This is a bit long, but here goes... I got an inkling that there was a scam floating about, and sure enough, ripoff report had articles about them, and once I saw this forum, I HAD to register to tell my bit. Be warned though, not ONLY craigslist, but places like Autotrader and cars.com are being hit with the same scam. I first ran across a nice looking Acura TL Type-S with an awkward description. It said it was salvaged but clear titled. I am located in SoCal, and the phone number was a 917 Area code, which is New York (My wonderful ex, really, she's nice and we're still friends and all, was from New York, and she had that area code, Bronx I think). So I call and I get forwarded immediately to Voicemail. I leave a message with name and call back number. I email the seller and receive an email from a one William Youssif, saying that yes the car is available and call a 619, or San Diego Area code phone number. Never mind that the original Autotrader listing says its in Los Angeles. I wait a bit longer, and literally a few hours after that email, I get on from a certain "Christine Rex" with this spiel:

"Hi ,
Thanks for being interested in buying my car. 2002 Acura TL Type S. It is in a good condition, no scratches, no damages, never been implicated in any accidents, no problems at the engine, runs very well. It has an 260hp 3.2 Liter V6 engine, 71,635 miles, clear title, a perfect car. The price is not negotiable , $5,500.00 firm. The only thing because i am selling it,because i divorced with my husband and after the divorce i own this car, now as a woman i don`t need it ( i don`t have driver license)... we will use only eBay Vehicle Purchase Protection to complete the sale. If you are interested and you have the funds available email me your full name and shipping address.
Regards,
Christine Rex"

What hit me as weird was the story about using eBay. Having been using eBay for 8 years, this struck me as odd. I never heard about a Vehicle protection service or about eBay handling ANYTHING outside of eBay (which they don't). So I email them back saying I only deal with local, and if aren't local, why the hell are you posting here? What are you, stupid? I keep looking and find a 2000 VW Jetta for about 1/2 it's BB price. I email the seller. Within a few hours I get this sob story:

"Hello there and thanks for your interest about my 2000 VW JETTA GLS VR6 AUTOMATIC .As you've probably already seen on my auction the price I'm looking for my car is $4,000 and this price includes the shipping to your home.The car has 76k miles .The VIN # is : 3VWSE29M2YM149124 .It has been garaged for the past 8 years and haven't been in the rain/snow since then. It gets driven on the weekends. The car is like new, no accidents history, clean interior and exterior, no scratches, no damages, no mechanical or engine problems.It has a clear title ready to be signed and notarized on your name.The car come at your address with all inspections made and a service book. Unfortunately a divorce is forcing me to sell it under market value. I will not require the money up front because you haven't seen/test driven the car yet. The sale will be thru eBay's Vehicle Purchase Protection Program, meaning that they will hold and insure your money until receipt of the car in good condition. You will be given a 5 days inspection period before

releasing the payment to me. The inspection period is starting from the day you will receive the vehicle. Craiglist recommend for all the buyers and sellers to use eBay VPP for safe transaction. If you wish to purchase it please provide me your full name and address so I can initiate the deal through eBay. I hope we can do business.



Best Regards,


Jetta Pics : jettacocos - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting "

Auction? What auction? I didn't see no stinking auction... When I heard the same story about a divorce etc, I did a quick google search on the words "ebay vehicle scam divorce" and the VIN and came across the scam info, as well as the same car polluting the craigslist website.
I've emailed another too good to be true Cobalt and Jetta to see if I get the same responses. With that in mind, I've wasted many hours looking for a good car, and I think the scammers owe me a single, non taxable, lump sum of $10,000,000 for my wasted time .