Craigslist and other highly reputable online marketplaces have made window-shopping for cars truly limitless, but our digital daydreaming can eventually turn into reality. That listing for your dream convertible could be well within your budget, but outside of how far you can drive in a day. Once in a blue moon, you throw caution to the wind and reach out to make an offer.
What’s the furthest you’ve gone to buy a car? Now, I mean furthest in every sense of the word. Did you cross state lines or time zones to buy a used car just sitting in someone’s garage? Did you intentionally ignore red flags in the seller’s ad because the deal was too good to pass up? Just please don’t admit to robbing anyone to secure the funds for a car purchase or smuggling a car over an international border. No one can protect you from criminal prosecution if you openly confess in the comments section.
Hopefully, you didn’t fly out trying to save money
Money might not even be the most significant issue with your ambitious purchase. Tom McParland, Jalopnik’s resident car buying expert, noted back in 2019 that time should also be considered when flying out to drive your new car home. The query in question involved picking a low-mileage used Lexus 1,900 miles away from home. He mentioned that everyone’s time has value. Also, the effort to minimize transportation costs could not be as fruitful as expected once you total up the cost of flights, food and lodging. Most importantly, the cost of shipping is typically cheaper than going yourself in most circumstances. That’s all before you even consider the car’s condition to even drive it back.
Remember to share your stories about the furthest you went to buy a car in the comment section below. Again, we can’t protect you from potential prosecution.
