A farmer in Kentucky wired $45,500 to a dealership that didn’t exist. A woman in Pennsylvania lost $45,000 buying a Lexus she found on CARFAX.
Law enforcement agencies across the nation are now issuing urgent warnings as more and more victims are sending wire transfers for tractors, classic cars and heavy equipment that they will never receive.
This is dealer cloning. And it’s the most diabolical online fraud scheme I’ve ever investigated.
How The Scam Works
Dealer cloning works like this.
Russian and Romanian fraudsters create a professional looking website that pretends to be a real dealership. They typically use AI.
They steal photos of tractors, excavators, and classic muscle cars from legitimate sellers. They list everything at prices just low enough to grab your attention. They offer “Trust Kits” which are just bogus documentation to prove the tractors and cars are real.
And using all of this deception, they convince you to wire money for equipment you will never receive.
I Stumbled On 50 Fake Websites That Are Stealing Millions
What makes this different from other scams is the scale. Over the past month, I have systematically tracked down and documented more than 50 of these fake websites that are operational, and they all appear to be connected.
They use the same website templates, the same guarantee language, and the same step-by-step process to take your money.
It is, for all practical purposes, a scam factory. Here is what some of the sites look like.
And another fake website selling muscle cars.
And this one selling heavy equipment.
One Template, Fifty Names And Tons of AI
The thing that gave away the network was how identical the sites looked once you put them side by side. Every single one of them offers a “14-Day Buy-Back Guarantee” and a “30-Day Mechanical Warranty.” Every one of them promises to send you a “Trust Kit” before you pay, which includes VIN documents, photos, and a dealership ID.
Take Ironwood Tractor Company at ironwoodtractorcompany.com. The site looks completely real. It shows rows of John Deere and Case IH equipment lined up outside a warehouse. It lists a phone number. It has an inventory page full of tractors with detailed specs and prices.
But the Calera Police Department in Alabama has already warned the public that Ironwood Tractor is a scam. According to city officials, scammers are using the address of Calera Public Works along with AI-generated images to make the site look legitimate.
AI Makes The Scams More Convincing
These fake sites are littered with evidence of AI. From the photos of staff, to the photos of the car and location, to deepfake testimonial videos.
One site called Dalton Tractor featured photos of employees holding up a sign. But a closer look revealed crossed eyes and gnarled hands, red flags that nothing on the site was real.
Another photo showed a man in a Dalton Tractor T-shirt shaking hands with a satisfied customer. An extra finger or two was evident when you took a closer look.
Perhaps most shocking, the scammers created testimonial videos using deepfakes. In one, a happy customer named stands in front of a tractor and says how happy he is with his purchase from “Swan Valley Tractor Works”
Its an obvious deepfake when you look closer.
Here Are The URL’s Of The Suspicious Sites
The following websites exhibit the matching elements of this fraud network and remain operational.
They feature the standard “Trust Kit” pre-payment promise, 14-day buy-back guarantee, 30-day mechanical warranty, and accept only irreversible payment methods:
Here are a sample of suspicious tractor and heavy equipment sites
5acretractorworks.com, bentontractorsupply.com, bigtimberequipmentco.com, dudestractor.com, farmerjoestractorbarn.com, futchstractordepot.com, giza-contracting.com, greenvalley-equipment.com, highlinetractorworks.com, ironwoodtractorcompany.com, masontractorworks.com, meadowridgetractorsupply.com, pioneerridgetractor.com, silveroaktractorsupply.com, swanvalleytractorworks.com, tractor-mac.com, tractomaxxsupply.com, valleytractorandequipment.com, wildcreektractorworks.com
And here are a sample of suspicious classic car dealers sites
190-autosales.com, adams-autosales.com, ajsauto-sales.com, bb-autosales.com, couk-autosales.com, deansauto-sale.com, exoviandrive.com, flux-drive.com, hrz-car.com, igalautos.com, imperialautosalesoffice.com, ironhawkcarcompany.com, k-j-autosales.com, lexoracars.com, luxury-warehousenorth.com, mc-donaldautosales.com, musiccitypowerperformance.com, pentara-autodealer.com, quickpinemotorsgroup.com, r-s-motors.com, redforgeautosales.com, revamericanauto.com, riverstoneautosales.com, salthouseauto.com, silverlineauto.com, sterling-wheels.com, turbohavenauto.com
And here are some phone numbers to be aware of
413-200-9849 (Dalton Tractor), 970-500-3764 (TractoMaxx Supply), 320-633-2194 (Five Acre Tractor Works), 717-539-4744 (Meadow Ridge Tractor Supply), 380-233-4981 (Igal Auto Sales), 320-526-2024 (Pentara Auto Dealer), 318-666-5416 (Horizon Car Sales / hrz-car.com), 575-912-2490 (Dude’s Tractor), 386-552-1277 (Star Tractor), 417-526-2432 (Benton Tractor Supply), 580-741-2860 (Pioneer Ridge Tractor), 585-889-8458 (Valley Tractor & Equipment), 659-204-1955 (Ironwood Tractor Company), 207-495-4082 (QCA Equipment), 430-507-7304 (Salthouse Auto), 507-905-1980 (Sterling Wheels), 419-345-1076 (Silverline Auto), 203-457-8377 (Tractor Mac), 336-493-4732 (Exovian Drive), 573-443-4541 (listed on a Tractor Mac equipment listing).
I have many, many more of these sites so feel free to reach out for the full list if you are interested.
Share This Infographic And Warn Others
Tennessee’s Attorney General specifically advises consumers to view vehicles or heavy machinery in person before purchasing. If you cannot inspect it personally, hire a trusted third party like a local mechanic to examine it for you.
The small cost of inspection is nothing compared to potentially losing your entire payment to fraud.
