Guys, as much as it pains me I really need to find a new owner for my '53. My '40 has a dead flathead and I need to focus on getting it back on the road. I have had it listed here, Ford Barn, and Craigslist for about 4 months. I have had about 5 people contact me about coming out to see and drive it but only one has shown up. I think that guy was ready to buy it, but his wife was not on board... So please critique my posting, pics, car, price, whatever. Please be honest, I can take it, probably https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/1953-ford-customline.1286270/
I know how much you want it to be worth more but apparently no one is willing to pay $8900 for a cl***ic. It might be because it is a 6 cyl. It might be because it isn't a hard top. I'm in the same boat with a '67 Chev pickup. No value to others because it's a long bed.
Delete the follow up posts, they mostly cause confusion and raise skepticism. Try to keep the text to a minimum. Instead of listing all the new parts and labor just write something like ‘well maintained and needs very little’. Obviously you’re not hiding anything. The ***le thing is a red flag (to me). Maybe do a little research regarding transferability. Whether or not the ***le is transferable might be all you need to list, unless your research proves otherwise, particularly for Georgia residents. It’s got an obsolete I-6 so you’re looking at an even smaller market. (No offense, my 59 has it’s original 6 and I enjoy it quite a bit) Good luck
I dont see anything wrong. Ad has nice info/details could condense it a bit. If I was in the market for a 52-54 ford in your area with some money to burn I'd definitely be interested. Its ****s in today's economy with everything increasing in price there's just less people available to splurge on a car at the moment. If anything I'd change up the pics, take some more nice artsy fartsy pictures and also list it on Facebook marketplace and the 52-54 ford group's within FB (more eyes there)....Craigslist is okay, but not the same since they started charging for listing. Also taking it to local shows or swap meets and throwing a for sale sign on it helps. Good luck, dont get discouraged. Remember there's an *** for every seat!
The ***le thing is just the way it is in GA. We only recently have been able to get a ***le at all for a pre 63 vehicle. GA did not issue ***les until after that. No issues selling it to someone in GA, Alabama, or Tennessee. But some other states it may not be worth the h***le. That issue is something I have no way to work around.
It is listed on the 52-54 group on FB. But not MarketPlace. I have had zero luck listing or buying vehicles using FB MarketPlace. It seems to have more scammers and crooks than Craigslist I do put a for sale sign in the window when I take it to cruise-ins. The swap meet is almost a 2 hour drive so that I have not done
52-54 Ford cars don't seem to be very popular in general. But the price reflects that I believe. If you compare it to other vehicles in the same price range almost all are projects. I'd drive a '67 long bed
Maybe the word ‘conditional’ just doesn’t sit well with me. I just read through the Georgia motor vehicle website a bit and there doesn’t seem to be any restrictions. If that’s the case then you could just say “clean ***le” My state still doesn’t issue ***les for 72 & down
It looks like any other GA ***le but has the phrase "conditional ***le - may not reflect all liens or other en***brances" I doubt any states would refuse to accept it. But you never know.
I would drive it more. Find some bigger shows and make a plan to drive there get your sign on it. I found that with the last couple cars, Being seen driving it and getting seen at shows goes a long way towards selling. The ***le thing seems weird but understandable. Maybe it another locals problem by selling it locally.
Personally, it looks really clean to me and I think it's a good price as well. I bought my '55 from GA. The ***le thing is what it is. I agree with other that have said drive it some more with a For Sale sign in it. FB marketplace is exhausting sometimes. Have you investigated how much an ad on the cl***ic car section of auto trader would cost?
I have a pretty full month this month and will be doing a lot of traveling. My current plan is to leave the ads as they are for now and start trying some of the suggestions in this thread starting in July. If I still have it when our big, local car show happens later this summer I may bring it. I was planning to put my Roadster in the show, but I bet I could get both of them there. The venue is only about 5 miles from home.
Having a current ***le should improve your chance of selling in a few more states, South Carolina for one will not register a car from Georgia without a ***le. As for the popularity of 52-54 Fords, you are correct they are not the most sought out but they have made strides in the last few years with guys like EMS making replacement patch panels along with a few others reproducing parts. You '53 looks like a nice solid car, if it has any rust issues you do need to state them and be honest, if anything needs attention let the buying public know. BTW, I would add OBO and if you might be interested in any trades, you never know. HRP
Put it on Fb market place or in the appropriate FB groups. As much as I like these old forums they are dieing. I think your ad is good. I like to post every picture possible with as much detail as possible but keep it simple. An example would be the ***le, just put you have a new Ga ***le, don't muddy the water with confusing details.
I dont think it's anything your doing at all. It's probably more due to the economy right now. There is alot of uncertainty. In fact if I hadn't just bought another antique tractor your car would be at my house by now.
I don’t think it is the economy. I just sold two Austins for a buddy, right here on this forum. $15k and $18k both gone within 5 or 6 weeks of posting
My first car was a '54 Ford and our Ranch Wagon is a '54 Ford, I have always liked them but the '52 -'54 Fords still are not as popular as the shoebox's and the later year Fords, thay have come a long way in the past 20 years and as reproduction parts become more available I think more people will start to build them, IMHO they are really the last Fords to be taken seriously by hot rodders. HRP
I bought my 56 from Georgia. He had a current registration and I got a bill of sale but no ***le. NC did not have any issues. Three months later I went to the DMV with my 72 El Camino and had a ***le from Indiana. I had to trailer the car to the DMV and an officer came out to inspect the car VIN numbers before I could get a ***le. It made no sense at all. I did not have a ***le for the 56 but there were no issues. The El Camino had a ***le but I had to jump through hoops.
To get the current registration in GA, he had to have an officer come out and inspect the VIN so he had already jumped through the hoops for you.
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