You know, I really don't think that this ad is very outrageous at all. If the vac works and nothing is broken, it's actually a very good deal.
These Eureka SmartVacs have been highly rated by Consumer Reports for years (though the ratings note that it can be very hard to pull on carpets). The powerful performance of the vac may be the reason that the advertiser is saying that it is "heavy duty" - it sure ain't a "lightweight" when it comes to deep carpet cleaning. We vacuum experts may restrict the use of the words "heavy duty" to commercial vacs, but the ordinary guy out there may not.
The price of $45 may be a little high, but it certainly is less than half the price of a new one in the stores....
Yeah, I don't find anything hilarious about this either. If it is in good condition, then I would think that is an excellent deal! And those are actually quite durable, and very good cleaners. I have one and I love it.
Chase