Why can't I sell my car??? (for sale, how much, buyers)

[ctmike]

I've been visiting out here from Connecticut since November, when I had bought a 2001 Toyota Corolla off craigslist. Now that I'm ready to head back to Ct., I put it for sale on craigslist a couple weeks ago and haven't gotten nearly as many calls as I thought I would get. I put it for sale at the correct kelley blue book value, and it has an average amount of miles for a 2001 (130,000) and is in excellent condition. Btw, I've sold a 1999 corolla with 136,000 miles on it for $3900 when I lived in Az. back in 2008.
Back in November it seemed like the corollas on cl were selling very quickly (I would often call to inquire about the ad only to be told that the car had sold within the first 3-4 days). So I guess my main question would be whether this time of year is bad for selling a car on Oahu. I figured since the price is reasonable and the car is cherry, it would sell within the first week, but I've only gotten 4 calls on it over 2 weeks. Should I expect an increase in potential buyers when college classes end towards the end of May? Thanks.

-Mike

[whtviper1]

You may want to put a local number instead of your Conneticut number on your ad. Looks like a huge glut of Corolla's - 25 are listed ahead of your ad just in Oahu. $3,900 seems like a lot of money for a car with 135,000 miles - if you need to move the car you might want to consider dropping the price.

[Hemlock140]

Here they are going for over $5,000, and there's one like yours but with over 200k miles for $4,000.

Maybe Hawaiians are not as into Corollas as other states.

[OpenD]

Short answer, if you're not getting calls, your price is too high.

In my experience Kelley Blue Book prices are OK for newer cars, and for dealer sales, but not so accurate for older cars and private sales. Edmunds is by far the more popular site. At the very least I'd verify your ask price against an Edmunds appraisal since that's where a lot of your potential buyers are going to look for a confirmation of value.

[newUHprof]

Originally Posted by OpenD

In my experience Kelley Blue Book prices are OK for newer cars, and for dealer sales, but not so accurate for older cars and private sales.

Agreed. I might pay KBB to a dealer, where I have some kind of recourse if the engine falls out on the way home. But I'm not going to pay full KBB value to someone on his way off the island, where I'm stuck with anything he didn't disclose. (And FWIW, I'm in the market for a used car on Craigslist right now... so it's people like me looking at your ad.)

[Becca8377]

If you really just want to get rid of the car, I'd sell it to a dealership. That's what I did when I left the island - I didn't have enough time to deal with trying to sell it myself. It was much easier to just drop it off at the dealership and get a check. Granted, it won't be as much as if you were to sell privately, but is an easy way to get rid of the car.

[HonuMan]

Originally Posted by Becca8377

If you really just want to get rid of the car, I'd sell it to a dealership. That's what I did when I left the island - I didn't have enough time to deal with trying to sell it myself. It was much easier to just drop it off at the dealership and get a check. Granted, it won't be as much as if you were to sell privately, but is an easy way to get rid of the car.

My stepson did the same thing when he moved from the BI back to the Mainland. It was hassle-free, and while he didn't get quite as much money as what it cost to replace the car with a comparable used car here, it was about the same when you factor in what shipping the car would have cost.

[whtviper1]

You can go to the Servco Toyota website and there is a section for those wanting to sell your car - you fill out the information and they'll call you/write you back - at least you'll where you stand and don't have to go to the dealership and spend time if they aren't in your ballpark.

Out of the Oahu inventory - they don't have any Corolla's over 100,000 miles though.

[ctmike]

Thanks for the feedback. At this point I'm in no hurry to leave the island, so I'll probably not try to sell it to a dealer. I'm wondering if I'll start getting more calls once the college semester ends toward the end of May?

[Becca8377]

You never said how much you're selling this car for, only the price that you sold a previous car for. I agree with others that your price is most likely too high