Nice Futurama picture!

Scam number two: A "sport" version of the corolla.

So, are you telling me that Jonas Savimbi's son didn't really inherit millions and he is not really going to meet me at a bank in Luanda?

@China_Crisis: No, that part is true

@13oostedwgn: Scam #3: "we're a green company; please buy our Tundras and Sequoias". Naming a vehicle after something that is green does not make it green.

"Pot, Kettle's black too"?

Isn't Toyota scamming folks today, trying to sell all their cars as "green", "fun", and/or exciting "feeling"?

HYPOCRITES! (not a Greek philosopher)

I wonder what the choice of Toyota says about the demoraphic the scammers were aiming for? If it were the UK I'd say mini-cab drivers but I doubt you even know what that is

scam using Toyota's name in vain to obtain financial info for use in identity theft and raiding bank accounts

These scammers go by the name of "Toyota Motor Acceptance Corporation" and have been known to bilk consumers out of tens of thousands of dollars, sometimes over time periods exceeding 60 months. When the dust clears, these consumers have nothing to show for their troubles but hollow souls and 3,500 lbs of useless sheet metal blocking their driveway.

As soon as I get the money order for twice what I'm selling my car for, and after I send the remainder back after paying their shipper, I'm going to finally have enough money to send the good faith money that I need to send to free up the winnings that are tied up in a Bank in Denmark.

I'm going to be rich!!!!

@rognbrow: I have heard of these mini-cab drivers from a few friends I have in the UK. Their description fits in with the Gypsy Cab drivers in New York, using non licensed, non metered cars to pick up people, and take them to their destination of choice, often for less than the "real" taxi cabs. Most of the mini-cabs are 5 to 10 year old Hyundais, Daewoos, or Skodas. Am I anywhere close?

Mmm, this post is making my sprunjer go crazy!

Hmmm. I was wondering why my checking account only showed $.08 in it this morning.

Still, it's be sweet when that new Solara shows up a my door. Can't wait!

@13oostedwgn: +1

@lascauxcaveman: Weird. The letter I got said they were going to send me a Solara unless i gave them all my banking info.

@UDMan: in terms of cars you are spot on but these days in London they HAVE to be registered or they are actually libel for arrest and you still can't flag them down in the street (which is to say you either have to walk to your nearest mini-cab office or phone them and they come to you). The new system works OK so long as you can find someone with a reasonable fleet (usually 5-10 year old Japanese saloons because they are so cheap second-hand, but still fairly reliable and "safe" looking) because for a journey across town they are much cheaper than a black-cab (ie the tradition London cabs) but you have to remember to A) agree a price at the start of the journey and B) ensure they know where they are going (they don't have to do "the Knowledge" like black cab drivers)

SNAP! You can only follow Cotomer Sevis reps now?

and you can't direct comments to others with understanding a touch of HTML?

¡muy interesante!

@Lieutenant LT БЯд╒╒ ®: ooohh... kaaaay...

hmm, perhaps Gawker is secretly testing new layouts/comment functions on my computer...

@dwegmull: How many tundras are green? Aren't most of them like... snow colored?

I think a proper punishment for these scammers would be to get grounded into Torgo Executive Powder.

people that get ripped off,deserve to be ripped off,it's survival of the fittest,thats life,face it.

@PeteJayhawk: Or, more appropriately, they should be required to drive a Camry for 5 years.

This is actually remarkably common. I got a bulletin in my email this morning listing five separate versions of this scam, appearing to be from GM, GMAC, Ford, Ford Credit, and Honda Credit.

These scams have been around for at least a year, and are almost as common as Nigerian Princesses with horrendous grammar and sentence structure.

If you had any idea how many scams I see on a daily basis, it would probably make your eyes water. Rule of thumb: if it seems too good to be true, IT PROBABLY IS. You're not as lucky (or as awesome) as your mom tells you you are.

@layabout: Was it Mark Twain who said, "You can't cheat an honest man"?

@Lieutenant LT БЯд╒╒ ®: If you hover over the star it gives you a "connectedness index" that showed different numbers for you and Caveman, for instance; and then they all set back to zero.
I'm in Mozilla, usually MSIE instead, but I just noticed this.
STAR=Connectedness Index. Now we just need to figure out what a "CI" is.

@UDMan: I don't know which NYC cars you refer to as gypsy cabs, but there are livery cars (almost always a Town Car, and usually black) much like the mini-cabs rognbrow describes. The cars themselves are regulated by the City's T&LC (I don't know about the drivers). They're not supposed to pick up passengers that hail them on the street, but since yellow cabs are a very rare sight outside of Manhattan below 125th Street or so, they actually fill a need when they do.

@Hyman Decent: as do mini cabs outside of central London and especially "south of the river"

OK now people. Maybe it's too late at night or my brain just isn't hitting on all cylinders, but I read this article and the comments carefully, and I still have no idea what the problem is.