How much does a recorded CAT-C reduce the value of a car??

[Petrolhead_Rich]

after my s40 decided to kill it's engine I bought a CAT-C write off from ebay, repaired it and did all the paperwork, now I'm looking to selling it and buying an S60.

The car is almost exactly the same as this £7000 one, but mine has 51,000miles and is black.

Perfect in every way bar a couple of tiny scuffs and this CAT-C marker on it!

VIC complete, V5 etc sorted, some service history...

So, how much should I knock off for the recorded damage, all the parts have been replaced including parts I could have left damaged, all new bumper, bonnet, wing, headlights, air-con radiator, radiator bracket, wheel arch liners etc etc.

How should I advertise it, I want to be honest, I have photo's of the damage and the damaged parts available for inspection when the car is viewed, should I mention this or just say it's been repaired, would the fact I've done it rather than a garage put people off do you think???

[edo]

Since the car you linked is a main dealer car with Volvo warranty, I'd say your car would be 10-15% less than that minimum BEFORE taking into account the marker.

I'd say no more than about £3k in reality - but you only need one buyer, so try your luck and see how you get on.

[edo]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

How should I advertise it, I want to be honest, I have photo's of the damage and the damaged parts available for inspection when the car is viewed, should I mention this or just say it's been repaired, would the fact I've done it rather than a garage put people off do you think???

PS

The more detail and honesty the better. I'd add a picture of the damage before, or at least offer to provide it.

[Petrolhead_Rich]

edo said:

Since the car you linked is a main dealer car with Volvo warranty, I'd say your car would be 10-15% less than that minimum BEFORE taking into account the marker.

I'd say no more than about £3k in reality - but you only need one buyer, so try your luck and see how you get on.

£3000!

Is £4-5k unreasonable then???

[Leeds220]

I'm sure I read somewhere on the internet (so it must be true!) that about 25% off for cat D and 50% for cat C. Personally that's what I'd expect at least if I ever considered buying one.

[Petrolhead_Rich]

Leeds220 said:

I'm sure I read somewhere on the internet (so it must be true!) that about 25% off for cat D and 50% for cat C. Personally that's what I'd expect at least if I ever considered buying one.

£3k for an immaculate 56 plate S40 with 50k???

[DannyVTS]

If there are similar models for £7k, I would expect yours to fetch £3.5k-4k

eta

[ikarl]

I'd agree at £3.5-4k

[Petrolhead_Rich]

Excellent, Watch this space, well rather the space over in the PH classifieds!!!

[lordlee]

Don't believe all you read. There is no chance of a Cat C for 50% off. The max I'd say is 15-20% for either category. The trick is to buy a car with photos of the original damage and the repair work in stages. I'd say try yours at 5.5k and see if anyone bites. Be very upfront though in your description. Confidence is everything for the buyer.

Edited by lordlee on Monday 18th April 13:46

[va1o]

I'd say £4k, but its difficult to pin point exactly what it's worth. How much does it owe you?

[Petrolhead_Rich]

va1o said:

I'd say £4k, but its difficult to pin point exactly what it's worth. How much does it owe you?

well as I'm likely going to be selling it on PH i'd rather not say, but I got change from £3k

However I then fitted 2 headlights, a bumper, a bumper plastic cover, front cross member, air con radiator, radiator mounting bracket, front wing, two plastic wheel arch liners and a bonnet from my other S40, so realistically i'm wanting at least £4.5k for it, two headlights alone are worth £1k!!!

[NobleGuy]

There's a few Cat C Nobles here and there and they sell for roughly 60-70% of their pre-crash value.

[Ade07]

Sold my Cat 'C' Boxster 3.2s for £9000 when the going rate at the time was around £11,500 to £12,000.

Hope this helps!

[edo]

Folks, need to compare to book private - not to a dealer forecourt (strong) asking price.

[AshRS250]

Some Insurance companies take 20% off the market value for Cat C/D car valuations.

So if a 'normal' car is worth £7k if you put your car up for about £5k its about right.

Edit: Just re-read the original post "some service history" and comparison was to a Volvo dealership car. I would say £3.5k for your car max on that basis.

Edited by AshRS250 on Monday 18th April 19:29

Edited by AshRS250 on Monday 18th April 19:30

[McSam]

How much of a hurry are you in?

Obviously it depends on the extent of the original damage, but if you can show the very high standard to which it's been repaired, and everything has been checked and declared to be fine, then fair enough. Get it looking its best and go in at £5k if you're not in a rush, £4-4.5k if you are?

[edo]

Small market - many people (rightly or wrongly) don't want a Cat registered car, and insurance can be harder. I cant see you getting more than you paid for it IMHO.

Here is a 2008 private car with only 15k on the clock for reference.

2008 VOLVO S40 1.8 SE 4dr Saloon
Private Seller

15,000 miles, 4 Door Saloon, 2 keys, Dealer Full Service History, 5 months road tax, 5 months mot, Blue, Petrol, Manual, Cruise control, Traction control, Height adjustable drivers seat. Air Conditioning, CD/Radio, Electric Windows, Trip Computer, Alloy Wheels, Body Coloured Bumpers, Electric Door Mirrors, ABS Brakes, Air Bag Driver, Air Bag Passenger, Central Door Locking - Remote, Power Steering, second Owner, ISOFIX, Height Adjustable Steering Wheel, £6,100 ONO.

[OldSkoolRS]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

well as I'm likely going to be selling it on PH i'd rather not say, but I got change from £3k

However I then fitted 2 headlights, a bumper, a bumper plastic cover, front cross member, air con radiator, radiator mounting bracket, front wing, two plastic wheel arch liners and a bonnet from my other S40, so realistically i'm wanting at least £4.5k for it, two headlights alone are worth £1k!!!

Regardless of what the individual parts are worth (and I'm guessing this means you paid less than £1k for those headlights?) that's got nothing to do with what the car is worth unless you plan to break it for spares. It does sound like you're going to struggle to get your money back. At least you're in good company as the last couple of ex-salvage cars I did left me out of pocket too...you need to really get them cheap and the parts too otherwise it's just not profitable anymore. Time was (maybe 15 years back) when I could fix up a lightly damaged (or stolen recovered) car, run for 6 months or even a year and still sell it on for more than it owed me. These cars weren't as heavily damaged as a Cat C though (before they had Cat 'anything')and of course there was nothing on the logbook to put off any buyers.

Edited by OldSkoolRS on Monday 18th April 20:05

[Chiswickboy]

OldSkoolRS said:

Petrolhead_Rich said:

well as I'm likely going to be selling it on PH i'd rather not say, but I got change from £3k

However I then fitted 2 headlights, a bumper, a bumper plastic cover, front cross member, air con radiator, radiator mounting bracket, front wing, two plastic wheel arch liners and a bonnet from my other S40, so realistically i'm wanting at least £4.5k for it, two headlights alone are worth £1k!!!

Regardless of what the individual parts are worth (and I'm guessing this means you paid less than £1k for those headlights?) that's got nothing to do with what the car is worth unless you plan to break it for spares. It does sound like you're going to struggle to get your money back. At least you're in good company as the last couple of ex-salvage cars I did left me out of pocket too...you need to really get them cheap and the parts too otherwise it's just not profitable anymore. Time was (maybe 15 years back) when I could fix up a lightly damaged (or stolen recovered) car, run for 6 months or even a year and still sell it on for more than it owed me. These cars weren't as heavily damaged as a Cat C though (before they had Cat 'anything')and of course there was nothing on the logbook to put off any buyers.

Edited by OldSkoolRS on Monday 18th April 20:05

What something is worth to one person is often different to what another thinks it is worth.

A quick internet search found new S40 headlamps retailing (inc VAT and delivery) at under £200 each so I think that £1k a pair is a tad over optimistic.