Each year when you drive your old truck you have one more year you don’t have to worry about paying for a new one. Yet, with every new turn of the odometer, you’re one mile closer to big repair and maintenance expenses.
At some point, it can costs you so much to keep your old ride on the road that you’d be better off investing all of the money in a new car or truck that you’re spending at the garage There’s no magical mileage threshold which tells you that now it’s time to ditch your car.
In fact, many of today’s vehicles mostly exceed 100,000 miles without having any major mechanical problems. But if you’re being hit with one repair bill after another, selling an old truck is not an easy task but to get the most from a buyer, you must follow these steps:
Know your vehicle value
All smart decision making while selling your old vehicle starts with this. To find out what your car is worth, you can research it on an auto valuation site.
There are lots of free online valuation tools that let you do this for you. You will be asked a few questions about the year, make and model of your car, the odometer reading and the condition it’s in, making any repairs you’re planning to make into account.
(Don’t fool yourself about the condition; almost no used car is better than good and excellent condition can only apply to almost-new used cars sold by the dealers). You can also, check the prices in classified ads for similar trucks.
Make the buyer feel like a winner
Set your asking price 5% to 10% more than the amount you’ll actually accept. Then, negotiate with the buyers in small steps and let the buyer keep thinking that he got a deal paying less than the asking price.
Base your price on when you want to sell your truck
If you can wait to get top dollar then you can set the local advertised prices. But “if you need to move it soon, set the price for $9,500 when similar models are all selling for $10,000,” this way you can attract more buyers and sell your Mitsubishi truck as soon as possible
Clean it up
This will come as no surprise to you, but people always prefer to buy clean, nice-looking vehicles.
Things like stains, dirt, and crumbs would make your car look cheaper than it might really be and give the impression you haven’t kept it well-maintained.
If you don’t have the time or interest to do a thorough cleaning yourself then get your car detailed by a pro for $150 or so if the car is worth enough to justify that expense.
Fix it up
Before putting your vehicle up for sale be sure to get any minor, obvious defect fixed, such as turn lights that don’t work. Advertise online and in supermarket penny savers.
Think like a dealer and sell your used car for more by spending a few dollars on its detailing. Nearly all of the car expert sources recommend you to spend the $100-200 for its servicing.
Write an alluring ad.
Sound enthusiastic and give the facts about the make, model, mileage and condition– without over-hyping. Say something like “runs great” (if that’s true) and note any other special features, like a premium sound system. If you are the first owner, say so.
Reassure would-be buyers.
Show them records of oil changes and maintenance as evidence that you’ve kept the car well. If you recently splurged on an upgrade, like new tires, brag about it in your ad and show the receipt too.
If you are selling a car with recent recall notices like the Mitsubishi Fuso prove you had the problem fixed. For any used car, get a vehicle history report from some service listing all previous owners if any and guaranteeing that the auto hasn’t been involved in an accident or flooded.
