Hi All,

I'm thinking of selling my 03 MC. I've convinced myself (and my wife) that if I can sell mine for a decent price, then I can justify ordering an MCS.

The problem is that neither the dealer nor CarMax will give me what I need to sell it for (no surprise there). To get what I want, I'm going to have to sell it myself, but I've never done this before. I was hoping to get suggestions on how to make this as painless as possible.

What are the safe ways to accept payment? Is a Cashiers Check or Money Order generally safe? I've heard something about counterfiet Cashiers Checks but it sounds pretty rare. Or should I only accept them if I meet them at their bank and see that it came from the bank?

What is a resonable amount for a deposit? Should I insist on cash or is a check ok?

What do I need to do besides sign over the title? I assume I need to make up a bill of sale. Is there a template for one available somewhere? Is there any other paper work I should be aware of?

If anyone has any cautions or suggestions, I'd love to hear them. Thanks.
-Randy

 

1) Research used values for your '03 MC. Good sources of info are:

www.edmunds.com

www.kbb.com

www.nada.com


2) What is the spec of your car? What options do you have? Mileage? Condition?


3) How much do you want to get for it on a private sale?


4) How much Carmax and the MINI dealer offered you on a trade in?


5) In what region do you live?


I am also selling my pristine '04 MCS with 17K miles. If interested send me a PM.

Good luck.

3 Pedals

 

Bank cashier's checks are among the safest methods of payment, but there is the potential of problems with them. I have sold several cars privately and pretty much the procedure is to sign over the title, prepare a Bill of Sale (You can get these forms at any Office Max or Office Depot store) and have the buyer of your car pay sales tax to the tax collector (Auto tag agency) based on the final sales price, so they can complete the transfer of the vehicle over to the new owner, issue new tags and registration. Check to see what regulations apply to your home state and county of residency. The new owner also (At least here in Florida) needs to provide proof of insurance coverage to the auto tag agency in order to receive the new tag and registration. No insurance = no registration!

The last car I sold, the person paid me with a "Blank Check" from Capital One Finance as she was financing the car. Never had a problem and the transaction went quickly and smoothly.

Very important: As soon as you finalize the sale of your MC, call your insurance agent and cancel the insurance coverage on the car immediately! You don't want the new owner having a fender bender around the corner and you still be nailed for it! Be careful!.

Use common sense, be careful when showing the car. It is a good idea to ask for a driving license if the person interested intends to buy the car. Try to have another family member with you to be with you throught the process.

Don't feel obligated to show the car to an individual that you don't feel comfortable with either.

Selling a car privately is a hefty job, but it pays in the end over giving your car away to a dealer on a trade in. I recommend you checking out publications available on the subject at your local Barnes & Nobles bookstore or any other book store that may carry this type of publications.

Edmunds.com has very good section for "newbies" on the subject of selling your car privately.

If you list your car online, be very careful with the "Nigerian bank check scam". Basically an individual from Nigeria will contact you via e-mail expressing interest for the car and will make promises to make arragements to have the car shipped back to Africa and pay you in cash or with a phony check if you send him additional money and what not. Be careful! Never, ever deal with foreigners or people that reside outside of the United States, unless you know them well!.

You can begin by advertaising your car for free at www.minimania.com. They allow you to upload one photo of the car also for free.

At to finish and interesting tid bit for you: Did you know that a used MINI Cooper or Cooper S can be worth as much as US$50K down in Brazil?? I wish I knew someone to sell my '04 MCS down there and make a $25K+ profit in the process!

 

Another important point. Are you comfortable with the idea of haggling a price with a total stranger(s)?


Most Americans do not feel comfortable or like the idea of haggling and this is a very critical thing to consider, if you want to succeed in selling your car privately.

Be prepared with people approaching you with ridiculous lowball "Offers" hoping that you will cave in. Be very knowledgeable of the price of your car and how much negotiating room you will allow between asking price and absolute lowest price.

Don't be surprised when you receive offers that are even lower than a dealer or Carmax trade-in from strangers. People are always looking for bargains when buying used and will do anything possible to point out "defects" (Which often do not exist) in your car to see if you give in to their low price offers.

This brings me to another point. Before placing an ad for the car, make sure to wash and detail your MINI. People like and are attracted to cars that look clean and shiny because this gives the impression that the car has been well taken care of. Clean the interior. If anything is broken, replace it. Spiff up your car and watch the offers rool at your doorstep.

A lot of people make the mistake of taking thier car to Carmax or the dealer all dirty. Believe it or not, this has an impact on the final trade in offer.

Have a neat folder with all the car papers, including service/maintenance receipts. People can't argue against a car that has all its service history records in order and ready to show upon request.

Be enthusiastic about your car, in other words, don't "diss" it in front of a potential buyer (Is not powerful enough, I am tired of it, etc kind of comments). People really pay attention to what you have to say about the car.

other strong selling points for your MINI, is the ability to fully transfer your 4 year/50K mile factory warranty and free scheduled service (Including 24/7 roadside assistance).

Make it clear to a prospective buyer that the car is sold "As-Is" condition and that any problems with the car post-sale are to be taken care of by the warranty and MINI dealer, not YOU.

Give the interested buyer a vote of confidence on the car and give them the vehicle's serial number (VIN) so they can research the title and history of it on thier own.

Also offer to pay for the mechanical inspection if the buyer insists on it (Only if the person is truly interested in the car).

 

I'm not sure if this is right. I think liability resides with the person who's name is on the title. So, I'd insist that the buyer show me proof of insurance before they leave with the car, since you might be liable until the title transfer is complete. You could keep your own policy as a back-up.

If there are any lawyers out there, they may have better information.

 

Here in Florida, the auto tag agency will not transfer the title and issue registration and tag to the new owner until he or she provides proof of current auto insurance. As soon as the person drives away in your car, the title is already in their name. You should call your insurance agent right away to cancel policy coverage. State Farm typically makes this request immediate.