I am a physician, and thought I was a pretty good judge of character. Was I ever wrong. Xavier Maignan, a name not new to Ripoff Report. is (seemingly) the proprietor of DoktorBenz.com. Xavier Maignan (in my opinion) has shown himself to be a scoundrel and shyster with whom one should use extreme caution when doing business.
This Frenchman (now residing with a wealthy California dame) claims to himself be one of extreme wealth. His business, DoktorBenz (Santa Paula, CA) seeks to purchase used vintage Mercedes automobiles to fix up and resell at a hefty profit.
The Doktor’s business ethics are shabby. (my opinion)
Here are but two examples (in less than a year) of which I can personally attest. I shall not repeat the experiences related to me by others.
September, 2014, Xavier Maignan represented that he owned and was selling a 1954 Fiat 8V Ghia Supersonic coupe, for $2.5 million. I later discovered, the car was not even owned by Xavier Maignan.
The most egregious event happened in November, 2014. I was asked by the agent for the owner of a 1958 Mercedes Benz 300SL roadster, s.n. xxxx042 to help find a buyer. Thus, with proxy authority from the Seller, I approached Xavier Maignan, sharing with him photos, vehicle specs and pricing. Xavier Maignan was told price included agent’s commission.
Xavier Maignan insisted on my telling him the name and location of the owner, which I did with the understanding any communication would go through me. After looking at the photos, Xavier Maignan wrote back to me that he was NOT interested in the car.
He immediately went behind my back to the Owner indicating a high interest in buying the Mercedes. After telling me he had zero interest in the car, he promptly purchased it directly from the Owner for $1,275,000.00. Xavier Maignan made a conscious decision to underhandedly go behind my back and cheat the Agent out of any earned commissions. He also deceived the Owner and did not tell him that he had been working with the Agent or me. Xavier Maignan is a liar.
When I suggested to Xavier Maignan the honorable thing would be for him to still pay the agent’s fee for having developed this deal, his reply was “Fuc_ Off”, and "You don't want to Fuc_ with me" a curse and threat he repeated multiple times verbally and in writing (see example, attached .jpg) Xavier Maignan has anger management issues.
The old car business/hobby is one which used to be comprised of honorable men with integrity. Today there are a few scoundrels who are threatening to make the hobby a shady affair.
To anyone interested in collector-quality vintage Mercedes Benz, I would strongly suggest avoiding Xavier Maignan and DoktorBenz at all cost. There are others who also specialize in restoration/resale and aftermarket sales of vintage Mercedes and fortunately have maintained a high integrity. Certainly Xavier Maignan does not fall into this category (my opinion).
As whimsical as his name DoktorBenz may be, there is nothing funny about Xavier Maignan. This Doktor is more of a Charlatan. Beware. (professional opinion).