An Orange County Thief

[69Sman]

Anybody know this scumbag?

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lano...-rare-and.html

[mcgregor]

On the street there were rumblings that the operation was a kink.

[LongRanger]

Know the store

Good-sized facility . . . South side of the 405, in Costa Mesa

Went there once . . . to check the place out

Had some kinda business building RS replicas by back-dating 911SCs and Carreras, as I recall

Nothing that impressed me but I remember seeing an orange RSR (?) replica along w/ a tidy 'E' longhood, at one point

Might have photos somewhere

Been a coupla years

[Eminence Gris]

I sold them some parts from a 3.2 Carrera when I backdated it. Impressive facility, but did not appear to have the sales velocity to support the facility. They were offering "meeting space rentals" on top of restoration and sales. Had some very nice looking cars out front, including a painted chassis on a rotisserie. It seemed they were a couple years ahead of the curve on pricing. Everything seemed to be at market value +40%.

[Craig T]

Yikes! I actually went there and looked at the orange RSR clone. I considered buying it before deciding on doing my own restoration. I would have been one of those out the money, with no title to the car.

I agree with Eminence Gris. He was considerably above market on his SC RS backdates. He tried to steer me into one, but $50,000 was crazy for an SC with nothing but fiberglass bumpers, a ducktail, and a mid-range paint job.

[72targa]

Sad...as always, caveat emptor...

http://www.yelp.com/biz/euromasters-...ountain-valley

[southbay356]

it always looked like too big of a shop with a Prime Freeway view location to make any money ,

But I guess if you are keeping ALL the money on each sale you can pay the rent

Anyone know California DMV law on if the original owners can go get their cars if they still have the Titles ?
What a mess !

[Craig T]

Anyone know California DMV law on if the original owners can go get their cars if they still have the Titles ?
What a mess !

This is the real tragedy. You have an innocent consignment seller, and an innocent buyer, yet both will be in legal battles against each other over the ownership of the car. There is no positive outcome for any of these people.

[Eminence Gris]

I consigned a Carrera many years ago, with a lot owner I had known for years. Unfortunately, he got into financial trouble and sold 13 cars without paying the owners or the lien holders. He left the country with 13 counts of grand theft auto pending against him.

As you know, California auto dealers have to be bonded. I went after the bond underwriter (Aetna) and they countersued me an every one of the other title holders. My attorney did a quick assessment and said because the cost of the bondholder's attorney comes out of the $50K bond, I'd be unlikely to net $200 at the end of the process (value lost on the car was $36000).

Really taught me a lot about how insurance companies operate.

Oh, and one other important thing: your insurance policy on your car will not help. Under comprehensive coverage, you will likely find that "loss by trick or device" is not covered. IOW, turn your keys over to someone who steals your car and you've terminated your coverage.

[southbay356]

Really taught me a lot about how insurance companies operate.
.

thanks for posting that , I think we all learned a lot from that ,

when you consigned your car did you hand over the title ?

SB