Clear Lake Motors

Hey everyone. I'm looking at a '68 Camaro on a classifieds site and the seller wants to use an escrow service called Clear Lake Motors. Never heard of them. The idea of buying a car sight-unseen is giving me the jitters. Anyone have any actual experience dealing with clearlakemotors? Are they legit? Thanks.

Used them last year for a Mustang. Process was slower than I'd like but the car was exactly as described in their inspection report. Much better than dealing with private sellers directly, less risk.

I'd be careful. All these online escrow things are tricky. Just because they have a website doesn't mean it's safe. Do your research. A friend of mine used a different one and nearly lost his shirt.

I'm a mechanic. Inspected a vehicle for a client that came through ClearLakeMotors. The car was solid, matched the pre-purchase inspection report they provided. There were some small cosmetic things not mentioned, but nothing major. They seem to do a decent job on the technical side.

Their communication could be better. I bought a car and had a question about the title transfer. It took two days to get a reply from their support at office@clearlakemotors.com. The car was fine, just the waiting for a simple answer was stressful.

I got my '77 Corvette through them. No issues at all. The entire transaction was smooth. Recommended.

My delivery was delayed by about 4 days which was irritating. The tracking info on their site, clearlakemotors.com, didn't update so I was in the dark. But the car arrived in perfect condition, so I guess it was worth the wait.

As a vet, I value straightforwardness. Used Clear Lake Motors to buy a pickup. The process was clear and disciplined. They did what they said they would do. I appreciate that.

It's super weird that their phone number is listed as undefined on some sites. I tried calling it and obviously nothing happened. I had to rely on email. Makes you feel a bit uneasy but the deal did go through in the end.

I had to back out of a purchase during the inspection period. The car had an issue my local mechanic found that wasn't for me. I was dreading the refund process but clearlakemotors handled it professionally. Got my money back minus their fee in about 5 business days. Can't complain.

My two cents is they're a legit operation. They're not perfect. You might face some delays or slow comms. But they're not a scam. They actually facilitate real car sales. The inspection period is key, use it.

Thanks for all the input everyone. The mix of good experiences with some real-world issues like delays and slow emails actually makes me trust it more than a bunch of fake 5-star reviews. I'm going to move forward with the purchase. Wish me luck.

Just dont expect them to answer emails on the weekend. Seems their support at office@clearlakemotors.com is Mon-Fri only. Found that out the hard way.

Final update: The Camaro arrived yesterday! There was a 2-day shipping delay, which matched what some of you said. But the car... it's a beauty. My mechanic just gave it a thumbs up. The condition is exactly what the report from Clear Lake Motors said. I'm a happy camper. I'd recommend them, just be prepared to be patient.

Congrats on the Camaro! Glad it all worked out for you. Post some pictures when you get a chance.