Selling your car? 5 Things That Can Go Wrong.

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Have you been thinking of ditching your ride? I understand how it is sometimes hard to get rid of your pride, but at times various situations might lead hard decisions.

Perhaps you have seen a new ride that you would love to buy, and all you got to do is sell the current one. We would always suggest to Check VIN History before you buy any used car.

Maybe, let’s say the financial situations have become so tough and the only savior in such a case is selling your beautiful and much-adored car.

The process of selling your car is one of the hardest processes, but you don’t have to worry, I got you covered.

Most of the car sellers find themselves making losses out of their sales not because they would have loved it but because they never had an option.

Well, you might not love finding yourself a victim of such a case. When you have made up your mind that it’s time to sell your car for a decent car all you would wish for is nothing but the right price.

Various things might go wrong when you are selling your car, and this might lead to terrible losses.

However, today I will take you on a step by step learning on what things might go wrong when you decide to sell your car. This thing will prevent you from messing up when selling your vehicle.

1. Selling a broken car.

When you decide it’s time to sell up your car, it’s always important to ensure your car is very fit and functioning. It’s always embarrassing to sell a car that turns out to be broken on the material day of selling or when it’s on a road test.

Most of the potential car buyers are used to inspecting used cars before using them. Selling a trouble- free car will always put you as a seller ahead of the potential buyers.

Before selling your car ensure that a professional inspection is done so that the buyers can know how reliable your used car is.

The majority of the car sellers go wrong when they fail to perform recommended maintenance.

Before selling your car, it is always to state a description that refers to up to date maintenance. This will always attract many clients towards purchasing your car.

If your car is not well maintained, potential buyers can use that aspect towards lowering the selling price.

As a seller, you will have to make sure your car’s engine oil is changed before listing the car for selling, change the engine oil and filter so that potential buyers will see clean oil in the engine.

Before selling your car, you can also make sure the brake pads are functioning, staring power, tire threads, and cracks on the windshield.

A faulty car will always make the buyer overpower in negotiations.

2. A dirty car will always piss off buyers.

A clean car sells faster for more money.

Most of the car sellers find themselves on the wrong side when selling dirty cars. Lots of clients are always attracted to a clean car. Cleaning your car in the interior and exterior is always important.

You perhaps wonder how to make your car glitter and shine.

You got not to worry.

I will give you a few hints on how to clean your car to attract more customers. 

A car value is always reduced when it’s interior and external appearance is not appealing to the clients.

This is one honest mistake that you would not want to regret making it. Before displaying your ride for sale, ensure you have removed all the old wrappers and gum that might be stuck in the car. Ensure the seat are cleaned up. If they are leather seats, ensure you have treated them and if they are cloth ensure they are well vacuumed.

Ensure all the glass around the car is well cleaned. Smoking in the car is a common habit for smokers. Not all potential buyers would love a car that smell cigarette, I bet not even you. For such cars, it is advisable to get a thorough steam cleaning before selling.

Your car’s exterior appearance should be captivating. Ensure you clay the paint, wash the car like it’s never been cleaned before.

After washing the car ensure you wax and polish it so that it can be left shining. You can also use the car perfumes to freshen the air inside the car.

Never take your car for viewing when it’s dirty, no one would take even a glance.  

3. Taking poor and unpresentable photos of your car.

Well, this is a mistake that you don’t have even to think of doing.

When selling your car, probably through online platforms, ensure the photos are well presented. Don’t make a mistake of using a crappy digital camera or a smartphone with poor quality.

If you want your car to sell as fast and as soon as possible then you have to use a camera with great picture quality. You can use modern high definition cameras that will give you brilliant photos.

You can consider hiring a professional photographer who can do all your photo needs. 

Another mistake that most of the people who sell cars do are take photos of their cars in dull places.

An attractive photo should always be taken in a bright and a very open area. With a nice camera, take your car in a very bright and beautiful location.

Take the pictures all way round the car. One of the wrongs that most of the car sellers do is taking a single picture for their cars. Clients are always interested in seeing a variety of pictures taken from different sides of the car. Ensure you take the pictures of each part of the interior from the front seats to the back seats.

If at all you will find it hard to hire a professional photographer, you can consider hiring the camera for the work.

With good pictures, always count on that the selling of your car becomes successful.

4. The setting of the car’s price.

“What is the estimated market price of my car?” Such are the questions that will cross your mind when selling your car.

Most of the car sellers make mistakes of either overpricing or underpricing their car’s value. Some of the buyers also take advantage of the seller being naïve to low ball them.

A common mistake done by sellers is setting the price they expect, however, when buyers bargain the price would have been reduced.

You might be asking yourself what might be the best remedy for this.

Well, when setting up the price of your car, let’s say you want it to be sold at $5,000 then you will have to set the price as at $5,800.

A simple trick there right? Just try it, and you will find yourself selling your car at the actual amount of money you needed.

As a seller, don’t just jump into a price that comes with your head or the price that you estimate to be the correct market price.

Many car sellers don’t research on the prices of their cars, and they end up losing because the buyers would have already done a market survey and customized on their weaknesses.

Before selling a car, make sure you visit various car selling sites such as www.autotrader.com. From such sites, you can survey your competition and close matches to your car.

Ensure that you as the car’s condition and mileage and its price to guide you in setting up the price of the car. As a private car seller, avoid the wrong mistakes of using the physiological aspects of pricing extremely to set the price as the dealers do.

However, you can take a simplified approach through setting prices at round figures such as $13,500.

5. Poor advertising methods.

It is beyond any reasoning doubt that the car selling field is a competitive field. There are thousands of car buyers as well as car sellers.

Most car buyers prefer buying their cars from car dealers. It’s a culture that is cultivated by many people.

However, you ought not to worry not because I will tell you where we normally go wrong during advertising of the cars we need to sell.

Online listing is one of the areas that your car can sell very fast because it places it at a wider market field where different buyers can view them from different areas.

What the main challenge majority of the sellers pass through is the communication at the ad passed through writing.

You might not be a good writer, but there is nothing to get alarmed about.

All you need to do is get a friend who is good at marketing to write a good add for you. However, another mistake people do is assuming that their ads are very perfect.

Human is to error, and many of the clients trust adverts that are written clearly with fewer spelling errors. Always avoid using clichés, vague terms and block capitals in the advert.

The legal requirement is always not necessary if you are selling the car privately, however, ensure your ad contains the make and model, the age, the body type, the color, transmission, engine size, mileage and fuel type.

A reminder of the ‘dos’ and the ‘don’ts’ when selling your car.

• When you have a ready buyer, you should ask them their details as proof of their identity. If they are unwilling, always tell them to sign the seller’s contact.
• Don’t hand over any paperwork until full payment of the car you are selling is done. After you have sold the car, call the DVLA and tell them that you are no longer the owner of the car.
• Give the car to the car buyer only after the money is on your account even if it means waiting for a few days for the cash to be released. If its cash, ensure you count the money. Always take your time to count the cash after selling your car and ensure it’s the correct amount before completing and signing the deal.

With these few tips, I hope you are now well equipped to sell your car without having necessary things going wrong and encountering problems during your sale.

I hope I have saved the day. Enjoy!