Selling Car Experience.

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Originally Posted by Chris142
Originally Posted by spavel6
Funny - I only drive stick and wouldn't consider buying an automatic..

X2. My 13 yr old 2nd cousin picked it up real fast
smile.gif
She won't be " one of them" if I can help it.




I'm sure she is a nice girl. How many times have you posted that picture? Is she married with kids now? Do tell.....
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by CKN
Originally Posted by Chris142
Originally Posted by spavel6
Funny - I only drive stick and wouldn't consider buying an automatic..

X2. My 13 yr old 2nd cousin picked it up real fast
smile.gif
She won't be " one of them" if I can help it.




I'm sure she is a nice girl. How many times have you posted that picture? Is she married with kids now? Do tell.....


Are you as pleasant in person as you are online?
 
Originally Posted by dishdude
Originally Posted by CKN
Originally Posted by Chris142
Originally Posted by spavel6
Funny - I only drive stick and wouldn't consider buying an automatic..

X2. My 13 yr old 2nd cousin picked it up real fast
smile.gif
She won't be " one of them" if I can help it.




I'm sure she is a nice girl. How many times have you posted that picture? Is she married with kids now? Do tell.....


Are you as pleasant in person as you are online?



The point being this picture was posted over a year ago. I know she isn't 13 anymore!
 
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Originally Posted by Al
I have my '16 Spark listed at $8200 I have had inquiries but the problem is that is manual transmission. MSRP was $13,500

Just for the heck of it I looked at the "Sell Instantly" advertisementw I have it listed in AutoTrader and Cars.Com. Basically dealers respond. I got an "Offer" for $4200. I suppose I will list on Craigslist. Obviously the problem is "Manual"

I would rather not have 3 cars but it makes a good "run around" vehicle.



Having been shopping cars of this type for months, as you've seen, that's going to be tough sell unless you want to let it go for maybe the mid $6K range (private party value).

I just picked up a 2015 Nissan Versa 1.6 S automatic with 42K miles for $6500 w/extras that come with it. There's a few in the market with 5spd manual for a lot less and not selling. I did shop a few used Sparks w/ AT that were 2013s, with ~90K miles and people want $5-6K for them. Like said, if you can be patient and hold out. If gasoline prices spike, you're set.
 
We had a '13 Fiesta MT, sold it to a European auto engineer. Not many Americans can drive an MT.
 
You didn't bother to say how long you've had it listed for sale.

You have a few things going against you. First, it's a tiny, cheap car. The market is limited for those in many areas (I've never seen one around here).
Second, it's a manual. Aside from the minority who actually want to drive a manual, it's a very limited market. I grew up driving manuals (real ones, not the synchronized garbage that gets passed off as manuals today) and while there's nothing really special about them, most folks simply don't want to hassle with it, myself included.
Third, you're asking people to cough up $8,200 cash. The percentage of people who can fork over that much cash without financing is fairly small-that's where a dealership will be able to sell it where you would not. Not very many folks actually save up for and pay cash for a vehicle these days, and if they do they don't want a little shoebox car.

It's not unusual to see cars sit on a dealers lot for a couple months at a time, sometimes more than that. You can have patience, and it may eventually sell. Or you can drop the price to attract more interest.
 
Originally Posted by CKN
The point being this picture was posted over a year ago. I know she isn't 13 anymore!


I just checked that thread from last year. He said she was 12. Guessing she'll be 14 next year, but what do I know.
 
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Originally Posted by maxdustington
Normal people like manuals, too. What's with generalizing people who drive manuals? Must be a bunch of manual trans-hating boring old men posting on this board!
48.gif


I'm an older guy and I drive manuals because I prefer manuals. See my signature.

I'm told that there's growing interest by young people in good performing older cars (like BMWs) with manual transmissions. I guess I'll find out if I put my BMW on the market. I'm told it's worth more than an automatic because of the manual transmission.

On a popular website that auctions interesting cars, manuals are certainly treated with respect, and occasionally there's a discussion about how some car that's offered for sale could be converted to a manual.

If the stories about "you can't get a decent price for a manual" were true I'd be in buyers heaven. But it doesn't seem that way. Good performing cars with manual transmissions are not common and might even be premium priced.
 
Around here a nice manual will probably get asking price. A lot of farm boys and car guys want manuals. Especially a truck. Although I have a feeling it has more to do with it being a Chevy Spark at the end of the day.
 
That kind of car, I wouldn't want the Auto. I would buy the stick.

Sparks are banned from being used as Uber cars, makes them even harder to sell.
 
I just sold a Nissan Altima recently. A very nice and clean but boring family sedan, 4 1/2 years old with 50k on it. I advertised it on CarGurus and Facebook Marketplace. I got absolutely no traffic from CarGurus, and a lot of bogus offers from FB. Either lowball offers from used car dealers who promised me that I would never get what I wanted for it, or dummies who offered me 10% of what I wanted.

I didn't need to sell the car immediately, so I just I just waited patiently, After 2 months, I got a serious offer - the kid test drove it and loved it. A few days later he gave me a cashier's check, and I gave him the keys.

The key to the process is to be patient. Ask a fair price, get the word out, and eventually you and the next owner will find each other.
 
Originally Posted by sdowney717
I had chevy vegas with manuals, fun to drive but cheap vega like cars dont attract buyers unless sold cheap.



That was because of the idiotic Teflon coated cylinders. Otherwise they were a good car. My 72 GT was the replacement for my aging Camero. Why did I ditch the camaro, :
smirk2.gif
the auto tranny started slipping! Fantastic car but for the engine. :crush


People are starting to want Standards again. You can thank CVT And the wonderful EPA. A few Years ago you couldn't find a standard in most dealers lots in most models to test drive. Now you can find them and every lot in my experience. Folks who aren't urban want them for the reliability.
 
Originally Posted by Chris142
Originally Posted by Gasbuggy


Sparks are banned from being used as Uber cars, makes them even harder to sell.

Why is that?


From what I just found, Uber requires their cars to have 5 seatbelts. Apparently the Spark has only 4.
 
I learned to drive a manual . Mom and Dad's first car with an automatic was a Ford 69 Galaxy 500 . I later bought a 70 Ford Custom .

I drove delivery trucks for a few years , a LONG time ago . They were all manuals with 2 speed rear axles .

I could still drive a manual if I needed to . Just do not want to . Although they potentially can get better MPG . And potentially can be more reliable .
 
Originally Posted by Al
I have my '16 Spark listed at $8200 I have had inquiries but the problem is that is manual transmission. MSRP was $13,500 .


MSRP was 13.5k, but did you get a smoking deal on it? If so and you want it gone and don't need every last dollar you can give someone else a deal and be done with it. Or wait for just the right buyer to come along.
 
I think $4k or so is probably all you can expect out of it. It's not a particularly popular model and doesn't really stand out in the segment. Cars like that depreciate in a big hurry. The manual transmission probably doesn't help but I think the type of car itself is what is really making it harder to sell. Consider holding onto it until tax time rolls around again and you may luck out and find a cash buyer willing to spend a little more for it.
 
Originally Posted by Driz
Originally Posted by sdowney717
I had chevy vegas with manuals, fun to drive but cheap vega like cars dont attract buyers unless sold cheap.



That was because of the idiotic Teflon coated cylinders. Otherwise they were a good car. My 72 GT was the replacement for my aging Camero. Why did I ditch the camaro, :
smirk2.gif
the auto tranny started slipping! Fantastic car but for the engine. :crush


No teflon coated cylinders. ALUSIL as used by Porsche and Bmw and Mercedes.

Problem was undersized cooling system and valve guide wear and seals on the "new" OHC. Plus stupid iron head on Al block.
 
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