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You want to sell a car?

Our expert guide is here to help you when the time has come for you to sell a car or vehicle. The motives for selling your vehicle may vary from just wanting something more exciting, more practical, more efficient, to just wanting something newer. Now it’s time to get it on the market so that someone new can appreciate it. Here are the steps to selling your car and getting the most for it:

  1. Find out what current market ist willing to pay for your car.
  2. Make out a price that you need to have for your vehicle and build in the buffer for negotiations.
  3. Clean the car thoroughly.
  4. Take care of small repairs and damages
  5. Make the perfect pictures
  6. Create a good text, and also be honest about defects.
  7. List the car!
  8. Let people view the car and take it for a test drive
  9. Negotiate. Stand your ground!
  10. Sell the car and do the transfer.

1. Scrub-a-dub-dub! Give your car a good clean

Imagine the following if you will: your used car is still in good condition but it just won’t win a beauty contest. A couple of scratches here, dirty rims there, a wiper that just won’t cut it anymore, and the last cleaning of the interior has been a while back as well. With a thorough scrubbing or better yet, a professional detailing you could change everything. Not only will your car look (and maybe even smell) better, especially on the pictures, but it will give it a leg up on the market.

Your daily driver will obviously have collected a speck of dirt here and there and been under constant attack from mother nature. Even after running it through your local car wash most contaminents will still be clinging to your car which over time will ruin the paintjob from the factory. Having your car cleaned, or doing it yourself on a regular basis will keep the dirt at bay and help retain your resale value. The closer your car comes to looking new, the more a buyer will be willing to pay for it.

Once, just once, work with a professional

A professional valet service (or detailing) is always worth it. You save time and effort and maybe even money, and a professional can assess the damage on the car and sort it all out in one go. The professional has all the material and tools to get the job done right the first time, while you might have to go out and purchase an entire setup just to get a basic wash and polish taken care of. 

Here are 10 things that either you, or a professional should do when cleaning your car:

  1. Get everything OUT
    Before even THINKING about starting your car needs to be empty of everything that doesn’t belong in there. Yes, this also means cleaning out the dreaded trunk/boot.
  2. Vacuum the interior
    The floor of your vehicle has been attacked by shoes, mud, water, dirt, grime and food since it rolled from the dealer lot. Get your vacuum out and get rid of all of it. Use a small and narrow attachment to get between the seats and other tight spaces.
  3. Clean the Dashboard
    Clean all hard surfaces with a microfiber towl and water (or special cleaner) and take your time. Get into those hard to get slits with an unused paint brush and don’t forget to remove the dust from the air vents!
  4. Floor Mats and Seats
    Remove the floor mats and attack them from all sides with everything you have. Grab the vacuum and when all that is done, then bring out the big guns and clean the mats with some soapy water. You would be amazed what comes out of floor mats that you would think are clean! Get rid of any spots and marks in the seats with cleaning products and if you have leather seats, then go ahead and use some product on them as well.
  5. Rubber Seals and Treadplates
    This is where most of the dirt gets collected over time. This is also what is part of a first impression! Clean all the metal on the tread plates, the plastic covering, and also give the doors a good wipe down from top to bottom.
  6. Exterior
    It’s time for the pressure washer. Don’t get too close to your paint unless you prefer having a silver car at some point, but get close enough to knock off all the dirt and grime that is playing hard to get……rid of. After that take your time and hand wash your car and be sure to get every little part cleaned up. Yes, it takes time, but there is nothing worse than having a car that is spotless…except for that one spot you missed which is now sticking out like a sore thumb.
  7. Clean the glass
    Simple task: clean all your windows and mirrors from the inside as well as the outside.
  8. Polish
    This is an optional step: but if you have never polished a car before then I would highly recommend not using the car you are about to sell as your first project. There are many things that can (and will) go wrong. If you already know how to do it, then this is the time to get that deep glossy shine put back into your paintjob. After getting the paint back in top form don’t forget to seal it with a wachs or ceramic coating!
  9. Rims and tyres
    Rims and tyres are one thing that make or break the intial impression of your car. Your car can be perfect in every aspect, but if the rims or even the tyres seem filthy then the entire car suffers because of this. Don’t just wash your rims, also wash and scrub the rubber attached to the rims. Nice black tyres look great when not coated in a brown crust of brake dust and years of dirt. There are special products to make your tyres shine after cleaning, and the amount of shine is a matter of taste. Use what you think looks best!
  10. Polish the rims
    Last but not least: give the rims that last bit of love. Polish the rims and be sure not to use anything that will corrode them. Hard to reach areas can be easily reached with a toothbrush. 

2. Find out what your car is worth

Before investing a good sum of money in having years of dirt removed you should find out if your car is even worth the investment. At the end of the day, what is the point in investing hundreds of Euros in having it cleaned when your car is only worth a fraction of that amount? There are plenty of sites out there listing cars which should be able to give you a sense of what the market says your car is worth. 

Important tip: Don’t just look at the lowest price. Look at what the average price for a car in similiar condition is, and base your price on that. The cheapest cars won’t be the ones that are maintened very well, cleaned, and also might have a couple of problems. To get some insight as to what kind of vehicle you will be getting when you buy “the cheapest” one available, I would suggest watching some videos from Tyler Hoover on HOOVIES GARAGE YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

On the other end of the spectrum, don’t put your car at the top of the price list since most buyers won’t bother to scroll that far. Unless your car has nearly 0 miles / kilometers on the clock and is mint condition then getting the big money problably isn’t going to happen.

3. Say cheese! How to take perfect pictures of your car

Now that the car is spotless and the weather is perfect it’s time to take some pictures. Nobody is going to buy something they can’t see! One great way to make your car stand out from the rest and attract more attention is to up your photo game. You don’t need to be a professional photographer to capture compelling images of the car or truck you are ready to sell—a few simple tips can help your photos grab the attention of possible buyers.

You’ve seen the standard used-car photo—the boring shot taken outside a dealership, in a driveway or crowded parking lot, midday, from standing eye level, of a sterile-looking car, with a wide-angle smartphone camera lens. This type of photo won’t help your online car ad stand out. Better photographs will.

In general, you’ll want to approach the photo shoot for the car in the same way you’d approach it for any other type of deliberate (non-snapshot) photography. This requires paying attention to photographic details that others might miss.

Speaking of smartphones, you can certainly use a smartphone camera to get good images of your car. Many of these tips will apply to the photographer regardless of what gear is being used.

  1. Location! Location! Location!
    There are many used-car photos taken in crowded used-car lots, complete with feather flags, dancing inflatable tube people, Netherlands national flags with “OPEN” written on them, balloons, other cars with neon price tags, and more. None of those things serve to make a used-car photo one worth looking at.

    Drive your vehicle to a location that is unique, non-distracting, and suits the vehicle. You don’t need to have the local police close a scenic highway or to travel great distances to exotic locales with the car—just find a place where the background can be relatively free of distractions and any location other than a crowded parking lot. Do not photograph the car in your driveway unless you live in the Goodwood House or the Wayne manor.

  2. Lights! Camera! LIGHTS!
    Light in photography is everything. Again, as for other types of photography, photographing in the approximate hour before sunset or the hour after sunrise can be advantageous for car photos. Photographing during the middle of the day is not always a deal breaker for automotive images, but it can provide some challenges and is generally not as good as the warm light of the “Golden Hour.”

    If you have a tripod and some experience with low-light photography, blue hour (before sunrise and after sunset) can also be great for car photography.

  3. Weather
    While the diffused light under an overcast sky can help hide unwanted shadows and soften the overall scene, try to find a sunny or partly cloudy day for your car photos. Not only will the car look better with some warm sunlight, but it helps with the overall mood of the photograph.
  4. Shadows
    There are two types of shadows to worry about when photographing your car. The first is the shadow of the car itself. It is best to photograph the car on the side facing the sun so that the car is lit nicely, and you aren’t photographing into the sun with a silhouetted car.

    The second is shadows cast by nearby structures or objects. Be sure that there are no shadows falling on the car when you are photographing it.

  5. Perspective
    A vast majority of photos of used cars are taken from the eye level of the photographer while they stand next to the car. This all-to-familiar viewpoint is, to be blunt, boring.
    A slight change in viewpoint will give your photos a subtly distinctive look in a vast sea of eye-level photos and will catch the eye of the most discriminating buyers.
  6. Less is more
    Remember, the subject of the photo is the car and not that cool location to which I encouraged you to drive. If taking glamour shots of your ride, by all means, include a bunch of locations in your shots, but for selling your car, you want the viewer to focus on the car.
    So, fill the frame, but also give the car a bit of room to breathe around the frame of the image. When a subject gets close to the edge of the frame, it creates visual tension, and tension is not something you want the viewer to feel when looking at your mechanical steed.
  7. I see what you don’t see
    That coat of wax you put on your baby is going to reflect whatever surrounds the car. If you drove to a cool location for the shoot, this shouldn’t be an issue, but pay attention to the reflections where you might see other cars, bright and distracting objects, or, worse yet, the photographer. Also pay attention to what shows up in the side-view or rearview mirrors when shooting interior and exterior shots. Selling a used car is no time for reflection selfies!
  8. Posing
    Straight wheels are OK for almost any angle you capture the car from, but for a bit more style, turn the front wheels so that they are more visible to the camera when photographing from the front or rear quarter of the vehicle. This also adds a bit of dynamic style to the vehicle.
  9. Lights! Camera! HEADLIGHTS!
    Nothing makes a car look more alive than blazing headlights, and making your car look alive is a good way to get attention. Turn on your headlights and fog lights. This is one more bit of awesomeness not often seen in used-car photos.
    One bit of caution here: If you are shooting in failing daylight, bright headlights will eventually wash out your image, so be sure to wrap up your shooting (or avoid shooting the car from head on) when the light starts to fade.
  10. License Plate
    Some sellers block or blur their license plates on used car photos. There is nothing wrong with this, but know that potential buyers cannot access a lot of information with a license plate number aside from basic information about the vehicle—likely the same information you are providing for the purpose of selling anyway. Law enforcement can access more information with a plate number, of course. The fact is that your license plate is visible for everyone to see as you drive around town—so, unless you really want to hide it, you don’t need to spend time disguising it in photos.
  11. You spin me right round…When taking your exterior shots, you can give potential owners a 360° perspective of the car.

    If the sun is overhead, you may be able to walk around the car and take photos of the front, sides, quarters, and rear, but likely you’ll find that several of those angles produce harsh, unwanted shadows.

    The best, and, honestly, the most difficult way to do the 360° profile is to leave the camera stationary and rotate the car in the frame.

    Two mini-tips for this process: 1) It is helpful to have a second person maneuvering the car while you take photos or you’ll find yourself getting a lot of steps in on your smartwatch, and 2) if shooting in golden hour, you’ll want to start this series of images early (or late if working in the morning) as the light will stay more consistent. This process is time consuming, and you don’t want to start in daylight and end in darkness (or vice versa).

  12. The inner values count
    Interior photos are tricky because there are often things like driver’s seats in the way. I have contorted a tripod to support my camera above the transmission tunnel for a wide-angle view of the driver and passenger area. Also, the traditional driver’s view image can be had by reclining the driver’s seat and photographing from the back seat (if you have a back seat).
    Good exterior lighting (golden and blue hour) is best for well-lit interior shots with a warm, glowing dashboard and warm light outside the windows. Since you won’t be working in midday brightness, use a tripod or alternative support to avoid camera movement and blur.
  13. Filters/RetouchingWhile it might be tempting to use a clone stamp or healing brush to retouch your pride-and-joy’s blemishes, the consensus among used car experts is that this will cost you money in the end.

    You want the potential buyer to see your car in its true (cleaned and waxed) appearance so that they can see, for themselves, the chips, dings, dents, and scratches that careless other drivers and road debris have left on your mount. This honesty in reproduction will allow you to keep your price firm and will prevent the buyer from trying to negotiate a lower price based on the true non-airbrushed appearance of the car.

Checklist for making pictures:
  • Front
  • Rear
  • Side (both sides)
  • Damage
  • Wheels / Tread
  • Front Seat
  • Rear Seats
  • Middle console with the radio, navigation system, climate controls etc
  • Steering wheel
  • Gear knob / selector
  • Speedometer with odometer on
  • Engine
  • Trunk / boot
  • Special features / details

4. Creating the listing / advertisement

This is the make-or-break part of the entire process. The best pictures will be of no use when the listing itself is as interesting as watching paint dry! The best pictures and the most interesting listing will be useless if you weren’t honest and the potential buyer finds multiple things wrong with your car when they arrive. Creating a good AND honest listing is vital for the success of the sale, so take your time here!

The core components of a good listing include the details of the car. List EVERYTHING that it has! If needed, use a VIN Decoder and one of the many websites available that can list all the optional extras that the first owner purchased when ordering the vehicle. If you are not sure if a particular item is an optional extra or not, then play it safe and include it in the advertisement! The fridge under the armrest might not spark your interest, but a potential buyer could be looking for your model with THAT exact feature! This also goes for any extras that belong to the vehicle such as an extra set of winter tyres.

Tell everyone what condition the car is really in. If you have taken care of the car and brought it to the dealer every time a little noise makes its way into the cabin (and you should have all the invoices to back this claim up) then mention that in the listing. Someone that takes care of their vehicle will sell it faster than someone that just puts gas in it and drives it. 

If you there are some issues with the car, then also be honest about that. Potential buyers might be driving for hours to come see your vehicle only to be bitterly dissapointed when they find the check engine light on. This also makes you as the seller look like you are hiding things from them, and their instinct WILL go to red alert. A buyer will automatically think you are hiding more defects and this will reduce the amount that the buyer is willing to pay, or even worse make him or her walk away from the entire deal. Buyers appreciate honesty, and if you clearly list all the issues you know of in your ad (that you didn’t have fixed when preparing the car) then a buyer knows what he or she is getting into. Being honest also minimizes the financial impact on what a buyer will haggle you down to since he or she already know about the defect, but still came to look at the vehicle.

If you are creative and also have a sense of humor, then use it when creating your listing. Nothing keeps a buyer more engaged than reading everything you have to say about your own vehicle if it is presented in a humorous way. If humor isn’t your thing then remember to keep it simple! List everything the car has, explain how you have treated the car, give a good as to WHY you are selling the car. A buyer will almost ALWAYS think the car is being sold because it has become a hassle and needs thousands invested to be fixed again. If you are selling because your expecting another baby and the car is too small for the task, then say it! Having a baby on the way may actually help when it comes to negotiating the price!

5. Viewing / Test Drive / Negotiations / Transfer

I am putting all these things into one single part of this article since all more or less go hand in hand. A potential buyer has contacted you, asked some questions about the car, and wants to come and take a look at it. Great! The car is sold! Well, not just yet. When you listing goes live don’t settle for the first offer you get. People will always want to haggle and that is part of the process. You have already set your minimum price when you went through the process of preparing the car, so you already know how far you are willing to go. 

When the buyer arrives and looks at the car then he or she might start the classic “this and that is defect” tactic. Now if something is actually broke that wasn’t listed in the advertisement, then this will become a factor in the negotiations. If however the buyer is just out looking for things to complain about, then make it very clear that you aren’t selling a new car and that the buyer clearly isn’t paying the price for a new car. A car will have wear and tear over the years, but it should only be normal wear and tear. 

IMPORTANT: before letting the buyer go out for a test drive, make them show you their drivers license (ESPECIALLY in Spain)! EU Law states that if he or she is driving without a valid license in YOUR vehicle, YOU are also guilty of making it possible for them to drive a vehicle without a valid license since you handed over the keys. Fines and punishment vary from country to country, but they can be severe! Another good tip: don’t let the buyer drive the vehicle without you being in the car. Go with them so you can answer any questions that may pop up during the drive, and this is also just another good safety measure to make sure your car doesn’t vanish into thin air. If your gut tells you letting this person drive the vehicle is a bad idea, then listen to your gut!

After a test drive comes the part that people either love, or hate. If you don’t like negotiating then maybe you should leave this to a friend or family member that can or will do it for you. You have done your research, you know what your car is worth, and you know what your boundry is. PRO TIP: It doesn’t matter if you are buying or selling a car, but when a buyer names his price (and it is way below your threshhold) or you are wanting to purchase a vehicle and the seller names his price, then ALWAYS ask “Why?” This gives you an advantage in both situations. If for example you are listing your car for 25.000€ and a buyer wants to offer 20.000€ then simply ask “Why?” The buyer now has the ball again, and has to explain WHY your vehicle would only be worth 20.000€ and this is wear YOU can start to break down their arguments. The same applies to when purchasing a vehicle, only in then the seller has to explain why his vehicle is worth what they are asking. Always stand your ground if you can when negotiating. The person standing in front of you won’t be the only person interested in purchasing your vehicle!

When it comes to doing the transfer, then it is mostly straight forward. You accept money, and the buyer takes the car with the paperwork. If you live in Spain however, we would recommend using a Gestoria for this process. You and the buyer can meet at the office of the Gestoria and do the formalities there and the Gestoria can take care of all of the red tape involved when purchasing a used car. Experience has shown that the money saved by NOT using a Gestoria is not worh the time, effort, and hassle of doing it yourself. The money actually saved will most likely be consumed by fuel or bus tickets when doing it yourself, so take this piece of advice and just let a professional sort this out. There are numerous Gestorias in any given area and we would suggest getting recommendations from friends or family. You can also look on google maps for a Gestoria and take a look at the reviews to make a wise choice.

So now that your vehicle is sold, it’s time to buy another used vehicle or maybe a new one!

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