So the other half is looking at selling her 08 Mazda 2 (44,000 km's) privately. Just wondering if anyone has experience selling their car on sites like Carsales.com.au and if there are some protips that can be passed on in regards to selling or just a lookout for dodgy bastards.

cut some wires, make it rusty. I hear people like cheap unsave s***boxes with no electrics or brakes.

for low low prices, sure!

-DO NOT let someone else take your car for a test drive, if they crash your insurance wont cover this 90% of the time, if they would like a test drive take them for a drive. This also hepls stop you from possibly getting a speeding fine in the mail.

Depends who's buying it and where you live. If it's a high density city area maybe but if you're out in the sticks I don't see an issue. Unless the test driver is some kind of nutter, it should be safe to let them go up the road and back.

I want protips on buying a cheap s*** box (but mechanically useable) car cheap.

Look for old cars owned by grannies who don't drive them and keep them in the garage.

The only experience with selling cars I've had, we put an ad in the local paper and the cars were gone within a couple of days. One car was gone before the paper was even out (paper delivery guy bought it, lol). Other one I put on gumtree.

You'll get tyre kickers, people who want to only give you half the money, people who nit pick over the entire car to try to find an issue in order to knock you down. Feel free to tell such people to piss off (unless you really need the money). Don't be scared to say no. I guess use common sense too, don't accept a deposit and let them drive off telling you they'll get the money by the end of the week, etc. If someone gives you a deposit write up a contract saying they pay the money by whatever date or deposit gets lost and car is back up for sale. Nothing worse than getting a deposit and the guy just drops off the planet with you not knowing whether you should wait or just keep his money and put it back up for sale.

quick semi related fact: you can go to jail in the UK and Germany for driving a car where you are not on the insurance.

I agree with rdizz's first two points, not the second two.

Clean the car as much as you can. I'm talking windexing the speedo glass, vacuuming the electric window switches etc.
Yes get a roadworthy. Make sure you have the current registration certificate
Let them test drive it for as long as they like, don't be a prick.
If they decide to buy it, don't worry about a receipt, if you've got the signed and completed transfer of registration and a fistful of fiddys, it's time to party.
Other than that it's a fairly simple process. You have a roadworthy and registered car, you have a current rego cert and a rego transfer form, they have cash, done. It really is that easy.

yeah, there's heaps of people around who just want to shake your can

remember, money talks, bulls*** walks. You don't give a damn what someone thinks or someone says, you're after just one thing, a fistful of dollars.

Not to mention the driver can even sue you claiming that your car had a problem that made them crash. Then prepare for legal fees, medical costs, repair costs etc.

Don't let them f*****g drive the car, its that simple. To much risk. Don't be a typical she will be right Australian because that is what can be your undoing.

rdizz, my aami policy booklet here tells me that you are not covered if you car is being demonstrated for sale, EXCEPT if a person on the policy is a passenger.

well if its in the policy then that is no problem. Check your insurance first.

I find that I've had great success just sticking the car on the side of the road with a price and RWC + REGO stuck to the windscreen sunshade

There's a whole swag of people who don't use the internet, still, in 2013.

Not to mention the driver can even sue you claiming that your car had a problem that made them crash. Then prepare for legal fees, medical costs, repair costs etc.

Don't let them f*****g drive the car, its that simple. To much risk. Don't be a typical she will be right Australian because that is what can be your undoing.

I think you need these.
http://qgl.org/tissue/kleenex.jpg

also, do a little real price matching, most people over value their car,

That's because you'll always get wankers who want to knock you down. That's why I put more on things than what I want, so joe haggler can haggle and feel good about himself, and I end up getting exactly what I really want (and if no one haggles then I end up with more tee hee)

Real Pro Tip: Negotiation.


First of all - when you get the question: "What is your lowest price?". Try not answer - the moment you say a price , that is the new ceiling and its going down from there. Instead counter with"

"What kind of price are you thinking about"?

or if you must say a price "I currently have an offer for X , but I haven’t committed to him and I feel it is a bit low"

This now means you can push up slightly - however, your max ceiling is the advertised price (so when you advertise. go higher), it is your job to get as close to that as possible. Dont be rushed to sell - the more patient the higher the price you can get, but its a juggling act. You can always hold out until you get the advertised price, the only downside is that people buy with emotion and justify with logic. If emotionally the person does not feel he is getting a steal on the price, the sale will be more difficult and the car will take a long time to sell.

Any feature's - make sure you link them to both a logical and emotional reason why the buyer would want them - it has to be their wants (they will ask questions around things of interest to them). I.e. - (the client asks): tell me about the sound system? (your response) The sound system is Kick ass - with masses of Phatt Bass - and what this means to you is: (logical) with 1 sub, 1 amp , tweeters and 6x9's your music sounds as though you are at a concert, - but what that really means is (emotional) you can blast the s*** out of your neighbours and they will be jealous ... (link to client) so can I ask- what kind of music do you love?

(If you dont mind being dodgy - and im not saying you should do this.) Coloured wax can hide small scratches in paint - and also makes the paint look perfect for photos. Detail the crap out of the car before photos - get a friend with DSLR (and some skills) to make your car looks awesome in both photos and when the buyer comes to see the vehicle. When people call to ask about the car, ask them: "what are they looking for in the mazda?" "what made them interested in your advert?" - this gives you something to focus on when they come and see it.

Make the sale about the buyer (ignore your needs / wants completely) , understand the clients most important values in the car and you have more chance to maximise your sale price - As when the client says "cheaper please" you can just point out all the features of VALUE the client likes in the car when citing why your price is what it is.

Good luck ;)

Never reply to texts or emails written in dodgy english. They're the scammers.

Real interested buyers will ring for a chat and some Q&A.

who buys a car if they cant test drive it bozo, most car inurance policies allow people to drive the car once off, provided they aren't regular users and the policy holder is in the car. The only circumstance i have known this not to be the case is if the car is turbo charged/V8 and the non-policy holder is under 25. It is usually still covered however the excess is atronomical.

Here's what I do:

- Remove all personal s*** from the car before taking the photos. Don't leave trinkit crap hanging from your mirror or baby seats in the back... remove that crap if someone comes to see it as well

- Take photos in a empty underground carpark like a shopping centre late at night. IMO if you can't be stuffed to even take your car out of the garage or to clean it to take a photo, you prolly haven't been stuffed to maintain the car properly either. Don't park it next to a rubbish bin/s*** old car/your project car/on un-mown lawn infront of your house with ya neighbor looking at it in the background.

- Take a photo of the logbooks neatly laid out with the keys next to it. This symbolizes the car as a package that is just get in-drive way.

- In the comments, list all the good points about the car but keep it factual, don't add emotion to it. Don't quote s*** from Jeremy Clarkson or stuff from the car brochure. Keep the features in a list format, not a massive ass paragraph. Check and double check your gramma. If you have fitted things like top of the range tyres then list that as it shows you're not a tightass that couldn't afford to maintain it properly. If it isn't under finance list that too.

- When the person comes to look at it just point out some of the features, especially if they are not standard, then point out the flaws. If you have scratches or marks on the upholstery show them. They'll see them anyway and this shows that your honest and not hiding anything. If you're not a salesman don't try to be one... just show them its a neat package and there are no loose ends or hidden traps.

- Be honest about your reason for selling... its a small world. I sold a car and when sorting out the deposit we realized our partners worked together. If I'd told some rubbish story I would've looked like a real mug.

I've sold three cars like this, all of which were higher k's and higher price than a lot of the others on the market, and in my opinion because it was because of the reasons listed above.

if it helps, just seen a flyer for an 07 mazda 2, 50000km, $10K

looked clean

Going to wreck my 97 SS Commodore, that is f*****g up again. Anyone know of a good service that will pick it up from my house and give me a couple of hundred < $1000 for it?

Heaps in the yellow pages, just ring a heap till you get a good price, when the truckie lowballs you say I was quoted on the phone.

Put an odd price on it, ex sold an older car, wanted 1800 for it, but put the asking price as 2150. guy turned up and said I have 2k clean and deal was done.
edit: Actually that has happened a couple of times.

A 'statutory warranty' applies only to vehicles bought from a licensed motor vehicle dealer. I assume you aren't a licensed motor vehicle dealer.

Yeah I downloaded some similar receipt of sale from the net, looks pretty good. Just wanted to make sure he cant come back and demand a refund or say I misled him.

Yeah I downloaded some similar receipt of sale from the net, looks pretty good. Just wanted to make sure he cant come back and demand a refund or say I misled him.

Obviously he's seen the car running and is happy with the condition of it or knows it's a s***box and wants a project car. He may even not care about the car and just want the engine for another car he owns. You don't know what he's going to do with it so don't worry. Just get him to sign the bit of paper saying he's seen the car (might be important if he claims he never saw it and that you told him it's in A1 condition) and is happy to accept it in its current state.