I have a friend looking to buy an old car. He prefers to work with a dealership due to volume/selection, since he's not entirely sure what he wants. Any recommendations? I'd heard good things about Goldenrod Garage in Maine, but I know that the owner passed away a few months ago. Volo seems to have a lot of really nice cars, but their prices are absurd. Country Classic cars in IL has a huge selection and decent prices, but I've read things here that suggest their cars are not very good quality. Motorcar Portfolio in NE Ohio is a dealer he and I are both familiar with. Nice condition cars, some real oddball stuff, but prices are just too high for what they have.

Does anyone have any recommendations or firsthand experience?

You’re going to pay more for a car from a dealer. Your friend needs to come to terms with that. He’ll also have sift through the BS. I was interested in a car at Southern Motors in Michigan. Talked to them a couple of times, then checked their reviews online. Lots of bad reviews plus the car had issues (thanks to Sunroofcuda for checking it out for me). I passed on the car even though I really liked it.

I ended up finding a very original car on Facebook of all places. Bought it from a private party. The guy was super cool about the process and stored the car for me for nearly two months while I arranged shipping (long story).

Patience is a virtue. It took me 2 1/2 years to find my Belvedere.

He knows he'll pay more. He's fine with that. He's not interested in paying double, though, which is what rules out Volo.

Dealers are typically comparable to pimps. And the higher quality merchandise comes at a premium when dealing with one.
I have helped many buyers over the years avoid catastrophic purchases just by looking at pictures of the potential purchase. He can contact me if he so desires and I will try to help. I'll PM you the info. I have also seen some newly purchased nightmares come through in the last 20 or so years by those that tried to go it alone. Myself, I think half the fun is the chase. LOL

One of the issues with dealers is often they are only pimping the car for the owner. We had a dealer down my way that was slamming 25% on top of the price and the prices were a bit nuts to start with. 77 Firebirds going for 45K and naturally the dealer couldn't tell you hoot about the car.

I had a good experience with GR Auto Gallery based in Michigan. They have a few satellite locations around Michigan, and I dealt with the guys at the Grand Rapids location. Lots of pictures of the cars online, good honest descriptions. I was close enough to where I could still go and look at the car in person. No surprises and the car was represented honestly (I did purchase a vehicle there)

Unless the guy knows what he's looking at, or someone with him does, he's playing Russian roulette with 5 chambers filled.
There are a lot of dealers in every Hemmings Motor News, if he just wants to browse & get some idea of what's out there.
As already said, most every dealer is merely marketing cars, marking them up to cover expenses, and know nothing about them.
I strongly recommend he figures out what he wants, does some research on his choice(s), and spends time carefully shopping.
I've seen countless sh*#boxes at dealerships, where better cars were available from private parties at same or less expense.
If he wants to hate his experience with the car, and the hobby, go ahead and charge blindly into it.
The dozens of old cars I've bought through the years have all been private owners, for those reasons.
I can think of only one that made it past my radar, and that dude was a skilled liar who seems to have disappeared from 2 Mopar forums he frequented.

if he is ready now Muscle Car City auction is the month
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXIVs7eBL60&feature=emb_title

I will just say this. For many years & since the first one in Chelsea in 1981, I have been to the biggest Mopar event in the world - the Mopar Nationals. There are upwards of 2700 cars there, & I have looked at most of them. Narrowing it down to a car group - say 1970-74 Cudas, out of thousands I've looked at over the years, maybe less than 5% of them are what I would consider actual rust-free & never rusty examples. I'm not talking a small rust hole in the windshield & back glass areas, but quarters, doors, fenders, etc. rust repaired. They rusted through in the 4 corners typically within 5 years in Northern climates - it was no fault of the owners - just the design of the steel & the drainage. They rusted in Florida, TX, GA, AL, etc. Best survivors came out of super dry & hot areas like desert low altitude areas in AZ, CA, NM, NV, etc. Then there are cars that have been pampered their entire life - always garaged since day 1, & never driven in rain or snow. But truly rust-free examples I have found to be EXTREMELY rare!

Harwood Motors is a family-operated dealership in Ohio. I've never dealt with them but the owner is active on the AACA Forum and seems to be pretty level-headed.

Their website is: Harwoodmotors.com Might be worth a look.

http://cramauto.com/
very good place. Birdtracker

I visited here some years ago and checked out some of the cars.. I never heard any bad stuff going around about them. The prices seemed fair. Might be worth checking out. https://www.brownsperformancemotorcars.com/
There is a guy that is a member here on moparts that lived in that area IIRC.

John Kuflightners? Warren Ohio area. Close enough to get a look at the vehicle before purchase.

What kind of car is your friend looking for?

He's not entirely sure what he wants.

Got it. Just have him start searching online to see what strikes his fancy. Not necessarily to buy, but just narrow it down to a few preferences. Then he can start a more targeted search.

I n that case I usually send them to LINKY WITH LOT"S TO CHOOSE FROM

Note on the left column they have the cars by era, type etc. It's a great place to get an idea of what one may want. Once that's nailed down a bit then an actual search can begin. Do tell him there are a lot a dealers with outrageous prices and to ignore them. If he drills in deep enough he can select private party sales

He needs to find what he wants, then put out some wanted ads. I have had good luck with wanted ads whenever I have posted them.

You look up OXYMORON on the dictionary and it talks about Classic Car dealers. I live 5 miles from Volo so if there is anything he is interested in there I can take a look. I have transported cars to Country Classics and the majority are lower quality, but that reflects the prices also. They are all bought from swap meets and car shows, brought down there, then cleaned up and made running well. He also consigns like most dealers too.

GM guy? Nice cars here.