Selling a car on Ebay.....

[koosh]

I am currently looking for help regarding putting a car up for sale on Ebay, wondered if anyone here has had the experience? Seems like there is multiple choices on how to list it, or should I forget that scenario and go with Craigslist?
No reserve?
No reserve with a starting price?
Reserve no starting price?
Reserve with a starting price?
Classified ad?
Pretty sure I WONT be doing no reserve....
Any help is appreciated!

 

[chryslerfat]

Check completed auctions to get a feel of what they are bringing on Ebay. If it looks to be more than what you want you could chance no reserve. I have seen reserve and 100 start bid go up and meet reserve. I have seen a high start price with no reserve get no bids. I would list at a reserve with a start bid of 100 dollars and see if it meets reserve. It seems to me that if a couple guys want it they will bid more against each other rather than a high start bid.

 

[Lenny B]

When I list on Ebay, I usually list it as a "Buy It Now" with the "Make Offer Option". I also list it on Craigslist as well. If it sells locally, I just cancel the Ebay listing with the "No Longer Available" for the cancelling reason. Also, include your contact info (phone number) in your add on Ebay. Often buyers will call you to come out and see the car if they are in your area, and then just buy it outright.

 

[Fran Blacker]

Chryslerfats good advice. You should have an idea what's the least you'll take. Don't forget ebay and P/P FEES, 10% ouch.

 

[koosh]

Great advice guys...Lenny, when you use "buy it now", I assume that is your reserve? Do you usually get that price?
Fran, I"ll have to re-read those Ebay fees, I thought it was $129 to sell a car, and that was it?

 

[Fran Blacker]

Great advice guys...Lenny, when you use "buy it now", I assume that is your reserve? Do you usually get it that price?
Fran, I"ll have to re-read those Ebay fees, I thought it was $129 do sell a car, and that was it?

Your right.

 

[Lenny B]

Great advice guys...Lenny, when you use "buy it now", I assume that is your reserve? Do you usually get that price?
Fran, I"ll have to re-read those Ebay fees, I thought it was $129 to sell a car, and that was it?

I usually have in mind what I want for the car. An example is the 68 Coronet I posted here a few weeks back. I wanted $6,000 or better. I posted it as a "Buy it Now" for $8,000 with "Make Offer". A guy offered me $7,500 so I excepted it. I would determine what your bottom mark is and price it a bit higher so everyone is happy in the end. Just be realistic to what it's worth and be patient when dealing with buyers.

Also, I believe the "Buy it Now" listing cost $15 to post it for 10 days and you pay a commission if you sell it through Ebay. I'm not sure what the final fee is because so far all the buyers have called with questions and then come over to look at it and then pay me cash. Even if it's a few hundred bucks, to me it would be worth it because you only pay it if they pay for it through ebay.

 

[Qbrozen]

I think some of it is personal preference. I personally hate hidden reserves, so every car I have listed on there had a starting price of my minimum acceptable selling price (plus all the damned fees). IIRC, it is cheaper to have a higher starting price than to have a reserve. My BIN is my asking price, plus fees. In other words, my CL price is lower than my FeeBay price.

 

[Scatransit]

All good advice....also, pictures are the KEY to selling a car. Pictures should be clear (wipe the lens), in focus, well centered, & have indirect lighting. Try to shoot in mornings or at sunset, and avoid direct sunlight. Cloudy days bring out the details best because the light is even. Avoid shadows and vertical objects in background such as telephone polls, etc.

 

[TxDon]

I have bought a number of cars on Ebay and listed a few but never actually sold through them. I think the decision where to advertise depends on the car and what you need from it. If it is basic transportation at a low price Craigslist is probably best if you can stand all the texts with lowball offers. If it is a nice car, semi-collectable but still reasonably priced Ebay is a good way to go. Determine the lowest price you will accept and either use that as starting bid on a straight auction or as your reserve price. You can also set a higher Buy-It-Now price with best offer and set it so you review all offers. My experience is that most Ebay shoppers are bargain hunters - the other downside is that there are a lot of auction winners that do not follow through on the purchase. If you have a really nice, rare, restored car and are looking for top dollar I would advertise it in Hemmings online and print ads. It may take awhile to sell but you will get a lot of serious buyers looking. As far as fees you will need to pay them for serious advertising anywhere. Good luck!

 

[koosh]

Appreciate everyone's advice......thankyou

 

[Bb70charger500]

I bought a car locally off C.L. girl was in a tight spot needed it gone asap blown motor .... she wanted $300 I bought it to help her out I was going to scrap it to get my money back ! My wife said try eBay first . I put it up at $300 starting bid no Reserve .. it sold at $1800 . But buyer fell off the face of the earth eBay wants to be payed still .. I relist it sold a second time at $1600 ... eBay now wants to be payed twice I payed them once they weren't happy needless to say I no longer use eBay but if it's cheaper more people get in on it !

 

[koosh]

I bought a car locally off C.L. girl was in a tight spot needed it gone asap blown motor .... she wanted $300 I bought it to help her out I was going to scrap it to get my money back ! My wife said try eBay first . I put it up at $300 starting bid no Reserve .. it sold at $1800 . But buyer fell off the face of the earth eBay wants to be payed still .. I relist it sold a second time at $1600 ... eBay now wants to be payed twice I payed them once they weren't happy needless to say I no longer use eBay but if it's cheaper more people get in on it !

I am confused. I must be reading their fees incorrectly, I thought it was $129 and only if it sells?

 

[PP1RT]

How about a pic and description here for starters? Put an ad in the for sale section under the "other" category.

 

[Bruzilla]

First thing is you need to do is set your expectations. Listing a vehicle does you no good if you're expectations of reward are too high. As has been mentioned, you need to search Completed auctions to determine what cars are actually selling for. They may list for say $25,000, but if the are selling at $10,000 the value is $10,000+/- some. If similar cars are selling for well less than you expect to get, don't waste time listing yours.

You also need to evaluate how desirable your car is. If you're selling a 69 Charger, there's going to be a lot of interest. A 69 Coronet... not so much. So you might see where two guys went head to head and auction fevered up a price sky high on a car like yours, but that's no guarantee two more guys will do the same.

Second, there are pluses and minuses to every selling format.

- If you list a car with a reserve and a Buy it Now, most people assume the amounts are the same and if the Buy it Now price is more than they want to pay they won't bother bidding, which keeps bid values low.
- Selling without a reserve will increase the number of bids, but you're going without a safety net and most sellers want one of those. And if you set a minimum bid too high, a lot of buyers won't even place a bid.

My preferred method is to list as a Buy it Now with a Make an Offer option. My BIN price is what I hope to get, but then I can review offers as they come in and accept one that works for me.