How to Raise the Value of Your Car in Seven Easy Steps
Depreciation is a sad fact of life for car owners, but with seven simple steps you can still get more for your car when you sell it.
Even when you drive that shiny new car off the lot, its market value can drop by as much as 20%. After five years, most cars are only worth 65% of their original purchase price.
The value of your car depends on a number of factors, including:
- Its age
- Its location
- The demand for the make and model
- Its mileage
- Its overall exterior and interior condition
- Its modifications
- The parts that have been replaced
- And even things as simple as the smell inside the vehicle
While you may not be able to control some of these factors, there are many other ways you can increase your car's resale value and get the most for your engine.
To do this, you need to go against nature and start ignoring the voices in your head that tell you to stop spending time or money on something you want to sell.
Go against nature
Your natural instinct may be telling you not to do anything to your car before you put it up for sale. After all, you will not benefit from any improvements you make now.It is indeed the case that major expenditures are not profitable, but there are a number of things you can do to sell your car for more money than you spent on it. Plus, they will help you sell your car quickly - and its value goes down with every month it stays in your hands.
Even something as simple as a cleaning can increase the value of your car by a surprising amount. A recent report from Daily Telegraph estimated that if you spend no more than £30 on cleaning products and take an afternoon to work on it, you can easily increase the value of your car by at least £200. Investing a little more - £135 on average - and hiring a professional cleaner can add up to £1,000 to the cost of your car.
Ignore your natural instincts and invest a little time and money in your car before you sell it, and you'll see your investment pay off. Cars that look like they have been loved inspire confidence - and people will pay a lot more for a car they can trust.
So here are the seven simple steps to ensure you get the best deal when selling your car.
1/ Sell privately
Fast money almost always means less money. So try to stay away from websites that promise to buy any car, and dealers who offer tempting trade-in deals.Cash in: on the car lot.
Admittedly, there's nothing more tempting than a trade-in: it's so convenient, and you are usually offered more than other dealers would have offered you in an outright sale.
However, all of this convenience comes at a price. You might get more for your car if you tradeit in than if you just sell it to a dealer, but you could get a lot more if you sell your car privately. The latest estimates we have seen suggest that trade-ins fetch on average 20% less than private sales - that's as much as a grand less for a car worth £5000.
However, all of this convenience comes at a price. You might get more for your car if you tradeit in than if you just sell it to a dealer, but you could get a lot more if you sell your car privately. The latest estimates we have seen suggest that trade-ins fetch on average 20% less than private sales - that's as much as a grand less for a car worth £5000.
Cash in: online
Another surefire way to get less for your car than you actually could is to use internet car buying and valuation sites with catchy slogans and the promise of instant cash. Sites like We Buy Any Car and We Want Any Car have gained popularity in recent years and offer an easy way to sell your car.Just like trade-ins, however, you have to pay for the amenities these services offer. They buy almost any car fast, but at a price that is well below average.
Glass's Guide - The most reputable name in the used car business allows you to cheque the current average value of your car's make and model, not including damage.
WhatCar - This vehicle valuation tool offers more wear-and-tear options, but its database is updated less frequently.
Going in trade-in: on your own
It's surprisingly easy to sell a car privately, and it gives you the best chance of getting the highest possible resale value.What's it worth?
First of all, you need to get a feel for the value of your car. You can easily value your car yourself by checking prices on used car valuation sites. These include:Glass's Guide - The most reputable name in the used car business allows you to cheque the current average value of your car's make and model, not including damage.
WhatCar - This vehicle valuation tool offers more wear-and-tear options, but its database is updated less frequently.
AutoTrader - To get a feel for average prices in your area, AutoTrader is invaluable because it's published on a regional level. This helps you qualify national estimates and gauge what people in your area are more willing to pay. AutoTrader also offers a premium vehicle valuation service based on data from CAP, allowing you to change the valuation depending on the damage.
Who would want to do that?
Once your car is appraised, you need to let people know it's for sale. Instead of shouting it from the rooftops, here are some proven methods to advertise your car and find buyers.AutoTrader - Be sure to opt for a package that includes internet advertising, as the web presence is much larger than the print circulation. A six week package will cost under £60, but there are cheaper options available.
Amazon - Amazon may not be as popular as AutoTrader for buying used cars, but that means less competition. You have greater control over changing your listing and can advertise your car from as little as £30.
Car Auctions - Traditional car auction sites can be found regularly across the country. They offer a great way to sell your car quickly, but with the risk that you never really know how many people will be interested in your car - and drive up the price - on the day.
Local adverts - Newspapers, local advertising magazines and local online advertising portals also offer opportunities to list your car for sale. Many of them also provide some form of web presence for your listing. If you are preparing your car for sale in Sussex, for example, you could use The Argus or the Friday Ad to advertise it.
Garage Sale - To complement these ways of selling your car, there is the old fashioned window display. If you can park in a high traffic area, more people will have the chance to see your notice.
Sell safely
There is no doubt that you can make the most of selling your car to a private individual, but as with all transactions with people you do not know, you should be careful. Here is some advice on what to do and what not to do.Never let anyone test drive the car without you being there.
If you are not meeting the buyer at your home, always meet in a public place during the day - supermarket car parks are a good choice.
If possible, bring a friend with you.
Make sure you know where the vehicle identification number is located on the body of the car.
Avoid checks and ask for cash or a bank draft. Or agree to a bank transfer, but do not hand over the car until you see that the money is in your account.
To transfer ownership of your car, you'll need to put the buyer's contact details in Section 6 of the car title deed. This is sometimes referred to as the V5C certificate. The buyer will need to sign the declaration in section 8. Next, complete the V5C/2 section and give it to the buyer before sending the rest of the logbook to the DVLA.
Take the tax disk out of the car window so you can apply to the DVLA for a car tax refund later.
Depending on the value of your car, you are between £1,000 and £3,000 better off now than you would have been with the trade-in, so book your luxury vacation and enjoy it!
2/ Keep it clean
As ridiculous as it may sound, Daily Telegraph recently found that cars that have been professionally cleaned are worth up to £1,000 more than cars that have not.
Photo by Mathieu Renier on Unsplash
Many buyers are guided by first impressions and interpret dirt on a car as a sign of an unkempt vehicle. Mud splashes on the side can very easily conjure up images of reckless driving and stand as a symbol of an inattentive owner. Even for the most logical of buyers, a dirty car means potential trouble - once the alarm bells start ringing, purses will be tightened.
Hand it over
Getting your car cleaned up for sale does not cost the earth, but it really helps you convince buyers that it's worth paying a higher price.For around £135, professional car cleaners can spruce up the interior and make the exterior shine, so you can get a good deal when you sell your car. Make sure your car cleaning and valet service includes detailing and waxing to keep your car looking fresh in photos and on the road.
Hands off
There's no reason not to do the work yourself if you have a little elbow grease, a free sunny afternoon, and some car cleaning supplies at your disposal. Roll up your sleeves and grab a bucket, because that's how you can increase your car's value by washing off the grime and polishing up the shine.
There are many guides to washing your car, so we will limit ourselves here to the basic things you can do to show off your car at its best.
Never use dishwashing liquid to clean your car - If you want to protect your car's paint, you need to use products that are designed exclusively for car washing.
Wash from the top down. - This will help you avoid spreading the dirt and scratching the paint with small dirt particles.
Wax and polish - To restore the shine to your car's paint and bring tired colours back to life, you need to wax and polish it. This will give your car that showroom look that really impresses buyers.
There are many guides to washing your car, so we will limit ourselves here to the basic things you can do to show off your car at its best.
Never use dishwashing liquid to clean your car - If you want to protect your car's paint, you need to use products that are designed exclusively for car washing.
Wash from the top down. - This will help you avoid spreading the dirt and scratching the paint with small dirt particles.
Wax and polish - To restore the shine to your car's paint and bring tired colours back to life, you need to wax and polish it. This will give your car that showroom look that really impresses buyers.
Clean it up - Pop the bonnet and get everything looking as good as new with an engine degreaser and cleaner. These citrus-based miracles work wonders and make your car appear to be one that has been thoroughly cared for. If you are tempted to use a pressure washer, set it on a low setting.
Do not forget about the interior. - Open the doors and start vacuuming. Hopefully, your floor mats have protected your carpets from the worst of the wear and tear: It's not a bad idea to replace mats when they are worn to maintain that all-important first impression.
A touch of glass. - Glass cleaner for your windows and windshields makes it clear that this is a well-maintained vehicle. If your windscreen is cracked, consider repairing it - the cost of this can be as little as £60, but your buyer will mentally deduct a lot more at the sight of the crack.
The finishing touch - It may be a little late to mention this, but there are many simple ways to protect your dashboard from the damaging effects of the sun's UV rays. You can find a number of protectants at your local car dealership that can extend the life of vinyl, rubber, leather, and plastics and prevent them from fading.
Do not worry, we will not leave you with a shiny car marred by scratched rims and worn tyres - we will take care of your tyres next.
3/ Do your tyres look worn?
Your tyres, rims, and hubcaps need at least a good old cleaning. If your tyres are down to a bare minimum of tread, though, you'll want to put a little more effort into them.Shiny wheels look like new, and you can quickly remove dirt and grime from your wheels and even breathe new life into faded tyres by rubbing them with a tyre shine product.
With the amount a buyer will deduct for worn tyres, it's a mistake to try to sell a car whose tyres look tired. Tyres are often used as an indicator of the care with which the rest of the car has been treated. Replacing a worn tyre is money well spent - and you can always swap it out with the spare.
As for the rims, unsightly scratches are probably not profitable to replace, but it can be cheap to replace flaking or dented hubcaps. It goes without saying that you should always have a missing hubcap replaced before listing your car for sale.
4/ Help your buyer see the light
Like the tyres, the headlights are often used by buyers as a guide to the condition of the rest of the car. If you spend a little time getting them in order, your buyers will spend a little more money.
Warning signs
Shoddy headlights and broken taillights will not help you convince a buyer that it's a beloved car.
There are many cheap, effective headlight cleaning products that can make your scratched and fogged plastic headlight covers bright and clear again. Cleaning is a breeze, but use the right product for the job. Before you reach for the household window cleaner to save a few cents, we can save you the trouble - it just will not do. You need a cleaner that is made for the job to get the results you want and your buyer expects to see.
Of course, if your car's lights are burned out, you should replace them. The damage to your car's value will be much greater than the cost of a small light bulb.
Broken lights are inexpensive to replace. A quick trip to your local dealership or salvage yard and a few turns with a Phillips screwdriver and you'll be back in business helping your car get a fair price.
There are many cheap, effective headlight cleaning products that can make your scratched and fogged plastic headlight covers bright and clear again. Cleaning is a breeze, but use the right product for the job. Before you reach for the household window cleaner to save a few cents, we can save you the trouble - it just will not do. You need a cleaner that is made for the job to get the results you want and your buyer expects to see.
Of course, if your car's lights are burned out, you should replace them. The damage to your car's value will be much greater than the cost of a small light bulb.
Broken lights are inexpensive to replace. A quick trip to your local dealership or salvage yard and a few turns with a Phillips screwdriver and you'll be back in business helping your car get a fair price.
Warning LightsSpeaking of lights:
There are some that you definitely do not want your buyer to see. These are the warning lights - or 'idiot lights' as they are sometimes called - that flash conspicuously on your car's dashboard when something is wrong.
Most of the time, they are just telling us that something as simple as refilling the windshield washer is needed. Be sure to get your car checked out and try to get rid of that annoying light. The last thing you want is for your buyer to see the warning lights when they take your car for a spin.
That's not to say you should not replace the important parts that help keep your car running efficiently and performing at peak performance - this should be a given while you own the car, and you should point out to the buyer what has been replaced. The price of your car will increase with mechanical and cosmetic upgrades - while it may not be worth doing these just for the sale, it is worth highlighting them during the sale. These new brakes are a potential cost savings for your buyer.
However, there are some things you are better off leaving off if you want to get the most money out of your sale. This goes for modifications and customizations, for example. Do not undertake these to increase the value of your car - they do the opposite. When you modify and customise a car, do it for yourself - for your own pleasure and enjoyment, not for your wallet. So-called aftermarket modifications decrease the value of a car. It's highly unlikely that an orange spoiler, an expensive stereo system, or state-of-the-art safety equipment will increase the final price of your car. Spoilers can ruin the price, safety equipment will cause the price to plummet, and your valuation of your audio upgrades may not have your buyer singing from the same hymn sheet.
Sometimes, less is more.
Most of the time, they are just telling us that something as simple as refilling the windshield washer is needed. Be sure to get your car checked out and try to get rid of that annoying light. The last thing you want is for your buyer to see the warning lights when they take your car for a spin.
5/ Do nothing
Your efforts to increase the value of your car could have the exact opposite effect if you are not careful. Some things are better if you leave them as they are.That's not to say you should not replace the important parts that help keep your car running efficiently and performing at peak performance - this should be a given while you own the car, and you should point out to the buyer what has been replaced. The price of your car will increase with mechanical and cosmetic upgrades - while it may not be worth doing these just for the sale, it is worth highlighting them during the sale. These new brakes are a potential cost savings for your buyer.
However, there are some things you are better off leaving off if you want to get the most money out of your sale. This goes for modifications and customizations, for example. Do not undertake these to increase the value of your car - they do the opposite. When you modify and customise a car, do it for yourself - for your own pleasure and enjoyment, not for your wallet. So-called aftermarket modifications decrease the value of a car. It's highly unlikely that an orange spoiler, an expensive stereo system, or state-of-the-art safety equipment will increase the final price of your car. Spoilers can ruin the price, safety equipment will cause the price to plummet, and your valuation of your audio upgrades may not have your buyer singing from the same hymn sheet.
Sometimes, less is more.
6/ Body and paint
Your car's body and paint will inevitably get dings, dents, and scratches over the course of your ownership. Sun, pollution and the dreaded bird droppings all take their toll on the paint. The end result can be a car whose body and paint do it a disservice and help drive down its price. Many of these problems can be fixed inexpensively, and you can sell your car again for a much higher price. Here is how.
If you only have small dents and dings, paintless dent repair is sometimes a great alternative to the more involved traditional body shop repairs. Special tools are used to restore the dented body to its original condition without the need for repainting. It's quick and cheap - from as little as £50 - but it makes a real difference to the appearance and potential price of your car.
Larger dents, such as scratches caused by other car doors or parking, may need to be filled, painted and touched up by bodyshops. This comes at a higher cost, but the sight of a major dent will also seriously boost your selling price. These dents can be repaired for around £150, but are arguably more cost-effective in terms of maintaining the value of your car than the cheaper minor dent repairs.
These minor scratches can be concealed with a touch-up kit that contains primer, colour-matched paint, and varnish and is applied to your car much like nail polish is applied to nails. If the damage is very extensive, consider a touch-up with an airbrush, but this is a job for professionals - expect to pay around £70 per panel.
Dents and dings
Removing dents can be surprisingly inexpensive and makes a real difference to the appearance of your car.If you only have small dents and dings, paintless dent repair is sometimes a great alternative to the more involved traditional body shop repairs. Special tools are used to restore the dented body to its original condition without the need for repainting. It's quick and cheap - from as little as £50 - but it makes a real difference to the appearance and potential price of your car.
Larger dents, such as scratches caused by other car doors or parking, may need to be filled, painted and touched up by bodyshops. This comes at a higher cost, but the sight of a major dent will also seriously boost your selling price. These dents can be repaired for around £150, but are arguably more cost-effective in terms of maintaining the value of your car than the cheaper minor dent repairs.
Scratches
Minor damage to your paintwork from stone crisps or scratches caused by automatic car washes will look unsightly, but can be easily fixed.These minor scratches can be concealed with a touch-up kit that contains primer, colour-matched paint, and varnish and is applied to your car much like nail polish is applied to nails. If the damage is very extensive, consider a touch-up with an airbrush, but this is a job for professionals - expect to pay around £70 per panel.
You can remove superficial scratches and fading from sun exposure with a colour polish or T-Cut colour refresher. If the scratch is deeper - say, if a vandal has scratched the side of your car - it's off to the bodyshop, where it can be spackled, filled, painted and smoothed for around £150.
Stains on the paintwork
The trees you park under to keep your car in the shade or protect it are actually putting it directly in the line of fire of the birds above. A paint job that has ugly stains from bird droppings is called a bird spot, and it can significantly affect the value of your car. The good news is that this is fairly easy to fix, so only an idiot would try to sell a car with bird spots. Apply a clay kit - such as one from Meguiars - to remove lime, tar and grime from your paint. Wipe it off and you have only spent £25 to achieve much more for your car.Dirty bumpers.
For just a fiver, you can turn your whitish-grey bumpers back into black. Products such as Back to Black are rubbed onto the bumper and, when dry, return it to its original colour.7/ Get your paperwork in order
A lovingly cared for car is nothing without its documentation. Nothing puts a buyer more at ease than well-organised paperwork documenting the maintenance and work that has been done.Maintenance schedules
Keeping up with the maintenance schedule is the best way to keep your car in pristine condition, but your buyer needs to see that you have done so. Every time you have the car serviced, have an oil change, or have parts replaced, file the receipt in a binder, as documentation will help increase the selling price of your car. This is another way to gain trust, because in addition to proving what you have done, a neat binder shows the buyer that you have really taken care of your car.Vehicle History
A vehicle history report from providers like Experian will show the ownership of the vehicle, as well as other useful information that will help you gain your buyer's trust. You can keep this report with the other documents related to your car.Classic Cars
Getting the best value for a classic car - especially one that has been restored - is a topic that deserves a much more detailed discussion. You'll learn more about how to make money selling classic cars elsewhere, but here we will just mention that documenting the history and restoration of the vehicle is absolutely critical.
Classic cars sell well if you disclose everything. So gather all the information you can find to document the vehicle's history, features, strengths, and even weaknesses. You'll need receipts, sales papers, registration and ID documents, owner's manuals, and a list of historical contacts, including previous owners and details of mechanics who have worked on the car.
Any restoration work done should be described in detail with photos of the work in progress so the buyer can see at a glance what was done and how it was done.
The more information you have, the less risk the buyer will see and the more they will be willing to pay.
Classic cars sell well if you disclose everything. So gather all the information you can find to document the vehicle's history, features, strengths, and even weaknesses. You'll need receipts, sales papers, registration and ID documents, owner's manuals, and a list of historical contacts, including previous owners and details of mechanics who have worked on the car.
Any restoration work done should be described in detail with photos of the work in progress so the buyer can see at a glance what was done and how it was done.
The more information you have, the less risk the buyer will see and the more they will be willing to pay.
Seven simple steps to increasing the resale value of your car
So those are the seven steps to a successful car sale. With a little organisation, careful cleaning and attention to detail, you can literally increase the sale price of your car by more than a thousand pounds. So you could be as well-oiled as your car.
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