I am in a state of shock ! ! !

[RAP]

My bid for a 2000 Q45 appears to be a winner on Ebay! ! !

$ 8751.00 I was willing to go somewhat higher.

Now I am suspicious. Checking prices for this car on http://www.nada.com and various other sources I am shocked that the seller, a private individual, would accept such a low ball offer. I am suspicious because now I am thinking there is something wrong with this car. I did email the seller and asked a few questions, which were answered in a straightforward manner but I also got the distinct impression that the seller would try to at least try to bargain, upward. I am disappointed that the seller would just sorta roll over... Damn.

Ah well it seems like I will soon own a 2000 Q45 90000 miles.

Still I would feel better if the seller would have at least try to bargain but...

Lata. Jack

[AlabamaDan]

Haggling seems to be going by the wayside. I find people don't know how anymore and it gives those of us who do and advantage.

[pito11213]

Its about right to be honest man. I have noticed the prices coming down more and more. You can get a 740 BMW in that price range now, in good shape. I mean we are in 2008 just about and many of the "low end" cars are more decked out than older luxury cars. Good luck with that car my man.

[Q45tech]

To me a 90,000 mile 8 year old car is worth about 15% of new MSRP [less taxes] say $7300. But I am use to wholesale auctions where you buy, doll it up, fix the problems TEMPORARILY or cover them up and sell it to some non expert for $3-$4k more than you have in it.

If a transmission lasts 150k you have 60k possible life left so you owe the car $2400, if the AC lasts 150k you owe the car $1800, if the shocks haven't been change you owe the car $1000, say misc suspension rubber bushings, arms, transmission and motor mounts other failures $2,000.

the next 60,000 miles will consume $6-9,000. plus prorating your purchase price. You'll spend $12,000 in gasoline.

Whenever you buy make sure the seller can provide proof of oil changes at least every 6 months from brand new if you cannot physical examine things like pull the valve covers.

[elwesso]

could you link us to the ebay auction?

[Q451990]

I bet this is it:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...wItem

RAP,

It sure looks nice in the auction. Keep in mind that the seller may have wanted more, but just listed it as a straight auction... meaning no reserve. There's no room for haggling in an auction unless you set a reserve that's not met, and then start discussing what you'll take for it with someone after it's over.

Here's what I did on my eBay purchases... when I bought the Q, we ended the auction early, and I then booked a flight to San Jose, CA to see the car in person. I had a certified check in hand, and told the seller that I would check the car out first and then we would sign the paperwork. There was no way I was going to send him $$$ and have it loaded on a truck. Same deal on the G, clicked buy-it-now and drove to West Palm the next day. If you see the car and it's not as represented, I can't see how the bid can be enforced against you - but once it's sitting in your driveway, you have lost all of the leverage.

It looks like you're about a 12 hour drive from Ocala. I would highly consider taking a road trip.

Good luck and welcome to our cult... uh... club!

Heath

[maxnix]

My bid for a 2000 Q45 appears to be a winner on Ebay! ! !

Still I would feel better if the seller would have at least try to bargain but...

Let me suggest you would know better if you had the Infiniti dealer performed maintenance history along with other maintenance records and an inspection report from a senior Infiniti technician.

Price means nothing if you don't know the condition.

[RAP]

Thanks all for the advice.

I will send the seller 200 bucks via PayPal to sew up the deal. Then I will send a check to my son-in-law living in Ft.Myers, FL. The seller will drive the car there and IF everything is as said, concerning condition, the son-in-law will completethe deal. IF not I'm out 200 bucks and so long. No big deal.

I will forward the emails between me and the seller to the son-in-law. I've already forwarded the Ebay listing.

I am understanding that no-hagglin' if a minimum offer is set and the buyer at least meets that number. I'm learnin'.

The guy states he owned the car from 20000 miles to 90000 and Infinity did the up-keep as required. He further said the he would do a fresh oil change prior to delivery ? ? ?

We'll see how the deal goes.

Thanks. Jack

[maxnix]

Infinity did the up-keep as required.

This means many different things to different parties.

Hence my advice above. The maintenance records not only tell you what's been done and perhaps not done, but give an area in which the tech may want to delve deeper.

[96Qowner]

My bid for a 2000 Q45 appears to be a winner on Ebay! ! !

$ 8751.00 I was willing to go somewhat higher.

Now I am suspicious.

LOL! I know what you mean .... "Oh ... I won? ... gulp ... oh"

Heheh. I'm going on record to predict that it's exactly what he said it was - you just got luckier than you thought you were.

Congrats.

[RAP]

I bet this is it:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...wItem

RAP,

It sure looks nice in the auction. Keep in mind that the seller may have wanted more, but just listed it as a straight auction... meaning no reserve. There's no room for haggling in an auction unless you set a reserve that's not met, and then start discussing what you'll take for it with someone after it's over.

Here's what I did on my eBay purchases... when I bought the Q, we ended the auction early, and I then booked a flight to San Jose, CA to see the car in person. I had a certified check in hand, and told the seller that I would check the car out first and then we would sign the paperwork. There was no way I was going to send him $$$ and have it loaded on a truck. Same deal on the G, clicked buy-it-now and drove to West Palm the next day. If you see the car and it's not as represented, I can't see how the bid can be enforced against you - but once it's sitting in your driveway, you have lost all of the leverage.

It looks like you're about a 12 hour drive from Ocala. I would highly consider taking a road trip.

Good luck and welcome to our cult... uh... club!

Heath

Like they say around heah: das ma caw !

Looks nice to me. I like the clock. I see the Bose. What am I looking at directly below the radio.

Son-in-law and family will be driving it here so I told him to really kick the tires hard. He's not a mech though but maybe he'll find someone around where he lives who might be.

I doubt that this car will be near any Infinity mechs in the future. I have a couple of shade trees around here that do my work, with my FSM's, and they do OK. Plus they're two miles away versus 60. I also can do some work if I'm so inclined.

PLUS there is THIS resource, so what's to fear? I really learned what I needed to know, for the most part, about my '95 Legend on that forum and so far so good. Actually I read quite a bit more about the Q45 here, before buying, than I did for the Legend.

If the car is as advertised I'm good.

Lata . Jack

[elwesso]

Check the back of the car. It doesnt say infinity.

Looks like you got a nice car at a STEAL... congrats!

[T45]

I say you got a super deal on a very very clean Q. Look in the background in the garage. Pilot's keep everything they own in tip top shape. I guarantee you that your car is 100% as it looks in the pics and that the guy has more money to blow than you can shake a stick at. It says he just retired so he probably retired very well off and going from my ebay exp your car is golden!

No pun intended.

[greenwar]

Just to give an idea of how hard it is to sell a Q45. I had a 99 Q45T with 114k miles. New 4 shocks, new bushings all around, Turanza ls-v tires with 5k miles.. I sold it for 7200. It was in like new condition. So yes, 8700 is not that outrageously low. Congrats on the purchase.

I do miss my car now

[RAP]

Just to give an idea of how hard it is to sell a Q45. I had a 99 Q45T with 114k miles. New 4 shocks, new bushings all around, Turanza ls-v tires with 5k miles.. I sold it for 7200. It was in like new condition. So yes, 8700 is not that outrageously low. Congrats on the purchase.

I do miss my car now

Now he tells??? TOO late. I don't have access to auctions either so...

Actually $8750.00 ain't that great big amount of dinero today what with inflation.Depends what you want. In my case da dinero rolls into the bank monthly weather I want it or not I just wanted one of those cars, but not to the point of spending any obscene amount of money on it. It's after all, just a car.I do like to tinker with them, study the FSM's, cruise around in style inna "not the run of the mill" car- ya'll know what I mean.

Anyway, I appreciate youse interest.

Lata. Jack

[elwesso]

Just to give an idea of how hard it is to sell a Q45. I had a 99 Q45T with 114k miles. New 4 shocks, new bushings all around, Turanza ls-v tires with 5k miles.. I sold it for 7200. It was in like new condition. So yes, 8700 is not that outrageously low. Congrats on the purchase.

I do miss my car now

Unfortunately that stuff is not worth much more to most people....

[Q45tech]

Again the key is mileage and years when you known 7 years and 100k is the end of trouble free low cost driving. The first 100k costs 8 cents, the next 100k costs 15 cents and the 2 to 3rd 100k group costs even more.

Never have I heard of any 1 year period repairs costing as much as brand new to 1 year old depreciation. Same with the first 3 years where the value drops in half.

Buy a 3 year old for half and put away some extra money each year over and above repair costs and you'll always have enough.

When you start dealing in 10 year old models buy 2, 1 for spare parts.

[Q451990]

I like the clock. I see the Bose. What am I looking at directly below the radio.

That's the ash tray.

[maxnix]

Non touring is good in my book. Do change all fluids and add the auxiliary ATF cooler ASAP.

http://www.bgfindashop.com
Modified by maxnix at 11:46 PM 11/13/2007

[AlabamaDan]

Unfortunately that stuff is not worth much more to most people....

Another thing is that once a car is discontinued the resale price goes down. That's why I saw $ for $ a Q45 or J30 in good condition is the best deal. I still need to get another J30.... If only I had a larger garage.

[RAP]

Please relax. If I had just purchased a vehicle on line like you, I too would be nervous. But don’t be. This has been a wonderful car for me and it is still under warranty with Infinity. (their service is super by the way…down here you get a free loaner and wash with any service..makes an oil change cost effective!) I would not even consider selling this car, but since moving to our retirement home, I needed a truck for yard work etc and bought over a year ago which I left at our new house while we did the resoration of the home. That complete, we moved in. I now have a plane, moptorcycle, truck plus my wife Acura, so the Infinity is just sitting in the garage which makes no sense and is not good for the car. You got a great car for much less than you would have paid a dealer, and by the way, I probably got more than a dealer would have paid me, so we both won.



I was in the Air Force for five years, but am not a retired vet.



I will contact your relative in Fort Myers.



Enjoy the car.

The above is what the seller sent me via email. So...I feel OK about the deal.

Lata Jack

[maxnix]

This has been a wonderful car for me and it is still under warranty with Infinity. ... the Infinity is just sitting in the garage

First thing you need to do when you see the car is go around to the rear and read the trunk lid.

Have fun.

[Haitian_King]

Hey Pete? Meet Re-Pete.

Check the back of the car. It doesnt say infinity.

Seriously. It's like you type just to do it. Do you get a prize if you hit a certain post count?

[jmorasch]

CONGRATS on the car, the previous owner history is almost as important as the service history is. sounds like youve got a good deal

[RAP]

Again the key is mileage and years when you known 7 years and 100k is the end of trouble free low cost driving. The first 100k costs 8 cents, the next 100k costs 15 cents and the 2 to 3rd 100k group costs even more.

Never have I heard of any 1 year period repairs costing as much as brand new to 1 year old depreciation. Same with the first 3 years where the value drops in half.

Buy a 3 year old for half and put away some extra money each year over and above repair costs and you'll always have enough.

When you start dealing in 10 year old models buy 2, 1 for spare parts.

You some kind of number cruncher? ? ? on cars. The resident cost of things guy.

Really everyone here is probably not a wise person including yo.

If we were we would be driving what? A Civic ? Corolla? Focus? Suzuki? Any number of of sane and practical "means of conveyance" are available. If a college student has a deeeeeeep pocketed parent with unlimited dinero then of course he/she can drive anything they want otherwise, in a practical sense, driving a car such as we are talking about does not cut it. But they do buy 'em

Surely everyone here can calculate about what car ownership cost, if they were so inclined, but they apparently don't care too much or they would not get involved in a secondhand Q45, or other high end cars. I used wonder about the same thing when reading the Acura Legend board. How do the " money is short right now" guys justify buying such cars? Like Gallagher used to say "makes no sense"...

Some folks are simply irrational, yo included. " BUT I LIKE THIS CAR ", so...

The irrational guy, Jack

PS: Folks buying cars they shouldn't are not alone in their irrational world, their is, currently, a shake out going on in the housing market all because folks were buying houses they really couldn't afford and to do so got hooked up with "sub-prime loans".

Anyone need lessons in SUB-PRIME loans?

[pito11213]

Tech is the resident number cruncher her my man. LOL, he could blow you away with numbers and figures, it tends to fall on dear ears though.

I'll be back in the infiniti family in a few weeks, it'll be newer than what I had, and not a Q though. I need to go for economy vs. luxury at this point.

[Q451990]

You some kind of number cruncher? ? ? on cars. The resident cost of things guy.

Dennis is an engineer by trade, if that gives you an idea... Apparenlty he bought and drove his Q to about 100K with very little knowledge about what was going on with the car - just doing the dealer-suggested maintenence and living life. One day he noticed that the car didn't drive like it used to, steering felt a little weird etc. He then set out to educate himself on cars, and here we are today.

The bottom line is that he's one of, if not, the most knowledgable guys in the United States about the Q45 and we're very fortunate that he spends a lot of time here posting on NICO. A great deal of the advice I and other members here give, were originally learned from reading posts by Dennis. I have a tendancy to spoon feed things when I can, while Brian almost always refers to the flashing red button.

Anyhow, if Q45Tech says something that seems a little abrasive, it's probably not intended that way. I have met him on several occasions, and he's a hell of a nice guy - just remember that some things get lost in the translation from spoken to written word...

Heath

[maxnix]

You some kind of number cruncher? ? ? on cars. The resident cost of things guy.

Really everyone here is probably not a wise person including you.

If we were we would be driving what? A Civic ? Corolla? Focus? Suzuki? Surely everyone here can calculate about what car ownership cost, if they were so inclined, but they apparently don't care too much or they would not get involved in a secondhand Q45, or other high end cars. I used wonder about the same thing when reading the Acura Legend board. How do the " money is short right now" guys justify buying such cars? Like Gallagher used to say "makes no sense"...

Anyone can calculate, but who has the data, the empirical experience and performed the analysis? Q45tech.

Compared to Civics et al, a G50 is cheap life insurance. It is not just mpg.

[Haitian_King]

Speaking as a college student, the cost of ownership of a Q doesn't bother me much. I notice it to the point where I gripe about the money/time spent on it, but it all becomes worth it on a good day. A fresh Q, detailed, engine running smooth, and a tank full of Premium really can't be beat.

The looks and compliments I get are worth it.

You've got to sacrifice things like money, time, peace of mind, in order to be at the level that you want to be at. All of this makes me appreciate my Q more. I can't wait until it hits 20 years old. I'll have it badged as an antique. (I think that's how it goes in NJ)

No one I know spends as much time/money on their cars. Then again, they drive American or Japanese imports like Civics, RSX, and Corollas.

With beauty and style comes pain and sacrifice.

[greenwar]

Dennis is an engineer by trade, if that gives you an idea... Apparenlty he bought and drove his Q to about 100K with very little knowledge about what was going on with the car - just doing the dealer-suggested maintenence and living life. One day he noticed that the car didn't drive like it used to, steering felt a little weird etc. He then set out to educate himself on cars, and here we are today.

The bottom line is that he's one of, if not, the most knowledgable guys in the United States about the Q45 and we're very fortunate that he spends a lot of time here posting on NICO. A great deal of the advice I and other members here give, were originally learned from reading posts by Dennis. I have a tendancy to spoon feed things when I can, while Brian almost always refers to the flashing red button.

Anyhow, if Q45Tech says something that seems a little abrasive, it's probably not intended that way. I have met him on several occasions, and he's a hell of a nice guy - just remember that some things get lost in the translation from spoken to written word...

Heath

Ditto on that. You will not be able to imagine how many times he has helped people in this forum.. RESPECT!!!