What do you do with your "unsellable" cars?
Discussion
May have been covered before but Im sure most of you have owned cars that have become "unsellable" over the years.
For example, my E46 Drives really well but it has many a bodywork niggle such as missing headlight washer cover, missing arch liner on one side, kerbed wheels etc and to top it off it has 7 previous owners.
The car is started to become a handful to maintain and I'd rather sell it off and get something a little more reliable but the whole aspect to me seems like it won't sell unless I P/X it or use one of those online sites.
Anyone had similar experiences? Have you managed to sell off worse cars/in worse shape?
For example, my E46 Drives really well but it has many a bodywork niggle such as missing headlight washer cover, missing arch liner on one side, kerbed wheels etc and to top it off it has 7 previous owners.
The car is started to become a handful to maintain and I'd rather sell it off and get something a little more reliable but the whole aspect to me seems like it won't sell unless I P/X it or use one of those online sites.
Anyone had similar experiences? Have you managed to sell off worse cars/in worse shape?
There's no such thing as an unsaleable car, it's all about finding the buyer and pricing the car right.
Not even always 'lower the price' - cars which are too cheap will often deter buyers - "Must be something wrong with it"
The market is important too - cheap cars with known faults probably sell better through 'classifieds' like GumTree or eBay than AutoTrader - people with a keen eye for a 'fixer upper' tend to go there.
Of course the other approach is to fix the obvious issues and talk the car up - end of the day a confidently written ad about a car which looks tired but which is reliable and drivers well might work - your choice really...
p.s. even mentioning 'sell your car' websites always suggests to me someone wants to sell a car with zero effort - most people won't even consider those places anymore than you'd not sell your house to a 'we buy houses' website would you?
Not even always 'lower the price' - cars which are too cheap will often deter buyers - "Must be something wrong with it"
The market is important too - cheap cars with known faults probably sell better through 'classifieds' like GumTree or eBay than AutoTrader - people with a keen eye for a 'fixer upper' tend to go there.
Of course the other approach is to fix the obvious issues and talk the car up - end of the day a confidently written ad about a car which looks tired but which is reliable and drivers well might work - your choice really...
p.s. even mentioning 'sell your car' websites always suggests to me someone wants to sell a car with zero effort - most people won't even consider those places anymore than you'd not sell your house to a 'we buy houses' website would you?
Thanks for all the input.
Dealing with shoddy independent dealers telling you "Ill take it off your hands, no one else will" makes your mind wander.
Being fair - Cosmetically it is just a case of missing "plastic bits" and a spot of rust on the arch. Mechanically the car runs fine and is currently having a new cluster being fitted. I think the biggest put off to most is that they will be the 8th owner of a 2.5 Litre auto E46 haha.
Hopefully - With honesty + a decent price (2/3k Ive been told) it should sell fine.
Dealing with shoddy independent dealers telling you "Ill take it off your hands, no one else will" makes your mind wander.
Being fair - Cosmetically it is just a case of missing "plastic bits" and a spot of rust on the arch. Mechanically the car runs fine and is currently having a new cluster being fitted. I think the biggest put off to most is that they will be the 8th owner of a 2.5 Litre auto E46 haha.
Hopefully - With honesty + a decent price (2/3k Ive been told) it should sell fine.
i was in a similar position a couple of months ago. Had a good n solid e46 325ci covertible with loads of extras, only it was pretty tired with 150k on the clock, worn bushes all over and few minor dinks n scuffs.
I could have got £1800-£2k if i sold privately i reckon, but couldnt be bothered with the type of buyer looking to beat you down on price or some angry albanians trying to bully me into selling it half price.
I found the car i wanted, then px'd it. I didnt beat the seller down on price on the condition he didnt beat me down on the £2k i wanted. We checked each others cars over, were happy with the deal and shook hands and I hd a very trouble free experience
I could have got £1800-£2k if i sold privately i reckon, but couldnt be bothered with the type of buyer looking to beat you down on price or some angry albanians trying to bully me into selling it half price.
I found the car i wanted, then px'd it. I didnt beat the seller down on price on the condition he didnt beat me down on the £2k i wanted. We checked each others cars over, were happy with the deal and shook hands and I hd a very trouble free experience
Ive sold a v reg auto golf, it was a 1.6 and was a total pile of crap. One of my mates owned it and she let me have it for nothing.
I bombed around in it for a while until the MOT expired and the failure list was ridiculously long.
I put it up on eBay with the full list of failures and started it at 99p. Some bloke ended up buying it for a little over 200.
when he came to pick it up i asked why and he said he was a breaker and was going to sell of the bits, he reckoned the windows, front and rear screen alone were worth 150.
I bombed around in it for a while until the MOT expired and the failure list was ridiculously long.
I put it up on eBay with the full list of failures and started it at 99p. Some bloke ended up buying it for a little over 200.
when he came to pick it up i asked why and he said he was a breaker and was going to sell of the bits, he reckoned the windows, front and rear screen alone were worth 150.
405dogvan said:
There's no such thing as an unsaleable car, it's all about finding the buyer and pricing the car right.
Not even always 'lower the price' - cars which are too cheap will often deter buyers - "Must be something wrong with it"
The market is important too - cheap cars with known faults probably sell better through 'classifieds' like GumTree or eBay than AutoTrader - people with a keen eye for a 'fixer upper' tend to go there.
Of course the other approach is to fix the obvious issues and talk the car up - end of the day a confidently written ad about a car which looks tired but which is reliable and drivers well might work - your choice really...
p.s. even mentioning 'sell your car' websites always suggests to me someone wants to sell a car with zero effort - most people won't even consider those places anymore than you'd not sell your house to a 'we buy houses' website would you?
^^Not even always 'lower the price' - cars which are too cheap will often deter buyers - "Must be something wrong with it"
The market is important too - cheap cars with known faults probably sell better through 'classifieds' like GumTree or eBay than AutoTrader - people with a keen eye for a 'fixer upper' tend to go there.
Of course the other approach is to fix the obvious issues and talk the car up - end of the day a confidently written ad about a car which looks tired but which is reliable and drivers well might work - your choice really...
p.s. even mentioning 'sell your car' websites always suggests to me someone wants to sell a car with zero effort - most people won't even consider those places anymore than you'd not sell your house to a 'we buy houses' website would you?
Every car has a price, you just need to work out what it is and advertise where people might look for such a car (gumtree is quite correct). Ultimately anything that works with a full MOT is worth £500 at least.
I had an E46 325ci sport (facelift) that was rust free with a spotless interior, but needed about a grand's worth of work done to the engine. In the end I sold it to a dealer for €1,000 
Many were asking me if I would swap it up for an Impreza/Audi/VW.
Others would ask me to guarantee the car was in perfect working condition.
And then you had the 'mechanics' who told you there was €5k's worth of things wrong with it who would offer even less that I got for it.
Many were asking me if I would swap it up for an Impreza/Audi/VW.
Others would ask me to guarantee the car was in perfect working condition.
And then you had the 'mechanics' who told you there was €5k's worth of things wrong with it who would offer even less that I got for it.
I don't understand the UK obsession with number of owners, it's as bad as your number plate/reg one up man ship. The more owners the more likely it is to have a healthy and useful robust microbial flora system. Probably the best place to sit when your feeling unwell. I mean who wants an irritable car 
Oh, and always buy/sell on price and condition.
Oh, and always buy/sell on price and condition.
Edited by craig_m67 on Wednesday 20th May 12:25
405 Dogvan is right, someone bought the car new, so someone will want it second hand, if it isnt desirable because of make, mode, or spec, it will be desirable for being cheap if priced right.
With stuff with issues, describe them in the ad so people dont arrive and be disappointed, or fix them, sometimes you get numpties who just buy it and you dont have to explain, but they are rare.
With stuff with issues, describe them in the ad so people dont arrive and be disappointed, or fix them, sometimes you get numpties who just buy it and you dont have to explain, but they are rare.
ZiggyNiva said:
An honest advert on ebay, with a 99p start and no reserve. 10 day auction starting at 8pm on a Thursday.
That's sound in theory but I've just done exactly that with my mondeo which needs a new gearbox. It "sold" for £165. The buyer then contacted me to say they would pay cash on collection, then failed to turn up for 4 appointments to collect. I rejected their last request to collect it as they were just wasting my time and money (I had to insure it as it was on the road) I'm now considering scrapping it.
Just be honest and price accordingly - my E46 M3 was looking a quite tatty despite being a good solid car mechanically and with some expensive upgrades and jobs done. I was totally honest with every little bodywork issue in the advert and the first viewer took it home 3 days after the advert went up on eBay.
Looking at the other almost identical cars at a similar price to mine (which were still advertised weeks later), the majority of these adverts were just a couple of photos with next to no information about the actual condition of the car.
On a complicated, relatively expensive to maintain 12 year old car with over 100K miles priced at that end of the market, there is absolutely no chance that car is completely without fault, so IMO that kind of advert is useless and I would/have usually completely ignored that car.
I would far sooner view/buy a car advertised with a list of known or potential problem areas, than the same car with absolutely no insight into the actual condition.
Looking at the other almost identical cars at a similar price to mine (which were still advertised weeks later), the majority of these adverts were just a couple of photos with next to no information about the actual condition of the car.
On a complicated, relatively expensive to maintain 12 year old car with over 100K miles priced at that end of the market, there is absolutely no chance that car is completely without fault, so IMO that kind of advert is useless and I would/have usually completely ignored that car.
I would far sooner view/buy a car advertised with a list of known or potential problem areas, than the same car with absolutely no insight into the actual condition.
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