Value of a '53 Ford 4 door

[Lahti35]

Anybody got an idea of the value on this ride?

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-Other-4-door-sedan-/252048339432?forcerrptr=true&hash=item3aaf4071e8&item=252048339432

[CarlLaFong]

He's asking about double what its worth.

[auburnseeker]

He's asking about double what its worth.

My thoughts exactly.  53 Fords are pretty low on the gotta have it list.  They are not a bad car just not real desirable.  2 door models in good shape can be had for around 10,000.

[capngrog]

There appears to be a slight colour mismatch on the left front fender; otherwise, it appears to be a nice, well-preserved car.  Of course there could be rust hidden somewhere, but the photos don't show any.

 

I agree that the asking price is about double what the car is worth.

 

Just my opinion,

Grog

[Guest AlCapone]

53 four door in Detroit area is about the $5000 range in very good condition. There are not many people out there looking for a 4 door! Wayne

Edited August 11, 2015 by AlCapone (see edit history)

[Lahti35]

Thanks guys, just checking to see if my value estimate was close or way off. I contacted the seller and he informed me in no uncertain terms that he had been "advised of value and prices", reserve is set at 14.5k.

 

I don't want to turn this into a seller bashing thread but it sure is a shame when a nice used car comes up for sale but the seller has been poorly informed of value.

[Guest jukepin]

Check completed items on E- Bay for 1953 ford. Same model in comparable condition closed Aug. 1 at $4999.99 with no bids.

[Guest AlCapone]

How many people do you know that are out shopping for a 1953 Ford, 4 door ? I personally don't know a single one. How many 53 Ford four doors do you see at car shows ? None! Now you know why he is going to have a very difficult and likely impossible task ahead of him ! Unfortunately his ridiculous price is scaring away potential buyers. Wayne

[Bleach]

Even half the asking price seems a bit much. The paint looks a bit suspicious to be original and the drivers door has without a doubt been repaired and repainted. The engine looks too crudy for that mileage. The interior shots don't show enough of the inside.

[capngrog]

Lahti 35,

If you're interested in the car, just submit a bid. It may be the best offer the seller gets, and, who knows, he/she may accept that. It appears to be a car in pretty good condition, and could be a fun driver ... so bid accordingly.

Cheers,

Grog

[Lahti35]

Lahti 35,

If you're interested in the car, just submit a bid. It may be the best offer the seller gets, and, who knows, he/she may accept that. It appears to be a car in pretty good condition, and could be a fun driver ... so bid accordingly.

Cheers,

Grog

 

I did, bet i'll be the high bidder too, lol. It does look like a fun driver and that's what I'm after.

[Guest AlCapone]

I hope your bid was not close to his asking price ! Wayne

[Lahti35]

I hope your bid was not close to his asking price ! Wayne

Nope... I feel like $6000 is tippy tops for me if it runs and drives like he says. Don't have much hope for bringing it home though... he seemed like one of those guys who just knew what the value is and would rather sit on it for all time than let it go for any less... but you never know, just have to wait and see.

[Guest AlCapone]

Nope... I feel like $6000 is tippy tops for me if it runs and drives like he says. Don't have much hope for bringing it home though... he seemed like one of those guys who just knew what the value is and would rather sit on it for all time than let it go for any less... but you never know, just have to wait and see.

Hope he enjoys sitting because he likely will do just that. If indeed it runs fine your offer is realistic. Wayne

[JACK M]

I am not a Ford guy, but I think the 53 Flathead is a 239 cid engine.

Is the seller confused or just more misinformed than he thinks?

I would rather have a stick shift if I was interested as well.

Edited August 11, 2015 by JACK M (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

53 four door in Detroit area is about the $5000 range in very good condition...  Wayne

 

I agree with Wayne, and think that if the seller

was able to get $5000, he should be grateful.

Under $5000 would be a fair price for you, I believe.

 

Asking prices for cars are frequently out of touch

with reality.  So if you really wanted that particular

example, you could likely wait a year or more and

find his asking price more realistic.  Or give him a

sincere call after his 3rd Ebay attempt.  I have called

a year after a car was advertised and found it 

still for sale--and that's not uncommon at all.

 

I'll bet, with patience, you could find a nicer example

for $5000. 

Edited August 11, 2015 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

The problem with many sellers is that once they hear a number that they like, THAT becomes THE number; there's no talking them out of it. I'm positive someone, somewhere told this guy this was a $15,000 car. Maybe someone who knew what he was talking about, but more likely some yokel at a gas station who walked by and made an off-hand comment. Never mind the dozens of other well-learned people telling him otherwise, THAT guy was the expert he chose to listen to. I'm working with a seller now who has a few semi-interesting cars that his father left him. He doesn't know much about cars, but what he does know is that his father, right before he died, said that they were worth $100,000.

 

Each.

 

So that's where he's standing. He doesn't want the cars, he doesn't drive them, and they've deteriorated quite a bit since his father passed away, but until someone shows up with three or four hundred thousand dollars, well, they're going to sit and rot (and get less and less valuable, but he's not hearing any of that, either). More than a few experts have reviewed the cars and they've all given him about the same answer: the cars are worth 50-60% of what he expects. Nevertheless, his dad said they were $100,000 cars, so that's the end of that.

 

And so they will rot. And wait. And everyone will get a year older. The cars will get farther and farther away from being on the road. And maybe, someday if this guy's great grandchildren live long enough, those cars might be worth what his dad said they were worth seven years ago. He's apparently willing to wait.

[Guest BillP]

Money at 7% doubles in ten years.

[Guest AlCapone]

Re John and Matt's comments. I totally agree. I also collect wooden. Duck decoys. As soon as there is a television show that a collector bought a decoy for $50 and sold it for $1000 everybody thinks their decoys in the garage are worth a thousand dollars. Many times they are hunting birds worth $25 but try to convince the seller about their real worth. After that they sit and rot because he has a fictitious number lodged in his brain. The same with cars ! Wayne

[GARY F]

There is a 54 crestline 4dr. on ebay ,nice for a lot less money

[cahartley]

^ That's a really nice car!

I think that one WILL tell the rest of the story.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-Other-Base-/141738996388?forcerrptr=true&hash=item21004d72a4&item=141738996388

[Lahti35]

I guess somebody wanted it.... 14.5k! If the sale goes through anyway!

[Guest AlCapone]

I guess somebody wanted it.... 14.5k! If the sale goes through anyway!

Are you saying the original car sold for $14,5 and if so. How do you know that ? Wayne

[Lahti35]

Are you saying the original car sold for $14,5 and if so. How do you know that ? Wayne

 Just click the link in my opening post, it shows the sold price. Bid history shows my bids underneath a zero feedback bidder who bid once at 14.5k. How it got that high without someone actually bidding against him beats me... I thought ebay only bids up if somebody is bidding against you. My max bid was under 6k and they were only bidding against me at the end... something rotten in the state of Denmark?

Edited August 13, 2015 by Lahti35 (see edit history)

[Guest AlCapone]

I obviously don't know how EBay works now. I thought the high bidder was $100 above the second bidder not several thousand. Wayne

[Stude17]

Buy it now price that met the reserve.

[John_S_in_Penna]

That first car, which "sold" for $14,500 when the

current bid was only up to $5900, I suspect may

have had its sale contrived.  Is anyone that foolish

to overpay in such a way?

 

How curious that the seller would put an absurd

price on the car and, when far better cars of 

various makes and models go for less, that Ford

quickly reaches its desired bid!

[Curti]

Shill bid.

[Lahti35]

Buy it now price that met the reserve.

 

Buy it now price was 15k... ebay tells you now when the seller lowers the buy it now price and there was nothing about that in the finished listing.

 

At any rate there's too much hanky panky going on with this ride for me to be interested!

[Restorer32]

At least the car was honestly described in the listing.

[Guest AlCapone]

At least the car was honestly described in the listing.

That is like saying the bank robber had a nice. Clean shirt on ( lol ) ! Wayne

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Happens fairly frequently I think, from what I have seen on ebay.

Look for a re- listing in a few weeks, and again until the seller gives up on the pie in the sky and decides a cookie on a napkin is more realistic...

I do get where Lahti is coming from though. Sometimes a less desirable Model or body style is just plain cool, especially if it is much nicer than most examples of the same thing.

Edited August 13, 2015 by Steve_Mack_CT (see edit history)

[vermontboy]

At one point in time Ebay pursued shill bidding, almost fanatically. No longer the case, all they want is their fee. Same holds true for fakes and forgeries in collectibles - they do not care unless some regulatory agency gets involved.

 

I'm sure that Steve is correct - it will be back on Ebay shortly

[Bleach]

The winner was a "0" feedback member. I'm sure it was bogus.

[Curti]

The winner was a "0" feedback member. I'm sure it was bogus.

And the seller had one feedback. 

[Guest AlCapone]

It doesn't take a rocket or an EBay scientist to figure this one out ! Let's see what it gets listed for next time. Wayne

Edited August 18, 2015 by AlCapone (see edit history)

[60FlatTop]

Thanks guys, just checking to see if my value estimate was close or way off. I contacted the seller and he informed me in no uncertain terms that he had been "advised of value and prices", reserve is set at 14.5k.

 

I don't want to turn this into a seller bashing thread but it sure is a shame when a nice used car comes up for sale but the seller has been poorly informed of value.

Being advised on the value is not quite objective enough.

The value would be better represented by something like " I have owned this car for ten years. It is reliable and I drive it at least 1,000 miles per year. The tires are less than 5 years old. A complete brake job including new lines was done four years ago and the fluid is flushed annually.

The radiator has been tested and serviced. All hoses are less than five years old. Coolant has been flushed every two years.

The transmission and rear end lubricants were flushed and show clear when checked.

The engine and transmission mounts were replaced when purchased.

The battery is about five years old. The starter and generator have been recently rebuilt.

 

These are the kind of comments that establish the value of a car; along with its standing in the hobby market.

 

Sitting in a darkened room with the Fox sisters in Lillydale and asking dear departed Uncle Harry for advice from the spirit world ain't gonna get it.

 

I just listed services I perform on my cars as an example. One can always price shop. Somehow, I always get a slight feeling of satisfaction when I lose a sale to a price shopper. (After over half a century in the hobby I know they lie to cover their embarrassment).

 

Bernie

[Larry W]

That looks like the same car that was owned by a little old lady from Mt. Pilot around 1963. Sold to a deputy named Barney something.

[Bleach]

That looks like the same car that was owned by a little old lady from Mt. Pilot around 1963. Sold to a deputy named Barney something.

 

LOL, I remember that episode. The car was a lemon and it was stolen too.

[keiser31]

That looks like the same car that was owned by a little old lady from Mt. Pilot around 1963. Sold to a deputy named Barney something.

That episode was just aired last week.