Used car market is dead...?
Discussion
I've sold my 2004 Porsche Boxster inside a week, sensibly priced but not a bargain. Two callers, first man out bought it.
I'd also my 2004 Volvo T5 auto for sale. Thought it would be a sticker as its a bit of an oddball. Sold in a fortnight. Two callers, two viewers, second man bought it (first man was going away to think about it...
)
Granted down the money cars relative to the O/P but i'd no hassles selling.
I think high priced cars people these days are even more likely to buy from a dealer - warranty, trade in facilities, finance, etc all play a big part.
I personally would struggle to hand over £40K+ to some bloke who'd had a car for three months, with no comeback.
I'd also my 2004 Volvo T5 auto for sale. Thought it would be a sticker as its a bit of an oddball. Sold in a fortnight. Two callers, two viewers, second man bought it (first man was going away to think about it...
)Granted down the money cars relative to the O/P but i'd no hassles selling.
I think high priced cars people these days are even more likely to buy from a dealer - warranty, trade in facilities, finance, etc all play a big part.
I personally would struggle to hand over £40K+ to some bloke who'd had a car for three months, with no comeback.
Edited by daemon on Friday 5th May 21:25
Selling privately has become a ball ache thanks to the "What's the lowest you'll take?" Brigade. I suspect this pushes private sellers more towards trading in or WBAC, hence reduced numbers of privately for sale cars.
This plus the aforementioned easy finance on new cars means fewer buyers look privately.
Private buying and selling seems the preserve of only the determined or shrewd these days.
This plus the aforementioned easy finance on new cars means fewer buyers look privately.
Private buying and selling seems the preserve of only the determined or shrewd these days.
I suspect a good number of high end cars at 'dealers' at actually on Sale Or Return / Commission Sale arrangements. This is why they sit there for ages - the dealer hasn't got money tied up in it (it is only taking up a bit of space and it makes his stock look healthy) so he doesn't mind and the seller is happy to wait cos it is just a toy.
This means private sellers of nice examples at sensible prices (25% less than trade retail) are like hens teeth....
Am in the market for a Mustang or C63 coupe. I can buy a mint C63 from Mercedes with a 2 year warranty for £32k. I'm a buyer for the same car privately for £25k.
Just to show I don't want the penny and the bun, cars like mine retail at £10k+. I expect to get £7k.
This means private sellers of nice examples at sensible prices (25% less than trade retail) are like hens teeth....
Am in the market for a Mustang or C63 coupe. I can buy a mint C63 from Mercedes with a 2 year warranty for £32k. I'm a buyer for the same car privately for £25k.
Just to show I don't want the penny and the bun, cars like mine retail at £10k+. I expect to get £7k.
I think most folk simply don't have a lot of hard cash to hand. As a result they go and lease a new one for a manageable monthly sum.
Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
There doesn't seem to be much movement in the £40k market at the moment. I have cash waiting so have been looking at private and trade for a nice R8 or V8 Vantage and nothing new has come up for some time now, the dealers are slowly reducing prices on old cars to what looks to be to no avail.
I am quite specific on colour so haven't been monitoring everything but there doesn't look to be much new coming to market.
I am quite specific on colour so haven't been monitoring everything but there doesn't look to be much new coming to market.
Edited by S2WYA on Friday 5th May 22:06
I own a wheel refurb company, 90% of our work is for dealers, such as Audi, Merc, BMW, Porsche, Land Rover.
We have never been busier, April was our busiest month in 15 yrs of trading, one Audi dealer we work for has sold over 175 used cars for 2 months running.
Every single dealer we work for, from the ones above, to back street Arthur Dailys are mental busy at the moment, we are certainly not complaining.
We have never been busier, April was our busiest month in 15 yrs of trading, one Audi dealer we work for has sold over 175 used cars for 2 months running.
Every single dealer we work for, from the ones above, to back street Arthur Dailys are mental busy at the moment, we are certainly not complaining.
I had my old Discovery 3 for sale privately last summer at £10,500 and in two weeks didn't have a single enquiry. I traded it in at a (non-franchised) dealers who then put it up for £13,500. It had sold within a few days to someone living about a mile from me (see it frequently).
I guess people need to use dealer finance a lot of the time and being able to trade your old motor in is just so much easier. Can't say I'd bother trying to sell a run-of-the-mill car privately again.
I guess people need to use dealer finance a lot of the time and being able to trade your old motor in is just so much easier. Can't say I'd bother trying to sell a run-of-the-mill car privately again.
Total UK second-hand car sales were up +5% YoY in Q4 2016. But that was down from +8% YoY in Q1 to Q3 2016. The used market is def slowing down.
The Q1 2017 numbers should be published in the next 2 to 4 weeks, which will give more detail.
https://www.smmt.co.uk/2017/02/more-than-8-million...
The Q1 2017 numbers should be published in the next 2 to 4 weeks, which will give more detail.
https://www.smmt.co.uk/2017/02/more-than-8-million...
Vaud said:
daemon said:
I personally would struggle to hand over £40K+ to some bloke who'd had a car for three months, with no comeback.
I agree. Looks like a duck, etc. I'm not saying the OP isn't a rapid changer of cars, I have a few friends that do the same, but it might sound alarm bells.=> trader masquerading as a private seller
=> a serious fault the owner has found and is getting rid
=> a car enthusiast who likes to change his car a lot
Statistically, why take the risk?
lord trumpton said:
I think most folk simply don't have a lot of hard cash to hand. As a result they go and lease a new one for a manageable monthly sum.
Based on that, nobody - even dealers - would sell a premium used car. We know that not to be true.I think the bulk of people buying at that point find it more reassuring to buy from a dealer, who can facilitate a trade in and offers a warranty at very least, plus can offer finance if required.
lord trumpton said:
Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
OR - sellers generally have unrealistic expectations of what their car is worth. Quattromaster said:
I own a wheel refurb company, 90% of our work is for dealers, such as Audi, Merc, BMW, Porsche, Land Rover.
We have never been busier, April was our busiest month in 15 yrs of trading, one Audi dealer we work for has sold over 175 used cars for 2 months running.
Every single dealer we work for, from the ones above, to back street Arthur Dailys are mental busy at the moment, we are certainly not complaining.
Which buys in to what i'm saying - people buying used, "premium" cars want to buy from a dealer.We have never been busier, April was our busiest month in 15 yrs of trading, one Audi dealer we work for has sold over 175 used cars for 2 months running.
Every single dealer we work for, from the ones above, to back street Arthur Dailys are mental busy at the moment, we are certainly not complaining.
Crumpet said:
I had my old Discovery 3 for sale privately last summer at £10,500 and in two weeks didn't have a single enquiry. I traded it in at a (non-franchised) dealers who then put it up for £13,500. It had sold within a few days to someone living about a mile from me (see it frequently).
I guess people need to use dealer finance a lot of the time and being able to trade your old motor in is just so much easier. Can't say I'd bother trying to sell a run-of-the-mill car privately again.
OR, dont want to run an older Disco without a fully comprehensive warranty from a dealer whos going to (have to) stand over it?I guess people need to use dealer finance a lot of the time and being able to trade your old motor in is just so much easier. Can't say I'd bother trying to sell a run-of-the-mill car privately again.
Lets not forget, at that price point people could easily get a bank loan. Companies online are falling over themselves to lend money at stupidly low rates.
kambites said:
I think the market for expensive newish second-hand cars sold by private sellers is certainly dead, irrespective of the state of the wider economy. Exceptionally low interest rates and the availability of very cheap finance has got the market into a situation where a new car from a dealer is generally more affordable for most people than buying a used car privately.
I think that's fair to say of moderately priced cars as well. I've recently ordered a new Focus rather than going second hand as the benefits of buying new plus the modest cost difference was enough to make it a decent proposition. I've always steered clear of new cars in the past.OddCat said:
Private sellers need to take the average of the asking prices of, say, five similar cars advertised at dealers then ask 25% less than that average. I think they will find that they then have a much better chance of finding a willing buyer.....
25% less - of course they'll find buyers quicker - following your logic,100% less works faster !When you or anyone following your advice is selling a car for 25% less than market value - please let me know.
The last few cars I've bought have been from small traders - simply because there either were no comparable cars for sale by private sellers or they simply were asking too much.
I'm shocked the OP has managed to do so well selling because the vast majority of buyers for £40k+ cars want to buy from a dealer due to :
warranty, px or finance requirements.
lord trumpton said:
I think most folk simply don't have a lot of hard cash to hand. As a result they go and lease a new one for a manageable monthly sum.
Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
Agree.Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
It's not what price is the car but how much per month.
golfer19 said:
lord trumpton said:
I think most folk simply don't have a lot of hard cash to hand. As a result they go and lease a new one for a manageable monthly sum.
Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
Agree.Given 90% of new cars are financed then this obviously has an effect on the number of private sellers coming to the market. Of the ones that do try to sell privately then they seem to want retail money as they needing a maximum return as they owe money on the car.
It's not what price is the car but how much per month.
People can easily get finance online if they need it, so i doubt thats the reason.
V8RX7 said:
OddCat said:
Private sellers need to take the average of the asking prices of, say, five similar cars advertised at dealers then ask 25% less than that average. I think they will find that they then have a much better chance of finding a willing buyer.....
25% less - of course they'll find buyers quicker - following your logic,100% less works faster !When you or anyone following your advice is selling a car for 25% less than market value - please let me know.
Whilst i think 25% is a bit high its not a million miles away from the truth (dependent on car price of course)
The big problem is private sellers see dealer prices for their car and price their cars the same and then wonder why the phone doesnt ring.
Typically a private sale car will need to be several thousand cheaper than main dealer prices.
Just to give a one off example - heres a 2016 Passat SE Business like the one i've just bought, sold by a private seller.
I got mine for significantly less than that from a main VW dealer with a full tank of diesel, fully serviced, valeted, new mats, fitted mudflaps and an auto glym valet pack thrown in - yet i bet that private seller is wondering why the phone isnt ringing.
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