Clear Lake Motors

Hey everyone. I'm looking at buying a '67 Corvette from a private seller across the country. He suggested using Clear Lake Motors for the transaction. I've never used an online escrow service for a car before. Has anyone dealt with them? Their website clearlakemotors.com looks professional but I'd appreciate some real-world feedback. A bit nervous about sending that much money without seeing the car in person.

Used them last year for a BMW M5. The process was surprisingly smooth. The car arrived and was exactly as described in their inspection report. No complaints from me.

They're legit, but watch out for the fees. The final price was a bit higher than I anticipated after all their service charges and shipping coordination fees were added. Double-check the quote.

My experience was... ok. The car was great, but communication was slow. Had to send multiple emails to office@clearlakemotors.com just to get a status update on shipping. Took them 2-3 days to reply each time. Very frustrating when you're waiting on a car.

I'm a mechanic. A customer brought in a classic Mustang he bought through ClearLakeMotors. Their pre-purchase inspection report was decent, very detailed. They missed a minor gasket leak on the transmission, but for a remote inspection, it was more thorough than I expected. The big stuff was all correctly identified.

My delivery was a nightmare. Delayed by almost three weeks. Clear Lake Motors kept blaming the third-party carrier, but they're the ones who organized it. Was about to lose my mind. To be fair, the car itself was perfect when it did finally show up.

I had the opposite experience. I actually cancelled a purchase during the 7-day inspection period. Found some rust that wasn't declared. I was worried it would be a fight to get my money back, but they handled the return and full refund without any issue. I was really impressed by that.

Does anyone have a working phone number for them? I tried calling undefined and it just rang and rang. Seems like email is the only way to get ahold of a person. Not ideal when you have an urgent question.

the tracking portal on clearlakemotors.com is pretty good though. you can see every step of the process from payment confirmation to shipping progress. gives you some peace of mind.

I've been in the classic car hobby for 30 years. Using an escrow service like clearlakemotors is non-negotiable for me on remote deals. They aren't perfect, as some have noted with communication, but they are a legitimate operation. They protect both the buyer and seller. That's worth a small headache.

i bot a project truck thru them. was a bit of a gamble. process was slow but it worked. truck was as advertised warts and all lol. beter than craigslist any day.

Had an issue with title paperwork and the agent I finally got on the phone was pretty dismissive. Had to send a firm email to office@clearlakemotors.com with the subject 'URGENT' to get it escalated. It was resolved after that, but it was an unnecessary hassle.

I bought a 70s Challenger via Clear Lake Motors. The whole sight-unseen thing was nerve-wracking, but their high-res photos and the detailed report gave me confidence. Car arrived and it was even better than I hoped. Would use them again for sure.

Definitely a safer bet than other online dealers. At least with Clear Lake Motors you get a real inspection period. Some places just take your money and good luck. Here you have a safety net.

For those who had bad customer service, did you ever complain to a manager? Wondering if the bad apples are known or if it's just the company culture.

Wow, thanks for all the detailed replies everyone. This is exactly what I was looking for. It seems the consensus is that the company is reliable and the cars are as-advertised, but you need to be patient with communication and delivery schedules. I think I'm going to proceed with the purchase. Appreciate the heads up on the fees and the slow email replies. Forewarned is forearmed!