This is a perfect example about how powerful the Emotional part of humans brains are. Every fiber of your Rational self said "this is a scam" and you still went through all the motions. This is why the scammers are so successful.
Back in 2015 I bought a 95 Prelude I had to drive far and met the guy at a plaza parking lot long story short it was dark out he had a temporarily tag on the car, I couldn't really see the car too well he asked for a deposit so I said to him I can give you $50.00 and the full amount when I come back to pick up the car there was a lean on the car and both Rear quarter panels were rusted through I didn't see that till the day I picked it up. I was in shocked and I couldn't get it safety inspected to be driven on the road, because it had rust. I lost $200 after reselling it as a parts car. I paid $700 and lost $200
About 8 years ago I did a deal like this in Indianapolis. I used NCIB and it was clean. 3 months later the owner reported it stolen. I was pulled over in Oklahoma and almost arrested. They took my car and sent me walking. I bought it with no title and it turned out the person who sold it to me was not the legal owner. It was a serious mess.
@@WatchJRGo thats why you transfer the title as fast as possible, in south australia we have a good online system to transfer cars straight after purchase
I once happened upon a marvelous deal: a 1992 300ZX Twin Turbo (manual) for $3000. Literally perfect. Guy was getting divorced, didn't want his wife getting the car. Simple enough. He was a few hours away but I had a previous engagement, so I asked a "friend" if they would check out the car and buy it on my behalf. Sure. I even threw in $200 for doing it last minute. In the middle of my appointment, I get a text, "Where are you?" I reached out to my contact but no answer, and no responses to text either. Homeboy used my money to buy himself a used motorcycle and skipped town. It took another three weeks to come up with the funds again, but by then the owner had reconsidered selling it because it turns out his wife hated that car and "didn't want it anyway". I was pretty mad when I realized I had lost my only opportunity to get that deal. In the end, I got a 90 300ZX 2+0 Automatic for $900, and realized I kinda hated it. Real nightmare car to work on; it was a tight fit for everything even as an NA, the weight distribution was weird, it was squirrelly on the track, and I could only imagine how much worse two snails and all that plumbing would have made the ownership experience had I owned a twin turbo. Sold it for a profit and moved on. I found out the same guy I trusted with my money wiped out with said motorcycle and struck a utility pole and shattered his pelvis. Pretty sure that costs a whole lot more (with healthcare costs being what they are), and was far more painful of a lesson than anything I could have rendered. The universe works in funny ways, I suppose.
I just saw a scam on FB this morning. 1968 Camaro convertible restomod. Matte red. Black wheels and trim. Supposedly in Minnesota with pictures of the car in an obviously Southern state. $20K.
I had a person borrow my car while I was at work and was supposed to pick me up the end of my shift. They traded my car for crack. No title, no money, just some crack. I had to find a way home and when I got there, the person that was supposed to pick me up... Was there! I asked where my car was. They try to tell me it was stolen. But the story didn't pan out, and I found out where he got it "stolen" from. I made him drive me over to that address. I had the spare key so I just walked up, got in the car, drove it away. Other than maybe getting shot at what were they going to do? He asked if I was going to go tell them I was taking it. Why would I need to? ? The titles in my name. He was pretty upset because now they were going to be after him for the money, which I just said that I didn't care.
Good for you bro. Sounds about right! I never ever lend out my cars or even let anyone drive them. My mom is the only one I ever trusted to drive my cars. She drove like a grandma even in her 40s 50s
Whenever I see “selling for a friend” I don’t even bother. In the rare chance it’s not a scam, they usually don’t have the title or keys, etc. Your suspicions were correct, and now you might have a legitimate chance to buy this Beretta in the future. So it might have been worth the 48 hours of travel and negotiation
The selling for a friend is how i got my jeep only he had title that was just signed no date etc and he had the keys he had everything and that is the only reason i bought it plus no deposit cause it was right up the road so certain situations can apply to buying from the sellers friend😁
The last time I bought a car off marketplace, I got lucky and had a cop driving by, I flagged him down and explained the situation, and had him run the vin on it.. He did one better and made sure the deal was recorded on body cam- it showed both the sellers ID as well as mine, and the title, in case he tried to do some post sale stolen vehicle crap. The seller was super cool with it and happily agreed to it because he didn't want me to think I was getting scammed or whatnot. The officer told me that if I buy another car, I could always call dispatch, and tell them I'm buying a used car, and just need someone to run the vin for me and they could do it over the phone.. I'm sure all places are different. This video is one of the reasons I prefer to just go to an actual dealership to get a car. Sucks you lost your money, but at least you still had a good time and got some good food. Better luck next time
@@WatchJRGo ehh the video will make up the cost. Also if you don’t know. There is a prototype beretta that has a Yamaha tuned v8 if I remember right. Supposedly GM made it and then decided the Camaro had a V8 so why compete with yourself and then stuck the 6 cylinders in instead. Or maybe it was tossed due to budget constraints.
I used to own a 95 Beretta. Definitely a cool rare car these days. Hopefully you can make a deal happen now that you’re in contact with the right people.
@@BringerOfDearth I always wanted a GT version in black. Mine was just a standard v6 automatic in white. I’m sure the GT versions are just as collectible as the pace cars.. although I hated the seats. Which is probably why it’s so rare now. Nobody wanted it new. 😂
This story reminded me of something similar (but worse) that happened to a subcontractor who worked for me. He actually sent a money order to a person in Europe to purchase a motorcycle, and after he sent the money order-- wait for it-- the person disappeared! $6000... gone! And absolutely no recourse. He did the deal with Instant Messenger, and after the money order was verified to have been received, the IM was no longer a valid address. A very expensive lesson...
Oddly enough, there is a yellow pace car advertised online in Harrisonville Ks. for $2200. It shows as being on Craigslist and is described as "sitting a while". Coincidence? 😉😂
John, as others have said, you should be able to claim back your money from PayPal. It has to be worth a try and you've noting to lose. If you used a credit card with your PayPal you might be able to claim from the card provider. This is one of the classic scams. When the so-called "seller" was asking more for the deposit, I smelled a rat. You did right to refuse.
You pays your money and you takes your chances! You have a great attitude which will see you through these rough patches. Keep doing what you're doing. Suddenly the world is chock full of scammers, it's sad. Glad you don't let it get to you.
I've been buying, fixing up, driving then selling vehicles for many years and it's only in the past 8 or 10 that title jumping, odometer rollbacks and scammers have nearly taken over. Rule #1 is if it's for sale cheaper than other comparable ones, something's probably up. I love it, "the title holder's in jail and the title itself is in storage" - priceless 😆
December is always the most difficult with cars on marketplace. Then January, February. People are throwing money at you for $3000 cars and almost giving away their old cars
My EX wife had this exact Beretta. Same color , same Indy 500 badges, same wheels with matching yellow accent paint. I tinted her windows black, put those old GTS headlight and taillight covers on it. Lol, I haven’t seen one of these Chevy Beretta’s in a very long time.
I went to look at a car for sale 40 miles away once. I set a time to meet with the seller at a bank. As i was turning into the bank the car was driving away and the seller sent me a text saying sorry just sold the car. I drove 80 miles for nothing ! He had multiple people meeting him there so he must have just been a car flipper.
I went to see a Civic for sale many years ago , there were 3 people already there looking at it. Guy said he would take 500 over asking price, i just walked to my car. I would of probably paid his new price if he hadn't told all those other people to come too. It was a cluster...
I subscribe to 3 RUclips mechanics/auto-related channels and all 3 have now had this exact experience buying cars off of Facebook. Sorry you lost money, but thanks for your honesty and taking us along for the ride. I swear I'll never do business on FB.
Man I remember these cars well. There were a couple of these rolling around OKC in the early 90s. I always loved the color scheme. Hope you end up getting this car eventually.
Facebook marketplace has become a cess pool, I had a deal worked out on a truck 8 hours away, everything set to go, the night before he texts me he sold it to his brother instead. Thankfully I hadn't left yet as I was considering driving down over night and getting a hotel.
I once sold a car on the phone to a guy named "Steve" who lived hours away from me. We scheduled a meet time. Someone named Steve knocked on my door an hour early, cool I thought, and bought it and drove off. Turns out he was a different Steve that saw the sale sign in the window. The phone Steve was quite mad at me when he pulled up to buy a car I had already sold. At least with Facebook I can see pics and sell to the correct Steve.
The normal scam I see is a really rare car at a really cheap price and I’m guessing they take a deposit. Typically 60s Mustangs in my experience are the ones the scammers pick the most.
@WatchJRGo they always have throwbacks on the track before the race. You really should come to it one time? Apparently, it's a top 10 bucket list item for men. I've been to it a couple of times, that's because I live about 30 minutes (with no traffic) from it.
Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio had a Beretta convertible prototype in their Automotive building's lobby. It was pretty cool looking. It had the basket handle like the Olds Cutlass Supreme convertible. I heard they never went to production because they folded up in crash testing.
I was going to say I sold the cutlass supreme, and the Beretta both brand new. The sarcastic name for the cutlass supreme convertible is the flexible flyer. We had one show signs of stress, bending after being ran hard through a Cloverleaf.
The Beretta Convertibles were the actual Pace cars, of those there were literally a handful, 3-5 cars made by ASC I believe. The one in this video was just a sticker package from Chevy dealers at the time. They sold a few thousand in yellow and teal. I think a sunroof was available. The hoop was just a flat piece of metal under shitty plastic. Because of the vertical door handles on regular Beretta doors that were now frameless with a convertible top. The real cars had yellow lenses installed in the hoop bar and the tail light panel. The one at my school had a dark interior with the yellow striped seats 3.1lv6 and 4 speed atx. Best looking Beretta ever. No engine mods so far as I could tell. I could not find a switch for the lights, nor were there any visible bulbs under the yellow lenses. There was a red convertible on a brochure in a more standard trim, not sure if that car existed or was a photoshop. The Oldsmobile was a different platform, W I think, and I assume was stronger, at least enough to be sold.
Yeah, once something sketchy starts happening in the communications about the title, or something about other people being involved, I will just walk away from the deal. All we want is clean clear cut deals... 💯
Oh man, a Baretta! Also, i don't have the Miata anymore. Traded it for a Sonoma that ended up being a pile of garbage. Used that truck towards my down-payment for a 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport LE. Hope all is well, JR! Just checked the marketplace listing. They claim it's a clean title. 😂
I tried selling my 1991 Z28 on craigs list. I'll never do it again. I was very specific on what I was willing to trade for and got all sorts of offers of crap I didn't want. One guy had me hold it for 2 weeks until he got the money together. Said he was on the way and never showed up. Got a call a few hours later of a guy that was interested. I said ok this is what I want for it. I had already come down on it more than I wanted. I said bring a trailer. He didn't bring a trailer. At this point i'm just tired of the bs. The guy talked me down another $100. I said give me your money and get the fuc% out of here. I'll never do it again.
That's what I was going to say. Assume almost anything of FBM is a scam just as much or more than what people used to think with Craig's list, because it's just easier to scame because FB is more picture oriented.
If anyone needs money immediately, it's a scam. And my biggest problem with buying a car on Craigslist/marketplace is just getting the person to meet. If they can't meet within 24 hours they ghost you.
I agree with you about buying and selling on Facebook. It has been a little hard selling really good cars lately. And the buyers all act like dbags. I don't remember it being this bad 10 years ago on craigslist.
My neighbor was telling me that he would never post photos, or post the address to his rentals online because someone would take that information using it in a scam.
It's really sad how corrupt people have become since the Internet age. I guess that's why law enforcement has statutes that makes swindling someone online a criminal offense and not a mere misdemeanor.
"It's not like we're driving a hundred" (like in the McLaren). Not every adventure results in buying a car. Some of the best stories are non-buying trips. Latest FB scam is a black 2008 911 cab for $10K. Multiple ads from many locns.
The Speedometer discussion sounds like a lot of the mid west states are basically the American Autobaun. Higher speed limits likely because you're going to be driving for hours on relatively flat land between cities.
Morning JR- Great content lately - Any plans to work on your Helix this winter? Even a detail vid (with "back to black" plastic trim comparison) would be fun to see.
I still have luck with Craigslist. It takes a little longer, but the buyers are usually decent. Facebook marketplace is a dumpster fire buying or selling. And commercial vehicle will pop you speeding, 84 in a 75 pulling that trailer.
NEVER, EVER send money before the deal! I know, it made for some great content. Next time, show up with some fake decals for a Repo Company and load it up and go.
The scams on market place are out of control i live in Orlando and been trying to find a good used car for around a 1000 dollars about 80 percent of the ads are fake
There were 4500 of these made. 1500 yellow, 3000 turquoise. A low mileage turquoise sold on BaT a couple of years ago for $12K. Unless this yellow one is mint, it won't bring much more than that. I had an '88 Beretta. Absolutely loved it.
I had a guy tell me to meet him at the his local PD…no problem right…then the dude tries to rip me off at the PD…I had a friend (local copper) watching the transaction from the smoking area of the PD…he came out and arrested the dude for intimidation and threats of bodily harm. I was armed and really not worried but, my bud saved the day.
One ad read and this monetized video and you'll make 10 fold what that scammer got out of ya. Scammers are everywhere and I'm glad you came out clear and safe.
I have a buddy's grandma in Oregon that has a SUPER mint condition Chevy Beretta Indy 500 with 45k miles. And everytime I see it it's really eye candy. If you can get one in mint/perfect condition I think you'd be golden. Quite a coincidence you posted this when I first saw it too lol
In my state, there are hefty penalties when there is a delay in the title transfer. Let's say you bought a car from a guy who bought it and never transferred the title, When you try to take the (signed) title to the DMV, you'll be asked some questions like "Do you know the owner whose signature is on the title?" and stuff like that. I finally got it done, but because there was such a delay between the signing at the original sale and the time I applied for transfer, I paid some pretty hefty penalties that the 2nd seller may not have known about. I think buying a car and not transferring the title used to be common with folks who were going to resell them, but at least in South Carolina, let the buyer beware! It's bad enough even when there's no funny stuff. And I'm glad to know that you carry some protection with you - everyone should!
I worked at a Chevy dealer when those cars were new. Just seeing ANY Beretta in the wild these days is rare. I don't think most of them survived the second owners.
@genericsomething i like the body style I went to high school in the 90s there was 4-5 in the parking lot my buddy had a teal green one from like 96 to 2004. I never see them for sale anywhere anymore I use to drive a dark purple Z24 caviler back then I loved it haha
I never thought I'd see the day where there would be a market so vast for Chevy Berettas that people were scamming on them. 😆 Don't read me wrong, I love '90s quirk... but... dang!
@@WatchJRGo well, as you've now, potentially, got an 'in' on the car, if it actually becomes available with all the necessary documentation, $150 may turn out to be money well spent. Personally, i suspect all those people you spoke to were involved in this 'scam' and i'd be very weary of paying any more deposits up front on it if it comes your way in the future 👍
Should have brought "The Statue" from your old shop with you, might have been a different outcome Love your work and the McLaren you recently aquired is absolutely gorgeous,so jealous but my 2018 Corolla will just have to do for now anyway. Greetings from all the way from Australia 🇦🇺
I had a case where the seller was going to report it stolen after I bought it. When he said he didn't have the title I said the car is worth less than zero without it so NOW do you have the title? "Click" It amazes me how many of the private sellers try to sell without a title or it's been unreg'ed for so long it would eat up the entire value of the car just to reg it. This does happen in high tax states like commiefornia.
Most of the "no title" cars I run in to lately are property of the title loan places. They get a title loan and then quit paying for it and sell the car without a title. It might then be reported stolen by the lawful owners, the title place, several months later. Bottom line, never buy without a title. Heck, even a duplicate or bonded title is a giant red flag these days
@@InsideOfMyOwnMind when you apply for a new title after one was lost or some other circumstances where the regular title is bad or missing. It is bonded for a period of time before it can become a regular title. It can be contested during that time.
I have a 2020 250 Platinum that looks exactly like your new truck from the outside. Your dash screen video quality is better than mine. After 2 years and 35k miles I have zero complaints with my 2020 though. I hope you have as good of an ownership experience with your Limited as I've had with my Platinum!
Loved the vid and 'Public Service Announcement'. man this sucks, I feel for you, having to drive over 6 hours pulling an empty trailer. I was so looking forward to you getting that car, what an awesome find. I had a 96 Beretta with the 3.1, put over 300K miles on it, and it got great gas mileage, I could get 36 mpg driving back and forth from Wichita to all over western Kansas. The only problem I had with it was the GM intake gasket issue, replaced those and put another 100k on the car.
Man I thought FBM and CL were bad in MY area, this takes the cake. So many tire kickers, window shoppers, ULTRA lowballers offering you half your asking price (when you're already $1500 below book) makes me lose more faith in humanity by the day.
Man, I can't believe people would really want to pay that much ($15000) for a Beretta. That was the first car my wife ever bought not to long after we got together. Total pile of trash car. It's impossible for me to think of people being nostalgic for them.
Scammers are working harder than ever right now. They always operate on your desperation and kindness. Everyone has to be careful these days, even pros are sometimes getting scammed.
Time to do some sketchy....darn scammer! Let's sick some scammer RUclipsrs on that guy. I've heard great things about Q39! Haven't been yet....next trip through KC! Had no idea GM did a Pace Car version of the Beretta. First time I saw one I thought it was pretty cool (1987) and rented one out west in 1988....that 2.2L 4 cyl did NOT like driving up to Reno from Sacramento. Would be pretty cool if you can make a deal on that ride! Don't think I ever saw that color combo, so must have been pace car only.
PayPal sucks. I got scammed for very little money. $50. The seller sent me a package. It contained children’s stickers. I went to PayPal and explained it was a scam. PayPal sided with the scammer. I refuse to pay with them ever again.
Been there 100s of times. Sad, people just can’t be honest anymore. I’m always on market place and when I read or hear a story when I’m asking, I just walk away anymore.
The reason it took the guy two days to get back to you in the beginning was probably because he had another fish on the line. When that deal fell through, you were next in line.Wonder how much they gave him.
1st I'm going to say. Get that cell phone out of your hand while driving. 2nd.. Facebook marketplace is full of scams and sadly Facebook does not do much about it.
That's a bummer. I had a 94 Corsica, I had a bunch of Beretta parts in her. Tax dash, rear z51 swaybar, had a front strut tower brace from a 92 Cavalier wagon. LBody cars were everywhere up until I'd say about 2009...they all got used up and scrapped.
If I could go to get scammed with Watch Jr Goes I would drink the shot of whiskey and cold Bartle Skeets with him and puff on the Cannibus cigars with him and get all schmoked up.
I've been lucky buying and selling items on craigslist and FB Marketplace, but the scams are also out of control. Let's call this a PSA and help multiple people keep their hard-earned money where it belongs and not in the thief's pocket.
I had an 89 Beretta GT - great looking car - and drove great too - I really liked it. BUT -build quality was awful. In the four years I had it - the driver's seat broke (replaced under warranty), paint flaked off (repainted under "silent" warranty), stalling problem (fixed under warranty), AND driver's door fell off in my driveway (fixed under warranty). I finally sold it to Cash for Cars after the head gasket went. JR - maybe you dodged a bullet here?
That was a very informative video for those of us who haven’t been exposed to the latest scams. By the way, let’s not oversell the Beretta. I sold those new. the old saying is you normally don’t sell many of what you don’t respect. the Berreta is nothing but a two-door Corsica.
It's not the latest scam, it's just a typical advanced payment scam, which has been around for as long as there've been scamming people. Here, it's just being done through FBPM, but it's works like any other scam. They ask for money upfront, without anyway of holding them to the exchange. Once the money is received, the scammer takes the money and runs with it. You're left with no car, no money, and the scammer is gone. If you want to avoid these types of scams, deal locally, with the car in front of you, and with the registered owner of that car, and in a secure location. And most importantly, don't ever send strange people money or any personal information.
I actually saw one of these Berettas at an Omaha U-Pullit roughly 4-5 years ago. It was fairly complete at the time....beat up/rusty, but all there and not wrecked, I remember thinking about trying to take something off of it, and I saw those seats and thought they were so ugly that nobody would want to pay for those, so I eventually just left without taking anything unique to the car. In hindsight I probably should have tried harder, but oh well.
JR, you seem like a really smart young man. Gifted maybe. Is dealing with knuckleheads like this what you want to do? I get the sense that you had a "normal" job at some point. Did you leave corporate America behind? I spent my whole life in corporate America, so that I could understand. You do roll with the punches really well, but this year has had a ton of punches. I tip my hat to your resolve, but I think you could do great things.
This is a perfect example about how powerful the Emotional part of humans brains are. Every fiber of your Rational self said "this is a scam" and you still went through all the motions. This is why the scammers are so successful.
Still, once in a lifetime you'll find a deal like this so it is difficult to ignore i guess
I’ve had deals I KNEW were scams. And a couple ended up being actual deals. Sometimes you gotta risk it for the biscuit.
Back in 2015 I bought a 95 Prelude I had to drive far and met the guy at a plaza parking lot long story short it was dark out he had a temporarily tag on the car, I couldn't really see the car too well he asked for a deposit so I said to him I can give you $50.00 and the full amount when I come back to pick up the car there was a lean on the car and both Rear quarter panels were rusted through I didn't see that till the day I picked it up. I was in shocked and I couldn't get it safety inspected to be driven on the road, because it had rust. I lost $200 after reselling it as a parts car. I paid $700 and lost $200
About 8 years ago I did a deal like this in Indianapolis. I used NCIB and it was clean. 3 months later the owner reported it stolen. I was pulled over in Oklahoma and almost arrested. They took my car and sent me walking. I bought it with no title and it turned out the person who sold it to me was not the legal owner. It was a serious mess.
That post sale theft reporting is the sticky part... used car sales are wild 😬
Sure.......
@@WatchJRGo thats why you transfer the title as fast as possible, in south australia we have a good online system to transfer cars straight after purchase
Wait, you bought a car with no title and drove it for 3 months? Your spidey senses weren't tingling?
@@drpepr96 lol exactly.
Good on you Mr. Ross! It isn’t easy to admit you’ve been taken. At least it was only $150. Could’ve been so much worse. Thanks for sharing.
His surname isn’t Ross, his first name is John Ross. Fyi.
@@cgcanada88 Duly noted. Though, until I know his surname, Mr. Ross will have to do.
@@gregdiamond6023 Find the vinwiki episode where he tells a story.
I once happened upon a marvelous deal: a 1992 300ZX Twin Turbo (manual) for $3000. Literally perfect. Guy was getting divorced, didn't want his wife getting the car. Simple enough.
He was a few hours away but I had a previous engagement, so I asked a "friend" if they would check out the car and buy it on my behalf. Sure. I even threw in $200 for doing it last minute.
In the middle of my appointment, I get a text, "Where are you?" I reached out to my contact but no answer, and no responses to text either.
Homeboy used my money to buy himself a used motorcycle and skipped town.
It took another three weeks to come up with the funds again, but by then the owner had reconsidered selling it because it turns out his wife hated that car and "didn't want it anyway".
I was pretty mad when I realized I had lost my only opportunity to get that deal.
In the end, I got a 90 300ZX 2+0 Automatic for $900, and realized I kinda hated it. Real nightmare car to work on; it was a tight fit for everything even as an NA, the weight distribution was weird, it was squirrelly on the track, and I could only imagine how much worse two snails and all that plumbing would have made the ownership experience had I owned a twin turbo. Sold it for a profit and moved on.
I found out the same guy I trusted with my money wiped out with said motorcycle and struck a utility pole and shattered his pelvis. Pretty sure that costs a whole lot more (with healthcare costs being what they are), and was far more painful of a lesson than anything I could have rendered.
The universe works in funny ways, I suppose.
@@DJSekuHusky You know, I’d love to find an early-mid 70s 240sx to restore.
I just saw a scam on FB this morning. 1968 Camaro convertible restomod. Matte red. Black wheels and trim. Supposedly in Minnesota with pictures of the car in an obviously Southern state. $20K.
I had a person borrow my car while I was at work and was supposed to pick me up the end of my shift. They traded my car for crack. No title, no money, just some crack. I had to find a way home and when I got there, the person that was supposed to pick me up... Was there! I asked where my car was. They try to tell me it was stolen. But the story didn't pan out, and I found out where he got it "stolen" from. I made him drive me over to that address. I had the spare key so I just walked up, got in the car, drove it away. Other than maybe getting shot at what were they going to do? He asked if I was going to go tell them I was taking it. Why would I need to? ? The titles in my name. He was pretty upset because now they were going to be after him for the money, which I just said that I didn't care.
Good for you bro. Sounds about right! I never ever lend out my cars or even let anyone drive them. My mom is the only one I ever trusted to drive my cars. She drove like a grandma even in her 40s 50s
Whenever I see “selling for a friend” I don’t even bother. In the rare chance it’s not a scam, they usually don’t have the title or keys, etc. Your suspicions were correct, and now you might have a legitimate chance to buy this Beretta in the future. So it might have been worth the 48 hours of travel and negotiation
Made the right connections! 🍻
The selling for a friend is how i got my jeep only he had title that was just signed no date etc and he had the keys he had everything and that is the only reason i bought it plus no deposit cause it was right up the road so certain situations can apply to buying from the sellers friend😁
Listen to the Wizard. No title, no deal.
The last time I bought a car off marketplace, I got lucky and had a cop driving by, I flagged him down and explained the situation, and had him run the vin on it.. He did one better and made sure the deal was recorded on body cam- it showed both the sellers ID as well as mine, and the title, in case he tried to do some post sale stolen vehicle crap. The seller was super cool with it and happily agreed to it because he didn't want me to think I was getting scammed or whatnot. The officer told me that if I buy another car, I could always call dispatch, and tell them I'm buying a used car, and just need someone to run the vin for me and they could do it over the phone.. I'm sure all places are different. This video is one of the reasons I prefer to just go to an actual dealership to get a car. Sucks you lost your money, but at least you still had a good time and got some good food. Better luck next time
Damn, I've never seen someone lose $150 and 3 hours of their life and still have fun before!
It was a wild ride, with some great food! 😂
@@WatchJRGo ehh the video will make up the cost. Also if you don’t know. There is a prototype beretta that has a Yamaha tuned v8 if I remember right. Supposedly GM made it and then decided the Camaro had a V8 so why compete with yourself and then stuck the 6 cylinders in instead. Or maybe it was tossed due to budget constraints.
You guys are having way too much fun!
@@J.B-is8fb For JRgo yeah, but somebody is going to show up for it and smash all the windows by not getting their money back.
hmm...have you not been to vegas before :D
I used to own a 95 Beretta. Definitely a cool rare car these days. Hopefully you can make a deal happen now that you’re in contact with the right people.
@@BringerOfDearth I always wanted a GT version in black. Mine was just a standard v6 automatic in white. I’m sure the GT versions are just as collectible as the pace cars.. although I hated the seats. Which is probably why it’s so rare now. Nobody wanted it new. 😂
I own a beretta 92. Great shooter
This story reminded me of something similar (but worse) that happened to a subcontractor who worked for me. He actually sent a money order to a person in Europe to purchase a motorcycle, and after he sent the money order-- wait for it-- the person disappeared! $6000... gone! And absolutely no recourse. He did the deal with Instant Messenger, and after the money order was verified to have been received, the IM was no longer a valid address. A very expensive lesson...
Oddly enough, there is a yellow pace car advertised online in Harrisonville Ks. for $2200. It shows as being on Craigslist and is described as "sitting a while". Coincidence? 😉😂
John, as others have said, you should be able to claim back your money from PayPal. It has to be worth a try and you've noting to lose. If you used a credit card with your PayPal you might be able to claim from the card provider. This is one of the classic scams. When the so-called "seller" was asking more for the deposit, I smelled a rat. You did right to refuse.
Paypal buyer protection doesnt apply to property or cars
You pays your money and you takes your chances! You have a great attitude which will see you through these rough patches. Keep doing what you're doing. Suddenly the world is chock full of scammers, it's sad. Glad you don't let it get to you.
I've been buying, fixing up, driving then selling vehicles for many years and it's only in the past 8 or 10 that title jumping, odometer rollbacks and scammers have nearly taken over.
Rule #1 is if it's for sale cheaper than other comparable ones, something's probably up.
I love it, "the title holder's in jail and the title itself is in storage" - priceless 😆
And yet in this case "the title holder's in jail and the title itself is in storage" was true! It was the rest that was B.S.!
The quality of people has deteriorated so much in the past 10 years. I don’t blame the internet; I blame the parents.
December is always the most difficult with cars on marketplace. Then January, February. People are throwing money at you for $3000 cars and almost giving away their old cars
My EX wife had this exact Beretta. Same color , same Indy 500 badges, same wheels with matching yellow accent paint. I tinted her windows black, put those old GTS headlight and taillight covers on it.
Lol, I haven’t seen one of these Chevy Beretta’s in a very long time.
I can't believe Berettas are still around. I haven't seen one in years. Remember the Corsica? Exactly, they just disappeared.
Ca$h for clunkers took em
Want one of these! Would go great with my 84 Fiero pace car and my 81 Trans Am Daytona 500 pace car. The berettas are hard to find for sure.
I went to look at a car for sale 40 miles away once. I set a time to meet with the seller at a bank. As i was turning into the bank the car was driving away and the seller sent me a text saying sorry just sold the car. I drove 80 miles for nothing ! He had multiple people meeting him there so he must have just been a car flipper.
I went to see a Civic for sale many years ago , there were 3 people already there looking at it. Guy said he would take 500 over asking price, i just walked to my car. I would of probably paid his new price if he hadn't told all those other people to come too. It was a cluster...
I subscribe to 3 RUclips mechanics/auto-related channels and all 3 have now had this exact experience buying cars off of Facebook. Sorry you lost money, but thanks for your honesty and taking us along for the ride. I swear I'll never do business on FB.
It's tricky, this is the only one that strung me along well enough to get money. Usually it's pretty clear they can't sell the car 😬
Man I remember these cars well. There were a couple of these rolling around OKC in the early 90s. I always loved the color scheme. Hope you end up getting this car eventually.
Facebook marketplace has become a cess pool, I had a deal worked out on a truck 8 hours away, everything set to go, the night before he texts me he sold it to his brother instead. Thankfully I hadn't left yet as I was considering driving down over night and getting a hotel.
I once sold a car on the phone to a guy named "Steve" who lived hours away from me. We scheduled a meet time. Someone named Steve knocked on my door an hour early, cool I thought, and bought it and drove off. Turns out he was a different Steve that saw the sale sign in the window. The phone Steve was quite mad at me when he pulled up to buy a car I had already sold. At least with Facebook I can see pics and sell to the correct Steve.
The normal scam I see is a really rare car at a really cheap price and I’m guessing they take a deposit. Typically 60s Mustangs in my experience are the ones the scammers pick the most.
Would have been nice to restore it and then bring it to the Indy 500 in hopes they will parade it around the track before the race.
That would've been epic... everyone love throwbacks! 🍻
@WatchJRGo they always have throwbacks on the track before the race. You really should come to it one time? Apparently, it's a top 10 bucket list item for men. I've been to it a couple of times, that's because I live about 30 minutes (with no traffic) from it.
I have not seen one of those since 1991. They also had the Custom GM Conversion Convertible Conversion.
Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio had a Beretta convertible prototype in their Automotive building's lobby. It was pretty cool looking. It had the basket handle like the Olds Cutlass Supreme convertible. I heard they never went to production because they folded up in crash testing.
I was going to say I sold the cutlass supreme, and the Beretta both brand new. The sarcastic name for the cutlass supreme convertible is the flexible flyer. We had one show signs of stress, bending after being ran hard through a Cloverleaf.
The Beretta Convertibles were the actual Pace cars, of those there were literally a handful, 3-5 cars made by ASC I believe. The one in this video was just a sticker package from Chevy dealers at the time. They sold a few thousand in yellow and teal. I think a sunroof was available. The hoop was just a flat piece of metal under shitty plastic. Because of the vertical door handles on regular Beretta doors that were now frameless with a convertible top. The real cars had yellow lenses installed in the hoop bar and the tail light panel. The one at my school had a dark interior with the yellow striped seats 3.1lv6 and 4 speed atx. Best looking Beretta ever. No engine mods so far as I could tell. I could not find a switch for the lights, nor were there any visible bulbs under the yellow lenses. There was a red convertible on a brochure in a more standard trim, not sure if that car existed or was a photoshop. The Oldsmobile was a different platform, W I think, and I assume was stronger, at least enough to be sold.
Yeah, once something sketchy starts happening in the communications about the title, or something about other people being involved, I will just walk away from the deal. All we want is clean clear cut deals... 💯
I ran into that situation many of times where I have bought a car and the people had to use the money for bail for their significant others.
Oh man, a Baretta!
Also, i don't have the Miata anymore. Traded it for a Sonoma that ended up being a pile of garbage. Used that truck towards my down-payment for a 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport LE.
Hope all is well, JR!
Just checked the marketplace listing. They claim it's a clean title. 😂
When using PayPal never send to “friends & family” unless they’re actually friends & family so you have a recourse to open a claim when it’s a scam.
I tried selling my 1991 Z28 on craigs list. I'll never do it again. I was very specific on what I was willing to trade for and got all sorts of offers of crap I didn't want. One guy had me hold it for 2 weeks until he got the money together. Said he was on the way and never showed up. Got a call a few hours later of a guy that was interested. I said ok this is what I want for it. I had already come down on it more than I wanted. I said bring a trailer. He didn't bring a trailer. At this point i'm just tired of the bs. The guy talked me down another $100. I said give me your money and get the fuc% out of here. I'll never do it again.
After buying a $100,000 truck, they SHOULD steal all of your money.
If the Title doesn't have the Sellers Name on the Title, walk away! It is a Jumped Title, which is illegal!
It's on marketplace with two different prices. $7000 and $2000. "clean title." Such a shame too. It's a nice car.
No risk no reward.
Really do hope you manage to get this one.
If you PayPal'd the money, presumably you can report as scam/request a refund?
That's what I was going to say. Assume almost anything of FBM is a scam just as much or more than what people used to think with Craig's list, because it's just easier to scame because FB is more picture oriented.
I don’t think they refund “send money to friend or family” only for purchases. But I’m not sure how he sent the money just that he used PayPal
@@pops55650 If you send money "to friend" for a purchase that is scamming PayPal so you deserve what you get.
If anyone needs money immediately, it's a scam.
And my biggest problem with buying a car on Craigslist/marketplace is just getting the person to meet. If they can't meet within 24 hours they ghost you.
🤦♂It's a whole new world out there. The online car shopping experience.
I agree with you about buying and selling on Facebook. It has been a little hard selling really good cars lately. And the buyers all act like dbags. I don't remember it being this bad 10 years ago on craigslist.
My neighbor was telling me that he would never post photos, or post the address to his rentals online because someone would take that information using it in a scam.
It's really sad how corrupt people have become since the Internet age. I guess that's why law enforcement has statutes that makes swindling someone online a criminal offense and not a mere misdemeanor.
Yeah, you should never post the VIN. When someone texts asking for it, I reply I'll give it to you if you call. Scammers never call.
"It's not like we're driving a hundred" (like in the McLaren).
Not every adventure results in buying a car. Some of the best stories are non-buying trips.
Latest FB scam is a black 2008 911 cab for $10K. Multiple ads from many locns.
The Speedometer discussion sounds like a lot of the mid west states are basically the American Autobaun. Higher speed limits likely because you're going to be driving for hours on relatively flat land between cities.
Yup! The only stops are gas stations, you don't see a city for at least 3 hours, it's just grueling driving. 🏎
Morning JR- Great content lately - Any plans to work on your Helix this winter? Even a detail vid (with "back to black" plastic trim comparison) would be fun to see.
Yes to a Helix vid or series!
I still have luck with Craigslist. It takes a little longer, but the buyers are usually decent. Facebook marketplace is a dumpster fire buying or selling.
And commercial vehicle will pop you speeding, 84 in a 75 pulling that trailer.
Could have been a lot worse! Maybe things will still work out and you'll be able to buy the car.
I've always heard it as "eight, you're great, 9, you're mine" in the pushing the limit world.
And this is why I stopped buying and selling cars on marketplace
NEVER, EVER send money before the deal! I know, it made for some great content. Next time, show up with some fake decals for a Repo Company and load it up and go.
No! Facebook is not the new craigslist. People on Marketplace are infinitely worse.
The scams on market place are out of control i live in Orlando and been trying to find a good used car for around a 1000 dollars about 80 percent of the ads are fake
Ask the nearest legit mechanic
Driving truck, pulling trailer, reading phone and presenting to camera at highway speed. Checks out.
There were 4500 of these made. 1500 yellow, 3000 turquoise. A low mileage turquoise sold on BaT a couple of years ago for $12K. Unless this yellow one is mint, it won't bring much more than that. I had an '88 Beretta. Absolutely loved it.
There were actually 6000 turquoise Pace Car replicas made. A total of 7500.
You can be the poster child for distracted driving😁
I had a guy tell me to meet him at the his local PD…no problem right…then the dude tries to rip me off at the PD…I had a friend (local copper) watching the transaction from the smoking area of the PD…he came out and arrested the dude for intimidation and threats of bodily harm. I was armed and really not worried but, my bud saved the day.
One ad read and this monetized video and you'll make 10 fold what that scammer got out of ya. Scammers are everywhere and I'm glad you came out clear and safe.
I have a buddy's grandma in Oregon that has a SUPER mint condition Chevy Beretta Indy 500 with 45k miles. And everytime I see it it's really eye candy. If you can get one in mint/perfect condition I think you'd be golden. Quite a coincidence you posted this when I first saw it too lol
In my state, there are hefty penalties when there is a delay in the title transfer. Let's say you bought a car from a guy who bought it and never transferred the title, When you try to take the (signed) title to the DMV, you'll be asked some questions like "Do you know the owner whose signature is on the title?" and stuff like that. I finally got it done, but because there was such a delay between the signing at the original sale and the time I applied for transfer, I paid some pretty hefty penalties that the 2nd seller may not have known about. I think buying a car and not transferring the title used to be common with folks who were going to resell them, but at least in South Carolina, let the buyer beware! It's bad enough even when there's no funny stuff. And I'm glad to know that you carry some protection with you - everyone should!
Here this will cheer you up, you have become my favorite Auto RUclipsr the content has been so good lately.
If he's out buying a car, he's probably scamming the seller.
If you used PayPal didn't you use the protection aspect that allowed you to get your money back?
I worked at a Chevy dealer when those cars were new. Just seeing ANY Beretta in the wild these days is rare. I don't think most of them survived the second owners.
I only know of one I still see my friends aunt has a red one with 149k she bought new it's a z24 if I remember pretty good shape looks nice runs great
@@frankm8533 ~ The Z24 was the one to have. They had decent handling for a cheap car.
@genericsomething i like the body style I went to high school in the 90s there was 4-5 in the parking lot my buddy had a teal green one from like 96 to 2004. I never see them for sale anywhere anymore I use to drive a dark purple Z24 caviler back then I loved it haha
I mean, if it was through PayPal can't you just dispute the payment?
The interior of that car from the pictures sure didn't look perfect ???
I never thought I'd see the day where there would be a market so vast for Chevy Berettas that people were scamming on them. 😆
Don't read me wrong, I love '90s quirk... but... dang!
The "seller" is probably taking deposits all day, the car was even nicer than the pictures in person 😳
@@WatchJRGo Well... I once managed to buy a car from a guy who was in prison. I'm sure you can too if you want it bad enough! 😆
@@WatchJRGo well, as you've now, potentially, got an 'in' on the car, if it actually becomes available with all the necessary documentation, $150 may turn out to be money well spent. Personally, i suspect all those people you spoke to were involved in this 'scam' and i'd be very weary of paying any more deposits up front on it if it comes your way in the future 👍
Should have brought "The Statue" from your old shop with you, might have been a different outcome
Love your work and the McLaren you recently aquired is absolutely gorgeous,so jealous but my 2018 Corolla will just have to do for now anyway. Greetings from all the way from Australia 🇦🇺
I had a case where the seller was going to report it stolen after I bought it. When he said he didn't have the title I said the car is worth less than zero without it so NOW do you have the title? "Click" It amazes me how many of the private sellers try to sell without a title or it's been unreg'ed for so long it would eat up the entire value of the car just to reg it. This does happen in high tax states like commiefornia.
Most of the "no title" cars I run in to lately are property of the title loan places. They get a title loan and then quit paying for it and sell the car without a title. It might then be reported stolen by the lawful owners, the title place, several months later. Bottom line, never buy without a title. Heck, even a duplicate or bonded title is a giant red flag these days
@@05milmachine90 What's a bonded title? Never heard of it.
@@InsideOfMyOwnMind when you apply for a new title after one was lost or some other circumstances where the regular title is bad or missing. It is bonded for a period of time before it can become a regular title. It can be contested during that time.
I have a 2020 250 Platinum that looks exactly like your new truck from the outside. Your dash screen video quality is better than mine. After 2 years and 35k miles I have zero complaints with my 2020 though. I hope you have as good of an ownership experience with your Limited as I've had with my Platinum!
the BBQ logic is my kinda logic
The BBQ was very worth it 💯
Loved the vid and 'Public Service Announcement'. man this sucks, I feel for you, having to drive over 6 hours pulling an empty trailer. I was so looking forward to you getting that car, what an awesome find. I had a 96 Beretta with the 3.1, put over 300K miles on it, and it got great gas mileage, I could get 36 mpg driving back and forth from Wichita to all over western Kansas. The only problem I had with it was the GM intake gasket issue, replaced those and put another 100k on the car.
if you sent via paypal, contact them and explain the situation, they may be able to refund you.
Man I thought FBM and CL were bad in MY area, this takes the cake. So many tire kickers, window shoppers, ULTRA lowballers offering you half your asking price (when you're already $1500 below book) makes me lose more faith in humanity by the day.
Man, I can't believe people would really want to pay that much ($15000) for a Beretta. That was the first car my wife ever bought not to long after we got together. Total pile of trash car. It's impossible for me to think of people being nostalgic for them.
Rare Old Cars = All the money on Bring A Trailer 😛
@@WatchJRGo calling a Beretta "old" makes me feel downright freaking ancient. 😁
My first car was a POS hand me down 88 Beretta my sister had before I bought a 91 Bonneville.
Fun video, thanks for the look behind the curtain. I had no idea you had to deal with so many yahoos, that must take up so much of your time.
Selling them is the worst, people ask 30 questions, say they're on the way and then vanish 😳
Scammers are working harder than ever right now. They always operate on your desperation and kindness. Everyone has to be careful these days, even pros are sometimes getting scammed.
Time to do some sketchy....darn scammer! Let's sick some scammer RUclipsrs on that guy. I've heard great things about Q39! Haven't been yet....next trip through KC!
Had no idea GM did a Pace Car version of the Beretta. First time I saw one I thought it was pretty cool (1987) and rented one out west in 1988....that 2.2L 4 cyl did NOT like driving up to Reno from Sacramento. Would be pretty cool if you can make a deal on that ride! Don't think I ever saw that color combo, so must have been pace car only.
I always ask them to take a picture of something specific on the car on Marketplace. Over half the cars are scams.
Regarding VIN check, if the car will accept a engine diagnostic reader, confirm the VIN shown by the diagnostic reader is the same as on the car.
PayPal sucks. I got scammed for very little money. $50. The seller sent me a package. It contained children’s stickers. I went to PayPal and explained it was a scam. PayPal sided with the scammer. I refuse to pay with them ever again.
I got scammed for $200 once. I went to the dude's place of employment and got him fired. Then a month later, his Harley burned up.
Sounds like you got the last laugh 💯
My Oldhead had the Barretta and Eurosport
What a really cool car. Hopefully it works out and you still get the car. Would be cool to see on the channel !
I'll keep trying now that I know the real decision makers 💯
Man, I just realised your wife was with you too, I hope she was waiting somewhere safe whilst you went to deal with the criminals.
She made sure her firing position was clear of anything dangerous.
@@tumekeehoa3121 LOL, with her body armour and 12 guage 🤣🤣🤣
The fear always have when traveling to pick up parts or cars. But cannot turn down deals.
So everyone in the neighborhood knows who it is, and aren't involved, but nobody is going to tell the police about him?
Sound complicit to me lol
By “protection” i hope you mean ‘sidearm’……preferably a .45 acp
Handy with the steel if you know what I mean. 💪
Been there 100s of times. Sad, people just can’t be honest anymore. I’m always on market place and when I read or hear a story when I’m asking, I just walk away anymore.
The reason it took the guy two days to get back to you in the beginning was probably because he had another fish on the line. When that deal fell through, you were next in line.Wonder how much they gave him.
On a roll buying junk lately . WTF JR?
1st I'm going to say. Get that cell phone out of your hand while driving. 2nd.. Facebook marketplace is full of scams and sadly Facebook does not do much about it.
I went to the 1990 Indy 500. Those Berretta pace cars were all over Indianapolis that weekend.
That's a bummer. I had a 94 Corsica, I had a bunch of Beretta parts in her. Tax dash, rear z51 swaybar, had a front strut tower brace from a 92 Cavalier wagon. LBody cars were everywhere up until I'd say about 2009...they all got used up and scrapped.
Dude, I'd LOVE to see that Beretta on your channel. I've had a bunch of them and absolutely loved them.
I was driving through the middle of nowhere in northern Wisconsin 10 years ago, and I passed a house that had THREE of these Beretta pace cars.
If I could go to get scammed with Watch Jr Goes I would drink the shot of whiskey and cold Bartle Skeets with him and puff on the Cannibus cigars with him and get all schmoked up.
I've been lucky buying and selling items on craigslist and FB Marketplace, but the scams are also out of control. Let's call this a PSA and help multiple people keep their hard-earned money where it belongs and not in the thief's pocket.
I had an 89 Beretta GT - great looking car - and drove great too - I really liked it. BUT -build quality was awful. In the four years I had it - the driver's seat broke (replaced under warranty), paint flaked off (repainted under "silent" warranty), stalling problem (fixed under warranty), AND driver's door fell off in my driveway (fixed under warranty). I finally sold it to Cash for Cars after the head gasket went.
JR - maybe you dodged a bullet here?
That was a very informative video for those of us who haven’t been exposed to the latest scams. By the way, let’s not oversell the Beretta. I sold those new. the old saying is you normally don’t sell many of what you don’t respect.
the Berreta is nothing but a two-door Corsica.
Not a stock Beretta
It's not the latest scam, it's just a typical advanced payment scam, which has been around for as long as there've been scamming people. Here, it's just being done through FBPM, but it's works like any other scam. They ask for money upfront, without anyway of holding them to the exchange. Once the money is received, the scammer takes the money and runs with it. You're left with no car, no money, and the scammer is gone.
If you want to avoid these types of scams, deal locally, with the car in front of you, and with the registered owner of that car, and in a secure location. And most importantly, don't ever send strange people money or any personal information.
I actually saw one of these Berettas at an Omaha U-Pullit roughly 4-5 years ago. It was fairly complete at the time....beat up/rusty, but all there and not wrecked, I remember thinking about trying to take something off of it, and I saw those seats and thought they were so ugly that nobody would want to pay for those, so I eventually just left without taking anything unique to the car. In hindsight I probably should have tried harder, but oh well.
JR, you seem like a really smart young man. Gifted maybe. Is dealing with knuckleheads like this what you want to do? I get the sense that you had a "normal" job at some point. Did you leave corporate America behind? I spent my whole life in corporate America, so that I could understand. You do roll with the punches really well, but this year has had a ton of punches. I tip my hat to your resolve, but I think you could do great things.
I don't have connections to make a mechanic lean. I always say "no title, no sale"
Rare to see one of these for sale. My buddy has the exact one...running and driving...all original with 56,000 original miles. Such a time capsule.
Is using a mobile while driving legal in your state? In the uk it is a no no.