I found what appears to be a very nice 1968 Cutlass Supreme online. The price was somewhat reasonable and the photos showed well except some usual 55 year-old wear and tear. It was obviously repainted as the silver below the lower chrome strips was body color.
I contacted the owner and made an offer which they refused and stated they were firm on the price as they "knew what they had" and it was already underpriced in their opinion. Mind you, this is an inherited vehicle.
After checking in for several weeks as it still hadn't sold, I asked the owner what they thought the selling issue was since it was still available. They stated that they weren't going to sell the car to just anyone and they needed to be sure that the person they felt was worthy (my words, not theirs) had collector car restoration experience and knew how to treat this family heirloom. At that point, I made sure they knew I've had my '72 Supreme for 30 years so I don't flip and have a little of the experience they were concerned about. Then, I stopped contacting them because I won't beg someone to sell something to me and take my money. Part of me has also become leery of this because when you sell something, you should not be concerned what happens to the product after it's gone from your possession. I have never communicated with anyone like this before. Every day, I find another loon out there.

 

There are some out there who think their car is part of the family and will put a buyer through a similar ordeal as a future beau asking for their daughters hand in marriage.

 

^^^^ That is a great way of explaining it!

 

Its called unrealistic people who watch to many car auctions and instantly “ know what they have” , then the family component piece like your being interviewed for an adoption. It won’t be long before folks start to get that these old cutlasses, run of the mill GM A bodies aren’t gold, barely platinum..

 

^^^THIS! Another case of Barrett Jackson disease, unfortunately.

 

People would think their rusty, 78 Oldsmobile Starfire with a blown head gasket is a Mecum show stopper just because it's "so rare."

 

Sounds like this seller has attached sentimental value to the car, which isnt true value to any one but the family.
They'll either figure that out, or the car will turn into this:

 

Those are valuable car parts right there.

 

Best thing to do is leave a phone number and then walk away.

 

And original parts at that.

 

What will likely happen is a flipper will sweet talk them into selling it by stating his emotional attachment to the car. He'll offer less than you did and then have it back on the market for twice what he paid in a month.

I'm personally all about making a buck but I have a hard time lying. I just bought a boat with my uncle for an obscenely low price and I'm trying to come to grips with the fact that the seller will probably see it when it's re-listed. My uncle worked in sales his whole career so it doesn't bother him at all

 

All great comments and analogies.

 

I've fortunately got enough money and few enough obligations to not have to make money through my hobbies. I have yet to flip a vehicle, and I have sold only some advertising signs that I no longer wanted or had duplicates thereof. I should sell some guns.

 

A friend tried to flip a 2010 Chevy Colorado with an I4 Atlas engine. When he bought it the engine would crank but not start. After spending big bucks on TTY fasteners and front & rear timing chains he broke even. At least he got the truck out of the garage to keep Mama happy.

I don't think I could flip cars. I'd end up having more into it than it's worth.

 

I have flipped a few cars now and again, my brother does it 2-3 times a year if the deal is right. You have to buy it cheap, and do as little as possible to clean it up, fix the small stuff …then sell it under market value so your not sitting on it to long. Those deals don’t come along very often for sure. People buy a car with lots of speculation and end up putting way to much money and time in it. For my brother and I its like hunting, the fun is in the find, its a pain in the *** to sell. Thats why it has to be worth it, or pass. His are mainly farm auction buys from estate sales etc. if ya tried doing it for a living you would be homeless.

 

If/when I sell mine..will I have emotional attachment? Of course. Will I care where it goes afterwards? Yeah. Will I talk about those things to a potential buyer? No.

I've had the previous owner of my car try to buy it back twice since its been together. The first offer was "what you've got in it plus 1k" and the second was 5k off what I'd ask for it. I told him after the second offer that I'd not even gotten to really enjoy it yet, so unless I had to take it sooner than later..I'm going to keep it for a while. I don't look forward to having to explain to my daughter why the "garage car" is no longer there if it gets sold. Then again though, it was bought to be saved from rotting away in a barn, with the intent of getting it back on the road and sold to someone who could actually enjoy it knowing what it was. Doing it for the money was never part of the plan..unlike plenty of flippers out there.

 

I sold a BB Elco, long time ago. After I got a down payment, he told me he was shipping it to Holland, when he told me that, I said I may have not sold it to him if I knew that. I like these type of cars to stay here. He said he would double his money.

 

So, did you sell the ElCamino to the guy in Holland? Did you get more for it? Inquiring minds need to know.

 

Yes, I went through with the deal. He and his brother were nice guys to deal with,and yes it went to Holland. I sold it at a Goodguys show on a cold rainy day, I figured no one would be looking for cars. He bought mine and another Elco, setting next to me, and said he was still shopping.

 

Nah, hold on for awhile yet ... the market's strong and just getting stronger.

 

I've flipped exactly one car in my life. Years ago, I was looking for a '78-86 GM A/G body wagon as a reliable beater to haul my dogs around in. At that time, they were already getting pretty thin on the ground so I had to settle for a '98 Jeep Cherokee (another good dog-hauler if you're looking). About a week after I gave in and bought the Jeep, I stumbled across an '83 Malibu Classic wagon which had everything I wanted (including, for some reason, a gorgeous Aztec Bronze paint job) and nothing I didn't. It was actually too nice, but at $1700, how could I go wrong?

So, now I had two vehicles and only needed one. I decided to put them both up for sale, each at double what I paid for it, and the plan was to keep whichever one didn't sell. It was no contest -- the Malibu sold at full price in less than a day and I kept the Jeep.

 

I've run into this, and I don't give it a second thought. The seller can bloviate all he wants about who he wants to sell it to and what he wants the buyer to do with it, but once the car is yours, and, regardless of what you promised the seller, you can do whatever you want with it, including stripping it to the frame and selling all the parts or entering it in a demolition derby.

They're selling something they inherited. If they are unreasonable enough, it'll be THEIR heirs that end up selling it.

reoldsman has the best advice. Leave your name and phone number, and if they ever change their mind, they can contact you. When they're still sitting on the car a year from now, you might very well get that call.

 

Thats how I bought the current Cutlass. The ladies boyfriend said her car was worth $x and I said I would only pay $y. Left her my phone number and said she can try and get the amount she wanted, but if she changed her mind about selling it to me at my price to give me a call. 2 weeks later it was in my driveway.

 

I did just that ... left my contact information with the current owner and stated when and "If I am found to be a suitable Oldsmobile owner and my offer is acceptable, please contact me back".
I suspect I will never hear from them. I truly believe they may be that full of themselves. JMO

 

If you don't mind divulging such information, since this is an online ad, can you provide a link to the ad so we can see for ourselves the car in question?

 

I haven't heard from the buyer of my car in months. I texted him in June, asking how things were going with the resto, and never heard back. That's fine with me, was just curious to see pictures of the repaint or under-hood cleanup.

 

Well, that '68 Supreme sold. It wasn't me that bought it, so they must have held out for their price and that "perfect" person that was worthy of it.

 

Here's another possible Midwest option: Car Spotting: Is the Legendary Oldsmobile “Chicago Cutlass” Dead? | Hemmings

 

One of my favorite lines that will make me not even try to give you an offer is. I know what I have. I got no time for you. Go get it. Mister money hungry. I love seeing these fools get nothing.

So many clueless fools anymore. More money than knowledge over and over.

All these no soul fools. Don't know One thing about Oldsmobile heritage or soul. Just chasing a dollar. That's all it is anymore. Soul? Oldsmobile soul? Nope. Just money.

 

A good friend of mine from grade/high school whose dad owned a new car dealership told me this sage piece of advice on car buying/selling. You make your profit when you buy the car, not when you sell it!

 

We were actually talking about guns, but I can see where that might not have been entirely clear.

 

Oh gotcha. I was talking cars. Ha ha.

 

I know, right? Why you talkin' Oldsmobiles on an Oldsmobile site?

 

Ha ha ha.

 

Wow, when you type "beater" into an internet search engine, this is the photo that should pop up IMO! LOL!!