Selling used car to dealer - tactics to get best price?

britbat

Hi there

Hope you can me a little.

Change of job means I can no longer justify the £600+ per year it costs to run a car, have concluded I might as well hire when I need to and/or rely on public transport, so I'm looking to sell.

Won't give too many details of the car but it's a little hatchback with an 02 plate and about 45k on the clock. In good mechanical and cosmetic condition, runs smooth, always starts, etc.

I'm really not up for the hassle of selling privately so I'm looking to sell to a dealer.

Can anyone give me some advice on tactics to get the best price. What sort of dealers best to approach (bigger ones or little back street garages?), how many different ones to go to, forecourt tactics?

Also obviously I'll run it through the car wash, clean it and make sure it smells inoffensive, but are there any other little things worth spending a few quid on to tip it from one price point to the next? eg hubcaps pretty are scuffed, worth replacing them?

Or do dealers not care about that stuff, should I just roll up with it in whatever state...?

Any advice would be much appreciated. It's not my pride and joy, I just want to realise the capital locked in it and start earning interest rather than watching it depreciate (and rust).

cheers!

Quentin

britbat wrote: »

I just want to realise the capital locked in it and start earning interest.....

In that case a dealer is your worst way of selling.

Try privately first, you will be well rewarded for your time and "hassle" in the price you will get compared to a dealer's price.

From what you say about your car, would it be true to say you aren't expecting a lot for it? If that is the case, put yourself in a dealer's shoes who has to resell it at a profit.

britbat

Don't really have any specific price ideas - Parkers reckon independent dealer would sell same car at £1,600 (though with 80k as that's just the free valuation). So taking into account condition - which is probably medium - I might be expecting them to sell my car at around that price, maybe slightly more.

When I say realise capital in the vehicle and earn interest, I just mean get a reasonable price and stop depreciation - this isn't a major income strategy. I'm happy to forego a couple of hundred quid in exchange for not having to deal with Tom, !!!!!!, Harry, their uninsured test drives, and their dodgy cheques.

The other thing on my mind is that with its age you never know whether the next mechanical failure is just around the corner (part of reason for getting out while I'm sort-of ahead) - I'd rather not be responsible to a private individual, so I'm happy to sell to a dealer where that risk will be priced-in.

So: private sale not an option. My question is how do I get best price at a dealer, since I'm bone-headed enough to want to sell to one

Rolandtheroadie

Go to webuyanycar then. they're probably no better (or worse) than selling to a dealer.

britbat

Had considered that but heard bad things about them! eg thread 454633 on this very site (too new to post links).

Would love to hear anyone who had a good experience with WBAC and who doesn't have one post and write like a astroturf marketing robot...

Quentin

britbat wrote: »

Had considered that but heard bad things about them! eg thread 454633 on this very site (too new to post links).

There you go:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/454633

colino

Please at least try selling privately.
If selling for cash to a dealer, be sure to tell him what it's worth according to Parkers, that will ensure he has the best laugh of the day, or simply waves you on your way.

ukmike

If selling for cash to a dealer, be sure to tell him what it's worth according to Parkers

And he will say sell it to Mr Parker then 'cos i aint giving you that much!

britbat

ukmike wrote: »

And he will say sell it to Mr Parker then 'cos i aint giving you that much!

Hang on - Parkers (at least the website) doesn't tell you how much you should get for it selling to a dealer, it tells you how much they'd charge for it. My plan would have been to use the Parkers price as a basis to determine what dealers might be looking for, taking mark-up into consideration. I wasn't going to go onto a forecourt and insist on £1600 'because that's what Parkers says'. Aside from anything there are a number of obvious non-mechanical flaws.

I appreciate your answers, but given that I stated at the top of this thread that I am not - repeat not - going to sell privately, they have not been a huge amount of help.

The car was a gift, so whatever I sell it for is profit. My main gain from selling it will be the money freed from insurance, VED, MOT, service, breakdown cover, repairs, and so forth. The difference between private sale and trader sale is comparatively insignificant. However there will be a scale that traders will pay, ranging from I-saw-you-coming up to maximum-for-a-reasonable-car. I'd like to be as close to the top of that scale as possible. Yes, that will be several hundred pounds less than I could get privately. I don't care.

Obviously if I wanted to get the largest financial sum in exchange for the car I would sell it privately but that is not my priority. I want to sell it to a trader, at a lower price, because that is simpler, safer and more appropriate for my needs.

Would this be easier if I told you I was looking to trade the car in part exchange for three monkeys, but that I want to pay as little as possible in order to get my monkeys. How would this be achieved?

missile

If it is only valued at £1600 for dealer to sell, I think you will find most reputable dealers will not want it cluttering up their forecourt.

I would suggest you take it to your nearest auction.

sebdangerfield

You'd never get a dealer to part ex against any primate let alone monkeys. They prefer cash against any mammal really. Try selling privatly then putting a downpaynent against a gorilla. That's where the real money is.