Bradan Donaldson
Cape Coral, Florida – Ray Kijak was excited to finally purchase his dream car – a 1982 Corvette Collector’s Edition with just over 44,000 miles on the odometer. Or so he thought…
Purchased online from Gateway Classic Cars of Tampa, Florida, the dealer advertised the Corvette has having just 44,000 miles on the odometer and “turn-key ready.”
Kijak bought the car sight unseen and when the dealer delivered the car to Kijak, he knew something wasn’t quite right.
“This is not a 44,000-mile car, there’s something wrong with this.”
Unfortunately, being a 1982 Corvette, the car isn’t equipped with a digital odometer found in today’s cars. After ordering a vehicle history report, Kijac found out the car actually had over 144,000 miles on it.
Kijac called Gateway Classic Cars back and asked for his $15,000 back, but the they just laughed at him.
“The man just laughed at me and hung up. He says, ‘You’ll never get a dime from me!’” Kijak said.
WINK News out of Fort Myers picked up on the story and contacted Gateway Classic Cars for more details, but unfortunately, they refused an interview and simply said they’re working on it.
Kijak filed formal complaints with the Florida State Attorney General’s Office as well as the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Upon further investigation, the FHSMV has ordered Gateway Classic Cars to return Kijak’s money.
Moral of the Story
Always do your homework! Especially if you’re buying an older Corvette that doesn’t benefit from some of today’s more secure features such as tamper-proof digital odometers.
Research the dealership you’re buying the car from. Run a couple Google searches on the dealer, search for customer reviews on sites such as Yelp, and see if they’re registered with the Better Business Bureau.
The more research you do prior to the purchase, the more comfortable you’ll be that buying your dream Corvette was a sound decision.
Source: WINK News
Additional Resources: 1982 Corvette Tech Center
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1 comment
Yep there are some scum bags out there. I bought a Corvette from Corvette Mike in 2003. His salesman actually called me on the phone and said he was riding in the car with the AC blowing etc. only to find out that the left rear brake caliper had a jammed piston causing the brake to sieze. Oh, and the AC didn’t have a drop of refrigerant in it. It didn’t really matter to me, I was redoing the car, but when I called Mike down for the BS job he got arrogant and threatened me.