Selling cars is a pia now .

[fastfredracing]

You just have to brace yourself for it . I listed our X3 today. It is a 3k car. Runs good no issues.
Barrages of will you take 1500?, trade for a 2006 scion with 250k miles? , will you take payments ..
Once they show up , I know I have them . Just hard to weed through it all
I love to flip, but almost miss the good old days of putting and ad in the newspaper, and only getting maybe 5 or 6 calls . Or I just used to park them out in front of the shop with a sign on the window .
Now, you get 300 replies, of which maybe less than 10 are serious . I reply to them all anyhow . All part of the experience .
How are you guys making out ?

[GH85Carrera]

I haven't sold a car since 1996. It was with an add in the newspaper. Since 1974 I have owned just three cars, and I still have two of them.

With my wife's cars, by the time she is ready to move to the next vehicle she has had a different friend each time that she know buy it. They all know the car, how clean it is, well maintained and just what they want. We have never had to advertise them. We know better than doing a trade in, as the dealer wants to give us a low ball offer.

Her last car was an Infinity 2008 G-35X we bought new. In 2017 she sold it with 38,000 miles and it was pristine. She does not drive much.

[Scott Douglas]

Last couple of cars we got rid of just went to CarMax and sold them to them. I didn't want the hassle of running an ad etc. Would have felt guilty saddling a buyer with my wife's old Mustang anyway. It ended up having issues after I had a fuel pump replaced, you know, the one in the tank. Mechanic screwed up somehow and fried the ECU so he put in a used one. Gas gauge wasn't reliable after that and I sure wasn't going to put up with that s@#$ the way it went thru gas. Got what I thought was a decent price for our old Ody van too. That is what was replaced by the Mustang. My last Accord we traded as the trannie leaked like a sieve from the gasket interfaces. Ran like a top and still shifted like new. Kind of wish I'd just had the trans gone thru on that car. '02 V-6 full EX-L model.
The hassles now are just not worth the effort here in So Cal. Too many low life's running around looking for a 'deal'.

[strupgolf]

I've had great success with Craigslist. Never had any weirdo's, never a trader, and never a buyer who wasn't interested. I know, it might sound weird, but maybe in the Midwest there are some honest sellers and good buyers.

[Robert Adams]

Having the same experience lately as Fastfred.
I offered my daughter help in selling her car. Advertised her mint, low miles, all options & all service records Toyota Corolla for a very reasonable $7900 based on NADA, KKB and Carfax. So I get 'will you take $5800'. Have people completely lost their minds! If I wanted $5800 I would have advertised it for that.
My wife recently totaled her 2015 Golf SEL so had to replace it once she was cleared to drive again. So the search began. I was dreaming I could find a replacement for what the insurance company gave us. I mean it was a decent settlement, but she just decided she wanted a bigger car and I wanted all the collision nannies. Can't say that I blame her. So narrowed the search to a Subaru Crosstrek. Not really my cup of tea, but she felt safe and liked it. So started trying to find a certified preowned with the Eyesight package 'near' our budget. I must have searched for 3 weeks and all I could find were damaged accident cars at the major dealers lots. Private sales were non existent. Finally bought a new 2019. At least 25% to 30% of the cars listed on major web sites all had accidents. Guess reinforces the distracted driving claims, but also makes wonder if they all had Eyesight option how come they were all in accidents. My Golf Sportswagen has that stuff on it and I do like the adaptive cruise and the collision braking.
As long as I'm ranting, I'll also comment on how rude drivers have become. Right after my wife's accident I was driving on the GSP. Some guy driving 90mph going from one lane across 2 more and then back again for miles judging by all the red tail lights. I was doing 80 in the middle lane and some idiot blinked their high beams at me. Met up with one of them at the exit toll about 10 miles down the road. They were in line to pay cash and I passed by them with easy-pass. Revenge can sometimes be a beautiful thing!

[LakeCleElum]

Was selling a small dirtbike I had gotten for my wife's grandson. CL add stated: Phone listed does not accept texts. Got a text from a kid wanting to know if I'd trade for a Pig....

For a car or MC these days, much better luck with Auto trader or something like that........CL is full of flakes........

[legion]

My standard response is when someone asks for a ridiculous trade or lowballs me sight unseen is: "Come take a look at it and we'll negotiate." They never do.

[Steve Carlton]

Sometimes you can can amazing money form Carvana, Vroom, or Shift. Painless.

[fastfredracing]

Originally Posted by strupgolf

I've had great success with Craigslist. Never had any weirdo's, never a trader, and never a buyer who wasn't interested. I know, it might sound weird, but maybe in the Midwest there are some honest sellers and good buyers.

Ive always used craigslist with good results like you . Last few , I tried FB classifieds, and it works, plus, you can snoop the buyer, and they can snoop me and see that I am a real person into cars. It seems to bring out more loons though .
As soon as I see a kid named Colton, or Tucker PM'ing me , I know I'm dealing with a 20 year old who is gonna offer me 30% of asking price, or want to trade his pimped out 200k corolla
Local Craigslist for cars, and most things I have been searching for seems to have dried up a little bit as of late . I've been finding far more on FB. I also like the format a little bit better .

[tevake]

I just today sold a tractor that I had listed 10 days ago on Craigslist.

I had received a few calls along the way, but the buyer called this morning. He showed up here early this afternoon, and decided to buy the tractor. He went and got a car trailer from UHaul, and was on his way back home two hours away in Ala. by mid afternoon.

Craigslist can work well, even tho there are lots of flakes on there too.

Cheers Richard

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Robert Adams

So I get 'will you take $5800'. Have people completely lost their minds! If I wanted $5800 I would have advertised it for that.

I’ve sold a lot of stuff on Craig’s List in the last couple of years. I get that now and then, and used to get pissed off. I just ignore them now. They aren’t worth the energy it takes to be pissed off. MrsWD’s favorite saying is, “If you don’t ask, the answer is always ‘no’” but I wouldn’t have the nerve to lowball someone like that.

[petrolhead611]

I put my old Focus Estate Diesel with 249 K miles on Gumtree last year for £600, and within literally 1 minute of placing the ad I had people phoning or texting The callers didn't bother to even say hello, just said 400( most didn't even bother to mention the currency)so I just put the phone down without saying anything or deleted their texts.Wirhin 20 minutes a polite chap called, and before an hour was up I had sold to him.

[legion]

I don't negotiate until you show up to look. My experience with the flakes is that even if you give them their ridiculous price, they won't bother to show up or pay.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

I’ve sold a lot of stuff on Craig’s List in the last couple of years. I get that now and then, and used to get pissed off. I just ignore them now. They aren’t worth the energy it takes to be pissed off. MrsWD’s favorite saying is, “If you don’t ask, the answer is always ‘no’” but I wouldn’t have the nerve to lowball someone like that.

I agree, it isn't even worth exerting any energy being annoyed. I just delete their texts immediately w/o replying. Selling on CL has become nearly impossible in LA in recent years but I've still managed to get lucky and sell stuff once in a while. One of my big neurotic/OCD traits is recycling, I just don't want to throw anything away if it has value and I think that someone else can use it.

That said, I've told a few people over the years that I will throw the item in a dumpster before selling it to them for their offer, just out of principle.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by legion

I don't negotiate until you show up to look. My experience with the flakes is that even if you give them their ridiculous price, they won't bother to show up or pay.

Exactly. Saying, "I'll only consider offers in person," really thins the herd.

[sc_rufctr]

Selling cars has always been a PIA. Some stuff I learned over the years...

* Don't negotiate on the phone. If they turn up to see the car they're serious.

* Negotiating on the spot is OK but set your price and stick with it.

* Anyone who doesn't turn up after they said they would get's ignored. No further coms.

* Just because you bought something for a good deal doesn't mean you should sell it cheap.
People have often asked me what I paid for something. I just shut my mouth and don't even respond to their question.
If they persist I tell them to mind their own business and yes I've "burnt" deals this way.

*If something is taking a long time to sell that doesn't necessarily mean it's overpriced.
Over 15 years ago, around the time of my divorce I decided to sell my 964. It took 20 months to find the right buyer.
I could have sold it for much less very quickly but I wasn't desperate and was happy to keep enjoying it.

* Wash the car inside and out before showing to anyone regardless of value. Even a $500 banger looks much better clean.
Also clean the engine bay and don't forget to empty the trunk and vacuum it out.

[pavulon]

I believe it's a PIA...but so is finding a car that is represented fully and honestly. By the time I was able to buy my last 2 cars, I'd seen a LOT of toads. One fella tried to sell me some chainsaw yard art after I had to tell him his car was a turd. jeebus.

[Noah930]

Originally Posted by fastfredracing

Barrages of will you take 1500?, trade for a 2006 scion with 250k miles? , will you take payments ..

Ha ha. I love the offers for a trade. Especially when I wrote in the ad that I'm selling because I'm moving cross-country. And the guys who want a payment plan or financing. Like I'm a used car dealership or bank.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by speeder

One of my big neurotic/OCD traits is recycling, I just don't want to throw anything away if it has value and I think that someone else can use it.

Me too. I would rather give something away than throw it away.

Originally Posted by speeder

That said, I've told a few people over the years that I will throw the item in a dumpster before selling it to them for their offer, just out of principle.

I was selling a nearly new meat grinder for $50. I only used it a few times. New ones were $75, so I thought $50 was a good price. A guy called and wanted to buy it for $40 because new ones are on sale at Cabelas for $69. I told him the new one sounded like a great deal and he should go get it.

[bkreigsr]

I sold my last three dd's by parking in front of the house with a FS sign in the window.
Neighbors all know I take good care of the cars and seem to be chomping at the bit for a chance to drive it away.
Haven't sold a car with less than 148,000, so we're not talking a lot of coin though, like Fred.
Bill K