One man's junk is Ebay's treasure
Written: Nov 13 '01 (Updated Nov 13 '01)
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The Bottom Line
If you want a deal, try Ebay first
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| Full Review |
Many people are a little wary about buying stuff online. I was exactly the same way, especially with online auctions. I had been using Yahoo! Auctions for a while and even sold a few things there, but I hadn't bought anything yet. I was searching the site one day and came a across a Pontiac 350 and TH350 tranny that would fit in my 75 Firebird. The price was good, so I bid and eventually won the auction. The seller never contacted me and I couldn't ever get in contact with him, so the deal never went through. Thank God I hadn't sent any money! This ordeal kind of soured me on the idea of online auctions. This is when I found Ebay.com.
My first experience with Ebay was a very pleasant one. I was searching the site (http://www.ebaymotors.com) for parts for my 75 Firebird and found several I needed. I found a very nice back seat, a box of interior parts, and a set of front seats. I bid on them all and won most of them. I lost the auction for the front seats in a last-second bidding frenzy, but I didn't mind because I won the other auctions. The good thing was that the seller liver near where I was about to visit some friends and family. The seller called me on the phone and we talked and set up a meeting time and he gave me directions. That following weekend my fiancee and I drove up in my truck and picked up the parts. I couldn't believe the condition the parts were in. The back seat was almost MINT condition and the interior parts were very usable. I paid $65 for the seat and interior parts and also bought a rear spoiler from him for $10. No one could believe the deals I got and neither could I!
I decided that I would begin selling things on Ebay. I had a bunch of parts that I did not need anymore. I had switched my interior in my car from white/black to all black, so I had a bunch of white interior parts lying around. I posted them on Ebay, along with a few leftover parts from the interior parts I had previously purchased, and sold them almost immediately. I made back the $75 I had spent on my previous Ebay purchase. I then listed a few parts that no one seemed to want anywhere else, like a bunch of old VW Bus engine parts and an old Rochester 2-jet carb. It took a little longer to sell these, but they sold and I had a few bucks and a little less junk lying around.
I had become quite happy with Ebay and have bought many things there, mostly car parts. The money I have saved by buying through Ebay rather than at junkyards or through catalogs definitely equals the amount of time it takes for an auction to close. The "Buy It Now" feature is an excellent addition to an already perfect website. I have only used this feature once, but it was great. I needed a owner's manual for my 92 Firebird, but couldn't find one anywhere. I just happened to find a brand new one on Ebay for a good price, so I bought it with the "Buy It Now" feature. I was able to PayPal the money to the seller and received my manual within the next few days.
If you want to find something that is hard to find or something that you can't afford anywhere else, try Ebay. It has saved me money and headaches time and time again.
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Member: Bryan Schoch
Location: Raleigh, NC
Reviews written: 28
Trusted by: 6 members
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