Dear Fellow IH8MUD members:
Background:
I recently bought a '71 FJ40 Land Cruiser off of eBay from Colt Hottinger. His eBay seller name is "coyotepopper." He has a website Vulture Mine Cruisers - FJ40 Land Cruiser Restoration. He lives in and his "shop" is in Wickenburg, Arizona. His street address is 1057 S. Vulture Mine Rd Wickenburg, AZ 8539.
I bought this Land Cruiser from eBay from him before the auction ended, and as a result, I have no recourse through eBay and or PayPal. I have purchased and sold vehicles on eBay Motors several times with no problems up to this point. (ADVICE: Don't agree to buy a vehicle on eBay before the auction ends - you have no recourse should something go wrong.) I was not a member of IH8MUD before I bought the vehicle, so I knew nothing about his website or company "Vulture Mine Outfitters."
I was lucky when compared to some of his other customers who purchased vehicles from him. My FJ40 was as advertised, BUT HE REMOVED THE HEATER BOX AND ALL OF THE HEATER COMPONENTS!!!
FACTUAL DETAILS:
When I called him about this, he stated that the "heater core was leaking, so I took it out." Well, removing the heater core does not mean REMOVING ALL OF THE HEATER COMPONENTS!
So I'm missing:
1) the heater box
2) the heater core
3) both left and right heater coses that go up to the cowl
4) the plastic duct that goes from the heater blower to the heater box
5) the HARD TO FIND rubber gasket that connect the plastic duct from the heater core to the heater box.
(all of these parts are very expensive, by the way)
The ad pictures on eBay clearly show the interior with the heater box and ducts. After calling numerous times and leaving at least SIX messages with no return calls, I finally got him to pick up after calling from another telephone number. His response to me was "You should be happy that you got a rust-free Cruiser... I may be able to find the parts and send them to you... I don't owe you anything..."
After looking at his website and at the other vehicles he has for sale, I can safely assume that he TOOK THE HEATER BOX AND HEATER COMPONENTS OUT OF MY VEHICLE AND PUT THEM IN ANOTHER VEHICLE OR ONE OF HIS RESTORATIONS."
There's more:
In addition, it was over two weeks and several more telephone calls until I received the title that I requested. HE DID NOT SEND ME A BILL OF SALE AS I REQUESTED. He told me that his "wife mailed out the title to you after the delivery truck picked it up." I requested the title be sent UPS or FedEx, and as I stated, I finally received the title via the USPS (snail mail) after two weeks with no tracking.
He also wrote a VERY MISLEADING eBAY AD. He statements included "a fresh engine rebuild with all documentation and paperwork"..."a completely rust-free vehicle"...."no leaks whatsoever."
More facts I learned AFTER I got the vehicle:
-the engine was rebuilt 9 years ago in 2001. There is but one, one page receipt with no detail. It was not refreshly rebuilt with documentation.
-the vehicle leaks water like there is no hardtop on it. It leaks badly from several places around the doors and top and it leaks under the cowl in the interior where he PULLED THE HEATER BOX. The Cruiser WAS NOT LEAK PROOF!
-there is rust on the vehicle. He said in his conversations to me that the pictures showed "primer under the original paint." (I live in Georgia, and he is in Arizona, but rust is rust and lives in every state!)
My background:
I have been in the consulting, service, and retail business for 21 years, and I'm quite a bit the gearhead and no dummy when it comes to vehicles and repairing them.
My professional assessment of this guy is that he is EXTREMELY DISHONEST and is fully aware of his misdeeds in his sale and restoration of Toyota Land Cruisers. He talks a "good talk" over the telephone and evidently has scammed many others in the same way I was taken. COLT HOTTINGER LIES ON A CONSISTENT BASIS in his business dealings, and he's good at it!
I called him one last time today, and his response before hanging up on me was "I don't owe you anything... and you ought to be glad you got a Cruiser for the price you did."
I repeat, DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM COLT HOTTINGER aka COYOTEPOPPER on eBay. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH VULTURE MINE CRUISERS located in Wickenburg, Arizona.
This man is a VULTURE and is a BOTTOM-FEEDER and SHOULD BE AVOIDED!!! BUYER BEWARE.....
Background:
I recently bought a '71 FJ40 Land Cruiser off of eBay from Colt Hottinger. His eBay seller name is "coyotepopper." He has a website Vulture Mine Cruisers - FJ40 Land Cruiser Restoration. He lives in and his "shop" is in Wickenburg, Arizona. His street address is 1057 S. Vulture Mine Rd Wickenburg, AZ 8539.
I bought this Land Cruiser from eBay from him before the auction ended, and as a result, I have no recourse through eBay and or PayPal. I have purchased and sold vehicles on eBay Motors several times with no problems up to this point. (ADVICE: Don't agree to buy a vehicle on eBay before the auction ends - you have no recourse should something go wrong.) I was not a member of IH8MUD before I bought the vehicle, so I knew nothing about his website or company "Vulture Mine Outfitters."
I was lucky when compared to some of his other customers who purchased vehicles from him. My FJ40 was as advertised, BUT HE REMOVED THE HEATER BOX AND ALL OF THE HEATER COMPONENTS!!!
FACTUAL DETAILS:
When I called him about this, he stated that the "heater core was leaking, so I took it out." Well, removing the heater core does not mean REMOVING ALL OF THE HEATER COMPONENTS!
So I'm missing:
1) the heater box
2) the heater core
3) both left and right heater coses that go up to the cowl
4) the plastic duct that goes from the heater blower to the heater box
5) the HARD TO FIND rubber gasket that connect the plastic duct from the heater core to the heater box.
(all of these parts are very expensive, by the way)
The ad pictures on eBay clearly show the interior with the heater box and ducts. After calling numerous times and leaving at least SIX messages with no return calls, I finally got him to pick up after calling from another telephone number. His response to me was "You should be happy that you got a rust-free Cruiser... I may be able to find the parts and send them to you... I don't owe you anything..."
After looking at his website and at the other vehicles he has for sale, I can safely assume that he TOOK THE HEATER BOX AND HEATER COMPONENTS OUT OF MY VEHICLE AND PUT THEM IN ANOTHER VEHICLE OR ONE OF HIS RESTORATIONS."
There's more:
In addition, it was over two weeks and several more telephone calls until I received the title that I requested. HE DID NOT SEND ME A BILL OF SALE AS I REQUESTED. He told me that his "wife mailed out the title to you after the delivery truck picked it up." I requested the title be sent UPS or FedEx, and as I stated, I finally received the title via the USPS (snail mail) after two weeks with no tracking.
He also wrote a VERY MISLEADING eBAY AD. He statements included "a fresh engine rebuild with all documentation and paperwork"..."a completely rust-free vehicle"...."no leaks whatsoever."
More facts I learned AFTER I got the vehicle:
-the engine was rebuilt 9 years ago in 2001. There is but one, one page receipt with no detail. It was not refreshly rebuilt with documentation.
-the vehicle leaks water like there is no hardtop on it. It leaks badly from several places around the doors and top and it leaks under the cowl in the interior where he PULLED THE HEATER BOX. The Cruiser WAS NOT LEAK PROOF!
-there is rust on the vehicle. He said in his conversations to me that the pictures showed "primer under the original paint." (I live in Georgia, and he is in Arizona, but rust is rust and lives in every state!)
My background:
I have been in the consulting, service, and retail business for 21 years, and I'm quite a bit the gearhead and no dummy when it comes to vehicles and repairing them.
My professional assessment of this guy is that he is EXTREMELY DISHONEST and is fully aware of his misdeeds in his sale and restoration of Toyota Land Cruisers. He talks a "good talk" over the telephone and evidently has scammed many others in the same way I was taken. COLT HOTTINGER LIES ON A CONSISTENT BASIS in his business dealings, and he's good at it!
I called him one last time today, and his response before hanging up on me was "I don't owe you anything... and you ought to be glad you got a Cruiser for the price you did."
I repeat, DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM COLT HOTTINGER aka COYOTEPOPPER on eBay. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH VULTURE MINE CRUISERS located in Wickenburg, Arizona.
This man is a VULTURE and is a BOTTOM-FEEDER and SHOULD BE AVOIDED!!! BUYER BEWARE.....
......Reminds me of this-------> 
