Preparing your car for sale
Upsizing or downsizing? Moving country? Whatever the reason for selling, you want to make sure you get a good deal. Preparation is key for this. You need to make sure it looks its best for prospective buyers. Here are some tips to do just that.
Make it look new
Or as new as possible. Cleaning your car is the first step towards making it look as good as possible. In some cases, a well cleaned-car can add up to a €1000 to the valuation. Depending on your budget, you may opt for a professional to clean your it for the best results. This type of service usually costs between €50 to €150 in Dublin and most other areas in Ireland. Just make sure you go somewhere with a good history of quality car valeting. Again, depending on your budget, it might make more sense to clean the car yourself. Read on for more on that.
Clean the interior
Nobody likes a messy car. You may think that empty water bottle is no big thing but it’s a huge turn off for a potential buyer. A clean interior will improve the car’s overall look and feel when the buyer sits in.
So clear out everything and give the carpet and seats a good hoovering. Even buy some nice clean mats and seat covers if necessary. Make sure to dust and polish the dash and the rest of the interior surfaces. Don’t forget to clean the windows from the inside as this is something often neglected. Finally, get a nice smelling air freshener, especially if you smoke. Doing all of these things will help you raise the cash for your car.
Check the electrics
It’s important that you check all of the electrics in your car. Even if you’re not going to fix any problems, make sure to take note of faults and report them to your potential buyers. This will make them feel like the car is properly taken care of and maintained – plus, honesty is the best policy when it comes to building trust.
Check all of the lighting, windows, car wipers, mirrors, air conditioning, the battery, USB and AUX sockets. Also check the car’s fuses, bulbs, and radio aerial, these are often cheap items worth repairing.
Check the mechanicals
Look out for any warning lights on the dashboard. If the water, oil, or washer fluid is low, fill them up. If there are any more warning lights signalling a problem with the car, you should bring it to a mechanic. You’ll have to evaluate the cost of repairs and what value they will add to the car. And make up your mind if they are worth doing.
When inspecting your car, you need to treat it like it’s going for an NCT. If it’s due for an NCT, you should consider getting a new one as this is a hugely attractive feature when it comes to selling.
Organise your paperwork
Make sure you keep all service history reports, any work carried out, car manual, NCT reports, and the vehicle’s registration certificate. Being able to present all of this paperwork to your prospective buyers will increase their trust and confidence in buying from you.
Value the car
You’ll want to get the right valuation for your car. Most importantly, the price needs to be competitive. You can refer to a few resources online such as adverts.ie, buy and sell pages, and other car selling sites. These will give you a good idea of what your car is worth.
You could also take it to a dealer to see what price they would give for it. But keep in mind, they will always give you the lowest price as they need to make a profit for it themselves. Another option is cash for cars websites like ourselves here at Used Car Buyer.
Sound too much like hard work?
Take the hassle out of selling your car
It takes a lot of time to do all of these things when getting your car ready to sell. Then comes the hard part – selling your car. This often involves a lot of calls, arranging meetings, no shows, as well as avoiding scam buyers.
You can take the hassle out of selling your used car by getting in touch with us. We offer fast cash for cars in Dublin, and nationwide.
Get a quote to see how much we’ll pay for your car.