Won ebay auction at 60K for E90 M3, BMW of Lincoln refusing to honor

[drkbrent]

Originally Posted by Xcellere

I just got off the phone with the dealership and I told them they have to sell you the car. I threatened legal action against them should they try and give you a runaround. The man I spoke to was named Sean Holse (sp?), and he said he's been trying to call you. Call 402 479 7500 and ask for him. Tell him "Fred" spoke to him earlier to try and help and you want your car at the eBay price: nothing more, nothing less. Hope this helps and definitely go get your car.

That's one of the coolest things I've ever seen a fellow member do for another member! Makes me proud to be an American!

[Jack28]

Thats really Fucked Up! I hope you get the car cuz it looks Sweet!

[skierman64]

dooma350: Any update since you posted late last night? What happened today?

[jm1234]

You are in "plus" territory. You have a clear legal right to the car for $60K, it's just a question of how much more you want to get. If this is truly a "multi-billion" dollar company (cough-cough), then you'll get all your legal fee's back plus plenty more.

1) They've admitted you won the auction (a legally binding contract that goes beyond a verbal gentleman's agreement into clearly documented territory with third party validation).
2) They admitted their representative was a voluntary party to the auction.
3) They've validated the price.
4) You've contacted them several times to try and settle the deal and they have refused on multiple occasions.
5) They are trying to negotiate a better price on a final sale in violation of the contract.

That is clear cut breach of a documented and valid legal contract and they admit having the money to cover expenses (what billion dollar company can't afford tens of thousands in punitive damages).

Buy the car at whatever local dealership you like (the car will not be tampered with and do you really want a car that's been through this dealership) and then hire a lawyer and go after them for $50,000 plus legal expenses plus interest plus whatever you've spent above $60K to purchase the car. It will take years but you get the car now knowing that you'll get it at $60K (corrected) plus pocket change for your trouble. You might even find a lawyer willing to take this case on contingency because it's a good case (based on this little visible here). Nothing legal is ever can't loose but this is pretty close, and with the documentation you have now you can't go wrong taking this route. You're only issue is if the dealership goes bankrupt before you get paid.

I recall once winning an auction on a truck. I gave the auction house the check only to have them tell me, sorry we made a mistake, we weren't supposed to accept bids under a certain amount. It was the auction house that made the mistake (live auction) and not the seller but it was not my mistake but I was supposed to pay for it (drive back out, research another batch of vehicles and then go through the bidding again to get what I wanted). I made them pay me $1K to "void" the auction. It was either that or get me that truck for what we agreed to and then pay the seller the $2K more that the auction price to the seller for his truck.

It sounds like in addition to the documentation you have there is other documentation out there showing that this wasn't a mistake and was a willful breach of contract thus justifying punitive damages in addition to your losses.

Put together a package now and start contacting lawyers local to the dealership. The dealership will pay for the lawyer even if they decide to give you the car at $60K and the lawyer can make sure that the care is clean for you and take receipt and then charge the dealership for the service.

[Bookem]

I have been reading this forum for years...I was so pissed off after reading what happened I had to join. I wanted to let you know since I live here in the Omaha area...I have started to send this story out to the local news media. Hopefully someone will hold that stealership accountable.
So far I have e-mailed one local Omaha TV station (Lincoln is only 50 miles away) and two Lincoln TV stations.

[DJ9]

What an unethical dealership. They really need to fire the individual responsible for posting the listing; and learn from their bonehead mistake.

Good luck buddy!

[achenator]

Just start asking around about lawyers. You may get lucky and find a lawyer that already has a score to settle with the dealer. Lots of lawyers drive BMW's.

[MelsM3]

I hate piece of sh*t car dealerships!

F*ck them all!

[mkoesel]

Out of curiousity, I checked the price at edmunds. Here it is:

							MSRP	Invoice	
National Base Price					$53,800	$49,495
ZTP Technology Package					 $3,250	 $2,960	
752 Enhanced Premium Sound				 $1,900	 $1,730	
ZPP Premium Package (w/Aluminum Interior Trim)		 $1,900	 $1,730
2MT 19" Wheels w/Performance Tires			 $1,200	 $1,090
403 Moonroof						 $1,050	   $955
ZCW Cold Weather Package				 $1,000	   $910
655 Satellite Radio					   $595	   $540
417 Rear Manual Side Window Shades			   $575	   $525
--  Metallic Paint					   $475	   $430
6FL iPod and USB Adapter				   $400	   $365
653 HD Radio						   $350	   $315
507 Park Distance Control (Rear Only)			   $350	   $320
Destination Charge					   $775	   $775
Gas Guzzler Tax						 $1,300	 $1,300
Total with Options					$68,920	$63,440

So $60k is $8,920 off MSRP, and $3,440 off Invoice. I suspect you are right around military price on the car.

[Technic]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

Out of curiousity, I checked the price at edmunds. Here it is:

							MSRP	Invoice	
National Base Price					$53,800	$49,495
ZTP Technology Package					 $3,250	 $2,960	
752 Enhanced Premium Sound				 $1,900	 $1,730	
ZPP Premium Package (w/Aluminum Interior Trim)		 $1,900	 $1,730
2MT 19" Wheels w/Performance Tires			 $1,200	 $1,090
403 Moonroof						 $1,050	   $955
223 Electronic Damping Control				 $1,000	   $910
ZCW Cold Weather Package				 $1,000	   $910
655 Satellite Radio					   $595	   $540
417 Rear Manual Side Window Shades			   $575	   $525
--  Metallic Paint					   $475	   $430
6FL iPod and USB Adapter				   $400	   $365
653 HD Radio						   $350	   $315
507 Park Distance Control (Rear Only)			   $350	   $320
Destination Charge					   $775	   $775
Gas Guzzler Tax						 $1,300	 $1,300
Total with Options					$69,920	$64,350

So $60k is $9,920 off MSRP, and $4,350 off Invoice. I suspect you are right around military price on the car.

223 is included in the ZTP, so $1000 are not accounted for...

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by Technic

223 is included in the ZTP, so $1000 are not accounted for...

Yep, my mistake. Edmunds doesn't have that info, so their price calculator lets you add things that don't make sense.

[ky_soldier]

military price is about $4800 off.

as for this thread, I love it. screw these bastards and make them famous.

can you imagine going to barret-jackson, sotheby's or manheim and pulling this crap? absolutely no difference. I would find an attorney who is used to dealing with auction sales and let them run with it.

two things are facts in this case~

first, you bought the car legally for 60k
second, that dude in the earlier thread has absolutely no clue how ebay works (BIN vs reserve) :-)

Go get em buddy. I'm pullin for you.

[Los Angeles]

Fight this case to the death. You can do it. That dealer needs to own up to their mistake and sell the f-ing car. Sons of bitches!

[moog55]

the car is yours if you pursue this aggressively. the dealership is better off just letting purchase the car for $60K compared to cost of the bad PR they'd receive if they didn't honor the auction.

i also think that no matter what the ebay fine print says, that they also would take a credibility hit if they don't step in and side with the OP.

[Big Windy]

i'm coming in way late on this thread...but what a ridiculous situation. good luck. don't give up.

[e46e92love]

Originally Posted by Samifumi

I am not a licensed attorney in the state of Nebraska, but I am in Texas. The Uniform Commercial Code has been adopted by every state in the United States (but for Louisiana), and this is simply a breach of contract, as most of you guys have noticed. An eBay contract is a legally enforceable contract, and the dealership should have delegated the authority and responsibility to list the M3 to an employee with knowledge and experience setting the terms. Salespeople, even those who do it online, have the vested authority to make sales, and thus the company that owns the dealership will be held responsible for the acts of their agents.

I wish I was in Nebraska. I would do it just for fun. I might even throw in a Deceptive Trade Practice claim, on which there would be treble damages and attorney's fees awarded. Throw in the words "Deceptive Trade" in your next conversation. Nebraska has a Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

87-302. (a) A person engages in a deceptive trade practice when, in the course of his or her business, vocation, or occupation, he or she:
(9) Advertises goods or services with intent not to sell them as advertised;

With regard to the BBB, they are really just an Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanism. They'll mediate your dispute, but it's not necessarily binding on the dealership. The dealership will only jeopardize their membership with the BBB if it turns in your favor and they do not honor the resolution (I do not know how much that means to them). I would recommend, if you have a mediation, that you go in fully prepared.

From a fellow attorney........+100000000. Nice write-up counsel.

[AYF82M4]

No updates as of today, but one thing is for certain; I've pretty much made up my mind to see this thing thru to the end. These shady dealerships need to be held accountable, I dont care what it takes.

On monday, I will try to reach ebay but if it looks as if there will be delays, Im not going to wait on them, but instead call the dealership one last time before proceeding with some form of legal action. I just need to figure out how to proceed in finidng a good lawyer in the area, so If anyone has any adivce on that I would appreciate any posts on that. One thign for sure is, I dont think I can afford to sit around, as the dealership may sell the car and complicate things.

Samifumi, Excellere, I appreciate the legal advice you have both given me. I definitely feel better about my case with some of the things you both pointed out. Excellere friggin called the dealership for me!
Bookem, thanks for sending that story out. If you could post some of the major newspapers, meda outlets in the Lincoln area, Id really appreciate it.
And everyone else that have posted here supporting me, I cant express my gratitude enough. Specifically, thats:

Technic, Laszlo, skierman64, mkoesel, SteveMondragon, ideliver, NavNurs, viobruin, rickc, landon305, Epacy, ChrisFastM3, mduval1988, ArtPE, Hankdoll, OC335i, Salespunk, runutzzzzz,moog55, smmmurf, monsta, redmtclimber, mdrobc13, achenator, leewoods18, ky_soldier, SnowsM3, LosAngeles, drkbrent, knext21, jm1234, buschy, Jack28, abuzzl23p, MelsM3, MrHarris, DJ9, Stein, FifthStreetz, e46e92love, Bookem, CSLFanatik, ///MML, lucid, djdorifto, Jdebitjr, M3aHOLIC84, MC Mo Murda, UCLA1995, smoltz, grkmec, 1098WI, jinxter


Hope Im not missing anyone. Thanks again guys, the amount of support Im getting here is pretty incredible.

[Samifumi]

Your story made Autoblog, and from my experiences, that is the best automobile news coverage you could get.

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/23/b...t-want-to-hon/

[AYF82M4]

Yes, Im actually the one who submitted it on there, thanks to the suggestion of a member here. Good Stuff !!!

[kronzprinz]

i believe the "buy now" feature is automatically the lowest price you can get the item for.

[AYF82M4]

Originally Posted by kronzprinz

i believe the "buy now" feature is automatically the lowest price you can get the item for.

damn not again with this BIN/RESERVE nonsense !!! we went thru this a couple pages back!! I am the auction winner.

[Lil. Lucas]

:grouphug: