suggested, I would have been tempted to pull over and kick his ass out.

ALPINE_X5 · #9 03-16-2013, 12:46 PM

Cisco I hear your pain and am feeling it right now.

I have an 2002 X5 that I put in the papers last week. I haven't sold a car online in a long time most of my car sales have been private one on one sales. This car I have had for a while now and even when I purchased my E7 X5 I kept it for trips to Florida and other places. Put the mileage on that one instead. But driving is less and less due to medical and having two Suv's is kinda silly now.

Well I placed the ad in craigslist and autotrader. So far 14 calls and 4 emails which you think would be great but most of them are people who can find me a buyer. 5 were real people with real problems. I told these people I am willing to budge a little on the price especially since it was just posted and they said no problem. One wants to drive my car but wants to drive it alone. I said please go find another car this one isn't for you. He said why not? I said you think that I will let you drive my car alone while you have another person who dropped you off waiting for you? Don't take me a fool. Then he asked me for 3K off the asking when I told he can't drive it alone.

I really wanted to tell him to take more than a hike but I said have a great day and please don't call even if you offer me full price or over.

Another one has called every day but hasn't wanted to see the car or drive it or inspect it. I told him everything about it. His wife then calls me and talks to me about it saying she is the one that wants it. But for a whole week and a half just calls and never interested in seeing the car or anything. I don't want to be rude but if you are interested see my car because talking about it for over a week is not going to get you any closer to buying it.

I can see why its so frustrating to sell a car online, craigslist or Autotrader.

I will post it here but if I continue to get the craziness I will just sell it to a local used car lot or CarMax. I don't have the patience for it.

I get a guy on the west coast who has emailed me about the SUV. I live in ATL, GA. Emails me two times but doesn't call me at all. No responses to my return emails either.

UGH!! Why does it have to be this hard?

JCL · #10 03-16-2013, 01:07 PM

I sold our 325xi on Craigslist. Put the ad up late at night. Several responses by morning. Started screening mails and buyers. Made viewing appointments by 9 am, sold it by noon. I dropped $500 from asking, so was happy with that. I had two other potential buyers interested but wasn't going to waste time with them viewing the car until the first buyer had his shot, and he knew I had a queue, so it helped with closing the deal. It was all relatively painless. I found from other Craigslist ad experiences that there is much more traffic in the first 8 hours after posting; many buyers only look at new ads. They are the serious buyers.

I don't post phone numbers on Craigslist. It seems to work for me.

The other point is the vehicle needs to be priced right. The market is a pretty transparent thing. If it isn't selling, the price likely isn't right.