What I Learnt After Getting Scammed by a Dodgy Second-hand Car Dealer

I am going to be honest: I am fortunate enough to have not bought anything from any second-hand car dealer ever. Recently, I wrote a review talking about my Vellfire, which is not exactly a car that the car community cares about, judging by the number of people who read it. The Vellfire in question was bought last year, with the intention to replace the old one which was with us since new. So I sort of knew what I was looking for, having seen a few, but goodness me am I in for a ‘treat’.

The search didn’t go so well, as the specification that I was looking for was very specific: Completely original condition, 7-seater with the big pilot seats in the middle, a white car and most importantly of all, a ‘Kouki’ car, which equals to the facelifted model of cars.

It came up blank for a couple of months. It turned out that my spec was so rare that I could only see one online for sale. And it was a scam too, with heavily photoshopped photos and so on. The car in picture and the car in reality were miles apart. It was horrid.

This was when things started to take a downturn...

This was how we saw it in the car lot...bright and shiny.

This was how we saw it in the car lot...bright and shiny.

But then me and my Dad were scavenging through a second-hand car lot, where many different companies would display their latest stocks in a single building, I found a gem of a car. The exact spec that I was looking for, it looked alright. I had never seen this thing online before. I was sold instantly.

I immediately asked the salesman the usual question, what is the mileage on the car, who is the previous owner. It all seemed okay. The seller told me that it had 58k km on it, which for a 2013 car, was very good. The seller also told us that part of the car had been repainted before going on sale, he said it was only a minor scrape along the left sideskirts. And I did see some overspray, but a car of this age – repainting some bits and bobs really is to be expected.

Soon enough the price was negotiated, I got 12% off the asking price so I would consider myself alright.

However, here’s when things start to get real dodgy. We requested to have the car checked by a professional and road-tested before handing over the large lump-sum. And the salesman told me that ‘According to company policy, you should pay 10% down payment before you can drive or indeed put the car on the ramp to be looked at.’ Here’s when my instinct told me that something is wrong. None of the TV shows or YouTube shows that talked about buying second-hand cars ever told me that we have to pay the down-payment before test driving a car. I never thought that test-driving a car would require paying beforehand. So I told the salesman, ‘It’s impossible that I would pay 10% of a car to get it road tested. No way.’ That is equivalent to HKD$25k, which is about 3000-odd USD. So he replied me, and said alright, since I looked like a serious buyer, I’d let you pay 1000 HKD only and let you take it out for a spin plus getting it inspected. I saw that as a compromise so I did pay him.

Then right after the HKD$1000, my light bulb went and told myself that I needed to do a VIN check. I completely forgot about it. So I immediately walked over to the car and typed in the VIN into the computer machine. And guess what. The car was a 2012 car rather than a 2013 car. That one year made a huge difference because according to local laws, cars that are 7-year-old or more must conduct the MOT every year to prove it’s road-worthiness. And that costs a fortune. So an year in difference would mean a huge difference in the price I’m paying. But even for what I’ve paid, I still consider the deal alright so I left it alone and I didn’t complain about the seller.

The car then went on the ramp and got inspected by my trusty mechanic friend who worked on our car for the last 5 years. Everything seemed alright. So the deal was made and the car was ours.

The new and the old. How much I missed the old...

The new and the old. How much I missed the old...

Then I looked online and I saw our car posted online by another salesman with a different telephone number. If you don’t know, here in Hong Kong the same car could be posted three or four times over and over again by the same company but different staff member. It’s normal. What isn’t normal is the odometer reading, it said 70k km. Ours said 50k km when the same company sold the car to us, not 70k km. I can assure all of you that I am right by saying that the car posted is the exact same car as ours as the asking price was the same, the spec was exactly the same (as said in the beginning, the spec of our car is very rare) and it’s posted by the same company.

I am telling you right now that I feel scammed. I’m not saying that I feel pissed. I just feel scammed. I am okay with the amount of mileage it had originally before being clocked. I am okay about the year difference for the price I’m paying. I am okay about everything the car. Everything. But why was I scammed? I don’t even know.

So to prevent you from being scammed like I were, here are a few tips for you.

1. Always check the VIN number before you purchase

The VIN number can tell a lot about a car. In some places you might be able to get a full VIN check by an insurance company to ensure that nobody has been killed in said vehicle, or if it has been involved in any serious accidents, so on. It is vital that you check the VIN before you put the down payment.

2. Check the reputation of the seller

After I bought the Vellfire I discovered that the shop had a couple of complaints beforehand about the same issue. So if you’re buying from a dealer, check online to see if it’s dodgy.

3. Look on either one of the front row seatbelt

This is a tricky one. It turns out that the bottom of the seatbelt is attached with a label, stating when the car is produced. So you can always know if the dealer is dodgy or not.

4. Never judge a book by it’s cover, let alone a car

A shiny car can mean a lot of things. It could mean that the previous owner had taken care of it, or it could mean that it’s hiding something. I am okay with some minor scratches on my car, maybe you aren’t. So beware of what you’re looking at, and never buy a car because it’s clean. It doesn’t mean anything.

5. Always bring someone along with you

No matter if he knew anything or not, bring someone along with you. If you’re here chances are you know something about cars. If the friend you’re bringing with knows cars too, great. But if he doesn’t, then he can be the one negotiating and you can be the one looking out for fishy things.

6. Always bring the car to a mechanic who knows about the car you’re purchasing

This one speaks for itself. If the mechanic only works on petrol cars so why bother bringing him a hybrid? Or a Tesla per se. Bring the car to a mechanic who knows what he’s looking and have a thorough check over before purchasing. It can save you thousands afterward.

7. Please for crying out loud, save some money for repairs in advance

Second-hand cars are second-hand for a reason. It might be that someone is buying a new car so they traded the car for part-exchange. Or it could mean that the car is broken. So please be aware that what you’re buying can potentially be money pits.

8. Look for a few before buying

What I mean here is simple. There must be hundreds or even thousands of similar cars on sale everywhere. So please make sure that you know what you’re looking for, the spec, when is the facelift, what is the changes at said facelift, so on and so fourth. Wikipedia won’t provide you with everything, and you can never learn enough of your future pride-and-joy.

9. Go with your mind and not your heart. Walk away if need be

If you smell anything fishy, just walk away. There’s always another one, better one waiting for you out there.

There is the car receiving its Christmas presents back in...erm... Christmas!

There is the car receiving its Christmas presents back in...erm... Christmas!

It might be ironic, I’m here telling you this and that and I myself am doing the exact opposite. As of now I’m fully enjoying my car. The Vellfire is holding up very well and the only thing that needs changing are the shock absorbers and the carpets. That’s it. So I feel honoured to have rescued, what could end up being, a basket case.