Motor oil trick: Nasty scam when selling used cars is exposed

Created: 04/12/2022, 08:11

By: Sebastian Oppenheimer

In Thuringia, two men viewed a used car - and wanted to massively reduce the price with a nasty trick.

But the seller was careful.

Saalfeld – If you sell your car privately on your own, you may have to do a lot.

So it can happen that shortly after the offer has gone online, you are initially bombarded with countless calls.

At the other end of the line, instead of "Hello", you only hear: "What's the last price?".

If you don't give a phone number, it often rains e-mails in a similar tone.

If you make an appointment to visit, it can happen that you take extra time off - and simply nobody shows up.

But while such things are "only" annoying, criminal tricks used by crooks can get really expensive.

Now a duo in Thuringia has tried a brazen motor oil trick - but it was exposed, as reported by 24auto.de.

With an engine oil trick suspected fraudsters wanted to get a cheap used car.

(Iconic image) © Sebastian Geisler/Imago

Motor oil trick: Nasty scam when buying a car is exposed

The supply of used cars is currently scarce – the corresponding offers are all the more popular.

A 35-year-old man in Saalfeld, Thuringia, wanted to sell his car - two men (23 and 41) came to look at the vehicle.

However, the duo clearly intended to massively reduce the selling price - but not in a legal way.

As reported by the police, one of the two distracted the seller, the accomplice secretly poured oil into the vehicle in two places.

The plan of the 41-year-old and his 23-year-old comrade-in-arms: to simulate engine damage in the car in order to get the car cheap.

Motor oil trick: Used car salesman noticed the scam in good time and alerted the police

However, according to the officials, the 35-year-old knew the condition of his car fairly well – the two suspected fraudsters also left traces on the vehicle.

When the seller noticed the scam, he alerted the police.

The 41-year-old and the 23-year-old are now being investigated for attempted fraud and property damage.

In general, as a potential buyer, you should also take a close look at used car offers - because sometimes a "small damage" can sometimes not be so small.

If you have then successfully purchased a car, you should keep a cool head on the first drive, otherwise you might end up like a Ferrari driver who wrecked his new car after about three kilometers.