Privately selling your car - tips and advice - test driving?!

Greg

Greg

Greg

Soldato
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18 Oct 2002
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I've recently bought a new car and not part exchanged my existing vehicle as I got a better deal without having to trade mine in. I now have to shift my car on and have two options.

Option 1: Use the dreaded website WeBuyAnyCar; this isn't my preferred option as I know that I'll get hardly anything for it, though, it does have the advantage that I can shift the car quickly!

Option 2: Sell the car privately. Now, I've no problem doing this, though I've never done it before. Does anyone have any advice on once I've a buyer viewing it on how to handle requests like test drives? I'm not comfortable giving someone the keys and saying see you in 20.

I know there's the usual drive them to somewhere, get out and chance seats then hand them the keys etc but I'm just unsure of how to go about doing this with insurance and so on.

Does anyone have any past experience with this?

Thanks in advance guys!
 
Ask them to bring an insurance document proving that they can drive an insured vehicle.

Though, every time I've test driven a car from a private seller it's never been asked...
 
Yes lots.

I've taken to refusing to let anyone drive it unless I have the cash in my hand, no one will turn up with the correct insurance that covers the car if they trash it.

I have taken people out and asked them what they would be looking for, say braking in a straight line, wheel wobbles, gear changes etc, all should be fairly obvious from the passenger seat.

Hopefully they aren't using you as a test drive service to see if they like the model.

Yes some people have walked away but I've never not sold a car with that attitude.
 
Normally I ask the person if they have cash ready for the car before I let them drive it. Check that they are insured. I then drive somewhere first. Swap seats and remove the key so they cant drive off with my car. I then let them drive how they like but remind them not to abuse it unless they are going to buy it.
 
I've only once sold a car to someone I didn't already know (the DC5). In this case, he didn't actually ask for a test drive but I was very thorough in the passenger ride I gave him.

If he had wanted to drive it, at a minimum I would want to see proof of valid DOC insurance and proof of ID. Depends on the nature of the character too.
 
I've sold plenty privately and my attitude to it is basically as above - it's not neccesarily the right way to go about things but whether I'll actually let them drive the car or not depends on how I feel about the person at the time.

I always ask for proof of DOC and have never had any issue though I usually politely mention on the phone that the buyer should bring their proof. If the value of the car is significant though I either need to have a very warm and fuzzy feeling that the person has the cash for if they bin it or to see proof of funds first.

Always go with them and change seats as mentioned. You'll be surprised at how many people are happy just to be driven in the car rather than a proper test drive anyway
 
I will tell you not to bother coming unless you have the full cash with you.

It filters out the dreamers/*******s.
 
maccapacca said:
I have taken people out and asked them what they would be looking for, say braking in a straight line, wheel wobbles, gear changes etc, all should be fairly obvious from the passenger seat.
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This is what I did when I bought my MX5.
I asked him to give it a suitable thrashing, brake hard in a straight lane, try every gear etc. as it is indeed obvious from the passenger seat :).
 
I tried to sell the Astra twice, once when i thought i didn't like it after 3 months of ownership and the 2nd time when it was coming up to a year of ownership, so fancied a change. The Astra was up for about 5 days and was gone on the 2nd viewer..

My car ad alone was a deterrent to most muppets who try get you down before even viewing and tyre kickers. Luckily enough a young lad come and tried handing the cash over before i even took him for spin :)
 
[TW]Fox;24060965 said:
No wonder it took you ages to sell your Astra. Who takes thousands of quid with them to the first viewing?!
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I'd be more worried about the fact you're telling a stranger that you're going to be at said location at said time with massive amounts of cash on you. :(
 
best option is to have a mate with you too

get him to seat in the back, should deter any thought of jacking the car

as a buyer i don't expect to test drive the car without showing the seller my insurance, i thought this was a given these days!

my mate is selling his Scirocco (new shape) and a potential buyer has been emailing him asking all sort of questions, the last one was a scan of the V5 document :eek::eek:

theres always going to be scammers so just becareful
 
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