[ImJustAnotherOkie]

I always meet up at a wal mart parking lot. Take someone with you.

[Kickass Conservative]

If you don’t want the hassle, take it to Carmax.

Look around and see what comparable Cars are selling for before you get in to be sure they aren’t lowballing you too much.

If Carmax is close in price, take it. You have a week to think about it so there’s no pressure to take their offer.

I sold one Car to them already. Took about an Hour and I walked out with a Check. They met the bottom end of what I wanted and I was happy with the deal.

I actually regretted not taking their Offer on another Car, my Corvette. I thought it was a bit low, but after the hassle I had selling the Car, the $2,000 more I got for it Private Party really wasn’t worth the Heartburn. Just my experience.

On the other side, People love Honda’s, so it might go fast.

[Enlightened1]

1)  Got to www.kbb.com to find out what your car is worth.

2)  Clean your car.

3)  Park your car or post it on Craig's list, lock it, in a location where people can see it with a for sale sign and a number they can call.

4)  Sale your car "AS IS" that way you will not be legally liable for anything that is wrong with it after the buyer has purchased it.

5)  Be sure to get the buyer to sign a receipt (indicating the sale "AS IS) for both you and him.  This tells the buyer is fully rsponsible for the car and frees you up.

6)   Finally give the buyer the Title to the car.


**NOTE**

A)  If you sale it on Craig's List.  Then you may want to meet the buyer in a public area that is safe with lots of people.

B)  Be sure to say you prefer cash.  However, if you get a money order or check.  Then clear it with your bank first.  

C)  If you have trouble selling your car, then drop the price 10% of what it's worth.  It should move it fast.

[neefer]

what do you look for when you shop for used cars
I'm looking for a sucker who has already taken a big hit on the depreciation. For example: we just financed a 2013 fully loaded Ford Escape for $17,000 less than sticker price. Some fool put $10,000 down payment on a lease, paid two years of the three, then listed it on SwapALease.com to get rid of it fast because his wife was pregnant. We paid for the last year of the lease with the intention of owning. It took several weeks of searching the website to find the right car but eventually paid off.

I know it is important to have the car clean, but how clean is clean enough?
My dad was an auto body man who paid for private schooling by purchasing salvaged titles (cars the insurance company couldn't afford to fix), salvaged parts, fixed and resold them with a clear title. Since it was my schooling he was paying for, I had to spend hours detailing cars with professional quality products until they looked like showroom. Dad got a high price as a result. How clean it has to be depends on how much money you want to get out of it and how much time you have to clean it.

[PAR35]

Two fairly non-responsive answers -

If you go Craigslist, meet potential purchasers in the police department parking lot.

As for cleaning - depends on how old the car is. If it’s 2 or 3 years old, a deep cleaning might be good. If it’s 10 years old, and the engine was clean, I’d wonder what leaks were being hidden - I’d expect a certain amount of grime.

[Safetgiver]

Clean it up yourself. Wash, wax, Armorall everything you can and the other repairs are a bargaining chip. Asking (eg) $2500? You know it needs brakes? They offer you $2000, you drop to the price of the repairs ($2200). If you know ALL the repairs will cost $1000 drop the price you are asking $850, and tell them what it needs. DO NOT say $2500 and they offer $2000 and repairs are only $89.00.

[Lizavetta]

I Craigslisted my car at 4 pm and sold it at 7 pm on the same day. I represented my car exactly as it was, warts and all, did not bargain because it was a fair price and got cash on the spot.

[Dr. Sivana]

I have spent my entire adult life buying private cars, and selling them (when I it isn't ready for the junk yard). I am going to answer your questions in some cases with more questions.

(1) Is it better to go with a craigslist ad, or to use one of the paid auto listing services like Autotrader or Cars.com?
Craigslist in a heartbeat. People expect dealers on cars.com. I never even look at them except to get a high ballpark of price. People buying from a private seller are looking for a bargain or a hard to find car.

(2) Where do you look, and what do you look for when you shop for used cars?
I normally purchase well used cars. I have never spent more than $2,650 for a car, and that high water mark was $2,100 as of a month ago. I look for THOROUGH information. ANYbody who says there is no problem with the car, including what I call nuisances, is at best mistaken. When I sell, I have a "Good", "Bad" and Ugly" section included. Typical good: "Solid engine and drive train, low miles", Typical bad "Needs front end work", Typical ugly "Security system has its own imagination".

I am willing to travel for the car I want (when I lived in IL/WI, I would go and buy cars unseen in FL, TN and TX.) Acting like you WANT to sell the car, instead of treating the buyer like a nuisance is good advice to heed. That means being available to show the car, and answering e-mail. If you have contact preferences, make them clear, an understand the buyer's.In may case, I do not have texting, and WILL NOT TEXT. Sellers who want to open up exclusively with texting will never hear from me. Also, anyone who won't state the actual mileage up front on a free Craigslist ad is obviously embarrassed about it, and will not get a call from me.

(3) Is it better to spend some money for minor repairs, or just sell it in its current condition? (It’s about due for new brake pads, and has some small dents.)

That depends on the age of the car and the target demographic. If the car is older, I would put in and as is price and offer to fix it for an added amount. If the car test drives well and the dents are visible, just let the buyer discuss. If you have a REAL safety issue (being "due" is not a safety issue), then address it. A car wash and vacuum is recommended, if needed.

(4) How important is having the vehicle maintenance history available? (I hadn’t ever planned to sell it, so I didn’t keep good records, even though I have had regular oil changes and recommended maintenance done).

It's a nice to have, but not a deal breaker. One owner is ideal. Older owner is also good. Being actually owner is VERY good (a lot of part time "flippers" on craigslist). Answer ALL questions truthfully, volunteering any defects, but sell car as is.

(5) How do you all handle meetups with potential buyers and test drives?
That depends on where you live and what kind of car you sell. As a seller, unless I wore Rolexes and had case dripping from my shirt pocket, I wouldn't worry. Arrange daytime visits, and a woman should never receive alone. The address is going to be on the title, so don't worry about privacy. The buyer has more reason to fear than the seller except in large cities. CASH ONLY. Be ready with your state's bill of sale, know if your buyer needs a Notary signing the Title on your signature, make clear the car is being sold "AS IS". There is rarely a reason to go inside the house, so you can keep it locked if you like.

(6) I know it is important to have the car clean, but how clean is clean enough? Do I need to go whole hog with stuff like a wipe down of the engine compartment and armor-all on the door seals, etc., or is a good wash and wax, with a vacuum and scrub of the interior sufficient?

People always look at the car engine, but few really know what they are looking for. Good enough is good enough.

[Dr. Sivana]

Oh, one last thing: DON’T put statements in your ad stating that it is below “Kelly Blue Book”, which is not really pertinent to a private car sale. Edmund’s Private Party is more accurate. If your car is common/popular, look at other ads on craigslist, knowing that many don’t get asking price and some don’t sell at all.

[Malsua]

You should try to sell the car on a Honda forum first then list it on Craigslist.

It should be clean and get any gadgets out of it.

Meet any buyers at your local PD.

Remember, if you trade it in, that value comes off a new car so you save on taxes. So If you got a 10k trade, you’ll save $575.00 off the new car in Ohio sales taxes. You need to add that into your calculation. $10,500 to a private party means you’d lose $75 over a 10k trade in. Not to mention less hassle.

If you want to get a good idea what a dealer, carmax or one of those other wholesale purchasers will pay, you can check Galves.com and buy a 3 day subscription for $10.

I wouldn’t fix anything that isn’t noticeably broken. Use a rag and wipe any oil off the fill area of the engine, but don’t go nuts as no one expects an older Accord to have a clean engine after 150k miles.

I’ve sold cars on craigslist and you will get lowball offers, sight unseen. Most of these are scams or people trying to get it on the cheap.

Take GOOD pictures. Use a DSLR, not your phone. Borrow one if you have to. Get pictures from every angle and the interior. Take pictures in the sunlight, not in the shade or at dusk or in a garage. Once you have the pictures, punch them up a little in photoshop or some other utility and crop to the vehicle. If you can, use a “fast” lens(like F1.8 or f2.8) so there is a very thin focus on the images. It helps to make the car look desirable. I think craigslist allows you to post 10 pictures.

Be patient if you can.

[topfile]

You didn’t describe the car....but...generally...detail it with goal of making it look like showroom condition. Remove all personalization you’ve done..sticker ..etc . Degrease and Clean engine bay, all door jams. Detail with TuffStuff, hot water, old cloth, and a toothbrush...takes about three hours. Don’t armourall the interior. Replace or remove mats. Afterwards determine price and look up “bracketing” in negotiations.
Assess both the good and the bad of the car and convey all to the buyer, even if they doesn’t ask. Download odometer statement, bill of sale, and price verification docs from your DMV. Do it even if the title, which I assume you have, fufills these requirements. Only advertize in newspaper if your target buyer is pc illiterate...which is okay btw. Ask top dollar.

[Kommodor]

I’d recommend you hide your fangz und loose your aksent fust, then maybe ask Momma Gkika to fence it for you.

[lafroste]

I bought a used car for my son off of CL last fall. When looking we found a lot of people trying to sell week old hamburger at prime rib prices. So first, list the car fairly. High end of fair is OK if you know beforehand that you can come down some on the price to close the deal. Clean, not necessary it be spotless. Serious mechanical flaws will depress the price greatly. However, fixing them probably isn't worth it either.

Make sure all the fluids are clean and topped off. If something doesn't work, don't lie about it.

Finally CL is probably fine (unless it is very valuable or classic car). But beware of scammers. Usual scam is the out of town check for more than the asking price (for shipping don't you know). If you want to play with them, deposit the check anyway then wait 30 days for it to clear all banks. That usually puts their panties in a wad.

[IamConservative]

My son and I flip cars on Craigslist. When we get one, we don’t do any repairs that aren’t absolutely required and we don’t do that often, we just don’t buy the cars that need expensive parts. What we do invest time in is a good detailing inside, clean the engine and replace fluids. If the paint is good, clay bar and polish the finish and then encourage buyers to feel how good the paint is. Buyers will like a clean car with clean fluids. We use Simple Green to degrease and clean under the hood.

Hondas and Toyotas are both easy sales.

[CodeToad]

I just did AutoTrader and their $289 premium service. It was worth the price even though I didn’t sell and traded the car in this past weekend. (Dealer gave nearly the same asking so why not.)

I found AutoTrader did a good job of creating the ad and the wording and also prominently displayed the vehicle’s ad all over the place. The car didn’t sell quickly because it was a specialty type of car so demand would have been weak, and I ran the ad only for two weeks before I traded the car into the dealer.

[tumblindice]

Have the buyer sign and date a statement where he acknowledges that he is buying the vehicle in `As Is’ condition, that he has been given an opportunity to have it inspected by his own mechanic and that you as seller have made no representations to him about the condition of the car.

[Georgia Girl 2]

I sold my Mercedes on Autotrader. I had it detailed professionally and then put in the ad. I had no trouble selling it for a good price. But Craigslist is like a good place also.

[JimRed]

Pretend you’ve never seen your car before, but it meets your needs and price range. Look it over carefully and note anything about it that would put you off. Correct those deficiencies. IOW, would YOU buy it?

[Chickensoup]

I meet at my credit union parking lot. I take license while they test drive, I cc. We then fill in paper work in Credit union lobby and usually my credit union rep helps. Then I deposit the cash they have brought with them. All on camera, done in a nice neighborhood with lots of cameras. And a dry place inside.