Packard Forum Index » Packard Vehicles - For Sale, Wanted, Trade

Check these out:

1937 Twelve Touring Sedan. Excellent older restoration, needs nothing. Runs and looks beautiful. Elderly owner in poor health wishes to sell immediately. Priced at $50K which I think is a bargain for a Twelve of this caliber. Car located in Ketchum, OK. Car was originally posted about two months ago at $70K:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/3955097484813797/

1953 Patrician. Beautiful car in solid black with an immaculate grey wool interior. Ad states 57K original miles. Looks impressive. Asking $23K. Clearwater, FL:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/1757206378 ... 6ce31c6-78ed-476e-8009-aaf33616c17e

1956 Super Clipper Sedan. Appears to be a decent driver quality car, but definitely see some bodywork issues in the photos. Front seat has blankets over it but interior looks original. Asking $6,300. North Carolina:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/8984160922 ... 6ce31c6-78ed-476e-8009-aaf33616c17e

1950 Standard Eight Sedan. Decent driver quality car but has some paint issues. Ad states new brakes, wiring harness, and wide white wall tires. Car has had a 12V conversion done to it. 57,800 original miles. Orlando, FL:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/1574688686 ... 6ce31c6-78ed-476e-8009-aaf33616c17e

1956 Executive Hardtop. Completely original survivor car with about 86K original miles. Has been in the same family since new; was originally purchased new by poster's FIL in 1956. Two tone Corsican Black over Ivory White. Asking $25K. Gig Harbor, WA. Extra parts included:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/4560539703 ... 2fc646c-42db-4682-98f9-9145beeac6cd

Two 1949 Deluxe Eight Sedans. One is a 22nd series and the other is a 23rd series. The 23rd series car may be one of the Golden Anniversary cars as it is that gold color and looks original. Both cars are deteriorated from long term outdoor storage but appear complete and restorable. Neither is in running condition. Seller asking $5K for both cars. Nine Mile Falls, WA:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/1502384887 ... 2fc646c-42db-4682-98f9-9145beeac6cd

1940 110 Club Coupe. Solid car but not running and has faded paint and an incorrect interior in modern fabric. But not too bad overall. Body looks excellent. A good start for a resto project. Asking $13,900. Pacioma, CA:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/1603451577 ... 6589fe3-4a38-4f53-a649-37348094b32d

Just posted today

1937 120 Touring Coupe. Model No. 1094. Needs full restoration but body appears to be solid and relatively rust free. Car has been in storage and has not run since 1977. Asking $13,500. Hagerstown, MD:

facebook.com/marketplace/item/3800611756 ... 5bafeb8-3166-43a3-aedd-bfcb67f17b18

They have an extra zero in their price! That’s about what I paid for my 120!

I really do think there are some unrealistic prices out there for cars that are fairly common at decent driver prices.

I think this comes from people that see what a #1 car sells for, and don't understand what it takes to get a #4 car up to that level.

It takes either $$$$ or sweat equity, and most times both,
in inverse proportion to common sense.

There is a 1937 super 8 Phaeton on facebook in SC its most likely a scam because the car just sold on bring a trailer in nov 2024 for 95000 and now its for sale for 39000.Also its the same pictures. Just letting you know.

The scamming is getting really bad online. Facebook Marketplace is now loaded with scammers and they are even infiltrating the private chat groups. Makes you not want to buy anything anymore. And if you list something yourself, you run the risk of attracting scammers who will try running some kind of bad check scheme or other fraud on you. Guess that you cannot be too careful these days. Only deal with people face to face or with people you know or who may otherwise be vouched for. Very sad. We used to have a good hobby and could generally trust people, but no more. A lot of these scammers aren't even in the country, so if you get a response which is filled with bad grammar, it is likely a scam. Big red flag. Another red flag is overly formal language, like addressing you as Sir. No one talks like that unless they are trying to gain your confidence so they can scam you.

On Facebook, always check their profile which is nearly always days new. Also on Facebook and even here to a degree, if someone says “PM Me” or “Message Me”, that’s a dead giveaway as they can later say you called them, not the other way around. If legitimate, they should post, then Message you.

Speaking of hot messes on Facebook Marketplace, here is what started out as a 1952 Mayfair hardtop, but is now a Chevy LS powered hot rod cop car.facebook.com/share/18Ld4gJunH/?mibextid=79PoIi

Yikes! What a terrible thing to do to a '52 Mayfair. This is a pretty rare model. Cops back in the '50's would never have used a hardtop as a squad car. In the TV show "Highway Patrol", Broderick Crawford always drove a two door post sedan. And they were V8 powered Buicks, which actually were used by the California Highway Patrol at the time. Not sure how well a straight eight Packard would have worked out as a patrol car.

Don:

FYI: I tell people in my postings to "PM Me" or "Message Me" because I believe in privacy of transactions, not posting personal info for the world to see.

...you do say, "to some degree"...however, I think you are unfairly branding people who are legitimate as potential cheats...your statement of "...a dead giveaway" is too broad.


In my many years of managing people in transactions and development of systems, the best thing to do is give actionable advice (some of which incorporates your intended messages):

1) Check their profile to see if it is new; if it is...result= potential "Johnny come lately requiring a lot more vigilance and due diligence"

2) If they dont openly post relevant information about the listing AND they insist on taking communications offline...result= potential "Johnny come lately requiring a lot more vigilance and due diligence"

3) How do I begin to peel the onion back on the transaction? (Most real sellers want a transaction, not an argument, so they will usually accommodate reasonable requests once or twice in a dialogue):

a) Make sure the Buyer (YOU) knows what you are looking for so you can spot fake photos (i.e. wrong water pump in a provided photo for that model)
b) Go visit, or have a local known compadre visit, and inspect the actual vehicle in the real McCoy (I cant believe people spending this kind of money without physically looking at the item under consideration and the seller's "body language")...result= caveat emptor
c) If you can't visit it, look at all the photos listed...then ask for the seller to provide photos of something really unusual like "open and closed glovebox closeup" or "rearview mirror attachment" or "under seat battery box" or "water pump closeup"...result= reduces likelihood of fake reposting if they can provide additional weird requested photos
d) Have seller provide photos (not just typing) of all Factory Body Plates, Engine Serial#, State Vin Tag (sometimes unique depending on the State), Theft Proof Firewall Embossed #...If they did this and you still suspect it is re-posted fraudulently, ask for a new photo of the plate/number FROM A DIFFERENT SIDE/ANGLE OF THE CAR...result= reduce fraud likelihood if they can produce the images as requested
e) If it runs, ask for the Seller to take a short cell video (or ask them to FaceTime with you) from cold, to startup, with a minute or two of run-in/revving panning the cell phone angle from the engine compartment, to under the engine to detect "running leaks", then back to the tailpipe to see if the smoke color indicates that we have a new pope or the cardinals need to pray further
f) Ask for a photo of the clear title; If it is a parts car, then you need the photos from item d)
g) Do some general browser searches of the identical vehicle, varying some of the terminology (i.e. V12 vs Twelve, etc)...see if you find the exact same photo(s) in other areas...result= "Big Red Flag for fraud"
h) Call your local sheriff and tell them you are considering a purchase and want to verify that the VIN is not listed as a stolen vehicle; they will accommodate and/or point you in the right direction to implement your request.

4) Nothing is foolproof; sometimes the antique car auction houses are given a lot of "overpriced" grousing, but they mostly vet the cars they sell and take on a fair bit of liability to curb these things. If you are not an antique car aficionado, come to this forum and ask questions (many people do this so that is a strength of this forum)

5) Don't make accusations, even if you "smell a rat"; better to walk away and just let other fellow car nuts know to "look deeply into a seller because I found the following..."; "user 29tons" a few postings back is an excellent example of "heads up, smells fishy"