Originally Posted by mrmustang
I've told this story in the past.
Well, here is someone who knows it first hand. Barrett Jackson auction West Palm Beach several years ago. I'm there days early, have my heart set on a privateer BOSS 302 TA car (same car I have been bidding on Ebay on and off for the past 4+ months) ....Over the course of the two days before the car hits the block I am at the car looking it over, taking notes (owner hopes the car won't sell for less than 85K as that is what he has in it), taking pictures, making the phone calls to verify casting numbers and such. Comes down to Saturday night, early prime time and the car is now up on the stage, I rarely bid until the first "stall"(where they reread the description of the car), car is at 35K at this point and I start bidding, so far the other people bidding against me are legit (people I have seen or have spoken with at other BJ auctions).....Bidding now dies at 55K, I am the high bidder, going once, going twice, bidding now at 57K, 1K increments, I am now at 65K(give or take a 1K as it has been at least 5 years since that auction),I then spot who I am bidding against, the sellers brother-in-law who I met the very first day they were setting up the car in it's display area in the asile outside the main food vendors area (high traffic).....So on his next bid, I rub my hands together (sign that I am out) and no matter what they do to entice me, I refuse to bid higher....They gavel the car sold.....Remember, this is on a Saturday night, the car and owner are from Michigan....The following Tuesday the car is once again back up on Ebay (keep in kind BJ holds titles for a few weeks afterwards), same seller. his story to me (keep in mind he did not know I was the secondary high bidder at the auction) is that the high bidder could not pay for it and BJ refunded him all of his fees.......Sorry, but I knew that was not true, for if the higher bidder could not follow through they would have come to me as the secondary and offered the car to me, or put it back across the block, which BJ did neither........Guy went on to sell the car for 60K to a collector I know in Wisconsin who still has the car today........So, does it happen, yes, do sellers get burned by buying back their own cars, yes........Not hearsay in my case as I knew the players,,,,,,,,,
Bill S.
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