When selling your car there are so many options. You can choose to sell your car privately, going through the process of advertising it online, and showing it to prospective buyers; or you can trade it in with a dealer and save yourself time, but potentially take a loss on the total sale price. You can also sell your car with a dealer or privately. It is often hard to work out what to do and which option to go with because there are pros and cons associated with each type of sale. But whether you want to save time, money, or both – there is a way to sell your car fast that is best for you. In this blog we’ll give you 5 tips which will help you work out the best option to get the most value and the best price for your car when selling it.
When you’re thinking “I want to sell my car for good money” but you don’t want the hassle of tyre kickers, eCarz can help you get a great price and avoid the rigmarole of selling your car online. Contact us today to find out more about how we can help you.
How to Sell Your Car Fast
Tip 1 – Invest in a full detail service for your car prior to selling
Our first tip speaks to the mantra that presentation is everything. When people are looking to buy a car, as much as they are concerned with what’s under the hood, they’re also buying with their eyes. If your car is shiny and clean it’s going to attract a higher sale price and will put you in a better position when negotiating. When it comes to a professional detail, it’s the best $220-$300 you will spend. You can almost guarantee that you will get this money back, whether you are selling it privately, selling to a wholesaler or trading to a dealer.
Tip 2 – Get the cosmetic repairs done
Many of us have cars that have fallen victim to a shopping centre car park trolley or two, and have a couple of cosmetic scrapes and marks. The question when selling is should I repair or leave as is? The answer is that it depends on what sort of condition your car is in and what is wrong with it. If your car is an older vehicle and the scrapes are expected with its age, it may be ok to simply leave the car as it is. Otherwise, if you have a newer vehicle the scrapes could be repaired and net you a higher sale price in the end. Whether you choose to repair also depends if you are thinking about trading in or selling privately.
Many people trade their car into a dealer for convenience and is the easiest way to sell your car fast. However, you will usually get the least amount of return on your car as a trade in, which means that this convenience comes at a price.
- If the car is being traded to a dealer, they can usually get a lot of the little repairs that need to be done a lot cheaper than you can and are less likely to worry too much about them. ie; you may have a few shopping trolley dents in the doors.
- If you go to a panel beater to repair, they’ll probably quote you around $700-$800 to repair, but the dealer can get the same repairs done for $300-$400. So there is no point paying $700-$800 to only gain $300-$400 because you will be out of pocket.
Tip 2 – Get the cosmetic repairs done
Many of us have cars that have fallen victim to a shopping centre car park trolley or two, and have a couple of cosmetic scrapes and marks. The question when selling is should I repair or leave as is? The answer is that it depends on what sort of condition your car is in and what is wrong with it. If your car is an older vehicle and the scrapes are expected with its age, it may be ok to simply leave the car as it is. Otherwise, if you have a newer vehicle the scrapes could be repaired and net you a higher sale price in the end. Whether you choose to repair also depends if you are thinking about trading in or selling privately.
Many people trade their car into a dealer for convenience and is the easiest way to sell your car fast. However, you will usually get the least amount of return on your car as a trade in, which means that this convenience comes at a price.
- If the car is being traded to a dealer, they can usually get a lot of the little repairs that need to be done a lot cheaper than you can and are less likely to worry too much about them. ie; you may have a few shopping trolley dents in the doors.
- If you go to a panel beater to repair, they’ll probably quote you around $700-$800 to repair, but the dealer can get the same repairs done for $300-$400.
So there is no point paying $700-$800 to only gain $300-$400 because you will be out of pocket.
If you have a major repair to complete – say a side panel – and you can potentially get it repaired under your insurance if have it covered, this is definitely worth considering. If the repair is $3000-$4000, excess may only be $1000. You should get this fixed, because the chances are, the dealer will factor in at least $2000 off the price anyway.
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Tip 4 – Do I sell privately, trade it in, or wholesale?
When listing your car online you fall prey to people who are going to make stupidly low offers – and you may even get a few scam emails. Many customers get frustrated with the private selling process for that reason.
The upside of selling to a wholesaler is that you don’t need to worry about getting roadworthy certificates and preparation with mechanical and panel issues (except as we outlined above). However, we still recommend getting a car detail done. If the dealer sees your car presented clean and well, they will generally pay more for it over a car that is poorly presented.
The bottom line is that when selling your car privately, you will generally get a better return on it, but there is a process and to be frank, most people find it a real pain. Having to deal with tyre kickers, people making silly offers, no finance arranged, need to sell their car first and the list goes on... Trade in is a convenient way if you are purchasing another car, but you are somewhat of a captive, so the dealer can offer you less. But because you want the convenience and service, you also pay for it. It’s just a matter of how much you are willing to forfeit.
Tip 5 – Selling on consignment
Selling car on consignment is a great option if you can get the right dealer to do it for you. There aren’t many that will do that, but there are a few around. It’s just a matter of finding the right company. For example, at eCarz we sell for our customers and can handle the entire transaction for you.
Selling on consignment has some great benefits, but also some negatives as well. Let’s take a look.
- If you need your car on a daily basis, you may not be able to leave it with a dealer to sell for you. However, here at eCarz in Brisbane, we allow you to keep your car, so long as you can make it available when there is a confirmed appointment for someone to view.
- The benefit of being able to sell on consignment is that you will get as close to a dealer price as possible. So essentially get a dealer’s retail rather than wholesale. And the benefits of having a dealer sell on your behalf, they can usually handle trade-ins and finance for the prospective buyer. This automatically increases your saleable audience.
- Customers may also be able to purchase a warranty on the vehicle when buying on consignment; again, giving them more comfort to purchase your pre-owned car and pay more than they would to you.
- When it comes to the other benefits you are saving time, avoiding extra hassle, avoiding going through the process of negotiation, missing out on time wasters… do we need to go on?
Finally, there is an alternative that you may want to consider which is a full-service car broker. There are not many out there, but they are definitely worth what you pay for. At ecarz.com.au we save our clients approximately $5,000 on an overall sale transaction. Whether buying or selling, we base our value on what your time is worth to you. We save our customers time and money and ensure a positive experience from start to finish.
Happy Motoring – we hope these tips help you sell your car fast and answer the question ‘how do I sell my car for good money’. For more genuine, no-nonsense advice, why not contact us today.
Updated 20th January 2020