I have an addiction to Facebook marketplace. Not only do I get on there for hours looking at cars and other items that I can’t afford, but I have also sold vehicles and car parts on the marketplace for years.
Unfortunately, Facebook and social media sites like it are now becoming nearly useless for shopping due to the relentless scammers.
Last week I saw a listing that caught my eye.
“Ferrari 360 engine and transmission, 3-year warranty, on sale! $900” was the listing header, by a poster out of Marietta, Ga. When trying to view the poster’s profile, it was “locked” by the user.
The product was pictured looking nearly brand new, but there was a problem…
These engines alone are about $10,000 in this condition. On sale, indeed. When clicking on the seller details, there were 37 more listings of different powertrains, all suspiciously cheap.
I took the image from the post and did a reverse image search on Google, finding the same image on eBay, with a price of $13,000. The seller is located in Irvine, Ca. This listing seemed to be legitimate, with the seller having multiple transactions on eBay and an older account.
This type of scam is the most common and is fairly easy to spot. You would contact the seller of the $900 powertrain, and they would ask for a small deposit or send you to a bogus site for payment. After, you would lose your deposit or get your credit card information stolen, and the seller would block you on Facebook when you figured it out.
The only thing real thing about the transaction is the money you have lost.
I belong to many car specific Facebook groups, and at least a few times a week someone complains of getting scammed for parts. A member of the group will post parts for sale that include pictures of the parts that may be someone else’s pictures from another listing. They will ask for a direct message if you are interested.
A conversation will start, and payment will be made, normally through CashApp or another payment source that isn’t guaranteed. As soon as payment is made, the scammer will keep in contact for a few days, adding fake tracking numbers and shipping receipts. This gives the payment enough time to clear and be withdrawn from the account.
After a few days pass, and your parts should have been here, you go to reach out and the Facebook account no longer exists. There is no recourse. The person is normally removed from the group by group admins, but they weren’t real in the first place.
You can also be scammed as a seller, and every time I have posted on Facebook Marketplace, I have been contacted by someone trying to do so. They normally reach out and want to buy your item but want to pay you MORE than what you are asking for. They will then send a fake check for the item and want the rest sent back as change through electronic measures, such as CashApp or PayPal.
The bank will deposit your check and add the money to your balance. Unfortunately, this makes the scam look legitimate, and you will send the money to the scammer that they asked for. Later, the bank will reverse the withdrawal due to the fact the check wasn’t real, leaving a hole in your account.
What can you do to avoid these scams for your next automotive purchase? The first thing to remember is to buy local if possible. Scammers will not want to meet you face to face, mostly because they are on the other side of the world.
Never, ever meet anyone alone and never tell anyone exactly where you live. Meeting in a location that is busy or even at a police department is best for your safety as well. Never put a deposit down on anything to hold something you haven’t seen.
Many scam ads have dead giveaways, such as locked profiles, an extremely new profile with no posts or friends, zero seller ratings and multiple listings for the same thing in different cities. Paying with a service such as PayPal is good, but never use the friends and family feature, because there is no buyer protection when using it.
Remember also, if it is too good to be true, it probably is! If you do in fact find Ferrari engines for $900. I will buy every last one!
As for me, I will see you on the road!
