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I did buy it sight unseen! I had test drove a '17 at a local dealership to make sure I liked the car, and knew there weren't many differences between the '17 and '15, or at least enough that would make me dislike the car. I never felt like I was doing something "risky" because it is CPO'd through 2021. That helps with confidence buying sight unseen. Generally I'd recommend against that but in this case I didn't mind.
I had researched the dealership. Pretty decent reviews. Also my wife's cousin purchased there before. I think what was really helpful is the sales guy I worked with was really friendly/helpful and didn't pressure me. Unfortunately some of the other dealerships I contacted seemed to not care about me once they found out I lived out of state. But Perillo does a lot of out of state business, so I think it depends on the dealership you are trying to buy from.
I had already tried to purchase a '14 GT in Madison and the thing sold before I could even get into serious talks with a sales guy at the dealership. Once I knew this was the car I wanted, I asked if I could put down a deposit for them to hold it for me. I ended up having them charge $1k onto my credit card.
After doing more research I decided I wanted to buy. Told them I'd be financing through a credit union. Car was already below KBB value, so didn't expect to have much leverage in terms of negotiation, especially since I didn't have the advantage of being able to "walk out" of the dealership. I did get them to drop the price a bit, and throw in some winter mats. I did this over the phone.
Got approved through the credit union, signed the paper work from the dealership and sent them the signed check from my credit union along with the paper work.
Since they already had my check, I literally just needed my license when I went to the dealership to pick up. They gave me a 30 day temp registration, and now I'm in the process of registering in PA where I'll eventually pay the sales tax.
No worries about hijacking, hope my info helps you and good luck!
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