[buds56]

I just read this on the hamb
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=544491

I sent him an email suggesting coming here for advice on selling the estate

[se428bandit]

Interesting story,if this car becomes for sale it could get very interesting.

[Jerry H.]

As I read it he is selling it.

[pont406]

Looks like a nice car with a few modern upgrades, should bring a little over 6 figures providing it has retained most of it's original equipment!

[mcguire]

Hello all, my name is Dave McGuire, I'm the guy who made the post about Max Sterling and White Lightning over on the H.A.M.B. forum. Buds56 pointed me to this forum.

Wow, what a deluge of email this has caused. I guess I'm not really surprised about that. A number of people have come forward with good advice and contacts, and I am learning a lot.

It is true that the car will be sold. We're still not exactly sure how that will happen, but the goals are to: 1) get the car to a good home, 2) clear out the house, and 3) create a good financial outcome for Max's widow. Being a collector and preservationist myself (though not of cars) I know how important it is for it to go to a good home.

There's only a very small amount of time pressure to sell the car; we'd like to have it all handled within the next two months or so. I think that should give us enough time to get the word out and find the appropriate way to sell it.

In the meantime, though, I need more information about the car, and I'm afraid my cluelessness in this area is preventing me from knowing where to look. Would it be appropriate to ask stupid questions here? I assume there are people here who would know every bolt and screw in this kind of car.

Thanks,
-Dave

[Stuart]

Welcome to the site! Stupid questions are always welcome.

You may want to post any specific technical questions down in the 1962-1966 section below, instead of the Lobby. A couple of the people who frequent that section have actually owned Super Duty cars, so they should be well qualified to help you out.

[abefromen]

Ebay will get MAX exposure for the car........

[sixgunsblazing]

2 months or so to sell?


Barrett Jackson?
Might be a better shot that Ebay..

[mike nixon]

Originally Posted by abefromen

Ebay will get MAX exposure for the car........

It might get exposure but it won't bring top dollar IMO.

A well advertised auction will net more money in this economy.

Mike

[63 Pontiac]

Once upon a time Max's nephew, Eddie Sterling, posted on PY.

[abefromen]

Originally Posted by mike nixon

It might get exposure but it won't bring top dollar IMO.

A well advertised auction will net more money in this economy.

Mike

Maybe so but I seem to recall a certain 61 (?) Tempest ex drag car bringing huge dollars on ebay not too long ago. Would it have got more at a B-J type auction? Who knows.

[mcguire]

We are considering the eBay route. I have a good deal of experience with eBay, even expensive stuff (nowhere near six digits though), and I agree that it will get LOTS of exposure.

I like the B-J idea too, but honestly I don't think we have it in us to do that much traveling, as we have a lot of other estate-related things to handle as well. (anybody want a really nice two-post hydraulic lift?)

For the eBay route...What do you guys think of the idea of listing it on eBay, but advertising it in these (and other) forums BEFORE the listing starts, maybe a month or so in advance? Something like "hey everyone, on such-and-such date this car [insert car details here] will be listed on eBay, come out and see it in person beforehand if desired, etc". I'd think that approach would allow us to get the word out to the appropriate markets so they're not just blindsided by "hey, look at what just popped up on eBay!"

Any thoughts?

-Dave

[Brian Baker]

Originally Posted by mcguire

Hello all, my name is Dave McGuire, I'm the guy who made the post about Max Sterling and White Lightning over on the H.A.M.B. forum. Buds56 pointed me to this forum.

Wow, what a deluge of email this has caused. I guess I'm not really surprised about that. A number of people have come forward with good advice and contacts, and I am learning a lot.

It is true that the car will be sold. We're still not exactly sure how that will happen, but the goals are to: 1) get the car to a good home, 2) clear out the house, and 3) create a good financial outcome for Max's widow. Being a collector and preservationist myself (though not of cars) I know how important it is for it to go to a good home.

There's only a very small amount of time pressure to sell the car; we'd like to have it all handled within the next two months or so. I think that should give us enough time to get the word out and find the appropriate way to sell it.

In the meantime, though, I need more information about the car, and I'm afraid my cluelessness in this area is preventing me from knowing where to look. Would it be appropriate to ask stupid questions here? I assume there are people here who would know every bolt and screw in this kind of car.

Thanks,
-Dave

A good start would be the VIN off the car, to determine if it is one of the factory produced Super Duty cars. If it is, Max's widow has a very handsome nest egg on her hands. There are more people on this board here that can help in identifying what you have than over at HAMB. Don't get me wrong, there's a great bunch of guys at HAMB but this site here is the largest Pontiac site, full of the most Pontiac knowledge specific people.

[Stuart]

It seems like it's often done the other way around...people will put a car on eBay with a high reserve first, to get the exposure before it goes to auction.

I'm no expert, but from what I've read it seems that Mecum does a pretty good job auctioning muscle cars; the others tend to specialize in other areas like sports cars, exotics or antiques. There's a Mecum auction the end of January in Florida, one in Kansas City in March, and one in Indianapolis in May (I think this one is their centerpiece.)

edit: as Brian said, the VIN will help determine what the car really is. All the early SD cars have been documented in Pete McCarthy's Pontiac book and many of us here have copies. If you don't want to make the VIN public you can PM the info to one of us and we'll check it out.

[mcguire]

I understand, thank you for the advice. I have the VIN handy. Is there an online reference or something in which I can plug that in and get info?

-Dave

[Stuart]

I'm not aware of any online list of SD VINs, the information is in Pete McCarthy's book on high performance Pontiacs. (link to his website: http://www.petemccarthy.com/) It has lists of the VINs of all the 1962-1963 Super Duty cars, with some limited additional information on how each particular car was equipped.

Another useful source of information is Pontiac Historic Services, at http://www.phs-online.com/ For a fee they will provide a copy of the factory invoice or billing history, a letter decoding the options (when necessary), a copy of a dealer order form for that year, and other specific information for that year and model Pontiac, if available. For a car like this one (assuming it's a real Super Duty and therefore already documented) it may not be necessary but it's good information to have anyway.

[Ollie]

List the car in as many forums that you can think of. When you list it on E-bay. Mention in the description. That it is for sale locally and you reserve the wright to end the auction early.

[x-bird2]

Sorry to hear of his passing, well known east coaster ....all good advice above. You might also want to look into RM Auctions, a midwest based auction might get its best audience if you go that route. Take and post pictures of the various engines and parts in the garage, including any cast/raised number letter codes and stamped codes. i'm sure there are many of us here who can help you id the miscellaneous stuff ...a lot of its worth its weight in gold and then some. Would love a 2 post lift, but wrong time of year lol ... BTW, raised on a pdp-8e ...nothing like punch cards and tele-types ....

[Brian Baker]

Originally Posted by Stuart

edit: as Brian said, the VIN will help determine what the car really is. All the early SD cars have been documented in Pete McCarthy's Pontiac book and many of us here have copies. If you don't want to make the VIN public you can PM the info to one of us and we'll check it out.

Precisely

[JKGTO]

I think I would contact Bill Blair in High Point, North Carolina. He has been restoring and racing SD cars for a long, long time. He may have first hand knowledge of the car. I am sure someone on the site here has a way to contact him. Good luck with the sale and sorry for your loss. Jim