1933 Auburn Salon Phaeton

Looked at my reply and realized I had a "senior moment " there, handle in center bottem of dash is 2 speed rear end control (DUH).
Again, leave this alone until someone fully explains it's usage to you.

Vericon,
To start the car, first make sure battery is fully charged, and all fluids are in proper order, and have a fire extinguisher ready and waiting. Then, look on the firewall, there should be a box about 4" square that says startex, if there is the following procedure should allow you to start car.(If not then there is probably a stater button or key has start position)
Put car in neutral(it is a 3 speed H pattern, with 1st left and down, 2nd right and forward, 3rd right and back, and reverse left and forward),and apply the parking brake. The switch on the steering column acts as a steering lock when key is turned to lock, and has 3 positions off, run, and start.with the key unlocked,set switch to start, and depress clutch.If everything is in proper order engine should turn over, then it is just a matter of getting fuel to the engine, NEVER use either to start an engine, unless you wish to chance catstrophic engine damage.
If the engine does not turn over using above procedure it is probably because the startex is out of ajustment, this can be bypassed by depressing the push in button on the side of the startex unit on the firewall(passenger side). WARNING if you depress the startex button with car in gear it's going to move. Assuming engine starts, if you notice starter still seems to be turning, flip switch on steering column up past off to run, this will disengage the startex and should stop starter motor.
I wholeheartedly agree with Chris above, if at all possible find someone in your area who is familiar with Auburns(not just "an old car guy", as startex is not familiar to most people) to help you.
Concerning the freewheeling unit(handle in center bottem of dash, or "extra" gear shift lever on floor) leave this alone unless, and until, someone explains it's operation to you.(free wheeling acts essentially like a rachet allowing engine to power wheels in forward motion, but when you let off acelerator engine is disengaged) it's been awhile since I had my 32 speedster but I think when you engage reverse it's supposed to disengage free wheeling, but I digress.(As an aside, the frewheeling unit in my experience is only good for one thing, if you have to tow the car it disenges tranny from rear wheels preventing damage during towing, which hopefully will never occur. During highway operation the freewheeling causes the car to jerk repeatedly as it engages and disengages according to load, an is a total pain in the keester. The only good thing is that cars with freewheeling were originally supplied with more powerfull brakes to overcome the loss of engine braking while stopping.)
Hope this helps, again unless you are a certified old car guy get someone from the club to help you, its a great group and someone if not many are always willing to go out of there way to help a fellow enthusist.

Hi! I've been working with 1932-1934 Auburn Phaeton's for about 15 years now. If you ask 100 different Auburn owners to put a price on your fathers car you will probably get 100 different answers. That's just the nature of the beast in this crazy game that we play. I would suggest you look in the ACD Club Directory and find an Auburn owner that is within striking distance of you to help get the car out for pictures, check to see that it is in good working order, and help you write an accurate description. Then put it in the ACD Newsletter and Hemmings Motor News and wait to see what comes your way. At the end of the day after you hear all the opinions, the true value of your family's Auburn is only worth what the next guy is willing to pay for it and what you are willing to let it go for. (Hopefully the price curves will cross at some point.) If you want to chat with me about it call my cell at 419-789-2601. Good Luck , Craig Birkhold

I hate to say this because I don"t like it when cars are listed by them, but maybe in this situation you need a car broker.
CORDially Mike

I appreciate the response. The issue is this isn't my car. It was my fathers who recently passed away. I have no clue how to start it and I am limited with the information I know.

Hi,

Being the owner of a 1933 8-105 Phaeton, I thought I would chime in with my thoughts. Your production figures are a little misleading in that the number quoted is for all models for 1933 and NOT for the particular car in question. The car in question there was less then 250 of this particular body style built. Anyone knowing something about the salon models for 1933 and a few that carried over into 1934 can telll you that the salon models are very unique in as much as the body, headlights, interior trim, wheels, frame, brakes, and on and on, are different from standard models. Very little interchanges with the standard models. The salon models represented Auburns attempt to provide the market with an 'upscale' Auburn but unfortunately, the grips of the depression had a firm grip on Auburns sales.

An 8-105 that is well documented with paper work to back it up and is correct for a salon model can bring in the area of $125-150K. If it was a V-12 salon phaeton, you could easily double the figure. Keep in mind, to demand that kind of figure, it has to be a really top notch car.

That's my two cents.

CORDially,

Al Hatch

Hello,

I am just looking for a car like yours. Unfortunately, after all results of my investigations the price seems to be far to high for that model.

I you want start a bidding, start with a lower entry...

Just my 2 cents.
Good luck,

Andreas

Curt and Mike are absolutely right. If you are going to expect someone to pay 100k plus for a car, you are going to need to do some work. First, a detailed description of the history of the car, when your dad bought it, what he did with it, what he did to it. Secondly, 30 to 40 high quality pictures of every inch of the car including as much detail about the condition as possible.

Most high-dollar cars I've seen sell on eBay (more than 25k) are very detailed ads from reputable sellers.

A.J.

I agree with Mike, you need a better description.
Is the paint original?
Has the engine been rebuilt? Do you have receipts?
If the car was restored when was it done?
How does the car run?
I don't believe there was ever a reproduction of that body style, so it would have to genuine Auburn.
If I were you, I would look at other antique car listings on eBay, and as you do say to your self is this person giving me enough detail about the car to actually place a bid. Then use that person?s format. It isn't like you are trying to sell a $1,000 beater here.

E-bay can be a good place to find out what the true market for an item is, and to a certain extent cars also. The problem with using E-bay for true market value is unscrupulous sellers who use shill bidders to inflate the bid price (frequent on cars).
Your opening bid price appears to be above what current value guides would list for that car. Let the auction ride and see if it gets a bid, that should give you an indication of the value.
Again, you asked...My 2 cents.

I hate to be critical but take some good pictures of the car. The pictures you have tell me you haven't started the car and wouldn't even take it out of the garage to take pictures. You ask for thoughts and those are mine. Better pictures mean easier sale at a higher price.
CORDially Mike

cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Other-Ma ... enameZWDVW

Hello,

My father use to be a member of ACD. He recently passed away and I now have his Auburn. I'm having a lot of problems trying to sell it. I am limited with the information I know on it and everyone I ask gives me a different value of the car. I put it up on eBay and I have gotten a lot of help from an ACD member who saw the posting. Let me post my eBay description here and get your thoughts. If anyone knows someone that is interested in purchasing this car please let me know. My father loved his Auburn and would never have parted with it, I just hope to find someone with the same type of appreciation he had with this car

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This is an ORIGINAL 1933 Auburn Salon Phaeton 8-105. It is in excellent condition. The car is Mountain Green Light with Mountain Green for the trim. The engine is the original engine from 1933. I have Papers from the Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg museum to prove it.

This car was 1 of 4630 produced. It has a very early serial number and was one of the first off the assemble line. The car was built in Auburn, and the body was manufactured by the Limousine Body Company in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

This was a custom model since the model number has an "A" for a suffix on the model number. One of the custom featuers is the chrome rims. Most Auburns came standard with spokes rims however this Auburn came with chrome. .

Please ask me any questions you might have. There are only about 16 of these cars registered with the Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg meusem and half of them are in museums which leaves a handful left to private owners.

REMEMBER THIS IS AN ORIGINAL CAR, THIS IS NOT A REPLICA NOR A KIT CAR. The car will come with the official letter from the Auburn, Cord, Duesenberg Museum stating the authenticity of the car.

BUYER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CAR PICKUP AND SHIPPING