Selling - prep it or discount the price?
Discussion
I've been toying with the idea of selling my F355 for a while now, mainly because I'm not driving it much anymore. I've spent a lot of time out of the country and it last saw a road when I went for the MoT last summer, which is shameful.
It's not in great condition cosmetically - wheels need a refurb, leather seats look a bit tired and the cracked buttresses and multitude of stonechips mean that it essentially needs a respray to bring it up to A1 condition. It's also due cambelts.
My question is, would you see to all those items before selling, in the hope of seeing a larger return than your outlay, or would you sell at a discounted price that reflects the vehicle condition? The former makes me worried about sinking a large amount of money into the car, the latter gives me concerns about difficulty selling - I've never sold a junior supercar before.
It's not in great condition cosmetically - wheels need a refurb, leather seats look a bit tired and the cracked buttresses and multitude of stonechips mean that it essentially needs a respray to bring it up to A1 condition. It's also due cambelts.
My question is, would you see to all those items before selling, in the hope of seeing a larger return than your outlay, or would you sell at a discounted price that reflects the vehicle condition? The former makes me worried about sinking a large amount of money into the car, the latter gives me concerns about difficulty selling - I've never sold a junior supercar before.
Thanks for all the replies, genuinely helpful stuff. I'm going to go with the wheel refurb/bolster repair/bloody good clean (which I'd have done anyway) option. I've never skimped on mechanicals as my lighter wallet will attest, but have admittedly allowed cosmetics to slide a little, as they don't really bother me. I don't mind a (clean) car with a bit of patina and, had I spent £n on paint, I'd have cringed every time I heard a stone bounce off the car during the weekly hoon or left it parked in a continental hotel car park.
mwstewart is right, wheels make a big difference and I have a set of challenge Speedlines which it can roll around on while the standard wheels are sorted out. It wasn't a top money car when I bought it, and it certainly isn't now that I've seen it tick over the 50k mile mark.
johnnyregae, there are a handful of specialists who can refurb wheels with high magnesium content using the correct process.
bryn_p this is my thinking too - it would undoubtedly be the cheapest RHD red/cream manual berlinetta and would attract some attention.
Mario149, I do indeed have a second 355. I love them; the 355 was my dream car as a teenager. Sadly, it has been driven even less than the one I'm going to sell and was subject to a full nut and bolt restoration prior to my ownership. I bought it with heart rather than head; it's a 95 with carbon seats and I can't see me ever selling it.
Thanks again all.
mwstewart is right, wheels make a big difference and I have a set of challenge Speedlines which it can roll around on while the standard wheels are sorted out. It wasn't a top money car when I bought it, and it certainly isn't now that I've seen it tick over the 50k mile mark.
johnnyregae, there are a handful of specialists who can refurb wheels with high magnesium content using the correct process.
bryn_p this is my thinking too - it would undoubtedly be the cheapest RHD red/cream manual berlinetta and would attract some attention.
Mario149, I do indeed have a second 355. I love them; the 355 was my dream car as a teenager. Sadly, it has been driven even less than the one I'm going to sell and was subject to a full nut and bolt restoration prior to my ownership. I bought it with heart rather than head; it's a 95 with carbon seats and I can't see me ever selling it.
Thanks again all.
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