ever buy a tractor without seeing it in person?

Teakettle · May 8, 2012

An equipment dealer some distance from me has a tractor in which I"m fairly interested, but I"m not sure whether to pursue it as I can"t come up with the couple of days it"ll take to go out there and check it out. Has any of you ever dealt with a dealer at a distance? Any tips? Thanks.

Sean in PA · May 8, 2012

I've never dealt with a dealer long distance, but I have dealt with individual sellers that way. I always try to be honest and up front and if the other party doesn't seem honest and up front then I don't go through with the deal. I may be lucky, but I've always had positive experiences on the deals that I've decided to go through on.

I've never completed a deal without going in person at the end of the dealing to pay for and pick up the item though. I don't know idf I would trust anyone with my money without seeing it in person first.

souNdguy · May 8, 2012

i bought my ford 5000 site unseen.. did get alot of pictures, and talked to the guy alot. he seemed honest.. turns out he was.

I have bought a laoder sight unseen, and had it hauled by a 3rd party too

in fact.. the 3rd party made all the arangements with the seller for hauling for me.. I paid the seller directly, and the hauler at deloivery.

that one was kind of funny feeling situation as I normally don't roll like that.. but both fellows were honest and in the end nice guys.. never got to 'meet' the seller.. but did get to meet the hauler onbviously .. etc.. real nice guy.. was on vacation and had some room on his trailer behind his rv and made the stop for me...

my work schedule didn't permint me to make the couple state drive north to fetch it..e tc.

good luck.. talk alot.. get pics. if it feels bad.. abstain...

s19438 · May 8, 2012

i've never done it but i would be more inclined to buy sight unseen from a private seller rather than a dealer. i am of the opinion that a private seller has more to lose if he sells you a piece of crap and you know where he lives. even if it is a distance to travel.

rkc9700 · May 8, 2012

YES!!!
i bought a ford 9700 on E-BAY. saw lots of pics and talked to the guy several times. 300 miles from home. well i got the high bid when time ran out. very well pleased . turned out to be really better than i thought it would be. bought one right off the lot from my dealer , local tractor, POS !!! NOT NEAR THE TRACOTOR I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE. you jsut never know

Ultradog MN · May 8, 2012

A friend of mine just bought this one sight unseen about a week ago. It was advertised as completely restored. wink
pictures

awhtx · May 8, 2012

I've bought a few tractors for salvage price that way but I wouldn't buy a working tractor without actually seeing it.

leej · May 8, 2012

(quoted from post at 22:30:24 05/08/12) An equipment dealer some distance from me has a tractor in which I"m fairly interested, but I"m not sure whether to pursue it as I can"t come up with the couple of days it"ll take to go out there and check it out. Has any of you ever dealt with a dealer at a distance? Any tips? Thanks.

f you do such a buy, don't come whining here! You deserve what you get!

Jerry/MT · May 8, 2012

You didn"t say what the value of the tractor was. Look at it this way, if the tractor is not what you thought it was after you paid for it, could you live with that? Or will you whine because you got taken? Caveat emptor ("let the buyer beware.) it"s one thing to pend $50 for something on ebay that isn"t what it was advertised to be, it"s another thing all together to spend thousands and not do due dilligence.

When I bought our TD95D, it was located in SE New Mexico an I live in Western Montana. I flew to Albuquerque, rented a car and drove down to look at it. The whole trip cost ~ $400 and took three days. It was a good deal and we decided to buy it. The cost of the trip was less than 1% of the value of the tractor. I would never buy anything that expensive sight unseen!

woodbutcher · May 9, 2012

I"ve never bought one that way, but I sold one last year after advertising on CL. The buyer lived 200 miles away. I told him everything I could remember about the industrial model with FEL. He asked if I"d take $200 to hold it until he came to look at it in a week. He transferred the money on PayPal.
Butch

steve n carol · May 9, 2012

I love the responses you got!!! esp leej's !! ha! :lol:

I have done this, wasn't a bad deal, expensive yes! My first machine, not the FORD. I wasn't even around when they unloaded it, I didn't even see it for 2 weeks after it arrived. I was that busy.

It was just 300 miles away, should have went to see it.

Your hindsight is probably as good as anyone else's. Let us know what you buy/bought....sl

souNdguy · May 9, 2012

just imagine how bad it was before the restoration..

Fordfarmer · May 9, 2012

I've bought from both dealers and private sellers long distance without seeing the tractor in person. Lots of pictures help, sometimes the seller may even know how to post a video, so you can hear it run. (can be a big help if you're familiar with the model, so you know what it SHOULD sound like) Like others have said, talking to the seller and following your gut feeling... don't be afraid to not go through if something doesn't seem right. I try to always make sure it's a good enough deal that it's still an OK deal after taking care of something unexpected. If it was on ebay, reading their feedback comments can tell you a lot about them. As it's a dealer, do you know anyone in the area that can tell you about the dealer's reputation? (maybe post the name of the dealer here - someone might know them)

souNdguy · May 9, 2012

(wink) sometimes you just have to trust somebody and drive out to texas and grab that tractor you bought sight unseen..

awhtx · May 9, 2012

Yea, but you knew you were dealing with Honest Al's Used Tractors and I wouldn't sell you a junker.

Welding man · May 9, 2012

I know a gentleman in my area that is a certified equipment appraiser. He will go out and look at a piece of equipment,fill out a report on all the pros and cons and give you an estimate of what he thinks it is worth, for a fee. There may be someone in the area you are talking about that will do this. This service is not cheap, but it might be cheaper than the trip and maybe buying a lemon along way from home.

souNdguy · May 9, 2012

yep.. and there's no way it could not have looked better in person than the pics too..

twas a fun project!

Brian_NC · May 9, 2012

I bought one sight unseen once. It's been several years but I remember that deal very well. The day it was delivered was the day I learned that not all Massey Ferguson 35 diesels had Perkins engines. It didn"t look too bad, but it was a pain to start and it ran awful. I think my wife remembers it better than I do.

Zinz · May 9, 2012

You guys all need to read a book called LOVE,nnalert, and TRACTORS by Roger Welsch.

He tells about buying a tractor unseen. It is titled the COYOTE EFFECT

AlinArk · May 9, 2012

teakettle
4 plus years ago i answered an ad here on yt for a 310-c crawler out of Georgia, i talked to the seller several times i asked him pointed questions about the condition of the machine. in his best fashion he lied his keester off, i have done some work on it when i can. just the bearings and seals for all axles cost me 1600.00 dollars. i call this thing my Georgia peach pit. save yourself a lot of grief and go look at what you are buying. al

RodinNS · May 9, 2012

I've never bought a tractor unseen... but I have made deals to take delivery or pick up certain pieces of equipment sight unseen... but would still have had the right to refuse.
At this point in time I don't think there's a way in hell I'd buy anything from a private seller without being there to take delivery immediately upon payment.
I would have A LOT MORE TRUST in most mainline dealers and some known jockies because their reputations in the business rely somewhat on them being honest. The guy with one tractor to dispose of today will take your money and he's got little to lose by taking you. It's only this one time....
I also worry about some of the schemes some guys have on the go... hiding assetts from the soon to be ex wife... selling secured assetts, etc. A handfull of $hit is worth more than most people's word today...
If the dealer seems legit and will send you pics/video/serial numbers, etc and answer any questions without reservation then you're probably OK. Keep in mind that if he misrepresented the machine in pics and you have a pictured serial number... I would think that would be fraud...
Still best to go look tho.

Rod

GT65 · May 9, 2012

I know there's a company on e-bay that will send a mechanic out to test drive a vehicle for you,check it out and he will tell you if anythings wrong and give you his opinion on it.For a little over a $100,but I don't know if they do tractors!
GT65

steve n carol · May 10, 2012

GT65, I didn't know about that... good idea for a little business.

There are also equipment inspectors that will take an oil or fluid sample, as well as an entire survey, have it anylized and report upon it. It's a bit pricy but when you pay serious $$$ you have a very good idea of what you're into.

36 Coupe · May 16, 2012

Call that a pig in a poke around here.

ever buy a tractor without seeing it in person?

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