Can't Sell My 318 Bmw 01

jus

IM TRYING TO SELL MY 01 BMW 318 FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE IT ON THE CARZONE,BUY&SELL AND C.B.G AND NOBODY HAS EVEN LOOKED AT IT I'VE ONLY GOT 4 CALLS MAX. THE CAR ITSELF IS EX.COND 2YR NCT AND TAXED? BUT STILL NO BITS ANY IDEAS WOULD BE OF GREAT HELP!:cool:

mick.fr

Link to your car buddy, carzone.ie or other?
Thanks

lafors

jus wrote: »

IM TRYING TO SELL MY 01 BMW 318 FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE IT ON THE CARZONE,BUY&SELL AND C.B.G AND NOBODY HAS EVEN LOOKED AT IT I'VE ONLY GOT 4 CALLS MAX. THE CAR ITSELF IS EX.COND 2YR NCT AND TAXED? BUT STILL NO BITS ANY IDEAS WOULD BE OF GREAT HELP!:cool:

Maybe you ad on Carzone is in caps too, which is really annoying, so they don't even read it

Cyrus

you'll find its two things (or it normally is) rubbish pictures and too high a price

show us a link maybe we can help

Bob_TG

Try reducing your advertised price by 10-20% below the competition. This should encourage more calls and then you can say that there are offers already above the advertised price. You don't have to accept the lower prices, but will create the opportunity to engage in a sales dialogue with potential buyers.

jus

BMW 318 2 YR NCT LOTS OF EXTRAS EX.CON (2001)
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=753814

jus

the price is alot lower then the rest and i think the pictures are good quality

kleefarr

Has it had a respray?

Cyrus

hmmm, its not crazily priced, to be fair its a totally bog standard 318i saloon, maybe there is not a big market for them, seems most want the coupe, not sure what you can do, maybe try forums like this and bmwdriver.net

mick.fr

Your car seems to be very clean and the price looks good compared to the other 318i.
I am not sure why people are not interested, probably because there is way too many of them on the market.
Good luck with the sales.

jus

no respray it just a clean car

lafors

Just being picky here, but just trying to help you, the pics of the interior have a date stamp written in on them....well over a year ago, maybe retake them?

kleefarr

Only asked because the blue on the door pillar looks a lighter shade than the other blue in the pics. Probably just the light.

jus

yeah the camera i had the date was not set il have to change that one cheers.

JohnCleary

Market flooded with BMW's from the UK atm... I know because I imported a BMW myself from the UK. TBH i'm glad i'm not selling it (and dont intend to for quite a while, keep a clean one when ya get it!) as there's just too many for sale atm

JohnCleary

alan4cult wrote: »

2 Owners maybe causing some problem?

It's 6 years old, nothing strange about changing car's every 3 years (my oul man does on new cars for warranty issues - I think he's crazy)

milltown

UK import?

Usually the case with electric rear windows and parking sensors. To be fair, it is reasonably well specced for a 318 saloon but some people are put off by imports due to doubts over the car's history. Others just don't like paying (roughly) Irish prices for a car they know can be got cheaper, even if they are too lazy to go over and get their own.

Might be worth taking a leaf out of the property market's book; take it off the market for a month or two so people who have been keeping an eye out don't start to wonder why it's not shifting. It's probably not going to shift this side of christmas anyway, unless you drop the price another bit.

Sorry I can't offer any silver bullets. Good luck with the, eventual, sale.

JohnCleary

milltown - In fairness a HPI can be done on a VIN so no doubts about car's history there (well, to a certain extent)

Although I can totally see your point, people probably think the seller is just trying to make a quick buck.

OP: Is it your own car or are you just selling it to try and make profit? (I'd hope not as you'd wanna be buying a high spec in the first place)

If it's your own car that you've owned just add a quick note like "Selling due to upgrade" or something to make it sound like your own, rather than a potential profit maker

JHMEG

Mileage and price are too high. I couldn't imagine myself paying that kind of money for a car that's so close to the 100,000 mile silver bullet (silver bullet to value that is).

Andrewf20

Theres no mention of service history, and Id take out the comment about "1st to see will buy". Thats turns some people off. Looking at carzone, theres hundreds of 318's meaning theres plenty of supply to fight against.

optiplexgx270

Decent spec, only 2 things i'd miss would be sports seats with/without leather and i'm not a fan of those wheels. I'd throw these on it:

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=758103
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=689729

But i guess ~350 is a lot so spend when selling then again you could then sell the old alloys.

Also no sign of service history.

Best bet at this stage is delete the add and make the changes listed above by everyone re pics and descriptions and relist. A lot of people use the cars added in last 2 weeks month or whatever.

Lex Luthor

Maybe its snobbery, but I can't see too many BMW owners wanting to buy a 'CN' plate?????

Anan1

It's a poorly-written ad, the pictures are awful, there's absolutely no mention of a service history, the mileage is high, and the car is on Cavan plates. Spelling mistakes, mention of 'spot lights', 'mud guards' and the word 'clean' will all put potential buyers off too. I'd recommend new pics, rewriting the ad and having someone else proof-read it. If that doesn't work then it's time to start reducing the price, i'm afraid.

what_car

jus wrote: »

IM TRYING TO SELL MY 01 BMW 318 FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE IT ON THE CARZONE,BUY&SELL AND C.B.G AND NOBODY HAS EVEN LOOKED AT IT I'VE ONLY GOT 4 CALLS MAX. THE CAR ITSELF IS EX.COND 2YR NCT AND TAXED? BUT STILL NO BITS ANY IDEAS WOULD BE OF GREAT HELP!:cool:

maybe its the phrases you have in your ad, when i see these i just laugh.,.

" first to see will buy" in your case not buy....

"very clean car" makes me think something is up...

just include all the info on the car, no statements like above, just factual information, include loads of pictures, dash etc, not just loads of outside the car. when taking photos, try and have a good background....

what_car

Lex Luthor wrote: »

Maybe its snobbery, but I can't see too many BMW owners wanting to buy a 'CN' plate?????

the same applies to DUB plates!!:D

when i think of DUB plates, i think of cars sitting in traffic, stop start, extra wear on the clutch, etc etc:D:p

xabi

Im in the same boat as yourself OP, finding it difficult to shift my 320, might have to wait until the new year and trade it in. In my case its probably the engine size thats putting people off. Anyone fancy a comment on my ad?

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=801164

X.

Henry Ford III

jus wrote: »

IM TRYING TO SELL MY 01 BMW 318 FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE IT ON THE CARZONE,BUY&SELL AND C.B.G AND NOBODY HAS EVEN LOOKED AT IT I'VE ONLY GOT 4 CALLS MAX. THE CAR ITSELF IS EX.COND 2YR NCT AND TAXED? BUT STILL NO BITS ANY IDEAS WOULD BE OF GREAT HELP!:cool:

4 calls is a good response. Your job from that point onwards is to get them come and view/test drive the car.

How many of the 4 enquiries did you convert to viewings?

p.s. Your ad. needs rewriting. Reasons given by others above.

Eoin

optiplexgx270 wrote: »

Decent spec, only 2 things i'd miss would be sports seats with/without leather and i'm not a fan of those wheels. I'd throw these on it:

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=758103
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=689729

But i guess ~350 is a lot so spend when selling then again you could then sell the old alloys.

Also no sign of service history.

Best bet at this stage is delete the add and make the changes listed above by everyone re pics and descriptions and relist. A lot of people use the cars added in last 2 weeks month or whatever.

Good price for those wheels - don't think the lights will fit on the pre-facelift e46 though.

OP - if you're desperate to sell, then you'll just have to drop the price considerably. There are lots of threads here recently from people wondering why they can't sell their car - it's a pain in the hole to sell it privately, probbaly more so as we approach the new year and people wait for the prices to drop.

sk8board

what_car wrote: »

maybe its the phrases you have in your ad, when i see these i just laugh.,.
" first to see will buy" in your case not buy....
"very clean car" makes me think something is up...

I'd agree with what_car, and add to the list the mentions of
- "lovely car to drive"
- "any test welcome"
- "well worth a look"
- "priced to sell"
- "great car!"
- "best offer secures"
- "*** VERY CLEAN CAR ***"

Its a heck of a lot of positive comments about just one car. Its a nice car btw, the CN wouldn't put me off at all, and well priced. I think its just you're wording.

also, if i was interested, I'd defo give you a call, cause the ad's also strikes a bit of desperation to sell, and a much lower offer would secure.

optiplexgx270

xabi wrote: »

Im in the same boat as yourself OP, finding it difficult to shift my 320, might have to wait until the new year and trade it in. In my case its probably the engine size thats putting people off. Anyone fancy a comment on my ad?

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=801164

X.

Better interior shots for a start, full dash and seats etc.

junkyard

No disrespect but it's a dowdy colour and very basic spec. tbh and as others have said the markets flooded. That car will sell for about 9500 euros max and if I was you I'd price it right to sell before Christmas or else it's a year older and worth far less again. It's up to you to sell the car when you get a call and present the car well. I find carzone.ie great for selling cars and generally sell to the first caller if they're genuine.

optiplexgx270

I disagree re the spec. Colour: not great but are worse. A lot of 318's out there do not have cruise, PDC and climate. And i don't see any '01 318 on carzone with that spec anywhere near 9500 inc VRT...

Oh BTW OP

Isn't it the SE spec? you don't mention in the title it is a SE...? Could make quite a difference

Your title is not great:

"BMW 318 2 YR NCT LOTS OF EXTRAS EX.CON"

"BMW 318i SE" Would be a LOT better. Hate the term "LOTS OF EXTRAS" and "Ex. CON" in titles. I want to know what the car is from the title, i tend to ignore the titles trying to make is stand out.

mikemac

Sorry to be offtopic but what exactly does "first to see will buy" mean?

Does it mean the seller will not tolerate timewasters and if you arrive to view the car then you'd better buy or else?

CarLover

xabi wrote: »

Im in the same boat as yourself OP, finding it difficult to shift my 320, might have to wait until the new year and trade it in. In my case its probably the engine size thats putting people off. Anyone fancy a comment on my ad?

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=801164

X.

The pictures are dreadful. Anyone looking to buy a 2.2 straight 6 wants to see decent pictures as it's a bit of an enthusiasts car given the petrol consumption.

Seats, dash..even back seats. The only side view pic you have is warped...not good.

Those alloys aren't great but you're unlikely to want to buy new ones at this stage.

Hmmmm....the price could be a little high given the mileage! I'd want to see it as a serious bargain myself with 90k on the clock...

bazz26

That 318i looks like it was possibly a UK import. Rear electric windows, climate control, PDC and MFSW were all rare enough on Irish spec models at the time. If there is no service history mentioned with the car then it might put buyers off.

Generally there are alot of used cars coming in from the UK which are clocked with dodgy service histories especially the likes of BMWs and Audis so alot of buyers simply don't want to take the chance of being caught. BTW, I am not saying the OPs car has been clocked.

Remember also that alot of people now are going over to the UK and bringing home a used car themselves so your competing against that too.

clevtrev

I sold a number of cars over the last few years and never had any success advertising on the web - tried Carzone and all I got was competition websites trying to get me to list the car on their sites!

Best place I have found for generating calls and interest was by advertising the car in the irish independent / herald (although Im sure for a BMW the Irish TImes might be better) . Although as one of the other posters stated it may now be starting to get tricky to sell before the Christmas - most people aren't looking to buy this time of year.

junkyard

optiplexgx270 wrote: »

And i don't see any '01 318 on carzone with that spec anywhere near 9500 inc VRT...


.

Just because you don't see them there doesn't mean they're not out there, people will deal, the markets flooded with them, it really really is, I haven't imported one in 3 years because of this. The only cars that command a high price are well spec ed cars with low mileage, full service history and good colours. Well spec ed cars have M-tec bumpers etc., xenon headlights, leather seats and genuine stylish alloys, not just park sensors, a front centre armrest and a multi-function steering wheel.

optiplexgx270

I didn't say its well spec'd but at the same time it is not "very basic spec". Very basic spec would be A/C, front electric windows and that's about it.

Main problem i would have personally would be the fact it's just pre facelift and the newer 2.0 engine. and i really don't like those wheels. (for about 1k more asking there is a decent looking '01 318 SE with facelift - Same wheels though )

And i stand by €11750 being a fair asking (starting) price.

junkyard

optiplexgx270 wrote: »

And i stand by €11750 being a fair asking (starting) price.

That was a fair price a year and a half ago, things have changed, there are more 3 series BMW's around now than Ford Mondeos and this has to reflect on the prices, it's pretty obvious really, supply and demand and all that.

unkel

I agree with many of the points made, especially this one:

junkyard wrote: »

tbh and as others have said the markets flooded. That car will sell for about 9500 euros max and if I was you I'd price it right to sell before Christmas or else it's a year older and worth far less again

BostonB

clevtrev wrote: »

I sold a number of cars over the last few years and never had any success advertising on the web - tried Carzone and all I got was competition websites trying to get me to list the car on their sites!

Best place I have found for generating calls and interest was by advertising the car in the irish independent / herald (although Im sure for a BMW the Irish TImes might be better) . Although as one of the other posters stated it may now be starting to get tricky to sell before the Christmas - most people aren't looking to buy this time of year.

I agree the newspapers have more people looking at them than the websites. I've had vastly better response from ads in the paper than on the web.

unkel

BostonB wrote: »

I agree the newspapers have more people looking at them than the websites

Blast from the past!

I'm old. You must be freekin' ancient

BostonB

unkel wrote: »

Blast from the past!

I'm old. You must be freekin' ancient

Its simply a matter of statistics. Everyone can read a paper. Not everyone has access to the web. Fewer still have frequent access, and fewer still would think of searching for cars that way. Whereas you can pick up a paper and read it on the train home etc. People who use the web a lot, like boardies, tend to be people who use the web a lot. Most people aren't like that.

Earth Worm Jim

I would say its a combination of things:

(1) Highish mileage (with no service history, has it had its timing belt done? major factor at that mileage!)
(2) Time of year (christmas only round the corner, not many ppl trowing their money around)
(3) Bigger engined cars are harder to sell with the cost of petrol/tax/imsurance.
(4) CN reg doesn't do it any favours - is it a UK import?
(5) Its priced cheap, well cheaper that its like, maybe it gives the impression that somethings wrong with it.

Though in saying that it is a nice motor and seems to be priced at quick sale price.

I would try the autotrader and the buy n sell, and maybe higher the price in line with simiar cars for sale and state that your open to offers??

Bob_TG

Jus - as a matter of interest, have you approached a dealer for an offer?

I checked it out on the ROS.ie site. It suggests the market value should be in the region of 15.5k, and as you point out there are lots of cars above your price. It might be worth checking with a dealer to get their input - also, they will give you a 'rock bottom' price.

Bob

Gregor Samsa

what_car wrote: »

"very clean car" makes me think something is up...

My girlfriend was looking to buy an Avensis earlier this year from a dealer. The guy said he had one out in the yard and described it as a "very clean car" twice.

When we went outside, the thing was absolutely manky. Caked with mud, rubbish in the foot wells and on the back seat, grime on the dash and steering wheel. When I pointed out to him that it wasn't "very clean", he replied, "Well, it will be when we clean it up". We walked away.

While (from the pics at least) your car is obviously indeed "very clean", you don't want to sound alike a dodgy car dealer. It makes it sound like you're grasping at straws trying to think of something good to say about it, and can only come up with something superficial - any car can be washed and polished. "Immacuately cared for" might be better (assuming it's true).

dubambman

Looks like the type of car im looking for, wouldnt mind taking a look sometime this week.

I might give you a shout later on.

xabi

CarLover wrote: »

The pictures are dreadful. Anyone looking to buy a 2.2 straight 6 wants to see decent pictures as it's a bit of an enthusiasts car given the petrol consumption.

Seats, dash..even back seats. The only side view pic you have is warped...not good.

Those alloys aren't great but you're unlikely to want to buy new ones at this stage.

Hmmmm....the price could be a little high given the mileage! I'd want to see it as a serious bargain myself with 90k on the clock...

What would you suggest picture wise? More close ups? What angles are best? Any tips?

X.

xabi

CarLover wrote: »

The pictures are dreadful. Anyone looking to buy a 2.2 straight 6 wants to see decent pictures as it's a bit of an enthusiasts car given the petrol consumption.

I had a 318 before the 320 and havent noticed much difference in petrol consumption. The 318 was reporting 32mpg on the OBC which i verified by doing a brim to brim on the tank. The 320 reports 30 - 31 mpg which has also been verified.

X.

BostonB

phutyle wrote: »

My girlfriend was looking to buy an Avensis earlier this year from a dealer. The guy said he had one out in the yard and described it as a "very clean car" twice.

When we went outside, the thing was absolutely manky. Caked with mud, rubbish in the foot wells and on the back seat, grime on the dash and steering wheel. When I pointed out to him that it wasn't "very clean", he replied, "Well, it will be when we clean it up". We walked away.

While (from the pics at least) your car is obviously indeed "very clean", you don't want to sound alike a dodgy car dealer. It makes it sound like you're grasping at straws trying to think of something good to say about it, and can only come up with something superficial - any car can be washed and polished. "Immacuately cared for" might be better (assuming it's true).

A description of "clean car" has nothing to do with being dirty.

It means the car has not been abused and nothing damaged, all the panels are undamaged, no scratches, tears, everything works and nothing missing off the car. That the car is in good condition, and has been maintained well.

A car can be filthy and still be a clean car. Though you won't be able to tell until its been cleaned and you can do a proper inspection.

BostonB

xabi wrote: »

What would you suggest picture wise? More close ups? What angles are best? Any tips?

X.

Copy the angles in other photos. Generally you want to see the outside all four sides, the interior front and back showing as much as possible, and the boot and engine.