Five tips that will help you sell your car

Don’t get bogged down with all the minutiae of selling a car.

There’s a bit to do once you’ve made the decision to sell off your current vehicle... but you don’t have to do it all at once. Here are five simple steps to keep you on track for a fast, fuss-free sale.

It’s important for some sellers that they’ll sell the car for enough money to repay the balance of any finance owing.

In a scenario like this, it’s best you know in advance that you may need to repay the balance owing out of your own savings or from the sale of some other asset.

Even if there’s no finance involved it can be disheartening to place the car on the market, go through the process of selling it, all the while patting yourself on the back for such a quick sale – only to find that the car was worth more than you received for it. This is particularly true if perhaps you’ve sunk some money into the car, adding accessories, having it resprayed or upgrading wheels and tyres.

Make sure you’ve checked the value of your car against the asking price of similar cars listed for sale online. You may have a trusted advisor in the wings, but it’s not rude to sanity check others’ estimates of what the car is worth.

And don’t forget costs associated with registration, servicing and obtaining a roadworthy certificate (see below). If the car's registration falls due soon, renewing the registration prior to the sale will make it more appealing to a prospective buyer, but should also be factored into the asking price.

Otherwise, accept that the car will likely sell at a lower price if the first thing the buyer must do is pay 12 months of registration.

Have the car serviced if it's scheduled for around the time you're planning to sell. Again, however, try to include the cost of the service in the asking price.

Assuming that the vehicle you’re selling is mechanically sound and at least reasonably presentable, the first port of call should be the nearest convenient service station or independent workshop to arrange a roadworthy certificate. You may be surprised at how much work is required for the car to pass the test. And with the labour and parts comes expense. This should be factored into your asking price (see above).

If the car is older and a little dog-eared, the cost of a roadworthy may be more than the value of the car. At that point, you can choose to sell the car without a roadworthy certificate – possibly unregistered, ‘for parts’ – or you may shop it around the wrecking yards to see what they’ll offer you for the car.

Once you have your roadworthy, cleaning the car for sale is the next step – when it comes to cars, first impressions definitely count.

If cleaning cars isn’t your schtick, this may mean slinging some money the way of a detailer, or bribing the neighbourhood kids to do the grunt work – the cleaning and polishing, vacuuming the interior and steam-cleaning the engine bay.

Not only should the car be washed properly, but you should also ensure you do things such as removing leaves out of the scuttle ahead of the windscreen or the nooks between the boot lid and the rear quarter panels.

Use a chemical solution to remove any tar build-up along the lower flanks of the vehicle; spray-on tyre shine will bring up the tyres just right.

Do the alloy wheels need a clean? Dedicated alloy-wheel cleaning products are easy to use.

Inside, dust/vacuum/wipe down the seats and upholstery. Get rid of any food or drink stains or spills. A fabric stain remover from an aftermarket automotive accessory store can be useful for this purpose.

Don't forget to clean the dash top, parcel shelf, centre console and centre fascia (where climate control and infotainment equipment are located, paying particularly attention to finger prints on touch screens).

An aftermarket vinyl cleaning solution is recommended for the squeaky-clean look and feel of plastics and hard surfaces.

Shift the front seats back and forward to vacuum underneath; clear out anything that has fallen to the floor and rolled under the seats (those objects being coins, old pens, the chocolate bar wrappers left under the seats by the kids).

Clean the windows, windscreen and mirrors, and wipe off with a material that won’t leave streaks – old bunched-up newspapers are good for this.

Wipe out cupholders and bottle holders. Empty ashtrays, remove everything except the owners manual, service booklet and receipts from the glovebox.

Same for the boot – and why not wipe down the spare wheel and tools while you’re at it?

Leave absolutely nothing unwiped, undusted, unvacuumed, unloved.

Your car is the star here. It’s vital that potential buyers fall in love with it from reviewing online images, otherwise fewer buyers will get in touch.

So, take a lot of photos. If you don't know how to use a camera or a smartphone ask a friendly ‘selfie’ expert for help.

A list of the basic photos you should includes is as follows:
• front 3/4
• rear 3/4
• side profile
• full front
• full back
• interior (front seats and dashboard/centre fascia, plus rear seats)
• engine
• boot

Additional detail shots will help too. These include things like the alloy wheels, badgework, headlights/tail lights, front fog lights or air vents, grille and the like.

Find a background that is attractive but doesn't distract from the car as the subject of the photo.

For example don't park the car in a loading bay with cyclone-wire fencing, long grass and a dumpster visible behind it. At the other extreme, don’t photograph the car in a location where the car’s aesthetic qualities are overwhelmed by the beautiful springtime forest and lake vista in the background.

And here’s another tip re backgrounds: a slightly darker background for a light-coloured car works well, as does a slightly lighter background for a dark car. The closer in contrast the background and the subject are, the better the outcome. Cameras and smartphones don’t always cope well with high contrast and you could end up with a light-coloured car that’s burned out – showing no detail in the bodywork – or a dark-coloured car that’s all shadow, no highlight.

Photograph the car early in the morning or later in the afternoon when the sun is not high in the sky. Or, wait for cloud to block the sunlight so the car isn't a mix of shadows and glare.

Don’t shy away from revealing panel damage or worn upholstery if that neutralises any bargaining grenades the buyer might throw at you after inspecting the car. A buyer can’t complain about the condition of a car if that’s fully documented in the ad...

If you or someone you know well can present a 30-second video (recorded using a smartphone if nothing else is available), that will tell the buyer more about the car.

For the comment section of the advertisement, channel your inner copy writer to pen words that describe the car fully. Have those words checked by someone who knows how to throw a sentence together if you're uncertain about your own ability. Go with strong wording at the start. Get to the point.

Highlight and accentuate the car's positive aspects so that the ad leaps out at the prospective buyer.

If the car has unrepaired panel damage or there's some other bad news, admit that in the text, but not before you've already mentioned all the car's strong points. If the car has a high-kilometre reading on the odometer, acknowledge that, but also state that the car has been a carefully maintained country car – if that's true – and has spent much of its time on the open road.

Think about what YOU have always liked about the car. The buyer will probably be attracted to your car by the same things you like about it.

Use humour sparingly and appropriately. Even self-deprecating humour can work against you on occasion.

You could use melancholy if that will work. A memorable ad from years ago was written by the man selling his dog’s Daihatsu Charade, for the reason that the dog had passed on and no longer needed it. It was a sad ad, but memorable – even years later.

Letting someone take your vehicle out for a test drive boils down to trust. You need to be clear-eyed about this and make a sensible assessment of the situation.

Does a young bloke on his probationary licence want to take your WRX for a spin? The answer to that would be a polite but firm ‘no’. Someone like this would not be legally permitted to drive a car like that, so they won’t buy it from you anyway. They just want to go for a burn at no expense to themselves.

You should be equally careful of other prospective buyers; are they a bit doddery? Do they seem suspicious? Don’t just hand over the keys if the car is worth anything to you.

The buyer – assuming he or she passes that first test – is reasonably entitled to test your vehicle without you sitting in the car with them and offering back-seat driving tips or glaring every time they rev the engine beyond 4500rpm. But you need to look after your interests too.

Asking for and holding on to someone’s driver licence is a reasonable request. Note the address details on the licence for further reference, if needed. Take a moment to check that the licence is valid and the pictures match – it’s the simple things...

If a buyer and his or her expert mate want to take your car for a drive, they should be happy to leave something of value with you to ensure they don’t abscond. The item of value could be the keys to the car that brought them to your location.

Selling your car is a business transaction, not a fight to the death. You don’t have to go all ‘Glengarry Glen Ross’ to make the sale. It’s a good idea, however, to understand what the buyer’s expectations might be, as a starting point.

Be friendly when you welcome the buyer to your home or wherever the car is located for inspection and hand-over. Talk the buyer through the car, pointing out all the car has to offer, and also pointing out any blemishes – such as stone chips – that might be missed by the buyer. They will appreciate your honesty.

If the buyer asks why you're selling the car, it's good to have thought through your answer.

The buyer will almost certainly try to haggle you down on the price. Don't take it personally, that's the culture in which we live. Be flexible if you feel you have a serious buyer on the hook, but don't give up too much ground.

If the buyer tells you he or she has seen other examples of your model of car going for lower prices or fitted with more equipment, don't cave into that pressure. After all, they're negotiating with YOU, not the owners of the other cars.

Be polite, and don't try to second-guess the buyer, his or her agenda, and the existence or otherwise of vehicles that might present better value. Tell them something that you're comfortable saying, such as: "Look, I think the car's priced right; did you want to have a think about it and get back to me?"

Alternatively, if you are a bit desperate to offload the car, go straight to negotiating mode: tell the buyer that you are 'firm' at X dollars, because that's what you need for a deposit on a new home, or the cost of a ticket to Europe to see Nanna, or pay out the loan on the car, or for whatever reason you need the money from the proceeds of the sale.

Stay calm and friendly, but be resolute if that’s what’s required. If the buyer's offer doesn't suit, say so, but do it politely. The buyer may come back to you with a counter-offer or ask you for the lowest price you would be prepared to let the car go. Have that number already worked out in your mind before meeting the buyer. Don't go below it.

As a final word, stay sane when selling your car. If the buyer isn’t offering you what you want, you’re always free to walk away... or if it’s your home, send them on THEIR way.

Checklist for selling without the disappointment:
• Do your research first,
• Settle on an asking price that’s appealing to buyers, but won’t leave you out of pocket,
• Arrange the roadworthy certificate as a matter of priority,
• Have the car detailed by a professional if you don’t have the time yourself,
• Remove anything unnecessary from the boot and the cabin,
• Take care photographing the car to an expert standard – or ask someone to do it for you,
• Produce a 30-second video for extra pizazz,
• Factor in the money you’ve spent to this point to decide the transaction price – the lowest figure you’ll accept to make the sale,
• Word the ad carefully for optimal impact,
• Be easily contactable at all times,
• Arrange for the car to be inspected at a location that’s convenient and safe for buyers,
• Don’t just hand over the keys to anyone wanting a test drive,
• Ensure that the test driver will bring the car back by holding their licence or keys to their car,
• Negotiate in good faith and in a pleasant demeanour,
• Say no to an offer that is untenable, but be flexible if the offer is close to what you want.
• Check carsales Help Centre pages for details of common scams