Volvo Owners Club Forum - View Single Post - 1800:

capt jack · May 4th, 2009, 18:59

Hi Jimmy

If you're serious about selling your beautiful car then here are some thoughts:

1. You probably won't find a buyer on this forum. Most folk are on here because they already own the Volvo of their dreams! E-bay is of course a possibility, but it will be fraught with dangers, dreamers and disappointments. Autotrader is almost certainly a non-starter for a classic motor.

2. Set your price - and be realistic. I do feel that sadly the car is't worth as much as £10k, but you could be looking at £7k to £8k, if you can find the right buyer. Times are a bit tough, but there will always be a market for really nice classics - like yours. Practical classics has it at over £8k

3. Set a time scale. You won't sell in a rush - if you do it'll probably be for too low a price.

4. Create the right ad. Get some really good pics as she is now - the interior, the engine bay, the exterior, as high a quality as you can. For writing the words, study ads on the website carandclassic.co.uk, especially the ones that say SOLD! I say this because they clearly worked! This will guide you as to what potential buyers want to read. This may not include details such as which bits of rust you treated, or what colour the primer was! Also look at E-bay. Some listings for great looking cars attract no interest, whilst others offering complete dogs seem to get loads of bids. A careful reading of the way in which the listing is put together will give you lots to think about.

5. Choose where to advertise. Free ads are OK, but paid-for ads will almost certainly reach a wider audience. Think about the classic car mags - have a browse and try to judge which of them is read by the sort of buyer you're looking for. By all means put an ad on the free sites - on here, carandclassic.co.uk etc. Also, check out the Volvo Enthusiasts Club (may I be forgiven for mentioning such on here!).

6. Are there any shows coming up local to you where you could take your car with a view to selling? A wandering visitor might just get an itchy cheque book on a sunny Sunday afternoon when confronted face-to-face!

7. International. Possibly. I met some Swiss, Dutch, Swedes and Norwegians a couple of months ago, and was astounded to learn how in those countries, plus the USA, Volvo 1800s are much much more sought-after and valuable than here. Values are double and more the UK prices. The big difficulty is that the steering wheel is in the wrong place for these buyers - and they have a good deal of home-grown stuff to look at. But you never know. Target any ad you place for Holland and Sweden at least. The carandclassic website covers these countries.

8. As with selling any car privately - be careful. Assume that a buyer is possibly crooked and behave accordingly!

9. Research the specialist auction houses. This will be expensive, but they are in the business of marketing desireable cars, so they will almost certainly find you a serious buyer - and remove some of the risk.

In many ways I hope that you don't sell. All that hard work over 5 years. But however it turns out - good luck!

Cheers

Jack

May 4th, 2009, 18:59	#6
capt jack VOC Member Last Online: Yesterday 22:32 Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Selby, North Yorkshire	Serious about selling Hi Jimmy If you're serious about selling your beautiful car then here are some thoughts: 1. You probably won't find a buyer on this forum. Most folk are on here because they already own the Volvo of their dreams! E-bay is of course a possibility, but it will be fraught with dangers, dreamers and disappointments. Autotrader is almost certainly a non-starter for a classic motor. 2. Set your price - and be realistic. I do feel that sadly the car is't worth as much as £10k, but you could be looking at £7k to £8k, if you can find the right buyer. Times are a bit tough, but there will always be a market for really nice classics - like yours. Practical classics has it at over £8k 3. Set a time scale. You won't sell in a rush - if you do it'll probably be for too low a price. 4. Create the right ad. Get some really good pics as she is now - the interior, the engine bay, the exterior, as high a quality as you can. For writing the words, study ads on the website carandclassic.co.uk, especially the ones that say SOLD! I say this because they clearly worked! This will guide you as to what potential buyers want to read. This may not include details such as which bits of rust you treated, or what colour the primer was! Also look at E-bay. Some listings for great looking cars attract no interest, whilst others offering complete dogs seem to get loads of bids. A careful reading of the way in which the listing is put together will give you lots to think about. 5. Choose where to advertise. Free ads are OK, but paid-for ads will almost certainly reach a wider audience. Think about the classic car mags - have a browse and try to judge which of them is read by the sort of buyer you're looking for. By all means put an ad on the free sites - on here, carandclassic.co.uk etc. Also, check out the Volvo Enthusiasts Club (may I be forgiven for mentioning such on here!). 6. Are there any shows coming up local to you where you could take your car with a view to selling? A wandering visitor might just get an itchy cheque book on a sunny Sunday afternoon when confronted face-to-face! 7. International. Possibly. I met some Swiss, Dutch, Swedes and Norwegians a couple of months ago, and was astounded to learn how in those countries, plus the USA, Volvo 1800s are much much more sought-after and valuable than here. Values are double and more the UK prices. The big difficulty is that the steering wheel is in the wrong place for these buyers - and they have a good deal of home-grown stuff to look at. But you never know. Target any ad you place for Holland and Sweden at least. The carandclassic website covers these countries. 8. As with selling any car privately - be careful. Assume that a buyer is possibly crooked and behave accordingly! 9. Research the specialist auction houses. This will be expensive, but they are in the business of marketing desireable cars, so they will almost certainly find you a serious buyer - and remove some of the risk. In many ways I hope that you don't sell. All that hard work over 5 years. But however it turns out - good luck! Cheers Jack Last edited by capt jack; May 4th, 2009 at 19:02.