Opinions please...or facts if you got'em

[2000C5]

Hey guys. First post. I'm a Chevy guy. I have had a Blazer and I'm currently on my fourth Corvette...a 2000 C5 with about 40k miles.

I have two young kids who require car seats. My wife and I have done some vehicle juggling and long story short, I need a backseat. That's where the Camaro comes in.

I've been doing my research. I've looked at and driven a few. I keep coming back to one car in particular. It's a 2011 1ss in red with silvery white stripes. It only has about 16k miles. It's priced in line with both kbb and nada...a little below both actually. It has a clean carfax...which I know doesn't mean as much as some people think...and it looks, sounds and smells clean. The problem is that it appears to have been bought and sold several times including after only about three months most recently. It has been for sale at the latest dealership for about 60 days and has had the price reduced several times.

It could be a lemon.

It could be that people who bought it just bit off more than they could chew and had to get rid of it.

Opinions, insight and thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[kmarshall2121]

auction sales? where did it originate? not a flood car (hopefully) based on the car fax...?

[snarky]

when in doubt keep looking

[Scalded Dog]

I would think that a good inspection by a mechanic would answer whether or not it's got actual issues with the car, or if it just got stuck in a game of musical chairs at the lousy- credit convention.

[HDRDTD]

What kind of warranty are they offering on it??

[Welker2]

If the Carfax reflects it has been 'sold' a few times in past couple of months and it is currently at a dealership, my guess would be some of those sales are from dealers to auctions.

[2000C5]

Thanks for the responses. Keep 'me coming.

The car checks out on carfax as having no issues with flood, fire, title issues, etc.

It has been registered in New York and Pennsylvania.

It was sold as a certified pre-owned car in October of 2013 with 12k miles on it.

After that it gets weird. It has been sold three times... 2 out of 3 at auction....since April of this year. Even stranger, it looks to have only been driven about 50 miles throughout all of that.

They are offering a 60 day/4kmile limited warranty....power train, electrical....not a bumper to bumper....but not bad.


It does appear to have been sold from dealer to dealer but that would indicate that several dealerships have had trouble unloading it. Right?

[Welker2]

Originally Posted by 2000C5

Thanks for the responses. Keep 'me coming.

The car checks out on carfax as having no issues with flood, fire, title issues, etc.

It has been registered in New York and Pennsylvania.

It was sold as a certified pre-owned car in October of 2013 with 12k miles on it.

After that it gets weird. It has been sold three times... 2 out of 3 at auction....since April of this year. Even stranger, it looks to have only been driven about 50 miles throughout all of that.

They are offering a 60 day/4kmile limited warranty....power train, electrical....not a bumper to bumper....but not bad.


It does appear to have been sold from dealer to dealer but that would indicate that several dealerships have had trouble unloading it. Right?

Not too strange; often times the dealership that takes the trade doesn't want the vehicle on their lot, especially if it's a make they don't deal in (i.e. someone trades in a Chevy at a Honda dealership). One of those sales was probably when the person traded it in; the dealership didn't want it on their lot and sent it to an auction (very common), someone (possibly another out of state dealer) bought it and 'flipped' it at another auction for quick profit (also common). This would account for the 3 sales within a couple of months. Had a friend who used to do this, 'flip' vehicles.

[2000C5]

Thank you Welker2

Does anyone think being a 1ss...no leather, no extra gauges...not having a sunroof and being a 6 speed works against it?

None of those bothers me...in fact, I'm glad it's a stick.

[jrhagen]

Could it be a multiple repo car? I would never buy one of those.

[rickyrocket]

I bought a 1SS bucause it didn't have all the gadgets

[2000C5]

Originally Posted by jrhagen

Could it be a multiple repo car? I would never buy one of those.

Because it's been beat on or because of the residual crystal meth crumbs left behind by one of the previous "renters"?

[KenKat]

Regardless of this particular car's pedigree, if you haven't yet, I would take your car seats and make sure they fit in the back seat. They may well fit, but it's not exactly spacious back there.

[JKHolman]

Originally Posted by snarky

when in doubt keep looking

Some very good advice popping up (hiring a mechanic to thoroughly look the vehicle over). My question is, do you have to buy this Camaro? Like you,OP, most of the amenities were not deal breakers for me.
My next question is directed beyond you - with so many home changes, was this car properly cared for? I passed up a red 2012 that my wife and I both liked because the dirt (the way the dirt sat) on the engine made me question the maintenance of the vehicle. My understanding is that performance vehicles (SS) are less forgiving on this account.
And can you afford a mistake on a wrong "draft choice"? As a family man I think not.
My vote is with Snarky.