Advertorial: tips from Motorway.co.uk on how to get your car ready for sale

Motorway provides expert advice to make more money when you sell your car.

Selling a car can be a daunting task. So, what do you actually need to do to get your car ready for sale?

LoveMONEY has asked Motorway to sell your car, to share its expert tips on how to get your car prepped and sold for a great price.

Understand your car’s value

The value of your car is affected by things like age, mileage, condition and service history – but market prices are the biggest driver.

Getting an idea of your car’s value is easy and quick. Research what your car is worth either on Auto Trader, at your local car dealership or check out a car valuation website.

A picture tells a thousand words

Taking the best possible photos of the car will improve your chances of getting a significant price. 

Put yourself in the shoes of your buyer – what kind of photos would they want to see?

Make sure you cover all angles and get good shots, both inside and out. 

Deep clean your car

What’s the first thing a car buyer notices? Whether a car has been loved. What your car looks like on the outside suggests whether the car has been looked after or neglected on the inside.

So, make sure your car is clean, both inside and out – you don’t even have to do it yourself, why not invest in valet service?

Essential DIY checks & minor repairs

Any prospective buyer will always have a good look at the interior as well as exterior of a car, looking for scratches, dents and checking that all of the main components are working. Private buyers will be on the lookout for any blemishes to lower the final sale price.

And dealers will factor in the costs of fixing anything that’s not quite right before they make you an offer. 

So make sure you conduct all maintenance checks on your car – from engine oil, lights and your audio system to your tyres.

This should prevent buyers from chipping away at the price at the last minute.

Don’t forget the service history

Your car’s service history is an important factor when it comes to making that sale.

Where you get the car serviced can make a big difference to the price dealers are willing to pay for it.  In the first five years of its life, make sure it’s serviced regularly and by a franchised dealer rather than independent services.

Some franchised dealers can only buy cars with a full-service history from franchised outlets.

So, if you go somewhere else, you are reducing the buying pool when you come to sell it. It’s worth the extra £100 to get it serviced somewhere franchised.

Get your paperwork in order

It’s essential to have some key items to complete a car sale and avoid losing any value from missing keys and paperwork.

Make sure you locate all your car keys, your V5C document, plus your service and MOT history. If you’re missing any of these, a buyer will have a good case to drop the final price offered.

Think about how you want to sell your car

If you want to secure the highest price try selling privately on sites like Auto Trader or eBay – but be prepared for potential long selling times, showing the car to several prospective buyers, bartering and no guarantees of a sale happening.

For speed, sell your car fast to an online buyer or specialist dealer or you can part-exchange it for your new car at a dealership.

If you decide to sell your car online, make sure you are informed and consider your options before making a decision.

Motorway allows you to sell your car for free without ever leaving your home. Receive your highest offer from 5,000 dealers.

Motorway will find the dealer who’ll pay the most for your car, with no hassle.

You only need to enter your reg to get an instant real-world valuation, then receive the highest price from their network of dealers.