How to prepare a car for sale
Pre-sale preparation of a car with your own hands, secrets and tricks.
Hi all. The topic of today's article is pre-sale preparation of a car with your own hands. In this article, we will use examples to look at the actions that make sense to take in order to sell a car with maximum profit in the minimum time.
General principles of pre-sale preparation.
The main idea of pre-sale preparation is to spend less money than the added value of the car will be created! For example, completely painting a car never pays off when selling, but polishing almost always pays off. Re-upholstering the interior will not add as much to the price as this work costs, but dry cleaning is very likely. Well, overhauling the engine will not add as much to the price as thick oil... the idea is to get the maximum impression for the buyer with a minimal investment of money.
Appearance is critical when selling a car. Remember, people are greeted by their clothes.
Pre-sale preparation of the body.
Colleagues, it is the body that the buyer pays attention to when approaching the car, and it is the body and its appearance that form the buyer’s first impression of the car.
In my resale course, I teach the theory that the buying decision is made based on the first impression, and further inspection is aimed only at convincing yourself that this purchase is exactly what you need. Therefore, it is very important to make the right first impression! You can't make a first impression twice, remember that.
So, what to do with the body to sell the car as profitably as possible?
If the body has parts damaged in an accident, it is better to repair them or replace them, since a damaged car is of more interest to resellers who will reduce the price as much as possible. Agree, if you are buying a car for yourself, you don’t want to pay money, buy it, and then look for a service where they will restore it all.
But you need to change body panels wisely. Taking new parts and painting them on a car to sell is crazy! Maximum from a showdown. For a popular car, there is a great chance to find parts in color!
If you can’t find a part that matches the color, you’ll have to repaint it, but you can paint it while saving on materials (no primer, cheap varnish, etc.).
Definitely need to touch up all the chips and do a full polish. Believe me, nothing raises the price of an entire car like polishing and dry cleaning in the interior. Visually, the car looks 5-10 years younger!
If the thresholds of a car are visually scary, but you don’t want to repaint them, on our website we have a method for painting the thresholds with tinted anti-gravel - it doesn’t look bad or sloppy.
For example, this Toyota was bought for 50 thousand rubles, repaired for 12 thousand rubles. (only a flashlight was purchased), pre-sale preparation was carried out for 4 thousand rubles. and the car was sold for 100 rubles:
About stickers, spoilers and blue scribbles.
If the stickers do not carry any meaning (a rusty hole or a chip is being covered), I recommend removing them... the likelihood that the buyer will appreciate them is quite small and they look extremely collective farm.
The same situation with non-factory spoilers and body kits, if possible, we bring the car to the most standard appearance, and spoilers are sold well separately.
Well, blue backlit writing pads, Sparco mud flaps, etc. It’s also better to remove things and return them to standard.
Pre-sale preparation of the salon.
Definitely, the salon should be clean when selling. Pull up the rugs, vacuum, or better yet, dry clean.
A friend of mine sold a car for 3 weeks.
As a result, he gave it to me at the price for which he bought it since he could not sell it. I dry-cleaned the interior, washed the car and the engine compartment, took new photos and in 2 days sold the car for 15 thousand more, provided that it cost me 20!
If there are cigarette burns on the seats, or they are torn, etc. search on Avito, or at flea markets and buy used seat covers.
Upon inspection, the buyer will not remove them, and they will improve the appearance. If the seats are intact, then it is better not to cover them!
About the ceiling.
Vinyl ceilings can be easily washed with alcohol, silicone remover or vanish. With fabric and hard ceilings it is a little more difficult; they require dry cleaning.
About interior plastic.
It can be easily washed with vanish type detergents. You should not use silicone remover, much less solvent (it will leave white marks in the texture of the plastic). After the plastic has been washed, it makes sense to rub it with a special polish for plastic.
About the cabin filter.
Most modern cars are equipped with a cabin filter. It’s not worth replacing it with a new one for sale, but it makes sense to take it out and clean it from dirt - the stove and air conditioner will blow much stronger and hum less.
About the stink in the salon.
Many people recommend hanging a Christmas tree, but it’s not worth it if there’s no unpleasant smell in the interior (and after a thorough cleaning there shouldn’t be any). If there is a smell, then it’s better to hang it up, in case it overwhelms...
About the trash in the cabin.
There shouldn’t be anything superfluous during the inspection, no boxes from the dacha, no papers for work, and even take out a child’s seat... Well, and accordingly, no rosary beads, nodding dogs, stickers with jokes, etc. — the most standard interior.
About tinting.
If the car is tinted to zero, then it is better to unroll it so that the buyer is not slowed down by traffic cops at every checkpoint! Believe me, it’s not much fun to buy a car and then immediately receive a fine for tinting. The rear hemisphere, if it is tinted with a high-quality film, is better not to touch and leave as is. If the film is cheap or, even worse, has bubbles and has faded, it is better to remove it.
Pre-sale preparation of the engine compartment.
The biggest dilemma arises with the engine compartment - to wash or not to wash. Many buyers shy away from a washed engine compartment - you hide oil leaks, etc. But in fact, this is nonsense... Oil leaks can already be found by careful inspection, but the condition of the engine compartment, suitable for planting potatoes, has never caused me anything but disgust. Agree there is a huge difference between this and this:
So definitely wash it, but do it at a proven car wash, since crooked washers can do a lot of business.
Pre-sale preparation of the trunk.
Definitely there should be no junk or trash in the trunk! The most standard trunk, in which there will be a minimum of things - a fuel tank, a spare tire and a standard jack and a little motor oil (in a canister of expensive oil), which is supposedly left over from the engine replacement... There shouldn’t be any other canisters (once I was told that I topped up the brake fluid and therefore carried it with me)…..
Preparation of the technical part of the car.
Preparing the technical part of a car for sale is not a clear-cut topic, but the principle stated above (invest less than the increase in price) must be followed. For example, it makes no sense to change the oil and filter in the engine; it is advisable to add 2-3 liters of oil and fill it with fresh LUKOIL, so the buyer will get the impression that the oil is really fresh and the car is being looked after.
There is definitely no point in changing transmission oils and other technical fluids.
It makes sense to change the howling wheel bearing if there is only one, if for example the axle is howling, there is no point in doing it, it is better to “allegedly be mistaken” and say - the wheel bearing needs to be replaced, it has already been purchased….
It makes no sense to replace the current radiator, etc., for sale. things – it’s better to fill it with sealant or mustard.
If a car has problems with the engine (smoke or oil pressure), it makes sense to decarbonize the engine and fill it with the thickest possible oil (once the author of this article observed how transmission oil was poured into the knocking engine of a VAZ 2114 and it went silent, although a month later it jammed).
I think the general idea of pre-sale preparation of the technical part is clear...
General secrets of do-it-yourself pre-sale preparation….
Headlights.
It’s definitely worth polishing, polished headlights will lose their appearance in a month... I think they should be varnished! But we need to sell and not travel ourselves, the cheaper the better.
Rubber bands and rubber.
It makes sense to rub the rubber bands with silicone grease or, in extreme cases, oil. This makes them look much newer. But do not forget that dust quickly sticks to the oil. In the case of the wheel tires in this photo, the rubber made during the Soviet era looks new because it was washed with 646 solvent and wiped with silicone grease:
Music.
A subwoofer and amplifier never pays off if you sell them with a car. It makes sense to buy a used radio with a flash drive for 1000 rubles, and put cheap speakers in standard places (500 rubles) and leave your cool subwoofer, speakers and amplifier for the next car or sell it separately.
Is it worth deceiving the buyer?
Twisted run.
I always sell a car with the mileage it came to me with. Normal buyers have not looked at the mileage for a long time, but rather evaluate the condition of the car. If a buyer asks “why such a high mileage, is the car a taxi?” (I was once asked this question while inspecting an 8-year-old Priora with a mileage of 130,000 km). I offer to do the mileage at the client’s request, but I say that routine maintenance depends on the mileage, so it makes no sense to run it.
Extinguish the pillows by powering them from another lamp.
It's up to you to decide - if you can't see that the airbags were fired, you can put it out - it will add to the price of the car.
Pull out the check engine light.
This is done using a capacitor, the wire or track on the device that leads to the lamp is cut off and the capacitor is soldered. As a result, the lamp will light up and go out, but do some diagnostics, maybe the problem is in a cheap sensor (removing the dashboard is a dubious pleasure).
Passing off a heavily damaged car as a new one...
The buyers of these cars are very specific people. When selling such a car, I usually pretend to be a sucker and pretend that I myself don’t know…. It’s better not to tell the buyer anything than to lie, if the buyer catches you lying, he will leave, remember this….
A little philosophy or is there any point in pre-sale preparation of a car with your own hands?
Let's consider pre-sale preparation from a financial point of view.
In Russia, the average salary is 36,000 rubles, there are 21 working days in a month, i.e. per day it comes out to less than 1500 rubles.
You can wash everything, throw out unnecessary rubbish, and polish the body with cheap polish yourself. Dry cleaning of the interior costs about 4,000 rubles. Cheap oil is about 100 rubles per liter, sealants for cooling and a “stinker” for the interior also cost pennies….
Friends, having spent 1-2 days of your time and 3000-7000 rubles on pre-sale preparation, with the right actions you will sell any car 15-200,000 rubles more expensive (depending on what kind of car it is) Is there any point in doing pre-sale preparation yourself? The answer is obvious to me - YES!
That's all I have for today, good luck with your sales and smooth roads.
How to prepare a car for sale
Pre-sale preparation of the car: body
Wash the car using two-phase technology. The appearance of a car is the first thing a buyer pays attention to. Wash the body. Choose a high-quality car wash where cars are washed using a two-phase technology: first with shampoo, then with foam and a sponge. Such a gentle wash does not scratch the body. The price of the service is 500-700 rubles.
If the surface of the body is rough, ask a technician to clean it of bitumen, corrosion and traces of insects. After cleaning, the car will become pleasant to the touch, like a newly purchased iPhone. When the buyer runs his hand over the body, he will be pleasantly surprised.
Remove chips on the bumper. Most chips are on the bumper, especially if you often drive on the highway. It is better to paint over the most noticeable ones. The main thing is to choose the right paint.
If you are going to touch up the chips yourself, find out the paint code - you will need it at the paint store. The code is printed on the door pillar, under the hood or on the trunk roof. Sometimes the information is contained in the VIN.
Buy a thin brush, it is sold at any office supply store. The paint dries immediately in the air, so you will have to work quickly. Don't forget to wear rubber gloves, the paint is hard to wash off.
A specialist will cost 500 rubles to remove chips on the bumper.
Remove traces of an accident . After accidents, dents remain on the body. If the buyer finds them, he will ask to reduce the price or refuse to purchase. To prevent this from happening, remove the damage in advance. Contact a car service or body repair center. The cost of the service is from 500 rubles per dent .
If you have not been in an accident, still check the body - snow could have fallen from the roof or a cat from a tree onto the car. To find the dent, inspect the body in bright daylight.
If the dent is large and they couldn’t remove it completely, don’t worry. Talk to the buyer, tell them about the dent. Honesty builds trust, and the buyer may like the car, despite the shortcomings.
Polish the body. A polished car is easier to sell - it looks better in photos, videos and in person. Do not polish the body yourself unless you are an expert. It is easy to burn through the varnish with a polishing machine. Holograms may remain on the body - marks in the form of circles, visible in daylight.
Before selling, a light polishing with medium-abrasive and anti-hologram pastes is enough - it will give the car shine and gloss. The cost of light polishing is from 2,500 to 15,000 rubles .
If there are deep scratches on the body, they can be removed locally. Ask a specialist about this. Check to see if the service includes touch-up of chips. Before polishing, many detailing studios paint over chips on the body. You may not have to pay extra for the service.
The car can be waxed rather than polished. It's cheaper. Wax will hide scratches and chips, and the body will shine. When the composition is washed off after 2-3 washes, the new owner will be unpleasantly surprised.
Remember, a polished car can only be washed using two-phase technology. A simple car wash will scratch the body and ruin the polish.
Pre-sale preparation of the car: interior
Clean up. Remove personal items from inside the car. Sort them. Place the ones you need in a container or bag; feel free to throw away the ones you don’t need. The MTPL policy for 2009 is unlikely to be useful, but you can take the rattle or stash home. Afterwards, wet clean with a regular cloth.
If there is an unpleasant smell in the interior, or there are patterns and stains on the seats, dry cleaning is needed. A salon filled with smoke and painted by children will scare off even loyal customers.
Carry out dry cleaning. You can try to do dry cleaning yourself, but it is better to go to a car wash or detailing center. Some stains cannot be removed manually, and buying professional equipment is expensive.
In a clean interior, there may be some dirty areas - for example, the floor under the driver's seat or the front seats. To avoid spending money on full dry cleaning, order local. For comparison: at a car wash, dry cleaning of the front seats costs a thousand rubles, and complete dry cleaning of the interior costs 3-5 thousand .
Pre-sale preparation of the car: wheels
Clean the disks. You need to clean them of bitumen, rust and dust that flies from the brake pads. The approximate price of a service at a car wash is 200 rubles, in a detailing studio - 1,500 rubles .
You can clean it yourself. Buy car shampoo, cleaner and white spirit. Wash the wheels with car shampoo and treat them with solvent to remove the bitumen. After a couple of minutes, rinse them with clean water and dry. Apply the cleaner to the discs and leave the product on and wait another 1-2 minutes. Rinse with water. The discs will become clean, rust and dust will disappear.
A disk cleaner costs from 200 to 1500 rubles. White spirit - 70 rubles per liter.
Blacken the rubber . Rubber quickly loses color due to ultraviolet radiation, road reagents and auto chemicals. You can change the color of your tires at a car service or car wash. The price of the service is 50-100 rubles .
You can save money here too. An aerosol can for blackening tires is even sold in Auchan. Price - 100 rubles, enough for 5-10 times. You can spend it on a new car. Most likely, at the car wash, the rubber will be painted with the same aerosol can.
Remove cracks and chips from the windshield . Do not try to remove the crack yourself; it may “go” further. The cost of the service is low and depends on the length of the crack: one centimeter - 50 rubles .
Do the same with chips. You can leave a chip that is not in a visible place, but it is better to remove it in the center of the glass. Repair costs from 400 rubles . The price depends on the size and type of chip.
What is better not to do
Don't wash the engine. If you flood the engine with water, the electronics will malfunction and the instrument panel will show an error. The engine will run intermittently or won't start at all at an important moment - when you show the car to the buyer.
Don't bother. If your car is clean on the inside and shiny on the outside, preparing it for sale will be easy. Do a wet cleaning of the interior, wash and clean the body - that will be enough. If in three years you have never had it dry cleaned, and your car has become dull from scratches, order pre-sale preparation.
- Remove traces of accidents and get rid of chips
- Clean the interior and clean the wheels
- Wash and polish your car
Preparing a car for sale: useful tips and little tricks
Issues discussed in the material:
Where is the best place to sell cars?
How to prepare the appearance of a car before selling it?
How to prepare the interior of a car before selling it?
How to prepare a car engine before selling?
Is it worth deceiving a potential buyer when preparing a car for sale?
Is preparing a car for sale profitable?
You are going to sell your car, a sale advertisement has already been prepared, a series of photographs of your car have been taken from several angles. But that's only half the battle. Equally important is careful preparation of the car for sale. If it hasn't been done properly, you risk missing out on many potential buyers. They may be put off by the unsightly appearance of your car during an external inspection. Therefore, take this process seriously and show buyers your car the way it looks in the photo. We will talk about the nuances of pre-sale preparation below.
Where is the best place to sell cars?
Any driver’s requirements for a car may change for various reasons: a new addition to the family, the purchase of a summer house, a need for a more spacious trunk, etc. At one point, the driver decides to exchange his car for a new one that is more in line with his current expectations.
Of course, everyone wants to sell their old car for more money and quickly. “Expensive and fast” is a sign of an ideal deal, which almost all car owners strive for at the stage of selling a car. Having asked for a large amount in an ad, many of them are simply waiting for the buyer's reaction. And then, in desperation, they sell the car at a bargain price literally the next day.
Selling a used car involves certain nuances and pitfalls. Let's consider these points in more detail.
Market and outbids.
You can make a deal with resellers, selling them a car at a price lower than the market price by about 15%, or selling the car at a reduced price directly to a buyer on the car market.
This is an opportunity to sell a used car at a dealership with the immediate purchase of a new one. Sometimes a used car acts as a down payment when purchasing a new vehicle on credit.
Independent sale.
In this case, you can get the greatest profit. This can take a lot of time and nerves.
Buyout from a specialized company.
Many companies buy used cars. Among them, you need to choose those whose profits grow with increasing sales volumes, and not through the speculative purchase of old cars. In addition, you should pay attention to the conditions provided in advance.
Success lies in making the best possible sale, not making a quicker sale. Experienced salespeople know this and show the buyer the best side of their vehicle. Beginners in the field of sales sometimes experience difficulties with this.
Preparing the appearance of the car for sale
Before selling a car, you need to transform its appearance in such a way that you yourself have a desire to buy this car. This preparation will take quite a lot of time if you do everything yourself. Of course, you can entrust this task to car wash workers. We advise you to give the car a marketable appearance with your own hands. To do this you need to do the following:
remove bitumen stains from all external surfaces;
wash the car with a special shampoo (you need to wash the wheel arches and sides of the wheels especially carefully);
bring the rims to a shine using a special product;
rub mirrors and glass using a regular glass cleaner and a paper towel (make sure there are no streaks left on the surfaces);
treat the surfaces of the body with a polish that can hide minor defects in the paintwork;
if more serious damage to the coating is detected, you should seek help from service specialists who will efficiently remove the defects;
rub the sides of the tires with interior polish, this will make the tires look like new;
Clean the internal surfaces of the headlights from dirt and dust; to do this, the headlights will need to be disassembled;
Check all lamps (front and rear lights, turn signals, brake lights, side lights, interior lighting) and replace them if necessary.
Before transporting your vehicle for sale to the market, be sure to bring clean water, polish, glass cleaner, and clean rags. During transportation of the machine, new contaminants may appear on it, which will need to be promptly removed. Otherwise, the entire preliminary process of preparing the car for sale will be in vain.
If any part of the car needs serious repairs, you must decide for yourself how to carry it out. It is still preferable to repair the car at the lowest possible cost. But this is necessary, otherwise you risk never selling your car at a good price - potential buyers will turn away from you, seeing that after the purchase you will have to spend additional money on eliminating all the defects.
When preparing your car for sale, pay special attention to cosmetic repairs. Appearance is of decisive importance if you want to sell your car as profitably as possible. In order for it to be perfect, it won’t hurt to completely renew the paintwork or carry out partial uniform touch-up of the body. By touching up only some areas while the rest of the coating is in good condition, you will also save on preparing the car for sale.
Preparing the car interior before sale
The attractive appearance of a car's interior is no less important than its exterior. Even if the car looks great on the outside, a potential buyer may refuse to buy just because of the unpleasant smell in the cabin. Therefore, in the process of preparing your car for sale, spend enough time cleaning the interior. You will need a vacuum cleaner and a specialized plastic polish. The procedure is as follows:
Interior treatment starts from the bottom. First, remove all floor mats from the car and wash them thoroughly. The carpet under the rugs should also be cleaned with a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment. For stubborn dirt, use carpet cleaning products, which will also rid the interior of unpleasant odors.
Interior treatment starts from the bottom.
Carpet can be used to cover the interior door panels and the compartment under the rear window. In this case, vacuum them too. Preparing plastic elements involves wiping them with interior cleaner.
If your seats have covers, be sure to check those as well. It is advisable to pre-wash fabric coverings, and if they are very worn, replace them with new ones.
The seat upholstery itself may also need cleaning. For soft materials, use a special cleaning agent; clean leather upholstery with soapy water and then polish. After this treatment, the air in the cabin will become fresh and filled with a pleasant aroma.
Next, run the polish over the surface of the steering wheel and the dashboard.
Finally, leave an air freshener or fragrance in the cabin to neutralize any residual unpleasant odors.
Preparing a car engine for sale
An engine that has been serviced by a careful and careful car owner does not need any special preparation for sale. A punctual driver who monitors the oil level and regularly undergoes technical inspection will have an engine in good pre-sale shape. Therefore, such a driver has a fairly high chance of selling his car profitably.
As a rule, an experienced motorist who chooses a car on the market first of all examines the contents under the hood. The success of the transaction depends on how clean the engine looks. Therefore, before selling, prepare the internal combustion engine, check it and clean it thoroughly. If possible, also have the engine serviced at an authorized center. After this, you will save yourself from possible problems with finding buyers.
Some experts advise, on the contrary, not to wash the engine, since its excessive cleanliness with the absence of oil drips will alert a potential buyer. You shouldn’t leave it dirty either; it needs to be prepared in a different way. For example, after washing the engine clean, you can shake some dust bag over it. This way, the oil drips will disappear, and the engine will no longer look suspiciously sterile.
It is much more important to ensure its trouble-free operation at the time of selling the car. During the preparation process, you need to ensure that the engine starts from a half turn in all modes. The client will probably want to check his work - you need to give him this opportunity. In order to make starting the internal combustion engine trouble-free, it is recommended to treat the distributor cover with a waterproofing agent such as WD-40.
Tricks of preparing a car for sale
If flaws or extraneous noises are noticed in the engine, periodically start it and let it idle. Thus, the engine will not have time to cool down, which means it will not malfunction, and the buyer will probably not wait until the engine has completely cooled down.
Listen to the operation of the engine drive belts. If they make a squeaking or whistling noise in working condition, tighten them or treat them with a special lubricant during the preparation stage.
Fill the fuel tank with high-quality gasoline with the addition of a fuel additive. The engine will then run smoothly.
If possible, replace the engine oil with a more viscous one. The higher the oil viscosity, the quieter your car's engine will run.
If the cooling system is leaking, special additives, the choice of which is quite large in car stores today, will help eliminate or at least mask the leak.
So that the buyer is not embarrassed by any emergency lamp that is constantly burning on the dashboard, it can be powered in advance from a working sensor (for example, from an oil sensor).
It is useful to treat all rubber seals with silicone grease, which will give them a renewed appearance. It is not always rational to rub them with oil, since dust sticks to it over time. To give your tires a new look, you can treat them with 646 solvent and then silicone lubricant during the prep process.
There is no point in purchasing and installing an expensive audio system with a subwoofer and amplifier in the car - it will not pay for itself in the end. It is better to buy a cheap radio with a USB input and equip it with inexpensive speakers, installing them in standard places. It is better to keep the existing expensive system or sell it separately later.
Is it worth deceiving a potential buyer when preparing a car for sale?
Twisted run.
Used vehicles have long been valued based on their current condition rather than the odometer reading. If the buyer is confused by the increased mileage, you can offer to install any other one. However, keep in mind that car maintenance activities depend on the actual mileage, so there is little point in increasing it.
Extinguish the pillows by powering them from another lamp.
Here the choice is yours. If the “shot” airbags are not visually noticeable, you can turn off the indicator while preparing the car for sale. The price of the car will only increase as a result of such preparation.
Pull out the check engine light.
For this purpose, you can use a regular capacitor, which is soldered into the circuit leading to the lamp. As a result, the lamp will “heal” and go out. Still, it is better to carry out diagnostics in advance - the problem may be in a small and cheap sensor, for which you do not need to disassemble the entire dashboard.
Passing off a heavily damaged car as a new one.
It is better not to mention this fact without reason. Pretend that you do not know that the car was involved in an accident. If the buyer catches you in an outright lie, he will immediately leave you.
Preparing a car for sale: price issue
So, let's look at the financial side of pre-sale preparation. If we take as a basis the average salary in the country at the level of 36 thousand rubles, then for 21 working days per month we get 1,500 rubles per day.
You can wash, clean and treat your car with an inexpensive polish yourself. Car dry cleaning services will cost you approximately 4 thousand rubles. Low-price oil costs approximately 100 rubles per liter. Various sealants can also be purchased very cheaply.
So, by spending a maximum of 7 thousand rubles and a couple of days of your time preparing the car for sale, with the right actions you can raise the price of your car by at least 15 thousand rubles, and maximum by 200 thousand! But it all depends on what make and model of car you have. As you can see, there is definitely a practical sense in independent pre-sale preparation.
Service for preparing a car for sale in St. Petersburg
At the auto centers of our company “Auto Premium” they will quickly and efficiently prepare your car for sale. The company has been operating on the market for more than 20 years, providing high-quality services for servicing and repairing cars of all brands and any year of manufacture at affordable prices. Our service stations have the latest equipment and are equipped with special tools, and our employees are highly qualified.
You can get more detailed information on our website or find out directly from managers. We will be glad to see you at our service center!
How to properly prepare a car for sale
The reasons may be different. Maybe you want a new car, maybe you urgently need money or you have to move. It doesn't matter at all. But for some reason, when in our country it comes to selling a car, groans immediately begin: “Oh, what are you talking about, how can I give away my swallow?”, etc. Guys, how much can you do? We have not lived in the USSR for a long time; there are a lot of cars now. If you do not have a Lancia Delta Integrale or a Ford Mustang Shelby, then you will forget your car in a week. But because of such reflections, we sell cars for a very long time and with great nerves. And completely in vain! Selling a car is a cool process that you can and should enjoy. The main thing is to prepare properly.
1. Repair
The car must be sold after it has been repaired. Surprised? Why be surprised, would you buy yourself or your wife a car with a dented roof or a non-working stove? No? Why are others worse? That’s why, first of all, we go to the service center and get our car in proper condition. Of course, if you only have a couple of scratches on your body, it’s not a fact that they need to be repaired at all. If the car is damaged and cannot be restored, then too. It will be easier to sell it for spare parts. But in all other cases, repairs are required. Or you can forget about normal money when selling.
2. Documents
This is the second thing you need to think about when selling a car. Nowadays no one will buy a car from you without documents, even in a remote village. Therefore, we are preparing PTS and STS, they must be in order. No PTS, but only a duplicate? Then get ready to be asked how this happened. It would also be useful to independently “check” your car in various databases (for example, using the “Autocode” service, the traffic police website, etc.) and indicate this in the ad. Well, prepare a service book or work orders. In general, buyers want their car to be “clean.” And this is absolutely normal!
3. Photos
This point is a separate story. For some reason, we believe that it is enough to take two or three crooked, oblique photographs and that’s it, there should be a line of buyers lining up behind the car. Moreover, people manage to photograph dirty cars, shoot them against the backdrop of garbage cans or some mowed-down garages, and even take and crop the frame so that any dent is not visible. People, what are you doing? Who do we want to deceive? Do you think people will fall for such an ad? But all you need is to take a clean car, find a normal background (even just a wall will do!) and take about 10-15 good pictures: shoot the body from the front, side, back and at an angle of 45 degrees, take a couple of photos interior and photo of the engine compartment. All! The main thing is not to take pictures when it is snowing or raining, or vice versa during bright sunshine. That is, it is best in the evening after work, or early in the morning. And you don’t need any professional cameras – even a regular smartphone will do!
4. Announcement
After the first three points, you need to write an ad on the Internet. For some reason, our people cope well with this point - apparently, the legacy of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky is taking its toll. Although here too there are individuals who first write “not broken, not painted”, and then when they meet they begin to explain that “the car was in an accident, and then the check engine is on, but you can drive.” Therefore, the best advice is to indicate everything as is in the description. If there are any minor flaws, it’s better to just write “reasonable bargaining under the hood.” And passing off a “rusty bucket” as a car in perfect condition is a losing strategy.
Now about the price. This is perhaps the most interesting thing. The worst decision is to set a price that is too low or, conversely, too high. In the first case, buyers will think that there is something wrong with the car, since it is so cheap. And in the second, they simply won’t want to overpay. Therefore, before publishing, we take it, look at how much a similar car with the same configuration costs and determine the market value. And then - a life hack. Based on this data, you need to understand the bar below which you cannot fall. Then you need to add 10-15% percent to it, and indicate this amount in the ad, mentioning the possibility of bargaining. This is done to attract more people. If something happens, you can give in a little in price, but not lose anything.
By and large, that's all. As you can see, there is nothing complicated in preparing a car for sale. But when the car quickly goes away for the desired amount, you will experience an incredible thrill. Some even become resellers or sales managers. However, this point remains solely at your discretion. Good luck!
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Tips from “experienced” motorists on preparing a car for sale with your own hands
Buying a car is a joyful event, especially if you manage to buy it at a good price. But the profitable sale of a car is an equally significant event. Therefore, preparing for this is one of the key stages in selling a “swallow” at the best possible price. In short, pre-sale preparation is everything.
How and where to sell a car
If the decision to sell the car is finally made, you need to decide on the place of sale.
2 options here
- Contact the salon;
- Do the selling yourself.
The first option, of course, is simpler: car specialists will evaluate the car, carry out pre-sale preparations themselves and help with the transaction. In addition, car dealerships will provide assistance in deregistering the car from the traffic police and will provide a notary.
For those who do not want to pay extra money, there are car markets.
Tips for preparing your car for sale
A well-written ad is, of course, important, but pre-sale preparation of a car is also very significant! Often, behind a tempting ad on the Internet, there is a not-so-attractive car. How to make sure you don’t lose potential buyers?
A quality engine that inspires confidence.
The main criterion for the pre-sale assessment of a car is undoubtedly the engine . If the car was used carefully in urban conditions, there should be no problems with this item.
Regular oil changes and systematic preventive inspections are the key to a quality car. Such a car will quickly find a new owner .
-
First, the engine should be washed before selling. You can do this yourself, using different cleaning agents, or by contacting a specialized car wash.
Body (scratches and chips)
Preparing the car body for sale.
An experienced car owner will definitely pay close attention to the body before purchasing. The first thing to do is to thoroughly wash the car body , including the most inaccessible places - wheel arches , for example.
Bitumen stains on the body and wheel rims must be removed. To give the car the most attractive appearance possible, it is recommended to treat the body with polish and wash all the glass with a special product.
Thoroughly washed rims and tires are a definite plus for the car owner . When going to the market, you should check all the lamps (in headlights, fog lights, turn signals, etc.). Immediately before meeting with a potential buyer, it is recommended to wipe the car with a rubber rag : it will remove all dirt received on the road and will not leave any marks.
Vacuuming the interior is a mandatory step in preparing a car for sale.
It often happens that a buyer interested in purchasing a car immediately loses all desire to make a purchase at the first glance at the interior. Why is that?
- Unpleasant smell in the cabin,
- Covers with holes and not washed for years
- Rugs full of dirt
All this can ruin the most pleasant impression!
If it is not possible to take your car to a general interior cleaning at a car wash, you will have to do everything yourself. First, you need to vacuum the interior from large debris, wash it with a soapy solution and polish the dashboard and glass from the inside.
Dirty covers should be washed; if they have holes, replace them with new ones . Don't forget about the ceiling and air exhaust grilles: you'll need cotton swabs here.
Cleaning holes. No need to seal it with blue tape, it's better to just wash it.
Determining the price of the car to sell
How to choose a price to sell a car and not screw it up?
You can determine the cost of a used car using a correction table .
Of course, this figure is inaccurate and depends on various factors: condition, operating conditions, etc. You can find out the cost of a car more accurately using online calculators : you just need to enter the required data in the proposed cells and the site will offer you an approximate price.
Is pre-sale cosmetic repair of a car necessary?
Polishing a car body before selling it is ok!
To sell your car as profitably as possible, it is recommended to make cosmetic repairs. You shouldn’t take the “swallow” apart piece by piece, painting the body evenly is enough , since there is no point in investing a lot of money in repairs - not every buyer is willing to pay for it.
Selling a car for scrap: pros, cons, pitfalls
Such a big dump of Lada cars. But sometimes it will be easier to throw even a brand new BMW there if there is not enough money for repairs.
old cars or those that have been in a serious accident ; in this case, it is more profitable to sell them for scrap.
It's very easy to do. First, you need to deregister the vehicle with the traffic police . Before this, you will need to pay the state duty and tax debt, if any.
Now you can go to the recycling service, taking with you the following documents:
- Vehicle passport with a note indicating its deregistration;
- Owner's passport.
This video shows the procedure for scrapping a car:
Thus, pre-sale preparation of a car consists of minor cosmetic repairs, general cleaning of the interior and engine compartment . Following these recommendations will help you sell your car at the best possible price and in the shortest possible time.
Comments on article 11, leave yours:
Oh, well, it’s more or less clear now. Otherwise, I feel that just taking a photo of a car and posting it on some Avito is not enough. Obviously some kind of preparation is needed, because a car is not boots.
I left to vacuum the interior and sell it :)
In order to sell a car, you need to prepare it, namely, wash it well, both on top and inside, and polish it. If there are any damages, then fix them if possible. I just recently sold my car, I found a buyer via the Internet because I put it on a website where they sell cars. She stood there for about 2 months and a buyer was found. But, personally, I don’t like people who hide flaws, so I sold my car myself for a real price.
I sold my car twice and there were no problems - I posted an ad with a photo on the website, by the way, you need to take its drafting seriously, fortunately my wife is a philologist, so I compiled the text correctly, then car wash services to give the car a more attractive look, although the road A small amount of dust must be present on the car. All that remains is to meet with the potential buyer and discuss the price. The second time I sold it at the car market and again very successfully. The main thing is that the car is in good technical condition!
You were right about road dust!
You shouldn't lick your car until it shines, it makes people wary. If everything looks perfect, you subconsciously expect a catch. Of course, we need to prepare it for sale - repair it, wash it, vacuum it. But everything must be done in moderation... Of course, it’s better to sell yourself. But here it all depends on the availability of free time. If you can meet with potential buyers several times a day, then why not. Well, it happens that there is simply no free time and then you will have to turn to intermediaries.
Selling a car always requires preparation, and cosmetic repairs and neatness of the car have attractive selling opportunities. Tips will make preparations easier and improve your car.
I gave one car, which was a little worse - its appearance was not very attractive and was no longer new at all - to intermediaries, but significantly lost in price. I sold my second car from an online site, and was lucky enough to get it off my hands within a month. But I prepared it for sale responsibly - thereby even making seven hundred dollars. The very first thing was to remove the covers from the seats and change the braid on the steering wheel. There was no need to do any cosmetics in the salon - everything was in order, I just took the car to the dry cleaner - the interior needed to be put in complete order. And the tires did not let us down - there was almost no wear. As for the body and the chassis - as it was, that’s what I said (even about all the scratches I had to explain) - if he had been fussing, they would have thought that he was an intermediary, which means the car was either damaged or had a dubious past. So my conclusion is this: when selling, it’s better to tell it like it is.
It’s more profitable to sell the car yourself; it all comes down to timing. Most of it is spent on preparation for sale. Another nuance, don’t try to sell obvious junk, no matter how you mask all the shortcomings, experienced motorists will notice this, but as a rule, they don’t just take a car off their hands. If you have metal, then sell it for scrap.
I decided to change my car, but I had to sell my existing one first. Using the advice from the site, I successfully sold my car and now I have a “beauty” in my garage. I sold it myself. The attractive appearance of my old car and a large network of acquaintances did the trick. There was no need to place an ad. My advice: get the car into a salable condition and try it among your friends.
The last two cars were handed over to Trade Inn. Well, it was more convenient for me, and the dealer gave me a nice discount on new cars for this, but before that I always sold it myself through online resources. I slightly disagree on the topic of shine and appearance. You shouldn’t really lick the car before selling it, much less paint it. A smart buyer will look at the technical condition, not the appearance. Well, as an example, painting a wing costs 6 thousand. And a fuel pump for a BMW will cost from 30 thousand. So what will they look at first? Better get the car in good technical condition.
Interesting article. It is very useful to read it not only for those who are selling a car, but also for those who plan to buy it (I myself am one of them). Now I know about the pitfalls. In general, it is surprising when some car owners, when selling a car, do not bring it into proper condition. Perhaps an experienced buyer will not pay attention to defects that spoil the appearance, but which are easy to fix. But for people who don’t like to take on the extra work of cleaning their car, and who care about the external aesthetic appearance, this point can be one of the determining ones.
I know friends who make good money by reselling used cars. The most important thing when making such transactions is the “polished” appearance of the car. After all, a potential buyer is guided mainly by emotions, which can easily be played on by correcting external defects. And if you also do a little tuning, this will increase the chances of sale several times. As for the technical side, buyers pay attention to it secondarily.
