I got burned on Ebay...

[Black P-38]

Bought a T-5 for my V-8 swap Ranger project off Ebay from the seller westcoastmustangs AKA Adrian L Ramon.

Trans was listed as 87-93 5.0 LX GT. When it arrived it was obviously from a 4 cylinder 2.3 liter Mustang. It has the small pilot sector, 3.97 1st, .79 OD, 3.70 reverse and is rated at 240 ft lbs torque.

I notified him by Email immediately and he argued with me over the true application. After going back and forth he said "Return it for a refund".

Only problem is he refuses to refund the $84 in shipping/insurance and expects me to pay the return shipping/insurance which he also refuses to refund along with a 5% restocking fee. I don't feel it's fair for me to take a loss of $192 because he misrepresented the item for sale. Hey, it's not like I'm being picky, it's NOT a V-8 T-5 as described.

I opened a dispute with Ebay and after another volley of messages over a ten day period was no closer to a resolution than before. I called Ebay today and spoke with a rep who basically said "Sorry for your bad experience, wish I could help you but I can't.

The purchase was paid with a Postal Money Order, sent Priority mail. If I had paid with PayPal, it would be different so I'm told.

So now I have a trans which is useless to me, he has my money and Ebay can do nothing about it. Just wanted to give you guys a heads up about this guy.

This wasn't a mistake, the tag had been removed and the bolt threaded back in finger tight, all other bolts were tight. I had asked him to email me the last 3 tag #'s following 13-52-xxx and he didn't but claims he did.

westcoastmustangs Ebay store currently has 216 items for sale including a 4cylinder bellhousing. In the description he states:

This is a used 87-93 Mustang LX 2.3 4 Cylinder 5 Speed Bell Housing. This was removed from a 89 Mustang. The bolts, pressure plate and the through out bearing are included. The tranny is junk so it is being scraped.

Okay, this is suspicious, why mention the trans? I say this is to cover up the fact he knowingly sold a 4 cylinder trans as a 5.0 8 cylinder trans. It goes along with removing the trans identification tag as a cover up for a dishonest seller. There are no other bellhousings for sale in his "store".

He also has a 4 cylinder flywheel for sale, the ONLY flywheel for sale in his store, hmmm... I believe he knowingly misrepresented the trans in order to sell it for a V-8 T-5 price and removed the tag in an attempt to cover up it's true application.

I am posting this information in hopes that it will save others from what I am going through. It is also intended as a warning to those Ebay purchasers who are under the impression that they are somehow protected in the Ebay "Community".

The truth is, unless you are purchasing with PayPal, (owned by Ebay), there is really nothing secure about it unless you are dealing with honest people to begin with. Before purchasing I checked his "Rating" which shows:

Meet the seller
Seller: westcoastmustangs( 6333)
Feedback: 99.8% Positive
Member: since Jan-16-02 in United States

I felt I was safe entering into a purchase commitment based on the info stated in Ebay and the illusion I would have some recourse in case there was an issue... so much for that...

Unfortunately I have made my LAST Ebay purchase, the trans was the single most expensive of all my Ebay purchases and the only one I had a problem with, of course. Today is 3 weeks since I hit the Buy It Now button, what a waste of time and money...

BUYER BEWARE!!!

Mike

 

[Shoeboy]

Theres a wall of sorts where you can place user reviews on it, just start spamming the wall with the typical " he screwed me, he gave me this when he clearly said it was that, now he will not give me all my money back, or make the deal right" sort of thing. This happened to a buddy of mine, he started spamming the guys review wall, and eventually, the guy started to lose enough business from this that he made it right with my buddy. Make it public, in his profile non the less, that he screwed you. Thats about all you can do aside from being stiffed for the $200 in S/H and "restocking" .

 

[Black P-38]

Thanks for the advice, I will at least try doing that. I knew I was in trouble when I received the package, as the "box" felt like picking up a bag of dirt.Turns out it was assembled from new Priority Postal Mail 8"x8"x12" flattened boxes taped together.

The trans was inside of 2 thin drawstring trashbags, untied and unsealed.
It hadn't been completely drained and the ATF had leaked out of the bags, saturating the loosley wadded newspaper and additional flattened Priority boxes tossed in as "packing". The trans had thrashed around tearing holes through the "box" as large as 3".

This thing was a spontaneous combustion hazard waiting to erupt in the back of UPS trucks traveling through distribution centers from Garden Grove Ca to Oregon.
Here's a couple pics of the "box" the trans was shipped in and some of the ATF soaked newspaper...

Can you imagine shipping a transmission in this??? WOW!!!

 

[Shoeboy]

HAHAHAHAHAHA that is amazing. I've always seen Engines/Transmissions come strapped to a shipping pallet wrapped in about 10 miles of cling film, and steel banded, or the used ones at least semi secured, except for the ones we get in Calgary, they just come in the box of a truck, but thats only for short distances and same day delivery, including them going to their yard and removing it.

 

[mjonesjr]

since you sent a Postal money order, print out the auction page, print some info on the transmission, get all the info on the seller you can (name, address, phone #) and take it to the post office. I believe that is a mail fraud case since they didn't send you the item described.

 

[mhughes165]

since you sent a Postal money order, print out the auction page, print some info on the transmission, get all the info on the seller you can (name, address, phone #) and take it to the post office. I believe that is a mail fraud case since they didn't send you the item described.

x2 and spam his wall anyways, eventually he will buckle

 

[97RangerXLT]

since you sent a Postal money order, print out the auction page, print some info on the transmission, get all the info on the seller you can (name, address, phone #) and take it to the post office. I believe that is a mail fraud case since they didn't send you the item described.

Yep, mail fraud is definitely a no no, and it sounds like you got a good case against him. And he will be investigated by FEDERAL investigators, not the bottom feeders at fleaBay.

AJ

 

[predator]

dont forget to keep us posted on how long it takes to stick it to this guy!!!

 

[almostclueless]

it appears misrepresented....but be aware you usually don't get back ur shipping.

 

[mhughes165]

unless the product was completely misrepresented as in this case. then u will get complete purchase price plus shipping refunded and MAY be able to keep the transmission if they refuse to pay for shipping back

 

[mfp4073]

go after the mail fraud. And also contact the PD where he lives or does busniness. If you can make yourself annoying enough the $200 will be worth it for him to make you go away.


and paypal IS NOT protection like you think it is. Have known MANY people who got ripped off and paypal did nothing. Basically, until paypal stands to loose money they will do very little for you.

 

[Black P-38]

Thanks for the encouragement guys, I'll do what I can and keep you posted on the outcome. I hope I can get a positive resolution to this matter. I hate to stop buying on Ebay but not as much as I hate the idea of getting burned. I had some great experiences with sellers who are honest and met some very nice people.

Mike