[Sandman]

I am currently selling my car privatly on autotrader, my car is in excellent condition with full dealer service history. I know it is my car and I am biased but it really is one of the best examples around.
Anyway it has been on since monday and I got my first call on tuesday. The guy and his wife come round tuesday night to see the car. I could tell straight away they were time wasters, they didnt ask to see the V5 or service history, they didnt open the bonet or the boot, they didnt test to see if all the widows etc work. Just basically walked round the outside of the car a few times and then asked if they could test drive it. I wasnt going to say no so gave him the keys and his wife then jumps in the passenger seat and they start reversing out the driveway. I had to stop them so I could get in the back. After a quick drive of the car we arrived back at my house where he told me my car was very nice but he wanted a deisel. Then why was he here in the first place!!
Second call came yesterday, guy was quite aggrssive on the phone saying he needed to buy a car that night and tried to get me to commit to a price over the phone. I reluctantly did but made it clear I would drop any more. He aggreed and said he would be at my house at 5pm. At 6.30 he wasnt there so I phoned him, he didnt answer but text me 5 mins later saying he was held up at an auction and would phone me when he got out. At 9.30 he text again saying was still at auction but would phone me today to arrange to view it today. I am so fed up with timewasters I dont think I will ever sell a car privately again. Anybody else experienced these problems?

[Ayub]

I'm sorry to hear your suffering, it must be hard to sell a car when people are tight with money.

I would NOT agree a price over the phone unless they have seen lots of pictures of the car in great detail.
If he was in an aucion the cheeky bastard was using you as a last bet. I would rather see my car rot on my drive than give it to a **** like that.

God help you mate, sounds like your scraping the bottom of the barrel.

What car are you selling?

[andyr300]

it can be hassle, but in the end you wil get more money than p/x at a dealer.

[Kebabhead]

Change your ad to say

NO TIMEWASTERS

[SuperKip]

Exactly the same thing going on as you. My car is an 08 reg and I've treasured the car and kept in in immaculate condition, so didn't really want to lose money part exchanging it and i've had nothing but liars and complete knobheads on the phone and I only listed the car Tuesday!

One particular fella has really got up my nose this week. He rang and told me he was leaving early in the morning with cash so don't sell to anyone else (which was fine, assuming he was a decent guy). He promised he was a genuine guy (even making reference to the people that mess you around). He said my car was exactly what he wanted and when I phoned him later to double check he was coming I got the "oh, my brother was meant to call you because i've been called into work in the morning but i'll be leaving at midday to come down to you". So i'm hanging around the next afternoon expecting a call to say he's near and get fed up waiting so ring him about 6pm ish and his missus knows nothing of the car or him coming to Kent from Preston!!! So she gives me his mobile, I ring him and he answers until he realises it's me and says i'll ring you straight back.. but 3 hours pass and he hasn't. So I text him to say if he's not interested just let me know it's not a problem (trying to be calm) as I have had other calls and he can't even be bothered to text back. That's the last I heard. Arrrgggghhhh.

Seriously thinking of just letting the local dealer have it for about £1200 less!

[Decadence]

I put mine on Ebay, at least then people mail you instead of ringing you up.

[FZR400RRSP]

I didn't even try and sell the wife's car privately, I really couldn't be bothered with the hassle any more.
The first garage I took it to offered me good money, so I snapped it up.
I've also leased her new car.
So I never have to face selling a car privately again.

[Tino]

Of course selling cars is a hassle, thats why so many people sell to dealers.
You need to get the buyer to work around you. Don't specifically stay in all day waiting, unless you are home anyway. If it makes no difference, get them to ring you when they are about to leave, and also when they are 30 mins away, that way you can still plan to have a life around selling the car.
Its OK to agree a starting price over the phone, some people will need to travel to view the car, so need an idea on whether the price will fall within what they are willing to pay. How would you feel if they came down. wasted a couple of hours looking at the car, then cannot agree a price.
Never commit to a sale until you have a deposit, and don't hold buyers off until one of them says that they are en-route, otherwise you will lose interested people, and if you phone them back after telling them that you had an interested party, they will assume that the previous party found something wrong with the car.
You will get timewasters who aren't sure whether your car is what they want, and some will just come round to have a look to see if it is even the make/model for them. Some will dismiss a car solely on the colour of the interior, or thought it looked darker in the picture etc. ita all part of the game.

[FZR400RRSP]

Originally Posted by thetino

its all part of the game.

A game I tired of playing years ago.

[Tino]

Originally Posted by FZR400RRSP

A game I tired of playing years ago.

not a problem as long as you don't mind losing the difference that you ,might have gained on a private sale. I actually quite enjoy the game, till someone rings up at 1 am.

[t72bogie]

if you can find a dealer that offers "sale or return" arrangement, thats what I did last time - much better price than trade, but without the hassle of private sale

Many "Prestige" dealers offer it, im not sure if its in the interests of the big mainstream ones, but small specialists will do im sure

The dealer sells the car on your behalf for a commission - we paid £1K on a £30K car to be sold (so we got £29K for it effectively - maybe we could have got £32K if we held out 6 months, £25K trade in for a quick sale elsewhere), after getting fed up with time wasters, scam merchants etc and a months ad on the autotrader

Dealer benefits: dosent have money tied up in stock

Seller benefits: zero hassle - give to dealer, forget about it until the cheque arrives

Buyer benefits: buy from dealer in their locations, access to finance, 3 month min warranty included, p/x facilities, prepared car, buy at slightly less than full main dealer price

..everyones a winner

[Ian J]

Originally Posted by t72bogie

if you can find a dealer that offers "sale or return" arrangement, thats what I did last time - much better price than trade, but without the hassle of private sale

We just sold our Porsche Boxster via a local Porsche specialist last week who sold it on commission for us within a week returning to us exactly what I asked for.

He actually sold it for more than we paid for it a year ago but has to factor in the cost of a service, some minor cosmetic work plus his own 12 month warranty so we both ended up happy and I had none of the hassle associated with a multitude of penniless tyrekickers

[jenic]

Just sold my car last week, admittedly it was only advertised through pistonheads, but every email i got was people wasting my time, asking me if i would swap for cars i really didn't want (in the ad i put p/x for one particular car only but dont think anyone read that).

Sold it to a friend through the magic of facebook in the end

[Bilbob]

As pointed out in the recent we buy any car thread, many main dealers are offering better prices than youmight expect for newer cars as cash purchases.
It's well worth giving them a try, we got a quite respectable price for the girlfriends clio with the local renault dealer here... worth the small drop, we took it in one day, go tthe cheque the next when we left the car with them.

[Spy]

I absolutely hate selling cars privately. I have sold many in my time as I have a bad habit of getting bored. Some people just waste your time for no good reason. I have had people say they want the car and then give 100 excuses why they can't make it - can't they just be honest and say I changed my mind instead of wasting your time.

Despite hating it, I go through the pain as it is the only way to get a decent price. Only once did I get a decent part-ex price, most of the time part-ex prices are pants.

Saying that, now is the best time to sell a second hand car. Prices have been going up due to a shortage of used cars My cousing works for a large Ford dealer and he says that they are getting really good prices for part-ex cars they can't sell and put through the auction.

[t72bogie]

Originally Posted by Ian J

We just sold our Porsche Boxster via a local Porsche specialist last week who sold it on commission for us within a week returning to us exactly what I asked for.

He actually sold it for more than we paid for it a year ago but has to factor in the cost of a service, some minor cosmetic work plus his own 12 month warranty so we both ended up happy and I had none of the hassle associated with a multitude of penniless tyrekickers

great stuff

I certainly wont try selling an expensive car again private ....not many people have £20, 30, 40K or more in cash to turn on your doorstep anyway LOL

Private sale is fine for a few grand car or a banger for sure, but I wouldnt have the hassle on a major purchase again.....

[Sandman]

The guy that on Thursday agreed a price over the phone and then didnt turn up because he was stuck at an auction phoned again about an hour ago. He said he was in the area and would pop in to see the car. When he was looking around the car he produced a computer print out of the previous MOT advisory notes. I knew this information was available but I wasnt sure how he could have got it without a previous MOT certificate or the V5 then it hit me I was getting scammed. Earlier on this afternoon a nice woman phoned about the car and asked for some reference numbers from the V5 so she could HPI check the car. I found it strange she didnt ask for the VIN number but she said the website she was using for the check only asked for the "document reference number". Anyway she said she would get the check done then phone me back. An hour after this she sent a text message saying her mechanic friend has told her not to buy a freelander so she was no longer intersted. Fast forward to the last hour when the guy arrived to look at the car. When he was at the house the woman text to say she has changed her mind and would I accept £1000 less than my asking price. I said not a chance in my reply. A minute after this text the guy at the house offers £400 more than this but still £600 less than my asking price and £200 less than agreed on the phone. I said no. He then leaves and the woman texts back offering me the same price the guy offered. I had now realised they were working together and and told her no and to tell her husband the same too. The guy then text to say he knows cars values to the penny and I would never get what I want for it. Scumbags the lot of them!!!!

[markymark34]

Originally Posted by Sandman

I am currently selling my car privatly on autotrader, my car is in excellent condition with full dealer service history. I know it is my car and I am biased but it really is one of the best examples around.
Anyway it has been on since monday and I got my first call on tuesday. The guy and his wife come round tuesday night to see the car. I could tell straight away they were time wasters, they didnt ask to see the V5 or service history, they didnt open the bonet or the boot, they didnt test to see if all the widows etc work. Just basically walked round the outside of the car a few times and then asked if they could test drive it. I wasnt going to say no so gave him the keys and his wife then jumps in the passenger seat and they start reversing out the driveway. I had to stop them so I could get in the back. After a quick drive of the car we arrived back at my house where he told me my car was very nice but he wanted a deisel. Then why was he here in the first place!!
Second call came yesterday, guy was quite aggrssive on the phone saying he needed to buy a car that night and tried to get me to commit to a price over the phone. I reluctantly did but made it clear I would drop any more. He aggreed and said he would be at my house at 5pm. At 6.30 he wasnt there so I phoned him, he didnt answer but text me 5 mins later saying he was held up at an auction and would phone me when he got out. At 9.30 he text again saying was still at auction but would phone me today to arrange to view it today. I am so fed up with timewasters I dont think I will ever sell a car privately again. Anybody else experienced these problems?

Your not the only one having problems. I tried to sell a beautiful Imola red M3 and some guy arrived telling me it was stuffed and it needed thousands spent on it. Do they really think we are stupid? He said he had been selling cars for 20 years and they best i would get for it would be 10k. I sold it 3 days later for £13k.

Sometimes it sucks selling privately but then again it sucks even more being shafted by the dealers on a trade it.

[Tino]

Originally Posted by markymark34

Sometimes it sucks selling privately but then again it sucks even more being shafted by the dealers on a trade it.

What makes you think you are being shafted?
Do you expect dealers to sell the PX for the same money that they give you, and also valet it, repair any scuffs, service if required, MOT, warranty it for 3 months, and then deal with the same sort of buyers as mentioned in the thread, plus pay rent, rates, VAT, wages, and take the risk that they could actually lose money in the process?

[markymark34]

Originally Posted by thetino

What makes you think you are being shafted?
Do you expect dealers to sell the PX for the same money that they give you, and also valet it, repair any scuffs, service if required, MOT, warranty it for 3 months, and then deal with the same sort of buyers as mentioned in the thread, plus pay rent, rates, VAT, wages, and take the risk that they could actually lose money in the process?

No not at all. What i meant was i could sell a car privately for say 11k a dealer will offer me 10k if im lucky, I would lalso get a discount for cash off the car i was buying maybe 1k which i wont get if i have a trade in. So im probably better off by at least 2k selling privately. Hence its better going through the torture of selling privately compared to being shafted trading in.

[FZR400RRSP]

Originally Posted by thetino

not a problem as long as you don't mind losing the difference that you ,might have gained on a private sale.

I got trade for my wife's Clio, which was £5500.00
IIRC, the top book for a private sale was around £6100.00
Given a 'haggle factor' of £100.00/£200.00, that's you down to £5800.00/£5900.00
Advertising would have been around £70.00 for local paper and Autotrader.
Honestly, for the sake of £200.00-£300.00 I was delighted not to have to deal with Joe Public.

[Tino]

Originally Posted by FZR400RRSP

I got trade for my wife's Clio, which was £5500.00
IIRC, the top book for a private sale was around £6100.00
Given a 'haggle factor' of £100.00/£200.00, that's you down to £5800.00/£5900.00
Advertising would have been around £70.00 for local paper and Autotrader.
Honestly, for the sake of £200.00-£300.00 I was delighted not to have to deal with Joe Public.

Currently book values are high, because dealers are struggling to get in good stock. but historically, a dealer would expect to make at least a grand on a car of that value.
A few years ago, i sold my honda Hornet to Rex Judd for £1900. Though it was mechanically sound, it needed a good clean, plus MOT was due up soon. These were advertised at the time private sale for £2100. Was I going to go through hassle for the sake of a couple of hundred quid? Rex judd then put it up for £2500, but no idea what they got in the end. Had I been offered much less, then I would have made the effort to clean it up and put on a new MOT.
It is worth talking to a few traders, to see if its the sort of car that they are after, and possibly not worth taking the risk of dodgy bank drafts etc if there is only going to be a small amount in it.

[Tino]

Originally Posted by markymark34

No not at all. What i meant was i could sell a car privately for say 11k a dealer will offer me 10k if im lucky, I would lalso get a discount for cash off the car i was buying maybe 1k which i wont get if i have a trade in. So im probably better off by at least 2k selling privately. Hence its better going through the torture of selling privately compared to being shafted trading in.

Sorry, misunderstood you.
Its worth talking to the dealer, as currently they are apparently desperate for good used stock. It may not be the £1000 that you are thinking.
As mentioned before, I actually enjoy selling, and would do it myself if I thought that I could gain more than £200

[jassco]

Sold my car privately about a month ago now. I bought it in February for £5645 from a dealer, then put it in autotrader for £6100. Got a phone call the next day from a local car-leasing company who offered £5500, but we eventually agreed on £5750. Was very happy as they paid in cash. Surprisingly they tried to overpay me (£50) due to an admin error, but I pointed this out to them and they were very grateful, which I felt made the deal go through very smoothly. So much so that the buyer left all the cash on the passenger seat when he went to pay for a parking ticket before any documents were exchanged (I didn't have any change for the 20p ticket!).

Although I feel I got extremely lucky, I'd certainly give private selling a chance again, but at the same time if it was about 3-4% difference in price I'd happily part-ex in the future to save the potential hassle.

[FZR400RRSP]

Originally Posted by jassco

Sold my car privately about a month ago now. I bought it in February for £5645 from a dealer, then put it in autotrader for £6100. Got a phone call the next day from a local car-leasing company who offered £5500, but we eventually agreed on £5750. Was very happy as they paid in cash. Surprisingly they tried to overpay me (£50) due to an admin error, but I pointed this out to them and they were very grateful, which I felt made the deal go through very smoothly. So much so that the buyer left all the cash on the passenger seat when he went to pay for a parking ticket before any documents were exchanged (I didn't have any change for the 20p ticket!).

Although I feel I got extremely lucky, I'd certainly give private selling a chance again, but at the same time if it was about 3-4% difference in price I'd happily part-ex in the future to save the potential hassle.

I wouldn't class what you've done as 'private selling' though.
You didn't have to deal with Joe Public, you dealt with a company.
Joe Public is full of timewasters, tyre-kickers, test-pilots,cheeky sods, liars and conmen.

[jassco]

Originally Posted by FZR400RRSP

I wouldn't class what you've done as 'private selling' though.
You didn't have to deal with Joe Public, you dealt with a company.
Joe Public is full of timewasters, tyre-kickers, test-pilots,cheeky sods, liars and conmen.

I know it was a company that I eventually sold it to, but the reason I'd class it as selling privately is that I advertised it (with my mobile number) on autotrader. I couldn't be further from an expert in selling cars, and have also had a few phone calls from Joe Public, and even one person who phoned me telling me he had a whole list of buyers wanting my car (who was good fun to wind up). So even if I sold it to a company, I still dealt with some of the usual hassles of private selling.

at the same time, I can see where you're coming from, and I'm grateful I didn't have to interact much with many of the timewasters!

[nickfrog]

Don't know what the fuss is about. I always buy and sell privately. Never have any problems by following the following rules when selling:

1 Don't use AT. Pistonheads is much better (but not perfect) and price realistically.
2 Qualify callers when they call to eliminate wasters
3 Don't speak money on the phone but only face to face
4 Do not communicate by text, it will eliminate the chavs
5 Try and buy a car with resale in mind already. Buying a Freelander is asking for trouble for instance, sorry OP.

[jenic]

Originally Posted by nickfrog

1 Don't use AT. Pistonheads is much better (but not perfect) and price realistically.
2 Qualify callers when they call to eliminate wasters
3 Don't speak money on the phone but only face to face
4 Do not communicate by text, it will eliminate the chavs
5 Try and buy a car with resale in mind already. Buying a Freelander is asking for trouble for instance, sorry OP.

I used PH to sell and buy my recent cars, and while i do think its better than AT, it is also very specialised and someone selling a run of the mill astra/focus would be better with AT.

I also think agreeing a price can work, i have done this when traveling around the country to buy cars/motorbikes. I just get lots of pics and say if its as described will you take this. Then i go pick it up cash in hand, so far it has always been as described and both parties have been happy.

As for text, i think it can work, with my recently bought car i communicated by text to the seller for details like mot cert number, what time i was going to arrive etc, things that dont need a call. We both preferred that.

[damian.r.smith]

Agree totally. Selling privately sucks big time. Such a bunch of timewasters. I have tried pistonheads, ebay and autotrader and all seem to attract idiots offering you 50p for a perfectly decent car.

However, sometimes things do go ok. Last year I was trying to sell my old car and was getting zero interest for £2.5k. I then tried ebay with a reserve of £1.7k and the auction was going nowhere with only a few hours left. Then someone calls about the original £2.5k ad they found on Pistonheads. They popped over, the battery was flat, the A/C was playing up and the heated seat wouldn't work (despite it all working fine a few weeks earlier). Nice guy offered me £2.3k and drove away rather pleased. I think it ended up at the right price, even given the problems.

Luckily for me the car was exactly what he was looking for.

Probably won't sell privately again though. Such a pain.

[Spy]

Wow bonus. Sometimes youcan get lucky but often it is a pain in the backside