Andy Laub

Found this beauty on Craigslist Milwaukee:

2001 BMW 740iL XENON-NAV-XTRA CLEAN MILES 89800 - $6200
Leather Seats Cassette Player Sunroof CD Player
Passenger Airbag Driver Airbag Anti-Lock Brakes Side Airbags
Cruise Control Power Windows Air Conditioning Power Seats
Power Locks

Also included with the ad were a few pictures of a very, very nice example of the car. One little problem:

Yep, you guessed it. There’s no nav in this car. Too-low price (25% of what it should be) and inaccurate description? I smell a scam. Let’s continue.

I sent him an email, so as to leave no stone unturned (I’ve seen pricing mistakes before):

What is the correct price of this car?

Thanks,

Andy

That’s absolutely it. Furthermore I used one of my nameless gmail addresses so there was no connection to andylaub.com. His response?

Good day,

Thank you for your intention to buy my car.I tried to call you (1) but because of a thunder storm my phone is down.The thing is that I really hate to lose it but I must sell it and the part that I don`t like is that I need to sell it on the Internet.However this is the only way I can because, ,I am American, but I recently moved to London, U.K due to work and family,therefore I need a vehicle which complies with their specs here.I`m a fresh daddy I can’t find the time to drive the car anymore.I know that you will say it`s hard to complete a deal like this but my intentions are very straight and serious.I don`t have relatives anymore in the states so I had to bring it with me. (2) The car is still registered in USA and if I’ll sell it to an American it will be more easy for the both of us.I realize that the price is a little low but if I will try to sell it locally it will cost me a fortune to register and nobody will buy.I belive that this means good news for you because the car is in mint condition, no accident history,clear title,no dents or dings,no scratches and it has the original color!I want everything to be O.K. for everyone.I will take care of the shipping and handling because I understand that nobody will pay for it.I post it as being in US, just to avoid paying additional fees.Please mail me back if you think we can make a deal !!!

God Bless You…

Wow, that’s alot of writing, so I highlighted the important stuff:

1. OK. I never gave my phone number, so that’s… interesting. Maybe it was like that one episode of Family Guy where Stewie couldn’t remember the phone number and just started with 000-0000 and worked his way up. Then again, he didn’t have that thunderstorm to deal with.
2. And here we go. The car is in London. Explain how it’s more financially prudent to pay to have a car shipped with you overseas and then try to sell it back to someone in America instead of just listing it cheap before you move.
3. Finally, the nail in the coffin: The SCAM!!! listing. Yup, someone else was curious about the car as well, and (surprise!) was sent the exact same email. Hmmm.

Too bad. I really like those cars, though I’d take a 740i Sport over the long-wheelbase version any day.