Term explained

[Plymouthy Adams]

you always see the phrase RAN WHEN PARKED and now for the true meaning....I parked the car and as nothing worked including the emergency brake, I RAN as fast from it as I could so not to get hit if it started rolling.

[Sniper]

I've seen that term used in classic car dealer listings and my thought was "parked when?". 

[keithb7]

Ran when parked....The scape goat to avoid any commitment that the engine may or may not run or have any usable life left in it. The glossy open-ended statement that implies that "There may be a good engine here! As a seller I just refuse to go any further and find out! Digging into the engine to truly find out, may open a can of worms and severely lower our chances of netting a higher dollar value for this car."

 

So, as a buyer you get to roll the dice and take the financial hit. A rusty seized up engine may cost $3,500 to $7000 to rebuild.  That could be more than the purchase price of the car.

 

"Ran when new" is pretty useless statement that leads me to believe the seller might be hiding other things. Buyer beware. Get some coveralls and bring some tools and dig in to learn the true condition of the car. If the seller won't let you...Move on.

 

Pay "core value" for an engine that ran when pulled, or parked. $100 is my max. Even then I'm rolling the dice. The last block I scrapped netted me $30. That's just me. Your opinion may vary.

Edited January 21, 2021 by keithb7

[Tooljunkie]

Ran when parked,just as it made a horrifying bang!

 

my fargo ran when parked, im assuming in the 60’s from the 1965 licence plate on the tailgate...

it runs now, quite nice if i say so myself. 
 

[Dan Hiebert]

Perhaps it shouldn't be "ran when parked", but "ran" when parked.  It got there under its own power, how well it got there under its own power being the question...I've had a few "running" vehicles in the past that could barely make it from one end of the drive to the other.

[RobertKB]

"Ran when parked" has the same meaningful value as "One owner". A lot depends on the owner and how he/she treated the vehicle. It could have been a very thoughtful owner or the owner from hell. One owner means nothing to me except I need to see the car and decide for myself how well treated it was.

 

To me "ran when parked" means it was parked for one faulty reason or another. Most people sell a vehicle that is drivable.