Soon I will be looking to move my Octy on to pastures new as my wife will imminently be getting her car allowance. Her 2010 Seat Altea XL Sport cr170 (54k) and my 2005 Skoda Octavia Sport pd140 (90k) will be sold privately to get the best value to put towards purchasing a VW T5 for myself.

What I want to know is, with everything I have done to my car in modifications will I achieve more than the standard What Car Valuation of £2,500 as it must be worth closer to £3,000? Or would it be better to return it to stock and sell the upgrades separately?

Depends what the mods are?

Depends on what the modifications are. 

 

There will be lots of people who will not even want to look at your car if its been modified for performance as there is an assumption that you will have thrashed it. The mods will not increase the value anyway, certainly not near as much as removing them and selling them separately.

Valuing a modified car is always tricky, as what one person classes as an acceptable mod, may not be to a potential buyers liking. Personally I would return the car to as standard as possible, sell the removed performance parts separately (unless some of them compliment others of course), and then look at what similar models have sold for, what they are advertised at, and make a decision based around those figures - remember that you won't get back what you have invested. Decide on what you would like after researching similar cars, add a small loading, say £500, and that allows the buyer to have a bit of haggling room, whilst you still get your asking price (and maybe slightly more)

 

Get it cleaned next. It's worth taking it to a proper car wash place, pay £20 or so, and get it valeted fully prior to sale. You can do it yourself, true, however I would get a "pro" to do it for selling, as they will get every nook and cranny, which an owner may miss of course (unless you are fanatical about cleaning).

 

Gather all the paperwork together, put it in chronological order (if it isn't already) This may sound a bit OCD, but when a potential buyer comes to look at it, and all the MOT's, invoices, service receipts etc are in date order, it gives the impression that the car has been meticulously maintained (even if it has, and you haven't kept the paperwork in date order - a new buyer is more confident when they can see, it's in order (hope that makes sense).

 

Refrain from highlighting any performance gains from the mods - try and avoid anything that could indicate it has been ragged, always play them down a bit. Something like "engine has been remapped for economy with a gain in performance which makes for safe, effortless overtaking and a stainless exhaust system that compliments it really well" - rather than "car has been remapped to 250bhp with a really beefy exhaust system, sounds fantastic at full throttle, and really shifts!!" - I know which one I would spend time actually looking at. It's all in the perception, put yourself in a buyers shoes/mind set and it will make sense.

 

Finally, get someone to proof read the advert, and point out anything that either doesn't make sense, spelling mistakes or just shouldn't be in there. Finally, remember to be honest about it - check the bodywork over after it has been cleaned, and make a note of any blemishes/scratches etc - gives a potential buyer less ammo to ask for a price drop with the classic "there's a small dent in the door, knock £200 off an I will take it" line.

 

Hope this helps a bit, it may make sense, it may not, but that's how I base things when selling a vehicle.

Valuing a modified car is always tricky, as what one person classes as an acceptable mod, may not be to a potential buyers liking. Personally I would return the car to as standard as possible, sell the removed performance parts separately (unless some of them compliment others of course), and then look at what similar models have sold for, what they are advertised at, and make a decision based around those figures - remember that you won't get back what you have invested. Decide on what you would like after researching similar cars, add a small loading, say £500, and that allows the buyer to have a bit of haggling room, whilst you still get your asking price (and maybe slightly more)

 

Get it cleaned next. It's worth taking it to a proper car wash place, pay £20 or so, and get it valeted fully prior to sale. You can do it yourself, true, however I would get a "pro" to do it for selling, as they will get every nook and cranny, which an owner may miss of course (unless you are fanatical about cleaning).

 

Gather all the paperwork together, put it in chronological order (if it isn't already) This may sound a bit OCD, but when a potential buyer comes to look at it, and all the MOT's, invoices, service receipts etc are in date order, it gives the impression that the car has been meticulously maintained (even if it has, and you haven't kept the paperwork in date order - a new buyer is more confident when they can see, it's in order (hope that makes sense).

 

Refrain from highlighting any performance gains from the mods - try and avoid anything that could indicate it has been ragged, always play them down a bit. Something like "engine has been remapped for economy with a gain in performance which makes for safe, effortless overtaking and a stainless exhaust system that compliments it really well" - rather than "car has been remapped to 250bhp with a really beefy exhaust system, sounds fantastic at full throttle, and really shifts!!" - I know which one I would spend time actually looking at. It's all in the perception, put yourself in a buyers shoes/mind set and it will make sense.

 

Finally, get someone to proof read the advert, and point out anything that either doesn't make sense, spelling mistakes or just shouldn't be in there. Finally, remember to be honest about it - check the bodywork over after it has been cleaned, and make a note of any blemishes/scratches etc - gives a potential buyer less ammo to ask for a price drop with the classic "there's a small dent in the door, knock £200 off an I will take it" line.

 

Hope this helps a bit, it may make sense, it may not, but that's how I base things when selling a vehicle.

Not for £20 they won't..

On a enthusiast site plenty have come up with modifications, so you could put a feeler out here ?

Not for £20 they won't..

 

They do round here - quite a few places that will do a cracking job for £20 - £25

Remove all the mods that are easy / cheap to remove.  If you have to pay somebody more than what the part is worth then it isn't worth removing.

 

I do most of my own work and I'll be leaving the vRS brake upgrade, GTI RSB and S3 intercooler on the car because you'd have to be an expert to know they shouldn't be there.

 

Will be removing the Eibach springs, Passat alloy lower control arms, hi-flow turbo pipes and GFB valve.

Thanks lads.

The main mods are:

Bilstein B12 Kit with Eibach Pro Springs.

Skoda Columbus Unit (2015).

Bluetooth for Calls and Audio Streaming.

FL Vrs steering wheel no controls.

Cruise Control.

Vrs Stainless Sport pedals.

Economy remap from Angel Tuning.

18" BBS CH Style Alloy Wheels.

312mm Front brake upgrade.

Body coloured Door rubbing strips.

New Style Skoda badges front & rear.

LED interior lights, number plate, side lights and HID headlights.

Most of the above can be returned to standard as I still have all the originals i.e. 4 spoke steering wheel, Stream stereo unit and 17" Pegasus alloy wheels which will be as new when I get them refurbished.

I've also had some warranty work done on the door sills and spoiler so they are like new.

Whoever buys it will be very happy because it runs lovely.

Edited 27 September, 20169 yr by billywhiz040480

Thanks lads.

The main mods are:

Bilstein B12 Kit with Eibach Pro Springs.

Skoda Columbus Unit (2015).

Bluetooth for Calls and Audio Streaming.

FL Vrs steering wheel no controls.

Cruise Control.

Vrs Stainless Sport pedals.

Economy remap from Angel Tuning.

18" BBS CH Style Alloy Wheels.

312mm Front brake upgrade.

Body coloured Door rubbing strips.

New Style Skoda badges front & rear.

LED interior lights, number plate, side lights and HID headlights.

Most of the above can be returned to standard as I still have all the originals i.e. 4 spoke steering wheel, Stream stereo unit and 17" Pegasus alloy wheels which will be as new when I get them refurbished.

I've also had some warranty work done on the door sills and spoiler so they are like new.

Whoever buys it will be very happy because it runs lovely.

 

To be honest, with those mods I would leave them. To me they are more cosmetic improvements (best way to put them in the advert too) and you could sell the other parts on separately instead.

To be honest, with those mods I would leave them. To me they are more cosmetic improvements (best way to put them in the advert too) and you could sell the other parts on separately instead.

What I could do is advertise it higher with everything plus the extras and offer it at a lower price in the description as standard. The Columbus and Bluetooth is £400-£450, BBS wheels and tyres £350-£400, FL Vrs steering wheel and airbag £175-£200 and Bilstein/Eibach B12 kit £350-£400. I'm thinking £2,500 standard and £3,200 as is with extras????

What I could do is advertise it higher with everything plus the extras and offer it at a lower price in the description as standard. The Columbus and Bluetooth is £400-£450, BBS wheels and tyres £350-£400, FL Vrs steering wheel and airbag £175-£200 and Bilstein/Eibach B12 kit £350-£400. I'm thinking £2,500 standard and £3,200 as is with extras????

 

It doesn't really work like that when selling privately.

 

If it's worth £2,500 standard then with all the mods it'll still be worth £2,500 or maybe even a bit less to most punters. You could try advertising on a specialist enthusiast website and eventually find someone who appreciate the mods and will pay a bit more to have them, but you might have to wait a while to find a buyer.

 

For a quick sale, I'd return it to as standard as I could.......definitely take the BBS alloy wheels off and take the Columbus out as you'll get good money for these on e-bay. 

 

As someone has said, you want to give the impression that it hasn't been ragged......and any other mods that you can reverse to give that impression will help.....I'd even be tempted to reverse the LED mods.....you'll probably be able to use them in your T5!   

Edited 27 September, 20169 yr by booke23

It doesn't really work like that when selling privately.

If it's worth £2,500 standard then with all the mods it'll still be worth £2,500 or maybe even a bit less to most punters. You could try advertising on a specialist enthusiast website and eventually find someone who appreciate the mods and will pay a bit more to have them, but you might have to wait a while to find a buyer.

For a quick sale, I'd return it to as standard as I could.......definitely take the BBS alloy wheels off and take the Columbus out as you'll get good money for these on e-bay.

As someone has said, you want to give the impression that it hasn't been ragged......and any other mods that you can reverse to give that impression will help.....I'd even be tempted to reverse the LED mods.....you'll probably be able to use them in your T5!

I'll give that some good consideration but I don't fancy returning the suspension or front brakes back to standard, I have the brake originals but not the suspension. Steering wheel, Columbus, Bluetooth and lighting etc is easily done.

I'll give that some good consideration but I don't fancy returning the suspension or front brakes back to standard, 

 

I agree.....I think reversing those mods would be more hassle than it's worth. But like you say, a lot of the others are easy to reverse. 

 

Whatever you decide.....Good luck!

I agree.....I think reversing those mods would be more hassle than it's worth. But like you say, a lot of the others are easy to reverse.

Whatever you decide.....Good luck!

Cheers, the more I sell it for the nicer VW T5 I can get.

Edited 27 September, 20169 yr by billywhiz040480

If the 17" wheels fit the larger brakes, then take down the wheels only and sell them separately.

Bigger/better radio is a good selling point but if you can revert to the original one, do it and sell the extra.

Suspensions are too much of a hassle to be changed. Keep them and either "boast" their presence or not, depending on the kind of potential buyer you're talking to.

Cruise control and bluetooth are convenient items which should help the sale, if not getting more $$$.

All other items (strips, pedals, etc.) are cosmetic changes which may meet or not the tastes of everybody. I would take them off as they won't hike the sale price nor ease the sale (but they could hinder it.)

As a general rule, any good extra would help the sale (at best) but never recover its buying cost. And, any "strange" or out of order thing could possibly hinder it (I remember when I was selling my 80's Panda and one guy even refused to test drive it because he found the spare wheel in the boot instead of its regular place on top of the engine bay. I had removed it to make a bit of maintenance and forgot to refit it but the guy looked at me like I was trying to sell him god knows which kind of lemon. Heck, the Panda was a car so plain and simple you couldn't hide any fault at all!)

Judging from the kind of mods you did, I assume your car is cosmetically well cared of. But just in case... Remember that almost all potential buyers tend to be very much influenced by highly visible and cosmetical issues, more than by substantial, "inner" things. Therefore, beside cleaning everything thoroughly, check if your floormats are ok. If they're old and tired, buy a set of cheap(ish) NEW ones. A few quids expense will make a great difference in buyer's perception.

Also, consider if your steering wheel and gear handle show significant signs of wear. This is another good reason for putting back on the OEM wheel if it's in better nick.

Edited 28 September, 20169 yr by duro