For the third time in my life I am in charge of getting rid of a vehicle. In 2016 selling my 13-year-old Megane II went on surprisingly smoothly and the buyer did not even try to haggle. Last year I co-ordinated disposal of my father's 8-year-old Megane IV (which he swapped for a brand-new Skoda Scala, fulfilling, to quote him, the last dream in his lifetime). Since his vehicle was fitted with a nefarious 1.2 TCe 130 HP engine, the interest was meagre, but eventually it was purchased by AAA auto at a very decent price. The procedure went quickly (they pay with cash) and soon I could track the car being put up for sale for next nearly 100 days. Not really sure whether the trader earned much on it.
For the past year, Megane III was kept mostly to help my ex-girlfriend hone her driving skills, but with such reason to keep two cars being no longer valid, I am seeking new owner for it. I have big sentiment for this vehicle. It kept me company for more than 8 years, outlived three romantic relationships, visited several countries. So far it has been quite reliable, given its age of almost 14 years and mileage of almost 115,000 kilometres. I fear it might catch up in terms of trouble making, hence I have decided to sell it to a stranger and refuse to trade it to any of my friends (including the ex-girlfriend who had reserved the right of first refusal).
To prepare it for a new owner, it had oil, filters, brake and coolant liquid, battery changed, handbrake repaired and then the car went through MOT (no issues found). PLN 2,000 gone out of my pocket, but a new owner will be likely not to put any money into the car some time after the purchase.
I put up an ad (another PLN 100 spent), but so far the interest is not huge. I have learnt the 1.4 TCe engine, which has not caused any problems since leaving showroom, is a piece of shit, likely to fall apart after 150,000 - 200,000 kilometres, even despite changing oil every year and placid driving until the engine warms up.
I prefer to omit an intermediary, especially since I have handled all preparatory works myself, and find a private individual buyer. Consignment deal is ruled out, since I would be deprived of a car for weeks with no guarantee it is sold. Selling it to a trader is an option to be considered if I received a cash payment up-front.
In 2016 I sold Megane II for PLN 11,000, more than the equivalent of my pre-tax monthly salary then. This year Megane III, a few months older than its precedessor at the time of disposal, will definitely be traded by less than my pre-tax monthly wage. My earnings have moved on, but prices of used cars have gone up by a similar percentage as of factory-new ones.
Oddly enough, despite more advanced age and higher mileage, Megane III is in better technical condition than Megane II. The previous car was already trouble-making, Megane III is probably in the eve of becoming a time bomb. It will not require substantial financial outlays (unless its engine indeed conks out one day), but the hassle of small repairs might be bothersome.
In spite of several good memories connected with the vehicle, I strive to be an emotionless vendor. My pricing strategy is to bring down asking price by PLN 500 every eight days and be open to let a buyer beat down the settlement price by no more than 8%.
Despite my misgivings about its reliability, I sincerely hope it serves somebody well for next years, just like ex-mine Megane II does. It has not changed hands since November 2016 and keeps running until now, despite quite advanced age of 22.