Selling a Porsche on Ebay
Discussion
Has anyone actually sold (or bought) a relatively valuable car (say over £35K) on ebay?
Am trying to sell my 996 targa (already on PH ads) and wondered if worth a go on ebay? There a a few cars on there but mostly its just Porsche related merchandise and lots of models!
Views/experiences please
Batster
Am trying to sell my 996 targa (already on PH ads) and wondered if worth a go on ebay? There a a few cars on there but mostly its just Porsche related merchandise and lots of models!
Views/experiences please
Batster
Great way to get advertising?
Put a start price of 99p but a reserve of £50k and then wait for the phone to ring. People who are serious will turn up and look at the car and make an offer if appropriate.
Remember to say the car is advertised elsewhere and you reserve the right to end the auction at any time.
Put a start price of 99p but a reserve of £50k and then wait for the phone to ring. People who are serious will turn up and look at the car and make an offer if appropriate.
Remember to say the car is advertised elsewhere and you reserve the right to end the auction at any time.
I would have to disagree with VS.
I sold our subaru (only £5,500) on ebay, but the point to note is that it sold where as the other 50 listed on ebay didn't.
Tips.
State that you won't be taking it off ebay for any reason - it's there to sell.
Don't put a reserve
Start it at a price you'd just about be happy to take.
State again you won't be removing it!
List it honestly - request no zero bidders etc. You can even make the auction open to pre-aproved bidders first.
As soon as someone places a bid, get there details and phone them to make sure they're serious - I removed two wasters.
No point starting the auction at 99p as most people search highest first - 99p car will be down the listings with the magazines etc.
I sold our subaru (only £5,500) on ebay, but the point to note is that it sold where as the other 50 listed on ebay didn't.
Tips.
State that you won't be taking it off ebay for any reason - it's there to sell.
Don't put a reserve
Start it at a price you'd just about be happy to take.
State again you won't be removing it!
List it honestly - request no zero bidders etc. You can even make the auction open to pre-aproved bidders first.
As soon as someone places a bid, get there details and phone them to make sure they're serious - I removed two wasters.
No point starting the auction at 99p as most people search highest first - 99p car will be down the listings with the magazines etc.
In my view eBay is next to useless for selling cars. Bidders are expecting to get ridiculously cheap prices and for a £35k Porsche I would expect to achieve a maximum bid of £30k; even if it's worth £35 as a private sale.
Autotrader is the best.
People may bid silly money on other items but not cars.
Autotrader is the best.
People may bid silly money on other items but not cars.
I bought my jeep off ebay for 500 quid, got the suspension lift and wheels and tyres for another 500 quid.
Sold the wheels and tyres several months later for £250 and then sold the jeep with the suspension lift for £950.
All on ebay.
So 5 months of off road fun for a £200 profit. Thank you ebay!
Sold the wheels and tyres several months later for £250 and then sold the jeep with the suspension lift for £950.
All on ebay.
So 5 months of off road fun for a £200 profit. Thank you ebay!
thanks chaps - I am in a bit of a hurry and not got time to deal with tyre kickers so I think I will give whole ebay thing a miss.
will give it a bit longer on PH and then revert to selling it to trade...
- will get shafted (in relative terms) but at least they will commit.
going to miss Porsche ownership until I dip back in
will give it a bit longer on PH and then revert to selling it to trade...
- will get shafted (in relative terms) but at least they will commit. going to miss Porsche ownership until I dip back in
You also need to watch out for the scammers / canvassers etc. A colleague of mine at work who's selling his 04 Boxster S put it on Ebay a couple of weeks ago but it didnt sell. On Monday he went back on Ebay to see what others were selling only to find that some lowlife had taken his advert including all the pictures and re-advertised his car with a buy it now price of £12k(!!), presumably on a scam to try and get a gullible punter to part with a deposit for a "bargain" (why anyone would fall for this I dont know, its a £35k car).
Ebay to their credit were very good and removed the ad within the hour, but I reckon selling something of that value on ebay isnt really the way to go, most people willing to shell out that sort of money on a car will probably be wary of buying privately, let alone buying privately off Ebay.
Chris
Ebay to their credit were very good and removed the ad within the hour, but I reckon selling something of that value on ebay isnt really the way to go, most people willing to shell out that sort of money on a car will probably be wary of buying privately, let alone buying privately off Ebay.
Chris
From a buyers point of view I bought my 53 Boxster from an advert on Ebay a couple of months ago. I specifically wanted a Red one with good spec in near perfect condition, age or price were not the main issue.
The 1st two I viewed were by coincidence only a few miles from home, one a 99 2.5 and an 02 2.7, and was impressed by both cars, making an offer for the 2.5, which at the time the seller turned down,and then bidding on the 02, 2.7. But unfortunately the seller had listed it under a friends account, signed up himself the same day, and I found myself bidding against the owner, A practice which is apparently quite common on Ebay, but as far as I was concerned, not in my best interest. so I walked away.
A short while after I saw a 53 plate 2.7 advertised, very high spec, low milage and still with 4 months warranty remaining. It meant a trip to Oxford to view, but turned out to be well worth it, as the car was perfect, and in my opinion the owner was fanatical, only selling because his new 987s was ready for collection.
A few checks were made, including a call to Reading OPC, to verify the car and owner (at the request of the seller) and a deal was agreed to buy outside of Ebay. And two months later I am more than happy with the car.
I have since also had a call from the owner of the original 2.5 that I viewed asking if the offer I made was still available as he would now accept it. It was a 99 2.5 with 27000 miles and full history which at the time I offered £18500 which I thought was about right for a 2.5 , but he thought he could get nearer
20k, if he held out, even though you could pick up a 2.7 for less than that. (it is still for sale)
Anyway the moral of my story is,Yes there are a lot of dodgy people out there, but not only buyers,there are traders selling off crap and posing as private sellers, to reduce any comeback,There are stolen cars, repaired write offs, outstanding finance etc etc,. But it is a massive market, and it doesnt cost much to list your car, and among the dreamers, tossers and tyre kickers there are also genuine buyers who are willing to take a small risk to save buying from overpriced Dealers, But also you must realise that this is an auction, so be realistic with your reserve price, cos 9 times out of 10, people think their pride and joy is worth more than it is.
>> Edited by peter miller on Saturday 13th August 13:29
The 1st two I viewed were by coincidence only a few miles from home, one a 99 2.5 and an 02 2.7, and was impressed by both cars, making an offer for the 2.5, which at the time the seller turned down,and then bidding on the 02, 2.7. But unfortunately the seller had listed it under a friends account, signed up himself the same day, and I found myself bidding against the owner, A practice which is apparently quite common on Ebay, but as far as I was concerned, not in my best interest. so I walked away.
A short while after I saw a 53 plate 2.7 advertised, very high spec, low milage and still with 4 months warranty remaining. It meant a trip to Oxford to view, but turned out to be well worth it, as the car was perfect, and in my opinion the owner was fanatical, only selling because his new 987s was ready for collection.
A few checks were made, including a call to Reading OPC, to verify the car and owner (at the request of the seller) and a deal was agreed to buy outside of Ebay. And two months later I am more than happy with the car.
I have since also had a call from the owner of the original 2.5 that I viewed asking if the offer I made was still available as he would now accept it. It was a 99 2.5 with 27000 miles and full history which at the time I offered £18500 which I thought was about right for a 2.5 , but he thought he could get nearer
20k, if he held out, even though you could pick up a 2.7 for less than that. (it is still for sale)
Anyway the moral of my story is,Yes there are a lot of dodgy people out there, but not only buyers,there are traders selling off crap and posing as private sellers, to reduce any comeback,There are stolen cars, repaired write offs, outstanding finance etc etc,. But it is a massive market, and it doesnt cost much to list your car, and among the dreamers, tossers and tyre kickers there are also genuine buyers who are willing to take a small risk to save buying from overpriced Dealers, But also you must realise that this is an auction, so be realistic with your reserve price, cos 9 times out of 10, people think their pride and joy is worth more than it is.
>> Edited by peter miller on Saturday 13th August 13:29
I have sold around 100 cars on ebay from a £250 p/ex to a £50K Bentley and I have found Porsches for some reason attract lots of morons asking ridiculous questions, bidding on the auction with no intention of seeing the transaction through.......its worth a go for six quid but as said previously most serious buyers will come and have a look and negiotate a deal off line.......from what I have seen most cars at £20K + will not meet reserve, and more often than not (particually at the moment, holiday season maybe?)will not reach even trade money.my advice is find out what its worth in the trade, add a grand or two on and see who is looking.
Dont expect too much then you will not be dissapointed!!
Matt
>> Edited by poorcardealer on Sunday 14th August 10:29
obviously I`m biased being one of the dealers that people go to when they want to sell their Porsche but it always strikes me as odd that people will risk everything to try and achieve a few pounds more than the trade are willing to pay for a car. Selling a car these days is frought with potential problems and ultimately the only reason someone buys a car privately is to save money on what they would have to pay from a dealer and not just a couple of quid either. Ultimately many private buyers don`t just want to pay trade money for a car, they want to pay less than trade money !
The one bonus you have selling a car privately is that the buyer won`t know the cars as well as a dealer and so it`s easier to pass on something with a problem that a professional might pick up on.
We have tried to sell 2 Porsches on ebay. They were both at the cheaper end of their market. The first sold to a guy who came over from Germany and everything went well. The second was to a bloke who appeared genuine, kept in good contact and was having the car right up to the planned day of collection when he apparently missed a flight or train somewhere and decided he couldn`t proceed with the purchase (on a car he`d never seen by the way).
Fed up we put the car on our site and it sold in 3 hours, the chap picked it up the next day. The same is true of a car transporter trailer we sold. Bidders pulled out, one chap had bought over 150 iyems that day and was just a child tugging himself off in his bedroom.
We put the cars on ebay for a bit of a laugh, just to see what they would make but I`ve learnt my lesson. We`ve just listed a really cheap LHD boxster which would make more money on ebay with people fighting over it but personally I can`t be doing with all the hassle and broken promises, it`s all too annonymous and riddled with fraud. A car needs to be viewed, you kick the tyres, have a haggle then shake the bloke`s hand and do a deal. You can`t go away and bid for it against people who have never seen the thing and are struggling to hit the right buttons after 4 cans of special brew who then vanish off the face of the earth when they sober up.
Henry
The one bonus you have selling a car privately is that the buyer won`t know the cars as well as a dealer and so it`s easier to pass on something with a problem that a professional might pick up on.
We have tried to sell 2 Porsches on ebay. They were both at the cheaper end of their market. The first sold to a guy who came over from Germany and everything went well. The second was to a bloke who appeared genuine, kept in good contact and was having the car right up to the planned day of collection when he apparently missed a flight or train somewhere and decided he couldn`t proceed with the purchase (on a car he`d never seen by the way).
Fed up we put the car on our site and it sold in 3 hours, the chap picked it up the next day. The same is true of a car transporter trailer we sold. Bidders pulled out, one chap had bought over 150 iyems that day and was just a child tugging himself off in his bedroom.
We put the cars on ebay for a bit of a laugh, just to see what they would make but I`ve learnt my lesson. We`ve just listed a really cheap LHD boxster which would make more money on ebay with people fighting over it but personally I can`t be doing with all the hassle and broken promises, it`s all too annonymous and riddled with fraud. A car needs to be viewed, you kick the tyres, have a haggle then shake the bloke`s hand and do a deal. You can`t go away and bid for it against people who have never seen the thing and are struggling to hit the right buttons after 4 cans of special brew who then vanish off the face of the earth when they sober up.
Henry
I think eBay is a good way to do it.
It's cheap to do, reaching a very wide audience - much more than you'd get via your local auto trader.
Yes, you'll get tons of moronic questions, a few hundred scammers and kids above their stations, but all said - if you are honest and give a complete and utter history of the car then you really can't do any better.
What I do is list the complete history of the car - listing dates, mileage and what was done (services, oil changes, tyres, MOT, etc, etc).
I tend to write all my stuff from the point of view of what I would like to read about if I was interested in the car. You can't have enough information.
The one thing I do stress in all my car ads is that an AA/RAC/other inspection is more than welcome at any time before the close of the aution. I also state that the car can be viewed daytime (at work location) or evenings/weekends (at home).
I also say that test drives will be subject to proof of who you are, with valid IDs (note plural) and insurance. You can spot the timewasters a mile away.
K
It's cheap to do, reaching a very wide audience - much more than you'd get via your local auto trader.
Yes, you'll get tons of moronic questions, a few hundred scammers and kids above their stations, but all said - if you are honest and give a complete and utter history of the car then you really can't do any better.
What I do is list the complete history of the car - listing dates, mileage and what was done (services, oil changes, tyres, MOT, etc, etc).
I tend to write all my stuff from the point of view of what I would like to read about if I was interested in the car. You can't have enough information.
The one thing I do stress in all my car ads is that an AA/RAC/other inspection is more than welcome at any time before the close of the aution. I also state that the car can be viewed daytime (at work location) or evenings/weekends (at home).
I also say that test drives will be subject to proof of who you are, with valid IDs (note plural) and insurance. You can spot the timewasters a mile away.
K
sold my boxster on ebay. i think if you are very specific/honest with your car then cant see the difference between autotrader/E&M? you put a reserve etc so the muppets dont try and think you are about to sell a porsche for £20
the guy still came and saw the car, then we met at the bank to transfer the cash.
the guy still came and saw the car, then we met at the bank to transfer the cash.
I've sold three cars via e-bay in 4 weeks and the simple fact is this. People want a bargain and assume e-bay is the place to be.
All my cars go on with a start price which secures me a profit. They have no reserve and will stay on till they sell. I give a very honest description and have till now had no problems.
BUT, the cars are all £1.5k or less so are cheep cars. and all transactions are via paypal deposit balance by cash.
As for a £35k Porsche well I'll be in the market for one soon, and Henry or another indie will get my cash..
Phil
All my cars go on with a start price which secures me a profit. They have no reserve and will stay on till they sell. I give a very honest description and have till now had no problems.
BUT, the cars are all £1.5k or less so are cheep cars. and all transactions are via paypal deposit balance by cash.
As for a £35k Porsche well I'll be in the market for one soon, and Henry or another indie will get my cash..
Phil
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