Z4 M Coupe...sell privately or via dealer?
Discussion
all,
i'm looking to sell my beloved BMW Z4M Coupe and 2.5yrs of proud ownership. the need to raise cash for a house purchase has forced my arm!
the car is in mint condition, but the alloys need refurbishing... i'm looking for a reasonably quick sale. how are these things moving in the private market? or am i best to go to a dealer to get a bid?
A few details to give you an idea:
56 plate
Grey / Black
Satnav, ipod
30k miles
Cheers
i'm looking to sell my beloved BMW Z4M Coupe and 2.5yrs of proud ownership. the need to raise cash for a house purchase has forced my arm!
the car is in mint condition, but the alloys need refurbishing... i'm looking for a reasonably quick sale. how are these things moving in the private market? or am i best to go to a dealer to get a bid?
A few details to give you an idea:
56 plate
Grey / Black
Satnav, ipod
30k miles
Cheers
I am selling mine, as said the market is slow. I turned down a couple of offers two months ago which I now wish I had accepted!
Anyway, a dealer called Targa Florio cars contacted me offering to take it on a 'sale or return' basis. You could contact them if it's a second car and you trust it in someone else's hands.
Personally I am in no hurry to sell so didn't take up their offer.
Anyway, a dealer called Targa Florio cars contacted me offering to take it on a 'sale or return' basis. You could contact them if it's a second car and you trust it in someone else's hands.
Personally I am in no hurry to sell so didn't take up their offer.
I would suggest that part of the reason for the perception that the Z4MC market being slow are the overly optimistic views of some folks of what they believe their cars are worth.
If you look on the PH ads at the cars that did sell then an asking price of £20k - £21k for a 2007 car seems to get results. Lots of cars advertised in that bracket sold in 2 weeks or less - including some that had been priced higher previously but failed to sell for months. Obviously those are asking-prices. A lot of the deals agreed could have been sub-£20k.
At the end of the day if you want to sell anything, the value that counts is what it's worth to the buyer, not what the seller thinks it's worth.
Incidentally, Targa Florio had a lovely black low mileage Z4MC for sale for months, but with a ludicrous ticket value slapped on it. I'm guessing that was SOR, never shifted, and now snuggled back in its owners garage?
If you look on the PH ads at the cars that did sell then an asking price of £20k - £21k for a 2007 car seems to get results. Lots of cars advertised in that bracket sold in 2 weeks or less - including some that had been priced higher previously but failed to sell for months. Obviously those are asking-prices. A lot of the deals agreed could have been sub-£20k.
At the end of the day if you want to sell anything, the value that counts is what it's worth to the buyer, not what the seller thinks it's worth.
Incidentally, Targa Florio had a lovely black low mileage Z4MC for sale for months, but with a ludicrous ticket value slapped on it. I'm guessing that was SOR, never shifted, and now snuggled back in its owners garage?
Edited by DaveR on Friday 13th August 16:37
Depends how quick you want to sell the car really.
You'll get a much better price if you sell privately, but you'll have to deal with a load of time wasters and dreamers along the way.
People who'll ring you up acting like a genuine buyer (or even worse the idiots who email a list of inane question over a couple of weeks, when a quick phone call would answer any questions in a few minutes), but still have to sell there car first or just want to pick your brains regarding the basic stuff like warranties and insurance costs, which should have been investigated already, if they were actually looking to buy.
Also buyers tend to see the cheapest price on the internet and assume all the cars should be that price, but obviously this doesn’t allow for condition or how desperate the seller is to get rid. You can bet buyers don’t look at most expensive and the cheapest cars then work out an average price for the market and look to pay that.
If you want a quick sale, dealer is the best option, but you’ll get bent over royally at the moment because the car market is dead for ‘weekend toys’ at the moment.
Good luck
You'll get a much better price if you sell privately, but you'll have to deal with a load of time wasters and dreamers along the way.
People who'll ring you up acting like a genuine buyer (or even worse the idiots who email a list of inane question over a couple of weeks, when a quick phone call would answer any questions in a few minutes), but still have to sell there car first or just want to pick your brains regarding the basic stuff like warranties and insurance costs, which should have been investigated already, if they were actually looking to buy.
Also buyers tend to see the cheapest price on the internet and assume all the cars should be that price, but obviously this doesn’t allow for condition or how desperate the seller is to get rid. You can bet buyers don’t look at most expensive and the cheapest cars then work out an average price for the market and look to pay that.
If you want a quick sale, dealer is the best option, but you’ll get bent over royally at the moment because the car market is dead for ‘weekend toys’ at the moment.
Good luck
Edited by Porscheplayer on Monday 16th August 11:15
inkiboo said:
DaveR said:
I would suggest that part of the reason for the perception that the Z4MC market being slow are the overly optimistic views of some folks of what they believe their cars are worth.
This is very true. If you look at the people on z4-forum.com they are totally nuts about their expectations.Private cars are already cheaper so why should they drop even more, especially when they have an official warranty as part of the sale?
Edited by daz4m on Monday 16th August 12:44
i couldn't sell mine privately despite it being the cheapest 57 plate car forsale in the UK... had lots of interest but no-one came through with the cash! sold it back to Sytners in the end, for an okay amount.
the main issue i came across was people would rather pay 15-16k for a 2006 lower spec high mileage car than say £23k for a 2007/08 plate high spec/low mileage car. The higher priced cars only seem to get bought from dealers, where i assume their ability to offer finance and p/x makes the deal.
the main issue i came across was people would rather pay 15-16k for a 2006 lower spec high mileage car than say £23k for a 2007/08 plate high spec/low mileage car. The higher priced cars only seem to get bought from dealers, where i assume their ability to offer finance and p/x makes the deal.
inkiboo said:
daz4m said:
Just feel you are being a little harsh on the owners in light of the AUC prices, what else are they meant to go on?
The market; a car will only sell for what a buyer is prepared to pay. For private sales people are not prepared pay anywhere near AUC prices.There should be a modest gap between the two rates not as you are suggesting.
Having just bought an AUC Z4M:
1. I found the AUC/main dealer quite reassuring and was happy to pay abit extra for the benefits of AUC
2. Very surprising to see some private cars at asking prices of more than AUC. Yes, spec may be "better" but my money wasn't going to go to someone asking top money because they weren't going to accept the trade in on their next car and want me to fund it instead
So it came down to the right colour, spec, age andmileage and whether I then wanted to put 20k+ into a dealers pocket with some comeback or take a punt on a private sale for not much less and have a sale as seen? Some owners seem tobelieve these cars are an investment. No they depreciate like almost all others
FWIW there are some really good, honest private buys out there, they just were not what i wanted.
I'd say take a punt privately when selling but be totally realistic about asking price which shouldn't be. much more than tradein. Even then they don't seem to sell and you may have to accept the hit of selling to a dealer.
1. I found the AUC/main dealer quite reassuring and was happy to pay abit extra for the benefits of AUC
2. Very surprising to see some private cars at asking prices of more than AUC. Yes, spec may be "better" but my money wasn't going to go to someone asking top money because they weren't going to accept the trade in on their next car and want me to fund it instead
So it came down to the right colour, spec, age andmileage and whether I then wanted to put 20k+ into a dealers pocket with some comeback or take a punt on a private sale for not much less and have a sale as seen? Some owners seem tobelieve these cars are an investment. No they depreciate like almost all others
FWIW there are some really good, honest private buys out there, they just were not what i wanted.
I'd say take a punt privately when selling but be totally realistic about asking price which shouldn't be. much more than tradein. Even then they don't seem to sell and you may have to accept the hit of selling to a dealer.
inkiboo said:
It also doesn't help when Z4M private sellers say this:
"Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
It only puts the time wasters off most likely, or those who have been looking for a car for at least 2 month and still haven't bought anything."Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
Porscheplayer said:
inkiboo said:
It also doesn't help when Z4M private sellers say this:
"Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
It only puts the time wasters off most likely, or those who have been looking for a car for at least 2 month and still haven't bought anything."Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
Does sound like he is a little bit bitter for some reason!! Damn z4m sellers why won't they just give the things away.
Edited by daz4m on Tuesday 17th August 16:50
inkiboo said:
Porscheplayer said:
inkiboo said:
It also doesn't help when Z4M private sellers say this:
"Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
It only puts the time wasters off most likely, or those who have been looking for a car for at least 2 month and still haven't bought anything."Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
Either way, reading the above would (and has) put me off the advert/car.
All because I’d asked you why you bothered emailing me in the first place (over a 2 week period) about a car you thought was too expensive with a fixed price in a private message, you need to take a hard look at yourself mate, you response was not a measured one and totally over the top.
Two months down the line you’ve bought bugger all
daz4m said:
Porscheplayer said:
inkiboo said:
It also doesn't help when Z4M private sellers say this:
"Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
It only puts the time wasters off most likely, or those who have been looking for a car for at least 2 month and still haven't bought anything."Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
Does sound like he is a little bit bitter for some reason!! Damn z4m sellers why won't they just give the things away.
Edited by daz4m on Tuesday 17th August 16:50
Porscheplayer said:
daz4m said:
Porscheplayer said:
inkiboo said:
It also doesn't help when Z4M private sellers say this:
"Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
It only puts the time wasters off most likely, or those who have been looking for a car for at least 2 month and still haven't bought anything."Price is fixed at £xx,xxx, so please don't offer xxK via email, prefer to handle any interest via phone. No time wasters please."
Instantly people will be put off.
Does sound like he is a little bit bitter for some reason!! Damn z4m sellers why won't they just give the things away.
Edited by daz4m on Tuesday 17th August 16:50
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