Being 'too honest' when sellling a car?

[Djrystofer]

Hey guys, I've been in quite the dispute with my fellow female family members over my advertisements of a car we're trying to sell.

In the ad (on carsales/gumtree etc) I've put exactly what's wrong with the car down;
Roof liner coming off glue, RH passenger power window not working, control arm needs replacing, been keyed all down one side (with a picture)

Now, they're saying I am being far too honest with that and I should remove all of the bad things & say it's a perfectly good car, no issues if I ever want it to sell.

Am I being too honest (I can't stand rip-offs), or are they just liars willing to cheat someone out of their money to sell it quicker?

[M4CO]

You sir are a good man. I hate going places to buy/inspect items which have a misleading description. The more detail the better, the buyer should be grateful of this.

[SM1DY]

It's refreshing, better than seeing the same old drivel eg. First to see will buy, prefect example, mechanically A1, nothing to spend. Then you get it checked out and the thing is shot to ******.

You're wasting people's time if you tell them the car is in good nick. I say, keep doing what you're doing.

[NickyN]

I think it's good that you're up front about the car. The calls you get will be from ppl who know what's wrong with the car and are still interested. Good for you!

[Itsme]

I feel sorry for you as you should know you will never win an argument with a female....you just cannot reason logic with them. lol

In your case let them sell the car and just keep out of it.

[frd906]

Ive always been honest and up front with selling anything, i dont want it turning back up on my front door step with the owner demanding his money back.

[mike_nofx]

My selling technique is, if its a very good conditioned car I will write as detailed ad as possible including all, if any, faults.
If the car is a little run down, my ads are very brief, and always state inspections are a must.

[Djrystofer]

Originally Posted by trublu

I feel sorry for you as you should know you will never win an argument with a female....you just cannot reason logic with them. lol

In your case let them sell the car and just keep out of it.

Yeah, unfortunately growing up with nothing but women has made me realise this.

I've given them the rights to sell it as they please, but when they're getting people coming looking at the car & going 'nah I'll pass', they better not complain to me.

I'd prefer 3 people to look at it & 1 of them to buy it, than 50 people and none to buy it

[NickyN]

Best not to waste your time or theirs, they'll be happy too.

[cs123]

Unfortunately I point out every single thing wrong with a car when I sell it. I just can't sell a car with faults I know about and not tell the buyer. I always price accordingly.

BTW, hood liner is a cheap DIY fix and can make a lot of difference when selling the car.

[BF-2K7]

Congrats! you're doing the right thing, they will see the obvious faults anyway and will be wary if you hadnt stated them before they came out wondering what else you havent disclosed.

Keep up the good work - and good luck selling

[dieseltrain79]

Congrats for your honesty !

Pi55es me off when you look at a car to find out its nothing like the ad !

Honesty sells , they know what they're in for so if the do come to see it , they're already keen with the knowledge you've provided already

Fwiw , try fixing the headliner yourself . Very simple and makes a big visual difference .

[FGII-XR6]

Congratulations on your honesty anyone who rings will be prepared for the faults and be a better prospect. but remember you can never win an argument with a woman

[RAPID_BA]

Problem with disclosing problems with car is no buyers out there want to buy a rough car (not meaning your car is). Further to this others with rough cars present them as great condition and let down the buyer upon inspection so it's not a level playing field if your honest and everyone else lies.

Your best bet is to fix the faults so you can meet the buyers expectations and then ask a fair price. Buyer won't be disappointed upon inspection.

To me an ad which describes problems with a car say "poorly maintained", imagine what they are not saying?

[XR8_ash]

I'm with you mate. I sold two cars last year and I made sure they knew everything that was wrong with them (tiny little things mind you). The year before I sold a Suzuki GTI that had .... just annoying little things and I also made sure I told the guy everything. He flew down from Sydney to drive it home..

[FGII-XR6]

sometime people don't have the time, money or motivation to carry out the repairs and would rather take a reduced price . I recently bought an NF Fairlane 5L with problems, all the problems were disclosed by the seller and the price was right all things considered. a bit of TLC and a few hundred dollars and it passed a blue slip. I'm happy the seller is happy and it was all done without lies. people who lie about condition are unethical and should be avoided. I once went to look at a car described as immaculate that had a droopy headlining and many scratches, I travelled 150Ks to see it and I told him what I thought of his lies and that I wouldn't buy off him if he halved the price

Originally Posted by TORQUE_

Problem with disclosing problems with car is no buyers out there want to buy a rough car (not meaning your car is). Further to this others with rough cars present them as great condition and let down the buyer upon inspection so it's not a level playing field if your honest and everyone else lies.

Your best bet is to fix the faults so you can meet the buyers expectations and then ask a fair price. Buyer won't be disappointed upon inspection.

To me an ad which describes problems with a car say "poorly maintained", imagine what they are not saying?

[redxm]

I agree with the OP. I will be as honest as I can, nomatter what Im selling.

I put the old EB on ebay recently. Heaps wrong with it, out of rego etc

Got over twice what I started the auction at.
The buyer was over the moon



But thats just me

[Papa Smurf]

I will be selling a vehicle myself soon and I WILL be listing it's shortcomings and of course the good parts. Like others have said here, it is better for the prospective buyer to see you are HONEST and not trying to get a few quick bucks at THEIR expense.

P.S. Others here have said you can't win with women, it is true. I grew up with 5 females around me and it can be a tad intimidating. Just say "Yes Dear" when they ask a question and do it YOUR way.

[Windsor220]

As long as it is priced appropriately then its ok to list the cars faults.

[302 XC]

A little bit perhaps over the top with smaller imperfect details, but id rather know a little more and the add helps, than ring waste time then find out , or turn up waste my time finding that "Pristine " example isnt that
Its your car to sell,sell it how you feel comfortable

[mik]

i like the honest approach myself.

[Elks]

You can't be too honest.

Lying to get people in is not worth it, as they will just waste their time and yours. Assuming you have priced the thing right it won't matter.

However, if you have the ability to fix the things then you we sell it more quickly for a higher price. People love things that are right and many people don't have the ability to repair things, for lots of reasons space, time, extra $$ as well as skill. Not to mention as many people don't disclose faults, its assumed there are still faults elsewhere.

My 2c.

[XB GS 351 Coupe]

The honest approach is best.

I remember too many times travelling all over the place to look at 'immaculate' cars that were wrecks when I get there. I remember going to see this on particular car after speaking to the owneron the phone, it was an apparently immaculate XB Coupe with new interior, so I travelled about 400km to go look at this immaculate XB Coupe, even took the cash and the misses along.

When I arrived I saw this very rough looking coupe in the driveway, and I was going to leave then and there, but the misses said may be thats not the car he is selling, just go and see him. I knocked on the door and this houso looking guy answered the door, I asked him if the car in the driveway is the one for sale, he just laughed and said no the one I am selling is around the back in the shed.

I was relieved, and followed the guy to the back shed, only to be confronted with a wrecked out half stripped coupe (the interior was about three different colours and was probably new 10-15 years ago and there were no seats fitted to the car), with rust holes as big as my head, the guy said,'she needs a bit of work but it's a solid car mate.'

It took all my self control not to punch the guy in the head then and there, and I can not type my response as it would probably get me banned from this forum. Needless to say the guy knew exactly what I thought about his BS add.

[GTP534]

Honesty is the best policy.

When I was selling my BA GTP early last year I disclosed in the ad it had a kerb graze on the LF wheel and stone chips on the front bar. Mechanically she was immaculate and had done 35000km. I priced it accordingly.

A couple of people rang up to enquire and I took more photos of the rim and stone chips for them.

A price was negotiated with the second serious purchaser and she found a good home with another Forum member. They're happy, I'm happy and more importantly, I have a clear conscience!

You've done the right thing.

[XR Martin]

I dont believe in being too honest, but I also dont believe in lying.
List the basics, a decent buyer should be able to pick up any faults in the car when they inspect it.

[XB GS 351 Coupe]

Originally Posted by XR6 Martin

I dont believe in being too honest, but I also dont believe in lying.
List the basics, a decent buyer should be able to pick up any faults in the car when they inspect it.

So why waste your own time and the buyers time??

Why not be up front and save me traveling all the way out to look at your car with undisclosed faults expecting one thing and then seeing another when I get there??

The OP's car has a non working power window, the paint has been keyed, and needs mechanical work, something that any buyer would see straight away, if I want a car to just jump in and drive it's no good to me, but if faults are disclosed and the vehicle is priced accordingly I might still be interested, then I will come and see the car.

No person is going to turn up and buy a car that needs repairs if they come to look at an immaculate car.

[buggo]

I'll be selling/ buying within the next couple of months. I'll be putting down all the things wrong with my car. It's 9 years old with 150,000km. While I try and look after it the best I can, in no way what so ever is it immaculate. And I'll be sure to stress that point in my add, as well as all the good things about it.
I just think that's only fair. When I'm reading through ads about cars I could be buying, I don't want to be misled at all. If on the phone the bloke says 'nothing wrong, perfect car in every way'. Then I waste my weekend getting there to find a heap of thrashed out crap, it won't go down well for anyone.

I figure, be up front with my ad, and karma will sort me out when responding to ads.

[Djrystofer]

It's not a run down car, by any means. It's quite Good as far as condition goes, apart from the keying. It's got a bit of play in the wheels, which is why I suggest a control arm replacement aswell.
It's an 18 year old car, and from what I've seen on car sales, cars like it go for around 5-8 grand, and I'm sure they're not exactly %100 as it came out of the factory condition either.
However, this one has all the options, Leather seats wood grain & dual zone climate control. And with all it's faults I priced it accordling, $3,000. And they're still saying I should drop the price & say it's immaculate.

Also - What is involved in re-gluing the headliner? I might give it a go

Thanks for the replies

[RAPID_BA]

Buying and selling a car is a bit like a game of chess.

You go back n forth until you settle. It's good to be honest but are you trying to achieve the best price or be honest?

I recently sold a car and the buyer had a 3rd party inspection done. The report came back with tyres and brakes as being 30%. The tyres were brand new all round and the brakes were 3 months old. It was obviously a manouvre to attack me on price.

Salesman in a yard don't point out the cars faults. (there is a scratch here here and here and you should see it start cold).

I think there is some obligation to price it accordingly and be truthful with any enquiry but not volunteer every fault it has.

[supershifty]

+1 for being honest about the sale. It's apparent from the previous posts for varying reasons that it is agreed you are doing the right thing.

Just take a backseat, STFU and let the ladies handle it. You'll be wrong no matter what you do, so say nothing - I've learned that there is a great deal of self satisfaction to be had in silently thinking to yourself "I told you so, and I was right" - saves a lot of friction over BS small matters.

Good luck mate, don't forget to post and let us know how it all goes.

Cheers!