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PostPosted: Sat Aug 16, 2025 6:11 pm 
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Turbo Slant 6
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Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2003 12:59 pm
Posts: 849
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Car Model: 1963 Dart 170 Suburban
Title states the need. I know, heresy.

Though I don’t want to at all, my circumstances require me to sell my 63 Dart 170 wagon that I’ve owned for 28 years. Other than paint and some surface rust, with some very minor mechanical issues, I’d honestly rate the car as Good. I’ve done a lot to it, and with rare exceptions, haven’t seen many much better.

Ebay’s fees for sellers are ridiculous and their policies and practices favor buyers. Bring A Trailer’s fees are reasonable (depending on what service you select), but a recent auction left me disappointed with the tepid bidding activity, and they also declined to list it (they were turned off by the presence of any visible rust). Cars and Bids also only seem to market pristine, exotic cars. Free platforms like Facebook marketplace are full of scammers, tire-kickers, or unmotivated buyers if any real buyers exist at all. I haven’t tried Craigslist for the car anytime recently, but I haven’t read anything good about it lately.

Does anyone have any ideas about where would be a good place for me to list the car for sale?


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PostPosted: Sat Aug 16, 2025 9:40 pm 
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Supercharged
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Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 9:20 pm
Posts: 13213
Location: Fircrest, WA
Car Model: 76 D100
As much as I hate it, Facebook has a pretty active classifieds section.

I have always had good luck with Offerup and Craigslist, too. Craigslist charges now and Offerup gives you one free automotive ad per month.

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PostPosted: Mon Aug 18, 2025 4:45 pm 
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Turbo Slant 6
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Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2003 12:59 pm
Posts: 849
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Car Model: 1963 Dart 170 Suburban
Thanks for the response. I'm not super unhappy with Facebook Marketplace classifieds (you can't argue with free), but you can make the case that they're ineffective, if you don't sell it. Thanks for letting me know about OfferUp, I didn't know they have an automotive section. I did sell a Dart on Craigslist once, but that was before you paid to list it. Maybe I should consider it.

No one else has suggestions?? It shouldn't be this hard to sell your slant :(


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PostPosted: Tue Aug 19, 2025 9:05 am 
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Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2002 5:39 pm
Posts: 24732
Location: North America
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Our automotive tastes are well away from the fat part of the bell curve. That means it takes extra-great luck and/or extra-great patience to sell one of these cars for what we want to get for it, no matter where and how we're trying to sell it. Especially with the economic conditions and uncertainty prevailing these days, making people less able and less likely to buy non-necessities. I'm afraid there is no magic venue. :(

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 19, 2025 10:58 am 
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Joined: Mon Oct 21, 2002 11:08 am
Posts: 17064
Location: Blacksburg, VA
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There have been some sales recently with well made ads on this board. I agree with everything Dan said too... It has been this way for a while, but has been exacerbated recently.

Lou

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PostPosted: Wed Aug 20, 2025 12:46 am 
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Supercharged
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Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 9:20 pm
Posts: 13213
Location: Fircrest, WA
Car Model: 76 D100
If it makes you feel any better, in 2021 we bought my sister a 2009 Buick Enclave.IO think we paid something like $3500 plus the cost of a Uhaul truck and car trailer rental. The Buick only had about 140,000 miles, but the transmissions were known to have problems with one of the wave plates in a clutch pack (specifically, the 3-5 wave plate, which was, indeed broken in the Buick we bought) as well as a poorly designed oiling system that started the three timing chains and four cam phasers for oilk, leading to premature timing chain stretch and the cams going out of time.

I was fixing it up for my sister so I went through and fixed all the problems replaced parts that probably didn't need to be replaced but would never be easier to replace than when I had the engine and trans dropped out of the car. In all, I easily spent over $4500 in parts alone to get the car finally all working well and to make it the best it could be for my sister.

Well, she decided she would rather have a minivan, so I put the Enclave up for sale. After about a month I was able to sell it for $2800. Yup. About half of what I paid for parts alone fixing it up. At least the new owners got a nice looking car with most of the problems fixed.

My point is that these days, more than ever before, you will never make your money back on a car. You will be lucky to sell the car and break even.

Advertise everywhere, good pictures, good description, and be ready to deal with lots and lots of flaky people.

In addition to what I already suggested, try forAbodiesonly dot com

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PostPosted: Thu Aug 21, 2025 2:19 pm 
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Turbo Slant 6
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Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2003 12:59 pm
Posts: 849
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Car Model: 1963 Dart 170 Suburban
Quote:
If it makes you feel any better, in 2021 we bought my sister a 2009 Buick Enclave.IO think we paid something like $3500 plus the cost of a Uhaul truck and car trailer rental. The Buick only had about 140,000 miles, but the transmissions were known to have problems with one of the wave plates in a clutch pack (specifically, the 3-5 wave plate, which was, indeed broken in the Buick we bought) as well as a poorly designed oiling system that started the three timing chains and four cam phasers for oilk, leading to premature timing chain stretch and the cams going out of time.

I was fixing it up for my sister so I went through and fixed all the problems replaced parts that probably didn't need to be replaced but would never be easier to replace than when I had the engine and trans dropped out of the car. In all, I easily spent over $4500 in parts alone to get the car finally all working well and to make it the best it could be for my sister.

Well, she decided she would rather have a minivan, so I put the Enclave up for sale. After about a month I was able to sell it for $2800. Yup. About half of what I paid for parts alone fixing it up. At least the new owners got a nice looking car with most of the problems fixed.

My point is that these days, more than ever before, you will never make your money back on a car. You will be lucky to sell the car and break even.

Advertise everywhere, good pictures, good description, and be ready to deal with lots and lots of flaky people.

In addition to what I already suggested, try forAbodiesonly dot com
Thanks Reed, Lou, Dan for your responses.

Reed, thanks for the story. Wish I could say it makes me feel better, but misery isn't company here. That most of us are emotionally connected to our cars compounds the disappointment and amplifies these bitter feelings when one realizes that in the world of old cars, most other people don't share the same bond, or the same willingness to be a great steward to these somewhat-quirky, but truly fine cars. Kinda answers that question that pops up sometimes when you see a junkyard full of once-neat old vehicles and say "what happened?"

The answer was, nobody cared.

:(


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PostPosted: Thu Aug 21, 2025 6:53 pm 
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Supercharged
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Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 9:20 pm
Posts: 13213
Location: Fircrest, WA
Car Model: 76 D100
:( :( :( :( :( :cry:

I visit websites and (shudder) Facebook pages for GM vehicles due to my sister liking newer Buicks. What is truly sad is trying to ask a tech question there. The days of owners having useful tech info to share are over. If the question isn't about how to install 22 inch rims or a kickin' stereo, most new car owners have no clue how to work on them. Now the first thing I buy when I get a new car is a factory service manual suince I know nobody will be able to answer any questions I have.

Good luck with your sale. Whenever I sell a car I care about (or parts) I always give a steep discount if I know it is going to someone who will appreciate it.

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PostPosted: Fri Aug 22, 2025 4:53 am 
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TBI Slant 6
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Joined: Fri Jul 14, 2006 6:32 pm
Posts: 243
Location: Crescent City Florida
Car Model:
Are you a member of For A bodies only, many of us here are. https://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/

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PostPosted: Fri Aug 22, 2025 12:06 pm 
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Turbo Slant 6

Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2003 11:47 am
Posts: 592
Location: Illinois
Car Model:
Quote:
:( :( :( :( :( :cry:

I visit websites and (shudder) Facebook pages for GM vehicles due to my sister liking newer Buicks. What is truly sad is trying to ask a tech question there. The days of owners having useful tech info to share are over. If the question isn't about how to install 22 inch rims or a kickin' stereo, most new car owners have no clue how to work on them. Now the first thing I buy when I get a new car is a factory service manual suince I know nobody will be able to answer any questions I have.

Good luck with your sale. Whenever I sell a car I care about (or parts) I always give a steep discount if I know it is going to someone who will appreciate it.
About 6 months ago someone locally listed a 65 barracuda(v8 $2000 with crushed rear 1/4 panel) for sale on marketplace. I don't have the room for it. But I wanted to let him know his listing is wrong. It was a 66 not a 65. He swore up and down that it was a 65. I pointed out the fact that the front fenders, dash panel, interior (including floor shift), rear 1/4 panels with taillights were all very specific 1966 only item. He said it was a 1965.

I told him to make sure the serial number on the car matched his title because either it got mis-titled when new, doesn't match his paperwork or possibly was a canada car. He thanked me and told me he already had a buyer and that he wasn't going to lower his price. I told him in my first message that I wasn't interested in the car and that I was just trying to keep him out of trouble.

owners and tractors have something in common they iz stoopid.


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PostPosted: Fri Aug 22, 2025 1:16 pm 
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Board Sponsor & Contributor

Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2002 5:39 pm
Posts: 24732
Location: North America
Car Model:
Quote:
What is truly sad is trying to ask a tech question there. The days of owners having useful tech info to share are over. If the question isn't about how to install 22 inch rims or a kickin' stereo, most new car owners have no clue how to work on them.
Truth. There stopped being useful forums for my car when I sold my last K-car derivative. The Accord that followed it? Many forums, all useless. The Mazda that came next? Many forums, all useless.
Quote:
Now the first thing I buy when I get a new car is a factory service manual
The one for my Mazda is intended to be expensive* and it is substantially useless.
Quote:
Whenever I sell a car I care about (or parts) I always give a steep discount if I know it is going to someone who will appreciate it.
That is a philosophy I very much agree with and try my best to put into practice as, where, when, and how I can. After I sold my last old car, I still had a mountain of literature. I couldn’t keep it; we were emptying out the house before the bulldozers would come for it, and downsizing pretty substantially. We would have to rent a storage locker, and I was determined to make it as small and temporary as could be. I took lots of pictures of the terrific collection of parts, service, sales, and promotional literature for ’60-’87ish Chrysler products from all over the world; the collection had taken me decades to amass, and most of this stuff was very scarce. I’d already offloaded the easier-to-get stuff at a local car book store, and now I had the special-interest items remaining. I listed logical groups of items at low prices, and put a much lower price on the whole collection, maybe almost enough to cover shipping, and posted ads. I got replies along the lines of if I buy this one thing you have listed at $3 and this other thing you have listed at $2, can I get a quantity discount and have them both for $2.50 with free shipping?. :roll: I wasn’t expecting to be paid back for what I had in the collection, but c’mon.

By and by, I got a PM from an individual who said he’d eagerly buy the whole collection, but he wasn't in a position to be buying non-necessities. He understood the time/space pressure I was under, and he realised this meant it just wasn’t going to work, but he wanted to express appreciation anyhow. I thanked him for his message, got his address, and boxed up (many boxes!) and sent him the entire collection with a note telling him he didn't owe me anything for it and I was glad it would wind up with someone who actually cared rather than in the recycle bin. Some time later, he sent me a check. Goes around --> --> --> comes around, just not usually quite that quickly or directly.

As for pricing/asking/getting/etc, there's a highly relevant** and long thread on FABO here.

* Mazda no longer sell paper manuals at any price, let alone the reasonable price they used to sell at. Now it's digital-only. Which is fine, but not at doglick prices. Picture me putting one hand over one eye and going "Arrrrrrrrrrrr!".

** Well, at least it starts out relevant. Long threads. Y'know.

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