Who would buy your car?

Date published: 15/02/2008

We all know that in order to sell our home we need to present it at its best for prospective buyers.  However, a survey shows that as many as 85 per cent of car owners in Rochdale fail to apply the same high standards when it comes to selling their car.

The stale smell of smoke in a car was found to be the top turn-off for buyers in a survey by online car buying service We Buy Any Car, with a quarter of people choosing it as their number one pet hate. This was closely followed by sweets and crumbs squashed into upholstery, chosen by 23 per cent of respondents.

"Many people don’t give their car the makeover it needs to make sure it achieves its best price," explains Tony Hinkley from We Buy Any Car.  "Car owners should expect a private buyer to scrutinise their used car as much as they would if buying a new car, so they need to be prepared to make it look as good as possible if they hope to seal a decent deal."

Research revealed that other common reasons for potential car buyers walking away from a private sale include:

• Dog bitten seats – 21%
• Scuffed bumpers or wing-mirrors – 11%
• Kerbed alloys – 8%
• Missing or faulty stereo – 8% 
• Other – 4%

Prepping a car for sale is a must for owners to make it more appealing to private buyers but this can eat into potential profit with the estimated cost of cleaning and preparing a used car for sale adding up to as much as £100.

"The preparations can involve a lot of hard work, time and money spent on things like paintwork touch-ups, replacing scuffed wheel trims, treating carpets and seats and the car’s general presentation," says Mr Hinkley.