Worth repairing before selling???

kestrelwings

This is probably a really dumb question!

I am looking to get a new car.

My old car is a 2004 Micra, that is a great runner but has less than perfect paintwork & a couple of small dents. I was looking to either try for a part exchange if they will take it (?doubtful) or use one of the 'We buy any car' type things (I really do not relish even attempting to sell privately).

Unfortunately, someone has now gone and hit my car whilst it was parked, and the front bumper & wing are significantly damaged. No hope of tracking down who hit it either :-(

My question is: is it worth me getting in fixed & claiming on my insurance (risking my no-claims in the process), or would it cost more to do this than the probable saving I would make on the sale?

Advice???

MX5huggy

Don't bother paying to get it fixed, put it on eBay with a £1 start price and no reserve and you get what it is worth. Or part ex it, any main dealer will take a shed as a part ex probably putting down its worth x but not taking x off the price of the new (used) car.

londonTiger

nobody wants to buy a car with panel damage - it just looks horrendous. You will get less money for it or it will just take a lot longer to sell.

If it's just panel damage, look up breaker parts on ebay and install them and then sell it. Should be a simple job as micras are so easy to assemble. They were built to be very quick and easy to build at the factory (therefore be cheaper to produce), it should be a doddle to replace panels.

assuming you are competant that is, a 2004 micra is worth less than £1000. A private repair is going to cost £500-£600. An insurance repair is going to be cost of excess for £300 (average), plus £100-£200 a year on additional premiums. So insurance repair is going to be as expensive as private repair over the course of time.

You will not add £600 to the value of your dented micra by fixing the dents. So just sell it as is if DIY repair is not possible.

marlot

Depending on your excess, it might be worth claiming in the hope that the insurance company will write it off.

colino

If you claim on your insurance, you will get what it is worth. Say a generous £400. Subtract your excess and the next few years of increased premiums and you will be well out of pocket.
If your not a spanner twirler yourself, get it on Gumtree and sell as is. There's a bum for every seat.

Herzlos

What's the damage like?

On a 10 year old Micra it's maybe worth trying to get replacement bumper/wing from a scrapyard and having them switched over, but any more work will cost more than it'll get you.

Most people buying 10 year old supermini's will be alright with some dents and scratches, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just sell it privately and be honest about the condition.

kestrelwings

Condition wise - the damage is pretty hilariously obvious, front bumper medium mangled, wing scratches and less severe dents, bonnet not quite sitting straight, and headlamp plastic covers broken (these are removable though, and the actual headlights are fine).

Although I am OK with a spanner, no way near good enough to replace the bumper.

Do you really think a dealer would part ex a car in that condition?

colino

A trader will take just about anything as a trade-in, but just don't believe for a second that you are getting any money for it. It's one for the crusher for a trader so whatever you trade-in for will have had enough padding in the price to allow for a net zero trade-in.

BeenThroughItAll

londonTiger wrote: »

nobody wants to buy a car with panel damage - it just looks horrendous. You will get less money for it or it will just take a lot longer to sell.

You will not add £600 to the value of your dented micra by fixing the dents. So just sell it as is if DIY repair is not possible.

So your advice is fix it. Or don't fix it. Handy.


OP - lots of people ARE happy to buy a car with damage. Damaged cars sell every hour of the day on eBay, so I'd go with advice above, stick it on for a £1 start and see what you get.


I've sold cars in the past that have been cosmetically a right mess, and they've always found a buyer who's happy to either put up with it, or fix it themselves.

londonTiger

BeenThroughItAll wrote: »

So your advice is fix it. Or don't fix it. Handy.


OP - lots of people ARE happy to buy a car with damage. Damaged cars sell every hour of the day on eBay, so I'd go with advice above, stick it on for a £1 start and see what you get.


I've sold cars in the past that have been cosmetically a right mess, and they've always found a buyer who's happy to either put up with it, or fix it themselves.

if you can read you'll find that I suggested fix it with breaker parts if it's diyable. Otherwise sell as is.

BeenThroughItAll

londonTiger wrote: »

if you can read you'll find that I suggested fix it with breaker parts if it's diyable. Otherwise sell as is.

I did read it. Just thought that advice to do a thing, or perhaps do a different thing, wasn't really 'advice'.


Anyway, I thought you had me on 'ignore'. That's what you'd promised.