A Classic Story for you

neat story. talk about a resale red paint job!

sort of reminds me of the "Carmen Miranda" Cord HA!

Have a great Christmas!

Shawn

Thanks for sharing, what a great story! A reminder that there are far to many charlatans in our hobby.

Happy Holidays,

Mike

At Hershey about five years ago, I was looked at a Duesenberg convertible sedan that was advertised as "arguably one of the most important Duesenbergs" because it was one of the first, and was used in initial auto shows. The sign also said the car was "returned to the factory at an early date for the addition of external exhaust pipes." A pair of older gentlemen came up and read the sign, and I heard one tell the other -- "That's funny, I owned that car about 10 years ago, and it didn't have outside pipes on it." I've seen a Mercedes advertised as "Mr. Mercedes' personal car." In fact, there was no "Mr. Mercedes." The car's name stems from a first name of a founders' daughter. There are a lot of crooks in the old car business, and apparently a lot of fools willing to believe anything they hear. Together they've ruined it for those of us who regard it as a hobby.

Sadly, it is true that there are lots of opportunists out there. It?s not just the old car hobby that has been touched by this. Just take a quick look through ebay. It is an amazing place for collectors, and sometimes there are great deals, but it is certainly the land of ?let the buyer beware.? Having personally been burned there before, it is just another avenue where things aren?t always what they seem. You can also get burned at any old car swap meet, so it always pays to keep your eyes open.

I like to think that these opportunists haven?t totally ruined the hobby, but I?d certainly concede that they have done it a great disservice. Unfortunately, charlatanism is a trend that I don?t see going away. It is as old as mankind. Despite the best efforts of clubs like CCCA, AACA, and a myriad of very fine single marque organizations, there seems to be little we have done that has had much effect on stemming this tide.

The best advice I can give is:

1. Buy a car because you love it.

2. Do your homework.

3. When you get your car, be prepared for what I call ?The 10% Surprise.? Even the most straightforward and honest deal will result in you investing at least 10% of the purchase price to make things right. You might as well prepare yourself for that before you part with large quantities of cash.

4. Enjoy your car. This is the most important part!

A fellow collector I was friendly with {now deceased so it doesn't matter} had some very nice Nashes and Reos but he was very free with the provenance of his vehicles, one '33 convertible sedan belonged alternately to Anton Cermak {mayor of chicago in the Capone era,gunned down in Fla, next to FDR} or was owned by "scarface Al" himself. A lovely Reo Royale coupe was "custom made" for Amelia Earhart and who could forget Veronica Lake's Graham Hollywood. I never bothered to inquire about the veracity of these statements as my friend was very kind, helpful and always very funny and entertaining but you were on your own if you decided to purchase a car from him.

What an outstanding article! One minor quibble with the facts as presented - nothing to do with the the car in question: The Aga Khan was always known by that name; "Aly Khan" was his son, who was married to Rita Hayworth for a time.

Not to be confused with millionaire banker Otto Kahn and his son Roger Wolfe Kahn who had some truly outstanding foreign sportscars and aeroplanes right here on Long Island, some are still in private hands.

just a note for the record - the "Hartmann" in that story...is NO relation to a certain American-born Packard Twelve owner.........(my parents were GERMAN )!

( I did own a Cad. V-16 back in the 1950's....a "mint" "formal" (the Mae West car...paid $125. for it....( yeah...yeah..I know...that was WAY too much for a big old car in those years....but...what the heck..it was "MINT MINT MINT".....even if it was only a "flat-head" version of the V-16....)

I did make a fortune on the deal...I sold it to the late Duke Shaeffer for FIVE HUNDRED BUCKS ! ) "Duke" enjoyed it for a couple of years...then sold it...to a well known Cadillac authority ( Hi...Roy....if you are reading this...!)...for the OUTRAGEOUS price (bear in mind...by that time...the idea of "classic" cars was now starting to get going....) of four thousand dollars....!