When it comes to selling a car — as with any other item sale — you’re going to be looking to secure the best price. For some people, buying a car is an investment, and when the time comes to recuperate costs, you want to be driving home the highest figure.

Selling a car, though, can be tough. The market is competitive and there is always somebody out there offering a better price. You don’t want to undercut the competition just to sell your car, but how do you increase interest and get maximum value from your vehicle when there are so many other options available for buyers? 

It’s not actually as difficult as you might think to secure top-dollar for your car. This quick guide offers some vital tips to rev up interest and put the brakes on low-ball offers.

Clean Your Car

When you try and sell a house, you’ll always hear that curb appeal is critical. You want your house to look great, smell great, and just generally invite an attractive sense of ownership. You want people to want to buy the property — the same principle applies when you sell a car. You want to make your vehicle seem irresistible. The car should be spotless, gleaming with a tidy interior. The idea is to get people imagining themselves owning your car. 

Create that fantasy, and you’ll have a much more enticing selling platform. If you attempt to sell a car to somebody who could easily walk away without feeling as though they’ve missed out, your chances of securing the best price are low. If you make it so the person has to have the car, then you can negotiate a better price. 

Pre-sale Service 

Car maintenance can be a minor or major cost — it's the not knowing that really concerns people. If the car you are trying to sell is due a service, your buyers will be worried about what might come up.

If the car comes through with a clean bill of health, it’s all good. But what if the timing belt needs replacing, or there is a fault with the electrics? It can mount costs and your buyers don’t want to deal with that. They’ll walk away from a sale or push for a much lower price.

By servicing the car before selling, you give buyers peace of mind that they don’t have to worry about maintenance for a while. Even if you increase the cost of the car by the price of the maintenance costs, you’ll likely see greater interest than if you leave it for the new owner. Fear of the unknown is a powerful thing, and can really harm the value of your car. Take that away, and selling for a good price becomes a lot easier. 

Carry out Bodywork Repairs

As with pre-sale servicing, you’ll find if there are bodywork problems, people will attempt to haggle down the price. The argument will be that they’ll need to repair them. Fair enough. However, what you’ll find is they’ll attempt to knock-off the maximum cost of the repair if taken to a premium garage or dealer. 

But this may not be necessary. 

You might be able to find cheaper offers from body repair shops or even freelance repair specialists. There may even be the opportunity to carry out minor touch-ups yourself using colour-matched car paint kits. It is likely you can do repairs for a lower cost than the buyer is trying to negotiate off the asking price of the car. So, if you complete repairs before you sell, the buyer can’t use them as an excuse to try and get a cheaper deal. 

Always Sell Privately When You Can

When you sell a car, you have three options:

1. Online car buyers
2. Part exchange
3. Private sales

If you’re looking to secure the highest value for your car, private is always going to bring in the best price. Conservative estimates suggest you’ll get around 15% more value out of your car by selling privately rather than part exchanging — and even more than a purchase website. 

Put off by selling a car privately? Don’t be. It’s very easy to manage. Online sales platforms like Auto Trader allow you to post a car advert for a small fee, including all info and images. Buyers get in touch, arrange a viewing and pay if they want the car. The popularity of the website means most all vehicles advertised will sell. 

This makes complete sense. Dealers and car purchase platforms are businesses with profit margins in mind. Private buyers are usually just after their next car, and since you are likely to sell for a lower price than a dealer yourself (as you don’t have overheads to cover), the situation becomes a win-win. 

Arrange Your Paperwork

Astute car buyers are aware that the devil is in the details. The paperwork of a car can reveal a lot about its value. The history of servicing and MOTs display the quality of the vehicle and how well it has been maintained. 

The better maintained the vehicle, and the more evidence you have to support that fact, the easier it is to secure a good price. Buyers are willing to pay extra for the security that comes with a well-maintained car. They see it as an investment — by saving themselves repair costs later on.