How to Know when it's Time to Sell your Old Car

How to Know when it's Time to Sell your Old Car

Posted on October 8, 2021

Some people view their cars as forms of transport and one of life’s conveniences. Other people have a much deeper, more emotional connection with their cars. It’s this latter group that generally have the most trouble selling an old car.

It’s this group we’re talking to today. We’re going to discuss how to tell when it’s time to say goodbye to your old friend and sell your car to a dealership.

Here are some signs that it’s time to move on.

Car no longer delivers what you need

If your life has changed, your current car may no longer deliver what you need. For example, if your family has grown or shrunk, you have a new job that requires going off road or towing trailers, you took up jet skiing and need something bigger to tow it.

Our lives change continually and vehicles don’t. What you buy is what you get. Like any good relationship, if you don’t grow and evolve together, you’ll grow apart.

Car costs more to run than an auto loan

If your car requires a lot of oil, is thirsty and drinks gas, or requires a steady flow of replacement parts, it’s time to sell. That’s especially true if your running costs are anywhere close to the cost of an auto loan.

It would be better to sell your car and put the money towards a new car.

Car is giving you a reputation for being unreliable

A non-monetary cost of an unreliable car is when it lets you down when you need it most. You’re late for work, the kids are late for school, you’re late for the game, you don’t turn up when you’re supposed to because your car won’t start or breaks down.

This kind of thing can have far reaching consequences for your life and for relationships and nobody wants to be known as unreliable!

If you can never predict whether your car will start or get you there on time, it’s definitely time to think about a change!

More time in the shop than on the drive

This point is linked to running costs but is more about availability. If your car spends more time in the shop than driving you around, it’s time to change.

A car should always be there. Always ready to serve and always ready to go when you need it. If the car isn’t available because its in for its latest set of repairs or it had to get towed because it broke down, it’s time to change.

You grew apart

If you have a perfectly good car but just don’t like it any more, that’s also a credible reason to change it. We go through periods of growth and change in our lives and this is one of those times.

Whether it let you down once too often, you no longer like the design, you want newer or better safety features or something else, it’s a good time to change.

If any of those things seem familiar, we’ll buy your old car!

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