Been there done that! We had a '62 Valiant with a 3 on the tree in the 70's/80's Great little car. 4 door, was black with red interior. It was amazing the room inside and the size of the trunk.
It was a real head turner for oddity I'm sure but non-the-less it was very cool!
I think a lot of these cars do not have batteries in them. The owners drop one in so they can move them out to take the pictures. I've noticed that too.