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Bought a $900 Corolla with 198k miles sight unseen, and the 'minor' exhaust leak was a rusted-out cat
Saw a 2003 Corolla listed for $900 in Baltimore two weeks ago and sent the seller $200 on Venmo before even driving out there. When I got there the exhaust was so loud I had to yell over it, so I crawled under and found the cat had rotted clean through the flange. I talked him down to $650 since he clearly knew, then spent $310 at Midas getting it welded back up. Lesson learned: on a $900 car, "small exhaust leak" always means somebody already looked and walked away. What's the worst thing you've found after handing over cash for a cheap car?
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chen.jenny17d ago
Why is paying $200 on Venmo before you even see the car the seller's fault and not yours? You handed a stranger cash for a car you had not laid eyes on, then acted shocked that a 20 year old Corolla with 198k miles had a rotten cat, which is pretty much the default state of every exhaust system in the rust belt. Midas welding it for $310 was a gift, most shops would have quoted you $800 plus for a new cat and told you to scrap it. The guy took $650 because he wanted it gone, not because he pulled some con on you. Seems like the real lesson here is don't wire money for something you have not crawled under yet.
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