Minis For Sale on BAT

[MiniDave]

Real experts of just keyboard experts? I'll have to go check the listing out.....

[BruceK]

One of my big pet peeves on BaT is people that are too stupid to read the auction listing and/or seller's answers and then comment as though the information presented does not exist.   The Oz doors and when they were fitted are a good example. 

Of course, my favorite is people who jump in 20 minutes before the auction ends and ask the inevitable "Can I get this registered in California?" questions.

[BruceK]

There are a whole bunch of comments back and forth on that blue and white Mk I Cooper S.   Because it isn't the typical English Mini, a lot of people are jumping in with their own information on Minis built in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc.   The seller is not making any friends either. And there is speculation that the car may have been built up into a Cooper S using a Mini 850 to match some Cooper S documentation from New Zealand.

Popcorn time. 

Edit: i'm not sure whether to call it Internet fisticuffs, or an Internet pissing match. But it's on between the seller and commenters.

[94touring]

It should have some indents on the windscreen scuttle where the wiper arms are located.  I didn't see those in the pics. The gutter drains will be different too.  Floor pans will also be stamped differently. Probably several other minor details as well.

[MiniDave]

Did you all get the email where BaT now offers door to door shipping of your auction win, either in open or closed transport?

[MPlayle]

I did not get such an email.  It may be that you have to already be approved for bidding?

[MiniDave]

Could be....but you as a seller should have gotten it too, I would think!

Choose Bring a Trailer Shipping for Your Next Auction Win

Hi Dave,

We are happy to announce our new door-to-door vehicle transport solution, Bring a Trailer Shipping. Available on vehicle auctions in the contiguous 48 states, Bring a Trailer Shipping is seamless, secure, and built directly into your existing BaT account.

Bring a Trailer Shipping offers the same level of care and transparency you expect from Bring a Trailer. Each live listing on the site now features a tool that anyone can use to generate an instant quote at any time during the auction:

You pick between fully enclosed transport or open transport at a lower cost. The price you see is the price you'll pay: no additional fees, no negotiations, and no hassles. Follow your shipment in real time with our GPS tracker that lets you watch your vehicle travel from the seller's door to yours.

The process is simple:

BaT made buying cars online easy, now we're doing the same with vehicle transport. Add Bring a Trailer Shipping to your next vehicle purchase!

Check out our Bring a Trailer Shipping page for complete information by clicking the button below:

[BruceK]

I got the email too.  It's a very good idea I think.  Helps remove the common objection of "I'd be interested if it was closer to me" or "wrong coast" etc. 

Most people don't know anything about shipping a car.  But they know it takes lots of research and shopping around getting bids and so forth.   But if that concern becomes a nonissue it will really open up potential bidders I think.

But...BaT is going to have to be able to quickly quote transportation costs from the seller to buyer's location while the auction is still underway in order to make this work effectively IMO.   Otherwise, just a vague promise of low cost of shipping without actual expense details is not going to work.

[MiniDave]

I read it that you can only get a quote if/when you win an auction?

Edit: no, you're right...."anyone can generate a shipping bid on any live auction at any time" - it says

I just did a test quote, they're pretty spendy.....about $1.50/mile in an open carrier.

[gr8kornholio]

It should have some indents on the windscreen scuttle where the wiper arms are located.  I didn't see those in the pics. The gutter drains will be different too.  Floor pans will also be stamped differently. Probably several other minor details as well.

Lots of insights on the Australian minis.   ;D

[BruceK]

I am kind of doubting now that the bids will break $20,000 on that New Zealand/Australian/UK car that could be a Cooper S/Mini 850. 

Unless...some wise person swoops in to get a bargain during all the confusion - assuming RNM does not prevent that.

It's a nice looking car but that auction has taken so many twists and turns that a driving video has not even been requested.

[MiniDave]

It's in Canada too, so there's too much snow on the ground for a driving video - I'm guessing.  ::)

I agree, he's had it for sale all over the place for months now for £25,000 and unless he just decides to take the hit and be done with it , it will go RNM. Too bad he alienated that one guy, said he was local to the car and really interested - seemed like a real buyer - but he said to hell with it. He may resurface but I doubt it.

Did the seller ever take the 4 pics of specific things they asked for?

[BruceK]

It's in Canada too, so there's too much snow on the ground for a driving video - I'm guessing.  ::)

I agree, he's had it for sale all over the place for months now for £25,000 and unless he just decides to take the hit and be done with it , it will go RNM. Too bad he alienated that one guy, said he was local to the car and really interested - seemed like a real buyer - but he said to hell with it. He may resurface but I doubt it.

Did the seller ever take the 4 pics of specific things they asked for?

No pics yet.  Or likely.   

Still plenty of time for this auction to go really south.

[cstudep]

Why anyone would list a mini for sale on BAT and then also be obstinate when it comes to further inquiries into said mini, is beyond me. I doubt there is a place on the web that could pick a mini apart as quickly or as efficiently as the folks who frequent the mini listings on BAT.

It is entertaining at times to watch though, and it is a great place to pick up some knowledge at times. All the pictures are also great for reference when restoring/fixing your own car.

[tmsmini]

On one of the previous possible ads, it was listed by Terry Milnes, a pretty well known Canadian Mini racer. If someone was serious they could track him down. I am not sure if it was ever verified as the same car though.

[Jimini II]

As the seller has not taken the four photos requested and judging by the comments two of these photos show crucial numbers that verify its authenticity and not forgetting the "aged" forged vin plate i would think there is a good possibility it is a fake S.
Also the 17 digit vin etched into the rear glass when a car is not registered for a while sounds a bit sketchy, why would the NZ dmv not stamp a new vin into a permanent piece of body metal or attach a corrected vin plate?
If it is a real S the £25k he was asking is not that far out of line imo.

[BruceK]

I asked, and the seller admitted, that he had never looked at a BaT auction before listing his car.  How is that possible?  Like a lamb walking into the lion's den, he just wasn't prepared for the reception.   I guess he thought it was gonna be like eBay. 

Severe lack of situational awareness IMO. 

[MiniDave]

I don't think he ever expected people as knowledgeable as are commenting on his auction to out him like this, either that or like others have speculated, it's a fake.

Hard to slide one of those by on BaT anymore, at least a Mini fake.

I haven't looked at a lot of other auctions to see for sure, but I don't see this kind of detailed knowledge on others that I have watched - maybe on some other specialized cars like older Vettes they do it?

[Jimini II]

I tell Mini owners who want to list on BaT you have got to have a thick skin, be honest about what you have and be prepared for questions scrutiny and grilling and sometimes insults especially if your car is not 100% pure.

[MiniDave]

I think you just have to be honest about what you're selling, and not get defensive.....don't try to hide things once it's out in the open.

If a car has oversills, show them, don't try to hide them with bad photography or poor lighting.

If it has a questionable heritage, BaT is probably not the place to sell it - take it to Ebay.

[Jimini II]

Well the UK, OZ or NZ Mini depending on who you want to believe got to $28,500 US around $36,200 Canadian but ended RNM.

Apparently he is removing the reserve and is going to contact the last bidder, not sure why he did not do it earlier.

I asked if it came with paperwork matching the original vin or the new one as it was listed on the old vin and that is what it comes with.

If NZ goes to the trouble of issuing a new vin why is he not using it or moreso why even mention it if you have the original paperwork to sell it, a little fishy for sure with lots of unanswered questions.

One things for sure with 226 comments I learnt more about OZ and NZ Minis than I ever need to know lol.

I thought that $28,500 was a decent bid with all the hoopla the origin and vin number created.

[MiniDave]

He says he contacted the high bidder, and accepted his bid.

[BruceK]

I think it went that high because Hugh pointed out just the sum of the parts alone (Cooper S engine, Mk I body, etc.) was worth more than the current bids.  I think that spurred some people along.

[Jimini II]

I think it went that high because Hugh pointed out just the sum of the parts alone (Cooper S engine, Mk I body, etc.) was worth more than the current bids.  I think that spurred some people along.

That's a different dr mini posting his name is Larry Holloway and a bit of a Mini guru.
He is the guy that bought all the Catalina island Mokes back to the USA.
The seller got smart. Trying to sell it after all those questions and remarks would be a disaster, once its on the internet its there forever for anyone to view.
Reading through the comments the Healey guy from NZ remembered the car and did a full restoration but could not remember if it was an original body.
Pics to confirm it went unanswered then near the end of the auction it came out it was stored for the winter.
My guess is it was no longer an original bodied S.
Still a nice car just a lot of doubts about its true originality.

[BruceK]

Ah, thanks for clearing that up about it not being Hugh.  I've heard of Larry Holloway through the years and I remember when he bought all the Catalina Mokes back in the 90s.  I shouldn't have assumed that DrMini was the same here and there.  I actually use a different user name on BaT than I do here and confusingly I am LarryH there.  I'm not impersonating Larry Holloway  ;D  it's just a pseudonym I've used elsewhere on the Internet and it's based upon someone I knew in high school.