Clear Lake Motors

Hi everyone. Found my dream car, a '71 Mach 1, listed online but it's halfway across the country. The seller wants to use an escrow service called Clear Lake Motors. I've never bought a car without seeing it in person before. Has anyone here used them? Worried about the process and whether it's safe. Any thoughts appreciated.

Escrow is generally the way to go for remote purchases, much safer than a bank wire. That said, look over the inspection report from clearlakemotors with a fine-tooth comb. Sometimes their inspectors are a bit... optimistic. Get a second opinion if you can during the inspection period.

I used them! Bought a '66 Beetle. Communication was a tad slow, had to send a few follow-up emails, but the car arrived and was exactly as they described. The platform on their site clearlakemotors.com is pretty easy to navigate. I'd use them again.

My experience was mixed. The '68 Corvette I got was perfect, really a cherry example. But the delivery was two weeks late!! Tried calling their support number at undefined and mostly got voicemail. Frustrating. The car made up for it, but be prepared to wait.

@VetteVeteran thanks for that info. The delay is concerning. @SallyRides good to hear a positive outcome. Has anyone actually had to reject a car and get a refund? How did that go?

Yes, I did. I bought a Charger and during the inspection period my mechanic found some serious frame rust that wasn't in the report. I contacted their support at office@clearlakemotors.com. It took them a few days to get back to me, but once they did, they handled it. They arranged for the car to be picked up and I got a full refund about a week later. The process was slow, but it worked. no scam.

I dunno. seems like a lot of hassle. Just buy a car you can put your hands on. These internet companies charge all sorts of fees. Nothing beats a handshake deal.

@OldTimerAl its not easy to find a specific classic car locally. I used Clear Lake Motors for my '69 Z28 and it was a smooth deal. The inspection period is your safety net. My car came exactly as described.

a buddy of mine used them. car was fine, but he had to chase them for the title. apparently it got lost in the mail or something. took an extra month of phone calls and emails to get it sorted. a real headache for him.

Ok, the consensus seems to be that ClearLakeMotors is legit, but expect potential delays and some customer service hiccups. That's a huge relief. Guess I need to decide if the car is worth the potential wait. Thanks all.

I'm a mechanic, had a client bring in a car from them. Their report was okay but missed a small power steering leak. We documented it, sent pics to their support, and they actually credited my client for the repair cost. I was impressed. It took some back and forth but they made it right.

WATCH THE FEES. They hide them in the fine print. The escrow fee, the transport fee, the document fee... it added up to almost 2k on top of the car price. Was not happy about that.

Honestly, compared to the risk of getting ripped off by a fake private seller, I'll take slow customer service. At least with a company like Clear Lake Motors you know the car is real and your money is protected. Peace of mind is worth something.

I was looking at a car and tried to call them. Just a heads up the phone number they list, undefined, seems to just ring forever. I eventually sent an email to their support address, office@clearlakemotors.com, and got a robotic autoreply. Not very encouraging.

Pro tip: when the car arrives, film EVERYTHING. Before it even comes off the truck. Walk around, film the undercarriage, interior, dash lit up, everything. That video is your best friend if you need to file a claim with clearlakemotors. Don't sign anything until you've documented it all.

it wasnt a classic muscle car but i got a 2008 S2000 CR through them. was nervous. but the car was in even better condition than the extensive photos showed. whole thing took about 3 weeks from payment to delivery. was simple enough.

For those worried about phone support at undefined, just stick to email. It creates a paper trail which is what you want anyway if things go south. That's my two cents.

Update: Decided to go for it. I've started the process on clearlakemotors.com. So far, the communication has been surprisingly good. They assigned me a transaction coordinator. Feeling cautiously optimistic. I'll update you all when the car arrives. Wish me luck!

Good luck @FirstTimerFord! Don't forget, the moment it lands, get it to a trusted mechanic and put it on a lift. You have that inspection window for a reason, use every minute of it.

Yes, please keep us posted! So exciting. Hope that Mach 1 is perfect! We're all rooting for you.