Ebay "Adventure" (aka Nightmare)

I had already known about the EG-33 and was looking for one.  Not really seriously, but figuring if one came up, and it looked right, I'd jump. 

This was on Ebay in May of '04.  A '92 with 106K on it.  I bid and was very happy there was not much competition.  At the last hour some %#$*& bumps the bid up by $500, but I'm still in it.

So I win.  I hadn't realized that you can only pay through PayPal up to $200 without being specially registered (so they can transfer money directly out of your account without paying Visa).  I hadn't done this, and the seller was all impatient and I was getting it done and he was pretty helpful.  So finally he got paid.

And then he went away.  No word, no ship, no nada.  I am not really so naive - I had checked his feedback before bidding.  The only bad feedback he had at the time was completely understandable.  I wound up posting a negative feedback after weeks of no contact.  I swear, within minutes of posting my feedback, my phone rang and guess what, we were just about ready to ship.  Then days became weeks....

About this time there is more negative feedback on the seller.  LOTS of it.  And I start getting emails saying, "Did you get yours, I didn't".  The guy wound up becoming an Ex-Ebay seller due to the fraud accusations.  In phone calls he really sounded sincere.  He should be selling watches in Times Square, but I think he must be a Subaru employee who got in over his head big time.

I would get an email that things are just about ready.  Then more time would transpire.  The guy left me his cell phone # so I could actually get ahold of him at times.  "Oh yeah Tom, we'll ship it tomorrow".  I didn't keep precise track of all the timing, but it was many weeks for the box of "miscellaneous" parts that were the AFM, igniter and P/S pump.  Finally I get the motor but no harness.  I asked about the wiring harness and the response was basically "huh?".  I explained that a motor without a harness means I paid WAY too much.  Later I get word that they got the harness out, but the dismantler had just hacked it out sorta freeform.  They had to find another harness.  Tick, tick, tick ...

Later I got the harness but no sexy H-6 throttle body cover and no alternator.  After much more of the same, he sent me a rusty, junko alternator .  I got in touch with him and complained about the alternator.  Are you ready for this one?  Here goes:  "Tom, I'll take the alternator out of my own SVX and send it to you".  Not only that, but he emailed me the tracking number for a package that has never been shipped.  I found the sexy H-6 throttle body cover on Ebay and I'll use the alternator as a core. 

The only good part is that he sold and shipped me the Subaru Electrical and Engine manuals for $25.  At least I think it's a good price.

I lost interest for awhile after all that.  Now I'm back trying to get what I was after nearly two years ago.

-o-