Selling a Used Vehicle????

[arturo_h]

Does anyone have any suggestions of where to advertise a used vehicle besides here (HT), craigslist, or cars.com? I put my '99 Toyota Tacoma up on craigslist, cars.com, and on here about a month ago, and I've received very few calls. I also have a "For Sale" sign on the outside of the truck, but still nothing. I have it advertised a little higher than Blue Book and I thought I wouldn't have any problem selling it. My wife and I are moving to California on December 21st and desparately need it to be sold by then. Any suggestions? Thanks!

-Arturo

[tutusue]

When I had a car for sale all of my calls came from the Advertiser classifieds. <sorry S-B people!> I can't imagine this is a particularly good time of year to sell a car, tho'.

[arturo_h]

Really?! Because of Christmas?! I didn't even think twice about that. Well, that's great for me But I guess I will try the Advertiser's classifieds. Thanks!

-Arturo

[Fat Jeff]

I recently sold my '98 Blazer. I put ads here at HT, on Craigs List, and in the Advertiser classifieds. I got a couple inquirys from HT, nothing at all from Craigs List (it was buried under a hundred posts in about 12 hours), and my buyer (and two other inquiries) came from the Advertiser ad.

Score another for the Advertiser Classifieds.

P.S. The woman who bought my car was buying it for her 18 year old son as a Christmas present. Good luck with the sale.

[lavagal]

never used it but there's postpig.com. I hear their commercials on the radio sometimes. Wouldn't hurt. All ads are free.

[christa]

try edgeio.com


(new)

[arturo_h]

Thanks guys for the suggestions. I will try all of them.

-Arturo

[tutusue]

...a 3.5 year *bump*

I have a car to sell...one that's older (1995), pimped, beautiful, great shape; a German, luxury kine. The car before that I sold myself and I had a male friend, who referred to himself as my stooge, helping me! He was with me during appointments (altho' it sold to the first person) and he went along on the test drive. This was so comforting for me, being a single female. Now he's in Europe. What kind of a stooge would bail on me, anyway?!!! How/where should I handle test drives? Dayam...in this day and age one just never knows the character of someone responding to an ad. My mechanic wants to buy the car for his loaner fleet but he's not willing to pay anywhere near what I should be able to get based on the low blue book price which is low enough to make it affordable for just about anyone. Any suggestions on how an ol', single tutu should handle this situation? I do know to accept cash or a cashier's check only...no transfer of Nigerian funds!!!!!!

Mahalo plenny...

[naunca]

My wife and I recently sold a car so I've looked up some of the more recent advice on the process. We were prepared to accept a cashier's check from any bank that operated within our state or cash. Some of the scammers are forging cashier's checks so it's not a perfect system. I believe you can call a bank and confirm that a check with that amount has been issued (using the check ID number). A popular trick for a scammer is to take out a check for $10 and manipulate the form to read $10,000. Any reputable bank should have some security features on their checks such as watermarks and tamper-proof paper.

As far as a test drive, we took some risks. I looked at the middle-aged guy and his ~17 yo daughter and decided they just weren't that much of a risk and handed them the keys. I probably should have checked their licenses and taken photocopies. Not sure of any better way unless you want to accompany them (or have a stooge do it).

Since we advertised on-line we received a share of fraudulent e-mails and a couple of phone calls (probably shouldn't have given out our number but we were in a bit of a rush). Non-local buyers are a dead giveaway, as are people who tell you that you are selling your vehicle for too little.

My online classifieds has an option to give you a temporary anonymous e-mail address, this is well worth it. Craigslist can do the same. Some e-mail spammers search craigslist to collect addresses so I'd be careful there if you like your mail account. I actually have a junk e-mail address that I use for transactions where I can't be certain my e-mail won't get spammed. I then check it when I'm selling something and let it collect spam when I'm not.

Hope this helps!

[turtlegirl]

If anyone's interested, I'm selling an old station wagon for only $300. Runs well, new brakes, looks a little (okay, a lot) beat up.

[tutusue]

Thx, naunca. I appreciate all of your info. When it comes to a test drive it really does come down to trusting one's gut!

I'm really bemoaning the fact that we're now down to one daily newspaper 'cuz there's no competition for the almighty advertising dollar. It's been quite awhile since I advertised a car for sale but I seem to remember it being around $30. for the time frame I selected in the newspaper I selected. Now the minimum time is 1 week at $102.00. If it sells after one day, too bad! Gotta think about this a little more, I guess.

TG...put you car ad in the "selling" forum!

[Nords]

Now the minimum time is 1 week at $102.00. If it sells after one day, too bad! Gotta think about this a little more, I guess.
TG...put you car ad in the "selling" forum!

Craigslist. All of the fraud/cashier's check issues would come from a newspaper ad as well as from Craigslist.

AutoTrader.com.

Your mechanic might improve his offer if he knew you were selling it online.

Is this the sort of import that would sell on a local BMW or Mercedes discussion board? If we were selling a Prius I'd list it on PriusChat.com (in addition to HT and Craigslist). You may have a similar board, or a "classic cars" board, around here.

You'll probably be asked for your VIN so that shoppers can run it on CarFax. I've heard the urban legends about using the VIN to scam a car dealer out of a set of replacement keys, but this is a 15-year-old vehicle unlikely to attract that sort of attention.

If you have access to a military base, or a military friend that can post an ad for you, then try the bulletin boards at the military exchanges. Lots of people transferring in this time of year and looking for older cars. If the car has a base sticker then you could park it on the base's "Lemon Lot".

Last time I sold a car of that age was to a U.S. Merchant Marine skipper. I don't know how to tap into that network but they prefer to have cheap transportation in their ports. Or maybe an ad on one of the marina bulletin boards? Does La Mariana do that?

[tutusue]

Thx, Nords. The problem I've noticed with Craigslist is, with so many cars listed on a daily basis, a listing drops low on the list so quickly. Maybe that's a problem only in my mind?

A Star Advertiser classified ad includes an AutoTrader online ad but maybe I should try AutoTrader first. I wasn't aware of car specific discussion boards so I'll check into that, too. A colleague of mine is a navy wife. Thx for that suggestion.

Fortunately I don't have a selling deadline looming over my head. Still, I'd like to get rid of the insurance and just have the whole process off my mind. Well, that, and I'd like to reimburse my savings account for the down payment I made on the Insight! I drove the old car today and realized how much I'm going to miss it. No regrets in buying the Insight, tho'.

[Nords]

Thx, Nords. The problem I've noticed with Craigslist is, with so many cars listed on a daily basis, a listing drops low on the list so quickly. Maybe that's a problem only in my mind?

I think so. Spouse reads just about every post on Craigslist but I only search for what I'm buying. I'll go up to a month back in hopes of finding a, um, desperate seller.

You want a buyer who knows what they're looking for and who's either very experienced at Craigslist (and knows how to search it) or someone who's buying for a dealer and reads the boards every day. Your mechanic may be willing to come up in price a little once he learns that you're seeking other customers. His discounted price may save you a lot of phone calls and test-drive hassles-- I'd go for a quick cheap sale over a long, drawn-out agonizing "fair" price.

When we got rid of our '94 Ford Taurus wagon (in 2008) it was starting to fall apart. The dashboard plastic was decaying, the trim was crumbling, the shocks were springy, the engine was good but the auxiliaries were shaky. I would've felt bad selling it for $999 to a hopeful teenager or a desperate single parent who wouldn't want to have to deal with replacing a water pump or an air conditioning compressor. We ended up donating it to Goodwill and taking a $600 tax deduction (the price it got at auction).

[naunca]

Speaking of Carfax, our car had a squeaky clean title. We ran a Carfax query on it ourselves (cost about $20-30 or so) and gave copies to prospective buyers for free (also mentioned clean carfax report in the ad). It may help buyers who haven't used carfax before. Our local paper had free classifieds if you posted online; I'm shocked that in this day of craigslist and other auto selling services that anyone can charge $100 a week for a auto ad.

Whether the large number of postings on craigslist is a detriment depends on what type of car you are selling. If you have a car that appeals to a niche market, then the large number of craigslist postings won't affect it that much. Most of these people will be searching by keyword. If it's sort of a broad appeal generic car, then the amount of postings may matter quite a bit. What most people do is repost their ad, depending on the product, every day to once a week. I know it's a bit of a hassle but I've had some luck selling other things this way.

I haven't done it but I know a couple of people who shopped for cars on ebay using a local only search option.

[tutusue]

[...]Your mechanic may be willing to come up in price a little once he learns that you're seeking other customers. His discounted price may save you a lot of phone calls and test-drive hassles-- I'd go for a quick cheap sale over a long, drawn-out agonizing "fair" price.[...]

When he gave me his offer (less than half of low blue book) I mentioned that I would try to sell it for more first and if unsuccessful I'd check to see if he was still interested. He agreed to that without any attempt at negotiation.

Speaking of Carfax, our car had a squeaky clean title. We ran a Carfax query on it ourselves (cost about $20-30 or so) and gave copies to prospective buyers for free (also mentioned clean carfax report in the ad). It may help buyers who haven't used carfax before.[...]

I, too, have my carfax report ($34.95) and plan to use it the same way you did. However, I've found discrepancies in mine. It shows that I bought the car in 2/06 AND 5/06. I actually bought it in 5/06. That site's car review shows no cupholders because of the front seat center console. Not true! One of my favorite features is the very cool cupholder!!! I'll mention the cupholder in the ad! It also shows a plethora of "title or registration issued"; 2 per year. Obviously 1 per year is the annual registration. Is the other the safety check?

I think I'll try online ads this week-end. If needed, I'll try the Star Advertiser's classifieds next week-end.

I sure appreciate everyone's suggestions and info. Much appreciated...

[salmoned]

"less than half of low blue book" - Is that less than half the 'blue book' trade-in (dealer) value or less than half the low retail value? Trade-in values are much lower than retail values (of course) and dealers don't buy at retail prices.

[tutusue]

"less than half of low blue book" - Is that less than half the 'blue book' trade-in (dealer) value or less than half the low retail value? Trade-in values are much lower than retail values (of course) and dealers don't buy at retail prices.

Less than half of low blue book, private party pricing, according to Kelly Blue Book. I have an independent mechanic who is not attached to a dealer. If I'm going to give a big price break it will be to my mechanic. He's a really great guy and has treated me well. Still, if there's a chance I can get a substantially higher price then I'll give it a try...but not for an extended amount of time!

[salmoned]

I'm simply pointing out that his offer is likely very fair with respect to the business he is conducting - he is not a private party, but rather in-the-business regarding his offer for your car. Good luck.

[tutusue]

Ha! Got lots of ooohs and aaaahs in the parking lot of the Checkers Auto Parts store tonight. So did my car. Well, only my car! When I mentioned it was for sale one guy stepped forward for more info...and liked the info he heard while inspecting the car. He took my card and said he needed to sell his car first. He seemed a bit disappointed that I was listing it online this week-end but, oh well. He'll either find a way to buy it or he won't. It would sure make my life easier if he sells his car tonight and buys my car tomorrow morning! Yah! Right!

And a high 5 to the Checkers employee who, when I asked for something strong to remove a baked on window decal, grabbed a razor blade and removed it for me. Such aloha...

[mel]

I'm one of those people that browse Craigslist ads almost daily just to look at cars. Usually I look at specific types of car models, which means I do a keyword search and in title only. I usually check off the photo option so that I can see a picture of the car for sale.

The main reason why I do a title keyword search is because many dealers and individuals selling lets say, a Toyota Camry people selling other types of cars like Accord or Lexus will put Camry and other makes not related to their vehicle in the ad so that in a general search you stumble on their ad even though that is not the vehicle you are looking for.

For me one of the hallmarks of a good car ad is to have a nice, fairly big photograph(s) of your vehicle, the year of the car, mileage (that is important to me) and a good description of the vehicle. CarFax is a plus. VIN too. License plate so you can check if there are any outstanding tickets against the car (not that I have check, I'm not in a hurry to buy anything as of yet)....

I like big pictures in used car ads.

And sadly yes, for the individual selling a car, the listing in Craigslist turns over pretty fast so if like an hour ago your car was at the top, by the next hour it will be close to the bottom of the list or off to the next page.

The nice thing about Craigslist for cars is that you can filter seearches by dealer or individuals, though a lot of dealers cheat and list their vehicles under individuals too. I am also leary of individual car ads that have the same phone number for a several different cars on the same day or week. Dealer!!!!

Also be leary of the background in car photos. Some photos clearly show that the car is on the mainland and you'd want to avoid that...