Trading in a car- should I fix it up

[Gerryf]

Hi there

I'm looking to trade in my car and get a new one but it has a few scratches and minor dents.

I wondered if I should try to at least cover up the minor scrathes get it looking its best by polishing the outside and cleaning the interior and if this would increase the value of the trade in?

Sorry if this sound a daft question but didn't want to spend money and time on something and the car salesman still giving me the trade-in value he would have with out doing anything.

My car's just over 3 years old and is in good condition other than the small scratches/chips.

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers
Gerry

[steveo3002]

id certainly give it a good clean inside and out and use a touch up paint to disguise the scratches

if it has particularly bad dents park it close to a wall or bush when you get a quote...people do it all the time and alot of salesmen are too lazy to check...one guy even towed a car in that didnt run and they never checked it lol

[Jvic28]

If you're trading it in, I wouldn't spend a penny. I would clean it thoroughly and if you have some polish give the scratches a good going over.

If you want the most possible for your car though, don't trade it in. Clean it up, give it a polish and sell it privately. You'll get more for it by far than you would by trading it in.

[markelock]

as already said, clean and polish only, anything else will cost you more than you recover

[hewhoisnotintheknow]

a clean car will never sell less for an identical car that is dirty

however, my mother just chopped in her immaculate (i mean like it was brand new) 9 year old 206 and the guy didnt even look at it. So going on that i wouldnt bother!

[AdrianHi]

A 9 year old 206 is worth very little, a 3 year old worth much more - of course!

BCA have statistics for cars aged 1 to 3 years old that prove on average a car fully repaired will fetch 3.4% more at auction, even after professional repairs costs are factored in. This is not the same as trading in, try asking the salesman how much he is deducting from his offer for the damage.
In the end minor cosmetic damage is no big deal.