I have to admit, I don’t like selling my things.
First of all, I am attached to everything I own. It’s true. Just imagine all the miles that you traveled with your ride and how much fun you had. If you are handy with tools, you certainly spent some time fixing it or even building it to be better. You dedicated your time and your energy into it and you will definitely miss it, no matter how it looks to you right now.
So, for whatever reason you have to sell it (hopefully getting some newer and better vehicle) there’s this process of advertising it, then long negotiations… Which can be really painful and energy consuming.
It doesn’t have to be.
With the right moves and good buyer the whole process could be a lot more enjoyable, easier and more profitable for you.
We already published article about the first step to selling your truck — advertising it as best as you can. After you did all that we mentioned in that article, you were left with the phone in your hands, thinking that it’s time for “the waiting game”.
But you shouldn’t wait.
While your ad is running, you should start preparing your vehicle so you can showcase it to the potential buyer tomorrow, even if you think that might not happen. If you decided to put “for sale” sign (be careful though, this is illegal in some states, like California) on the side windows of your truck, you have to be sure that your vehicle is in always in good condition and “presentable” to people passing by.
The vehicle should be spotless in appearance
You already listened to our advice and washed and maybe detailed your car while taking photos for the online listing, so what else could you do? Actually, a lot. Is it worth it? Of course! Everything you do to your vehicle slightly increases the overall look of the vehicle and the amount of money you could get from that old clunker. Here’s couple of tips:
Make sure everything is as clean as possible – There are some things that people often forget to clean. For example, wipe the brake dust off the wheel covers and, while you are there, treat the tires with a tire gloss product. Clean windows and mirrors as best as you can and empty the ashtrays.
With detailing included in this step this shouldn’t take more than $200, but value of your vehicle could easily be raised for more than $500.
Throw junk out of the car – Remove every personal accessory from the dashboard and the inside of a vehicle and make it look as neutral as possible. That way, buyer will be more subjectable to picturing vehicle as theirs and with that you will have them where you want them to be.
Make it look like stock model – We have no doubts in your good taste, but not everyone is a fan of customization of vehicles. Remove some of the modifications you made and you will make your vehicle appealing to more customers. You can always show additional parts you have, to potential buyer and offer to throw them in for a “small additional charge”. If you are, however, worried that you will end up with parts, for which you really have no use, you can leave them on your ride, but have in mind that it will be harder to sell your vehicle that way.
Consider small investments – The most experts suggest that you should invest a little before showing your vehicle. For example, throw out dirty floor mats and replace them with new ones. It’s an inexpensive change that will, again, help you sell your vehicle easier. It is also recommended to make low-cost repairs that you can do yourself and that have visible results.
Repair other obvious flaws of your vehicle – You probably know very well what’s wrong with your vehicle and you should try and fix as many shortcomings as possible. This can be a tricky part since not all repairs will be cost effective — you will pay more for them than what would you get in overall value.
So, start with the most noticeable ones and move slowly towards others. Make sure to check those banging noises under the hood and iron all the dents and dings. Change the oil since most buyers will look if it’s burnt. Again, here you might spend some considerable cash, but you may earn few times more with the sale, if you do them smart. If your buyer finds all those small faults he will have the upper hand in the negotiations.
Let the mechanic check your vehicle – If you need to service your vehicle, do it right away. If you don’t, check it out anyways. You don’t want your vehicle to be dangerous to drive! Either way, have them issue you report about its condition and along with other maintenance records show them to prospective buyers before they even ask you about it. This way you are showing that you have nothing to hide.
How to properly show your car
This step is a start of the real action, but also the beginning of a bumpy road towards your sale.
People are all different and some are very difficult to work with so you need to decided how do you want to handle them.
Even when you talk over the phone with potential buyer, you will get some idea about what type of a person you are dealing with. If they seem shady or pushy, they might prove too difficult to deal, so maybe you’ll want to wait for another buyer. Like we repeated throughout this article, selling your car doesn’t have to be demanding task — you just need to do it right, or in this case find the right person.
You can decide to show your vehicle either at your home or some neutral ground (choose public spots!), like shopping mall parking. It may look suspicious to other people that you want to sell your vehicle at shopping center, but it is more important for you to stay safe. They will see your address when you sign the title over to them, though, but by that time you will be certain that the person is real buyer and not some criminal looking for a way to steal from you. If you decide to sell your vehicle in front of your home, it will however look more honest and people will trust you more.
In either case be brutally honest about your vehicle, show them everything that is wrong with it, which, if you followed our previous suggestion won’t be that bad. Keep your calm and answer their questions. If, even though you showed them all of the maintenance records, they still want to take the car to their mechanic, that might be understandable.
However, by now you might realize with what kind of a person your are talking to and if it still looks suspicious to you — don’t do it.
Same thing goes if they want to take your vehicle for a test drive. Do that only if you trust them and never let them go alone. While they are driving you can also answer additional questions and tell them which way to go if they are not from your area.
Don’t forget to check if they have a driver’s license!
Get the best price
After the buyer checked your vehicle, driven it and is genuinely interested in buying it, they will make their offer (never, absolutely never accept offer if the buyer didn’t even see your vehicle instead tell them you can talk when they come). Depending on the situation what they say may really differ, but the offered amount usually isn’t what they are really willing to pay for your car.
Selling your vehicle sometimes feels like this
Given the circumstances they might begin by the “While I really love this car, there is this and that that I don’t like…”. The point is to kindly try to set the stage for decreasing the asked price, but they probably won’t name it, so instead, ask them how much are they willing to offer. After that you can move towards some price that is acceptable to you too.
If they say something like “Would you accept…” they are actually giving you a real offer to which you can reply with the counter offer. This shows that prospective buyer is interested in your ride and is probably willing to increase his/hers offer so don’t lower your price too much and don’t look too eager to continue going down with your asked price.
Out of everything people say I hate the most “Take it or leave it” attitude. In its meaning it looks like there is no room for negotiating, but in the most cases that isn’t the case and the buyer was only bluffing. In this case, if the number is too low for you, we would suggest to kindly deny that offer. They might return with better offer and if they don’t — someone else will, don’t worry.
If every single offer is not what you are looking for, then, on the other hand, it might show you that you have to be more flexible and adjust your asked price.
Reaching an agreement
After everything is settled make sure that you understood all the rules governing the sale of motor vehicles. They are different from state to state so it would be best to check at your local DMV office or at their website.
Knowing very well how DMV operates it would be best if you study these documents thoroughly and come prepared. You don’t want to be stuck in there for too long.
You can even fill out release of liability form, which could help you avoid some misunderstandings after the sale.
Be careful while receiving payments from the buyer! Accept only certifiable checks or cash. Once the payment is clear you can transfer the title to the buyer. Some banks might hold the title, in which case you would have to go with the new owner to the DMV and get temporary operating permit. It’s slightly more bothersome but nothing too problematic.
After everything is done, don’t forget to call your insurance and cancel your policy, too.
In the end…
Make yourself believe that you never had that vehicle. The sooner you forget about it, the better it will be for you. Every sale of motor vehicle is considered “as is”, and the new owner won’t have the right to bother you if something goes wrong with the vehicle. So you won’t hear about it anymore so try and don’t think about it too.
By selling your current vehicle you probably decided it is time to get something even better, so take that cash and go in a search for your new ride!