Reply to my for sale ad, ignore or?

[JH27N0B]

I've had my '71 Challenger 440 6 pack advertised for a long time on Cars On Line and haven't had any serious interest for over a year.  A couple low ballers hoping I'm desperate, even that hasn't happened since spring.
At this point I've resigned myself to either keeping it, as I hope to flee IL in the not too distant future and have more space for cars at my next home, or eventually list it in an auction.  It's a great car and I wouldn't even consider selling it if I had it home in my garage instead of stored.
I got an email the other day from someone interested, but the emails don't "smell right" to me, just brief questions, nothing in detail.  No requests for more pictures etc.  Now I get a question "bottom price please". 
Should I just ignore at this point, or throw out a number and mention wire transfer to my bank is the only method of payment, no exceptions?
Like I said, the emails don't sound right, any true enthusiast would be asking detailed E body related questions, almost a given that detail pics would be requested etc.  Even the guys name "Pupi Brown" sounds suspicious.

[Burdar]

Copy/paste the email here so we can see the wording.

[YellowThumper]

Reply stating "listed price is..." and no further help.
If real interest communication will continue. If none they are just a troll.

I googled name and there is a FB with name in Argentina.

[Ricomondo]

Brad,

You know I've sold my fair share of cars over the years. Your suspicions I believe are founded as you said, any real serious buyer would be asking a lot of questions, and be asking for many pictures.
If it was me, the only number I'd be throwing out is my phone number. If the potential buyer is indeed interested, they will speak to you and you can negotiate from there. By asking bottom price right off the bat, could be a dealer, or flipper.
Ask to speak on the phone and see what the reply is?

[Rich G.]

Don't waste your time responding to it. I get them every single time I put anything on Craigslist!

[70 Challenger Lover]

I'd pay the $50 and put it on eBay. I've had very good luck with lots of cars over the years. If it sells, you pay $150 instead but that doesn't always happen. In my experience, I have found that you will get connected to several potential buyers and the deal will happen in the days or weeks after.

The key is an extremely detailed ad. I spent weeks playing around with the draft before going live. I wrote it on a Word doc and just cut and pasted it into the ad. To give you an idea of how detailed I was, it was 11 pages before pasting it in. I got my full price too and I am certain the ridiculous detail allowed me to get full price.

I know a lot of guys hate eBay but it got over 5000 views, 220+ watchers and like 20 different bidders. Hard to get that kind of attention worldwide any other way.

[Katfish]

What does it hurt to reply, give them your bottom line number.

[js27]

What I learned from selling my 2 cars on Cars On Line is simply ---people who are really buyers do not ask what is your lowest price right off the get go.  I dealt with many people like that and learned just to ignore them. Both people who bought my cars never even talked price until the third or forth phone call. Serious buyers see your price and know what ball park your in therefore their is no need to bargain until they are convinced they want the car. Both my buyers asked me tons of questions about it's history and its restoration and any documentation I had. Did the car need anything and I was up front with them both. Price never even got mentioned until the end. If your car is priced right their should be no haggling involved. Some people ask 20 thousand more than their car is worth so buyers figure that is not your best price.
Good Luck with your sale
JS27

[JH27N0B]

I'm at a conflict between what does it hurt to reply, and the chances are next to nothing this guy is legit.
I left my Cars Online listing up as it runs until the car sells, so why not.  But I haven't aggressively advertised it in several years.  I did run it on eBay once back then, had my bottom dollar as opening bid and got no response other than a guy with a R/T 383 excited to see another 71 the same color.
I've probably had more interest when the car is out in public, as many are put off by brown, but when people see the car first hand how good the original body is, and how nice the paint is, they drool!  That's why I am thinking a big auction might get it attention that ads don't.
In the meantime, the car is buried away in a storage building that is filling up with cars that hibernate there all winter.  It is a pain to get it out until things clear out in spring.  I am not very motivated now, but if someone came along who shared my passion for E bodies, I'd get motivated to try to dig it out so it could go to a good home!
I found that FB listing too, so is my interested buyer a young guy in Argentina who likes to play soccer and flex his body in front of a mirror?  I'm guessing no! 

[MoparLeo]

Being in retail sales for over 40 years has taught me that you can never guess what is in somebody elses head. And really, are you more interested in selling your car or if this person "likes it" Once you really decide to sell, proper payment should be your only concern. What if they want to change something on it after they buy it. Does that matter to you ? They may have just got a windfall and just want a cool car and don't know/care about details.    Happy selling.

[70 Challenger Lover]

I probably should have mentioned that in my eBay ads, I start at $1.00 but I have a reserve at the lowest price I'll accept. There seems to be more interest generated when potential buyers have no idea what you actually want. I find myself watching cars like that because I'm curious to see when the reserve is met.  I almost never watch a no reserve car with a high starting price because My question is answered on the first view.

To your original question, here's what I'd do having been in that situation a few times already. I get those kind of messages through eBay a lot too. If the guy curtly asks "what's your bottom dollar?" I don't bother responding thinking it is some low life just looking for a steal. If the guy composes a softer message like, "hey I really like your car but I was wondering if you are negotiable on the price" then I do respond. I say something like, "I'd be happy to discuss it with you. Give me a call." I have even responded, "why don't you come out and inspect the car? I prefer to meet people and negotiate in person." I think people can respect that and if they don't, screw them. Personally, I don't think the guy is scamming you at all. I think he is one of those cheesedicks hoping to buy the car at half price but doesn't want you to tell him off or laugh at him so he does it anonymously through messaging.

[Moprr]

I sold a minivan to someone 4 hours away and their first message was what's your bottom line.   I replied with my asking price and Their  next email was can I e transfer you a deposit?  He transferred the money and on Saturday he showed up with a certified cheque for the remaining amount.  So you never know who may be a real buyer.

[YellowThumper]

You have already spent more time on this thread than a reply...
Just sayin.

[7E-Bodies]

I sell a lot of stuff. Always game players. When I get the "bottom dollar" question before they even line up a showing, or I get low balled, I simply tell them I plan to show it soon to a serious inquiry. And if you think about that, it's never a lie. Creeps.

[RUNCHARGER]

Trust your gut. People with enough money to buy the car generally can string a sentence together for one thing.