Where to sell your second hand car other than Marketplace?

B0bbyEwing

Tired of dealing with the dregs of society on FB. Absolute timewasters & not just cars but it seems when selling absolutely anything. I've had contact from two so far & both have been morons.

So I thought I'd list on eBay but I've just searched & it looks like it'll cost £15 just to put it on.

I'm not sure the car will even sell tbh & although going the scrap route means I'll get the absolute minimum for it it's looking like I'll have to go that route.

Is there anywhere else even worth advertising these days?

daveyjp

Another vehicle post with no details of the vehicle, which makes giving advice very difficult.

WellKnownSid

B0bbyEwing said:

I've had contact from two so far & both have been morons.

...going the scrap route...

The trouble is at that end of the market you will attract morons.  Whenever we've sold cars with known issues / at or close to scrap value on AutoTrader the result has always been the same:

• When can I book in a test drive?  This is a private sale, not a dealer
• Will it get me to [insert city > 400 miles away] Obviously not in the condition clearly described
  
• Will it be a reliable car?  See above
• In the ad where it says MUST BE TRAILERED AWAY I don't have a trailer, do you think I would be able to drive it to the other side of the country anyway without any issues?  You are an idiot and don't deserve nice things!
• How long is the warranty?  !!!!!!?
• Is the air-con working well?  As well as when it left the factory in 1992 as it didn't have aircon then either.

What I will say is that in all cases the deal did get done and people drove away happy - whether they were enthusiasts or knew someone in the trade to get the welding / whatever work done.  Just be honest in the ad.

B0bbyEwing

daveyjp said:

Another vehicle post with no details of the vehicle, which makes giving advice very difficult.

Your post makes zero sense to me. Please explain yourself.

To explain myself - I'm not sure why any details of my vehicle matter to the question I'm asking. I'm asking about good places to sell a car that's going for scrap but someone may take as spares/repair if they have the know-how. What does it matter whether I have a Fiat Panda, a VW Golf or a BMW M5?

WellKnownSid said:

B0bbyEwing said:

I've had contact from two so far & both have been morons.

...going the scrap route...

The trouble is at that end of the market you will attract morons.  Whenever we've sold cars with known issues / at or close to scrap value on AutoTrader the result has always been the same:

• When can I book in a test drive?  This is a private sale, not a dealer
• Will it get me to [insert city > 400 miles away] Obviously not in the condition clearly described
  
• Will it be a reliable car?  See above
• In the ad where it says MUST BE TRAILERED AWAY I don't have a trailer, do you think I would be able to drive it to the other side of the country anyway without any issues?  You are an idiot and don't deserve nice things!
• How long is the warranty?  !!!!!!?
• Is the air-con working well?  As well as when it left the factory in 1992 as it didn't have aircon then either.

What I will say is that in all cases the deal did get done and people drove away happy - whether they were enthusiasts or knew someone in the trade to get the welding / whatever work done.  Just be honest in the ad.

That's the thing - I totally have been.

Described in detail the issues, what happened leading up to it no longer starting, detailed all the imperfections that someone may use to knock the price down, just because I cannot be bothered with "I found a 2mm scratch on the underside of the car here so I'm now offering £5.99 instead of £500".


This most recent guy I'm just totally disregarding him because he's a waster. His reason may be legit but he had the opportunity to communicate in good time & chose not to. Friends & family think I'm being stupid for throwing away potential few £100 over scrap value and maybe I am but my patience for wasters is 0 on a scale of 0-100. I wont tolerate it at all. You're not going to get x-chances & if that costs me a sale then it costs me a sale. 

I'm like that because 1) the number of wasters through marketplace I've dealt with - it's tedious & exhausting and 2) I wouldn't do it to others. If I couldn't make it when I said then I'd message in good time. I wouldn't leave it until the moment I'm due to turn up to then offer you less money when I could've discussed money the day previous & perhaps saved us both some wasted time.

And I'm also that way with communication because with work I deal with people who can't (wont) communicate all the time & it's incredibly frustrating. Communicating solves a lot of issues & is so simple to do yet people refuse to do it.

paul_c123

The reason the car details are important, is because its not the platform that's the issue, but the end of the market that you're at that's the issue. You'll get the same enquiries on any other similar marketplace, but you might have had to pay for the advert. eBay is a waste of time because it is more than likely someone will win in then ghost you (it happens a lot).

Describe it accurately, price it realistically and ignore messages you don't like from Facebook (initial contact is only by message, you don't need to give your phone number).

themadvix

paul_c123 said:

The reason the car details are important, is because its not the platform that's the issue, but the end of the market that you're at that's the issue. You'll get the same enquiries on any other similar marketplace, but you might have had to pay for the advert. eBay is a waste of time because it is more than likely someone will win in then ghost you (it happens a lot).

Describe it accurately, price it realistically and ignore messages you don't like from Facebook (initial contact is only by message, you don't need to give your phone number).

I disagree. We sold an Audi A3 PHEV in excellent condition last year (for £12k so not cheap) advertised through Autotrader. It was hell - The number of enquiries from morons, time wasters and so on was unbelievable. We did manage to sell in the end, to a lovely couple who turned up when they said they were going to, but the number who were keen, made arrangements and then ghosted us/messaged to say they couldn’t make it after the appointment time was ridiculous.

My suggestion, OP would to see if there are any owners forums and try to advertise through there. Completely contrasting experience - sold an old rover about the same time as the Audi for a few hundred to a lovely lad who wanted a project - which the car was. You might find an enthusiast who understands that the car isn’t perfect but still has life in it yet.

WellKnownSid

B0bbyEwing said:

Described in detail the issues, what happened leading up to it no longer starting, 

A car that doesn't start / drive is much, much harder to sell because that 'oh it's a simple fix probably just needs a sensor' isn't guaranteed.  

We've bought a few non-starters from local traders / privately - and each time for about 20% of their market value (there are plenty of chancer sellers hoping to get full price for an 'easy fix' / great project for a mechanic / simple engine strip down job).

In each case we guessed the likely fix but there was no guarantee and there are usually plenty of other things wrong (not least undoing the mass un-plugging of stuff that went on when the previous six auto-electricians tried to get the thing back into life!).

Plus the car will need the usual cam belt, service, MoT advisories sorted, anything else that crops up and a new MoT sorted to lift the car back out of the 'hopeless time-waster' category on A/T.

fatbelly

Are you aware of copart?

https://www.copart.co.uk/sellForIndividuals

jimjames

 Gumtree is free but you could end up with the same sort of enquiries. I've had the same with marketplace but hung in there and it was worth it in the end once you've filtered out the idiots

Nobbie1967

B0bbyEwing said:

Tired of dealing with the dregs of society on FB. Absolute timewasters & not just cars but it seems when selling absolutely anything. I've had contact from two so far & both have been morons.

So I thought I'd list on eBay but I've just searched & it looks like it'll cost £15 just to put it on.

I'm not sure the car will even sell tbh & although going the scrap route means I'll get the absolute minimum for it it's looking like I'll have to go that route.

Is there anywhere else even worth advertising these days?

Unless it’s a car with an enthusiast following then no, you’ll just get chancers and idiots.

B0bbyEwing

themadvix said:

paul_c123 said:

The reason the car details are important, is because its not the platform that's the issue, but the end of the market that you're at that's the issue. You'll get the same enquiries on any other similar marketplace, but you might have had to pay for the advert. eBay is a waste of time because it is more than likely someone will win in then ghost you (it happens a lot).

Describe it accurately, price it realistically and ignore messages you don't like from Facebook (initial contact is only by message, you don't need to give your phone number).

I disagree. We sold an Audi A3 PHEV in excellent condition last year (for £12k so not cheap) advertised through Autotrader. It was hell - The number of enquiries from morons, time wasters and so on was unbelievable. We did manage to sell in the end, to a lovely couple who turned up when they said they were going to, but the number who were keen, made arrangements and then ghosted us/messaged to say they couldn’t make it after the appointment time was ridiculous.

My suggestion, OP would to see if there are any owners forums and try to advertise through there. Completely contrasting experience - sold an old rover about the same time as the Audi for a few hundred to a lovely lad who wanted a project - which the car was. You might find an enthusiast who understands that the car isn’t perfect but still has life in it yet.

Yeah think I'll go the owner pages route. I'm only going to give it a few more days & then it'll go the scrap route anyway.

WellKnownSid said:

B0bbyEwing said:

Described in detail the issues, what happened leading up to it no longer starting, 

A car that doesn't start / drive is much, much harder to sell because that 'oh it's a simple fix probably just needs a sensor' isn't guaranteed.  

We've bought a few non-starters from local traders / privately - and each time for about 20% of their market value (there are plenty of chancer sellers hoping to get full price for an 'easy fix' / great project for a mechanic / simple engine strip down job).

In each case we guessed the likely fix but there was no guarantee and there are usually plenty of other things wrong (not least undoing the mass un-plugging of stuff that went on when the previous six auto-electricians tried to get the thing back into life!).

Plus the car will need the usual cam belt, service, MoT advisories sorted, anything else that crops up and a new MoT sorted to lift the car back out of the 'hopeless time-waster' category on A/T.

You mention MOT.

This has just shy of 13 months MOT. Annoyingly I got it MOTd 6 days before it went kaput & got it MOTd on day 1 of the earliest date I could MOT it. Chain not belt & whenever you speak to anyone they always tell you - doesn't need doing then. Their words not mine. I asked a mechanic years ago if he could get the chain changed & he just told me - it's a chain, doesn't need it. Am I saying he's correct? No. Just seems to be a lot of peoples outlook though.

fatbelly said:

Are you aware of copart?

https://www.copart.co.uk/sellForIndividuals

I am now. Thanks for link.

Nobbie1967 said:

B0bbyEwing said:

Tired of dealing with the dregs of society on FB. Absolute timewasters & not just cars but it seems when selling absolutely anything. I've had contact from two so far & both have been morons.

So I thought I'd list on eBay but I've just searched & it looks like it'll cost £15 just to put it on.

I'm not sure the car will even sell tbh & although going the scrap route means I'll get the absolute minimum for it it's looking like I'll have to go that route.

Is there anywhere else even worth advertising these days?

Unless it’s a car with an enthusiast following then no, you’ll just get chancers and idiots.

Seems it. 

Looks like it's a case of put up with the nonsense until a decent person turns up or I get fed up & scrap it.