[JK330i]

Hey,

So, trying to sell my '05 330i on Autotrader.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...01704254789262

Its been on there about 5 weeks now. Just getting the occasional email, but nothing more.

Am actually considering listing the Legacy estate i've bought as a replacement, as the 330i is so much the better car, and i can now live without an estate.

For a 12 year old, the 330i is in great shape, drives absolutely perfectly and has the Audiofile hi-fi too!

Can't give it away. Be as brutal as you like, i wont take it personally

Too expensive?

Wheels too gangsta?

[sam1er]

I would say its the wheels. Although very nice black wheels are not to everyones taste and looks too aftermarket for most people. A decent set of genuine msport rims would help sell the car. Also the advert is missing some of the basics - list out the spec although it may be standard, alot of people dont know what comes standard. Most prospective buyers like to know condition of tyres, brakes, when was it last serviced and how long till the next one. The car looks really clean and should sell easy. I think you have priced it well looking at other cars from similar age/milage

[JK330i]

Hi Sam, thanks for taking the time.

Will look more closely at spelling out the obvious (to me) in the ad. Other than wheels, its fsh and completely standard. I personally love how the wheels look, but appreciate they may not be for everyone.

I have considered buying a set of mv3's to return to standard, but finding ones without cracks is challenging!

Other feedback welcome, should anyone feel like contributing.

[R6HNN]

This is just my opinion but...

Autotrader isn't the best place to sell a car that isn't "run-of-the-mill", so your mods aren't valued there.
I would say people have a negative stigma towards a car that has had wheels and an audio upgrade (despite the fact that it's an amazing bit of high end kit), and assume it's been owned by someone who's a bit of a rudeboy and goes to car cruises at southend.

I think you'd be better off replacing the wheels with some OEM BMW wheels, and selling the wheels you have separately.

In all honesty, I'm tempted to buy it for the Mrs but it's just out of my budget!

I hope you don't take my comments badly, and good luck with the sale!

[hazkirby]

This is a bargain !

Would echo what others have said though about the alloys.

[Benplym]

I've had this problem twice. The last one was my e93 330i. Had avantguard gloss black 3 month old wheels with new Michelin pilot super sports all around, EVERYONE used to comment and stare with the other mods it looked wicked but not one call on auto trader in a month. So I brought some used 313's with budget tyres, put the price up slightly to try and cover the cost....... sold the day I changed the pictures at the asking price. Madness.

[JK330i]

Thanks R6 and Haz!

Facts are that its a completely standard 330i Msport that i bought from my best mate who had fitted the alloys. The car is so smooth and quiet that i let Audiofile do their magic and have left it at that.

Good to hear the price is about right. Will look more into trying to find some MV3's. Could get £400 or so for the wheels, so would end up about like-for-like overall....if i can find any without cracks!



Noted re the rude-boy. I'm 47, so will take that as a massive compliment

[JK330i]

Ben - there you go, looks like i'm in the same boat you were!

This fit via Audiofile is now £2k. I was hoping peeps might take that into account......maybe not.

[Digitalize]

I have a modified car and I'd still probably not buy one modified even as lightly as this.

Seems fairly high priced to me, low mileage which is a plus but basic interior etc.

[Rustymage]

I saw yours when I was selling mine.

It was a tough sale for me and I got 5850.

During the 10 days advertised I got 750 views before anyone contacted me.

I'd be put off by the wheels and modifications. But I'm not sure it's worth buying other wheels to increase the price?

[neo61uk]

Hi mate.

I just sold two of my beemers last month. Both on autotrader.
One was 15' f31 and other 13' f21.

From my little experience:

- The less you mention aftermarket stuff the better
I know you are trying to be honest but it doesn't work when selling cars. You will never get your money for it, and half of them will be put off.

- replace the aftermarket info with all the stock standard bits. Like abs, electric windows, great tyres, fresh brakes, no money to spend for long etc.

- You may have to change wheels to stock, like I did. Had to buy new ish set from eBay for my f31 so the buyer has stock look 😖
Good thing is I had a set for my next car ready as they fit all 3 Series.

However if you change all the other info like suggested I would keep the wheels for now as it may go as is.

- remove all aftermarket bits that can be removed without braking anything and sell on ebay. Music device etc.

- based on my experience people are checking with autotrader what is the suggested price for it.
And they stick to it!!
If autotrader says your car is worth £4600 they won't pay much more than that.
You can try ebay or other sites, thing is Autotrader is best for selling cars full stop. But You have to be prepared to go lower with price.
When selling my wife's f21 two customers came in and said.
" According to autotrader it's worth £10500 and that's what I'm prepared to pay"
Lmao - Price was £750 higher than that so I told them to piss off.

That's my experience, very recent, so if it can help you in any way, be my guest.

Good luck

[EditionMsport]

An alternative to replacing the wheels would be to have them re coloured i suppose.

[neo61uk]

I think it's easier to buy a cheap set of genuine and replace, and sale those to get money back.
Rather than repainting.

But If you have BMW centre caps, that would help keeping them on a car!

[tadaska]

I personally only buy cars that are bog standard. Aftermarket wheels, body kits, audio systems, you name it, I wouldn't touch it. If I want a mod I do it my self. And if I was selling that car I would sell the wheels separately and fit some M Sport wheels on it. And then the audio system... that narrows it down to people who want that and don't want the trouble of doing it themselves. But other than those two things the car looks superb.

[neo61uk]

Originally Posted by tadaska

I personally only buy cars that are bog standard. Aftermarket wheels, body kits, audio systems, you name it, I wouldn't touch it. If I want a mod I do it my self. And if I was selling that car I would sell the wheels separately and fit some M Sport wheels on it. And then the audio system... that narrows it down to people who want that and don't want the trouble of doing it themselves. But other than those two things the car looks superb.

Kinda weird

So you say that if the car has an aftermarket wheels that you acctually like,you still wouldn't touch it?

[Dann]

IMO
Change the wheels, they will put a lot of people off.
Remove the stereo

Clear the check control light and show the MPG on that display rather than avg speed.

Other than that pictures look okay, write up needs more detail about the car and less about the "mods" (as above)
Get rid of "regularly cleaned and waxed" as it doesn't fool anyone and everyone says it.

[JK330i]

All, thanks for your contributions.

I'll amend the ad text to tone down the "mods" side.

Also, noted re check control (key power low), and will show mpg.

Am now really seriously thinking about listing my other car, a stock Legacy.

Will let the 330 advert run and see what happens. If it stays, i'll find some oe alloys to go with it in the future.

Thanks again

[djgandy]

I can only really echo what others here have said.

Sell the car not the aftermarket parts. Go into detail on when next service is required etc. List the spec of the original car.

Most people barely read a line these days. Your current advert draws attention to the stereo instead of the spec.

[neo61uk]

Originally Posted by djgandy

I can only really echo what others here have said.

Sell the car not the aftermarket parts. Go into detail on when next service is required etc. List the spec of the original car.

Most people barely read a line these days. Your current advert draws attention to the stereo instead of the spec.

^^^^
What he says

[ShoCk_]

When i'm buying a car I'm looking at the photos and how the car looks. So I don't care if I have to read an essay ... the photos / aesthetics of the car talk to me If I like what I see, I carry on reading.

I sold my last four cars via a car forum, ebay and piston heads. All four were modified. And they sold within 4 weeks.

Autotrader has never worked for me.

If you want to sell the car quickly I would put on stock wheels. I moved on to BMW from a VW Golf because I wanted a more classy / business type car. So all the mods including wheels on my BM are pretty much OEM looking with the BMW badges intact etc.

[mr_vys]

personally the mods (speakers and wheels) would but me straight off before even reading the description. Also I find that autotrader is not great for under 10k cars. I had my 325i listed on autotrader for two weeks and nothing, put it up on ebay as a classified ad and it went within a week for asking price! Ok, you do get wankers on there offering 1500 for a 4k car but you get genuine buyers there as well. Good luck with the sale bud!

[neo61uk]

Each to his own

However I don't really understand why good looking wheels and stereo upgrade would put anyone off tbh.

I agree not everyone must like the wheels.
But If the car is nice and clean, and have little distinctive upgrades, it tells me that owner took care of it, loved it, cherished and probably serviced as should.

But yes that's the reality, and if You wanna sell it quicker you should take those bits off.

Sadly as it looks good to me.