Selling My Fiesta

[tiggerblue10]

A chap called by earlier and said that he saw my car in the driveway and wanted to know how much I wanted it for. I was a bit dubious at first and asked him if he lived round the area and how he saw my car. He said he was giving driving lessons to his daughter when he saw it and wanted to buy a car for her.

It's a 3 door 2004 dual control 1.4 model with very low mileage due to mainly local trips and the battery has a tendency to go flat due to infrequent use

He asked me how much I want for it so I took his number and told him I'd contact him after I looked into it. Given the problems I've had with the car, should I go ahead with selling it as I rarely use it? And if I did go ahead, how much should I sell for?

[Toorak]

Did it have a For Sale sign on it? If not I’d be very wary of someone turning up on spec to ask if you will sell a car that’s not obviously for sale.

[tiggerblue10]

Nope, but it definitely does look like it's been sat there for a while.

[tiggerblue10]

And that's why I was a bit dubious.

[davebro]

"It's a 3 door 2004 dual control 1.4 model"

Does that mean its an ex driving school car where the passenger has a clutch & brake?

[Toorak]

It could be perfectly legit but it would be good to get the views/advice of others.

[tiggerblue10]

I would like to get rid of it as I rarely use it and also due to ULEZ.

[tiggerblue10]

No Dave. Its automatic but you can change it to manual but without a clutch.

[gingejbee]

Sounds dubious...but if you do sell it, make sure you have CASH in your hands before handing over the keys.

[davebro]

look on autotrader for similar cars and negotiate a price

[ParsleyDumpling]

Ford have recently announced they are discontinuing the Fiesta. As a result the price of second hand Fiestas are rising dramatically, might be worth considering?

[tiggerblue10]

I definitely won't sell if its not cash in hand.

[gingejbee]

^yes, PD, but not really going to affect a nearly 20-year old car that much!

[tiggerblue10]

I heard about that, Paisley. Maybe I should hold onto it in that case.

[237SJ]

I bought my first ever car (Ford Escort) from my sister and when I sold it (probably in the local newspaper) a man came around and bought it. He said he was buying it for his wife. A while later my friend said she she knew the man who bought it and he was a used car dealer. Sell it if you want to but don't believe he is buying it for his daughter because he is probably lying.

[tiggerblue10]

It's unlikely to be nicked as I had to disconnect the battery. The alarm kept going off every morning around 7am and that was the only way to stop it.

[237SJ]

I don't mean it will be nicked. I mean he is probably a dealer who knows he can make a profit from buying your car. Better that you get the profit than him.

[tiggerblue10]

Yeah, I know, I just thought I'd mention it, that was all.

The guy was a bit pushy, come to think of it.

[Canary42]

DON'T TOUCH IT WITH A BLOODY BARGEPOLE.

Excuse the shouting but IMHO this smells highly suspicious.

[tiggerblue10]

That's what I'm now thinking, Canary.

[Canary42]

I may be over-reacting because I've just today fallen victim to a builder's scam, so I'm feeling bitter (and stupid).