I rec'd a newsletter which contains an interesting article about a classic car being falsely indentified. In the legal system I think they call this a precedent . . . Makes me wonder about the wanna be Coopers and re-vins out there... safe for now probably as this was in the down under:

I'm okay with creating tribute vehicles, cloning or re-creating them, or whatever you want to call the finished product, so long as you don't try to pass it off as the real deal.

Here's my note to sellers of those vehicles: You always took a chance of being charged criminally, but now you need to be concerned about a civil lawsuit for damages, as was the case recently in Australia.

A 1969 Falcon XW GT (similar to the one pictured above), being represented as an all-matching numbers car, with some engine work done to it, was offered for sale for $143K.

A potential buyer did his due diligence, checked the VIN, and found it to be correct. He and a professional body man checked for rust and other damage, and found none. He negotiated a purchase price of $90K (that alone should have been a clue).

A couple years later, the car was again offered for sale, only to learn that it was NOT a true GT, but rather a standard XW. An X-ray examination of the firewall showed that the area around the VIN tag had been cut and welded back together.

GT's are currently worth about $70K, and the standard is worth between $10-15K. The owner demanded the seller take it back, and refund his money.

The seller refused, so the owner filed a civil suit for breach of contract, asking for the difference in value between what he paid for the car and its current value, along with his expenses in traveling to see the car (twice), and court costs. The total was $108K.

The judge ruled that although it was unlikely the seller knew the car was cloned, it was still the seller's responsibility to be certain that it wasn't.

The bottom line: The judge ordered the seller to buy back the Falcon for $108K. And in doing so, he's now stuck with his clone that's worth at most $15K!

From now on, it's let the buyer AND the seller beware! And in defense of the many who have been ripped off buying cloned vehicles, it's about time!

 

Great article and very true...especially with the Minis. Even though they aren't as expensive as that car, you should still do your homework.

 

It's easy to do. Homework that is.

 

Wow, what a great article. I totally agree with the opinion that a seller should divulge nothing but the truth, as known, to any prospective buyer. Converse to the details of the experience Down Under, I experienced a perfect transaction when I purchased my '64 Cooper just two weeks ago.

As with any car, regardless of make or year, modifications have likely been made to make the car something other than it was as an original. Nearly every cool car on the road has undergone engine, tranny and suspension upgrades of some sort. I think that's an OK thing to do. Mods are the thing most of us strive to afford to do, in the most improved and period correct manner, to fulfill that vision of making our cars just that much cooler than when the factory built it. My '64 (an original 997 Cooper) is a great example of a car that underwent a complete Cooper S upgrade during it's restoration some 17 years ago. It's what I'd have done if I had done the restoration and that makes it a good fit for me.

Everyone should agree that the nearly all (I'm talk'n 99%) of the Mini owners out there are a great bunch of stand-up folks. Sadly, there are a small few (that remaining 1%) that don't have the same ethic as most. With so many configurations of modified Minis out there, for sale or for show, the various choices are virtually limitless. My car's previous owner (owner for 6 years), and the one before him (builder and owner for 7 years) are genuine stand-up guys, to be sure. The seller never misled me in to believing this was was anythinig other that what it was intended to be. A very period correct and tastefully done Cooper S Replica. Simply put, it's a great car.

The advice to do your homework is an understatement. Fortunately for me, I did do my homework. A solid year's worth or more. My growing knowledge, and support of a well schooled friend, proved invaluable when looking at all the cars I did over the past 14 months or so. I pretty much knew what my car was before I looked at it. Seeing it in person was much easier and I was able to make simple determinations to verify it's authenticity.

A word to the wise is always in fashion, so here's mine... Know your product and get a good read your seller or buyer. Always be ethical and expect nothing less from any prospective seller or buyer.

Motor on and enjoy the Classics.