mershons/vintage vettes

[SRReality]

Before I deal more heavily with either Mershons (Ohio) or Vintage Vettes (KC), any of you have experience with them? Good, bad or indifferent? Both have been helpful over the phone, although Vintage Vettes has "too much to do" to talk much.

 

[rainman]

I bought a car from Mershons about a year and a half ago. I'd say mostly indifferent. When dealing with then over the phone, I don't think they were as forthcoming with information as I would have liked. However, in the end the car was what it was suppose to be and I got pretty much what I paid for. Do your homework, ask lots of questions, assume nothing, and trust no seller (particuarly from a dealer). Never buy a car without you or someone you can trust seeing it first.

 

[RedLdr1]

Mershons Experience

I almost bought a Corvette from Mershons earlier this year. When I found an issue with it they did promptly refund my deposit. I also talked with CnV, out in Phoenix, ProTeam, and Roger's Corvettes on several cars.

Overall my experience with all Corvette dealers is that as Rainman said you need to do your homework. I had one car, a 1982, totally misrepresented by a Corvette dealer. The sad part was it was as easy to find as running a CarFax report...

I also "won" and declined to purchase a 80 Vette off E-Bay after my third party inspector checked it out. Before bidding I had contacted the seller, a South Florida "exotic car" dealer, and had an agreement that the third party inspection would be binding.

I ended up buying my 80 White Coupe off of E-bay from a private seller. I personally prefer private sellers as you can usually size up their honesty fairly quickly when talking with them...

Overall I spent almost 4 months looking for my Corvette. I looked at around 20 cars and had inspectors check out a few others. I probably talked to around fifty sellers. Take your time and read everything you can find... Being a informed, patient buyer is the key to getting the Corvette you want...

 

[brydell]

I bought a '70 L-46 from Mershon's last September. In arriving at a mutually acceptable price, I requested they change oil and filter, lube all grease joints, verify the true oil pressure at operating temp, adjust carb and choke, and fix ammeter gauge (not reading). They had the car for two weeks. When I picked it up, they assured me all had been done. Taking them at their word, I paid in full and drove it home approx 100 miles. The car ran very poorly, but made the trip. When I checked the car over, nothing had been done. The oil was dirty and diluted with gasoline, and all of the grease joints were clean and unserviced. I would not purchase there again.

 

[Chris Kennedy]

All the advice people have given in this thread is excellent. Someone mentioned Pro Team Corvettes, and, while I didn't buy a car from them I went there from Houston to look at a car, and was given the biggest bunch of b.s. you could imagine. My opinion of many of these dealers is that they simply buy cars which look shiny or do a cheapy in-house paint job, buff them up, then turn around and try and sell them at the highest price that they see that particular make or model going for elsewhere, even if the car is mechanically shot and dangerous to drive. Also, many of them flat out lie, and I think we have all gone through the shock of shaking our heads and not believing that people could lie like this. Amazing.
I would also like to put in a plug for ebay. Ebay has added a transparency to the market which is great, as there you can see what people are really willing to pay for a car if you look at things like the bid history. This gets around sellers saying things like "you better act now, or 5 other people will pay my price...., the phone has been ringing off the hook etc" You also notice trends (e.g., in Corvettes, the incredible effect of originality and mileage on price--great for people like me who want to drive a real car, not show it)There is a great magazine called Sports Car Market, and they have noted that Ebay has totally revolutionized the market for classic and enthusiast cars, regardless of whether you are talking about run of the mill vehicles or rare or exotic cars. Ebay is giving all the auction houses a real run for the money. It's great!

--Chris Kennedy

 

[gooney0]

I haven't bought a car from any of these dealers, but one thing i've noticed about most of them... They advertise incorrect information! I've seen countless ads for 1977 Stingrays, 78's with "optional" tilt-tele etc. etc. They often describe features as rare which are quite common. ProTeam is famous for this.

Its disappointing that a Corvette only dealer would know so little about Corvettes.

That said, I don't know if the cars are as described or not. I guess you take some risk whenever you buy a used car.

Years ago a friend of mine sold a very nice '69 Chevelle. He was completely honest with the buyer. Two weeks latter the whole rear susp. came apart!

I sold a '83 van to a guy for $500. I spent at least 2 hours pointing out every flaw, ding, and rust spot. A few days after he bought it the van overheated. No antifreeze! I had no idea it was leaking.

-Gööney0

 

[CQRT]

From Phoenix

C n' V here in Phoenix seems to have a broad selection, but if you watch "Vette-Buyer" on E-Bay, you'll see that you have the same opportunity to get the same cars and they're a whole lot less than when they end up on the C n' V lot. Locally, I've heard both criticism and praise. Ditto for Hawks Corvettes, although they turn far fewer cars but seem to be extremely candid in their descriptions for their E-Bay cars.

Truly, you get what you pay for and dealers like Anaheim, CA Corvette Mike seem to have well-documented cars, but they command prices that seem to be at the very top of the market.

I bought our 7th Corvette from a guy in Tulsa on E-Bay after having a colleague inspect the car and can't imagine buying sight-unseen!

The counsel offered on this board is absolutely on-target.
Regards-

 

[attret00]

I bought from Cn'V and they tooklots of time with me. Had it inspected and they fixed all faults. When I got it I noticed a whine in the differential, had it repaired, and called Cn'V. They worked with me and paid me back for most of the expence.