Fixing to sell vs. sell "as is"

[Lyle]

G'day all,
long time member but mainly guilty of being a lurker on AULRO. The time has come unhappily to move on my defender, I have a work vehicle, the wife has a disco and my car doesn't get driven often enough and I seem to spend more time fixing than driving, I think it is now due for a clutch and some cooling system attention, the question is from your experience will I end up better off selling as is, no REG or RWC. Or do I spend the money and time on clutch kit and flywheel, new water pump and probably windscreen etc for RWC.
Its a 2001 defender xtreme. EFS suspension. Roller drawer. mild chip. dual bats. Bullbar.
It's not that I think I'll have trouble selling it, more is it worth the time and effort?
Thanks in advance!

[Toxic_Avenger]

I'd at least sell it with rego. even if you put 6mths on it, its easier for the buyer to get it home.

If it won't make roadworthy, then you have no choice to either fix'er'up or sell as is.
For what it's worth, you will get screwed more by the buyer for an unreg, unroadworthy vehicle. It's not a 1:1 spend to sell ratio, if that makes sense.
Car may only need $500 repair and $500 rego, but its not going to drop the market value by $1000

[isuzurover]

IME vehicles with rego and RWC sell for a lot more.

Depends on what our time is worth and how much $$$ in parts and fees it will take to get it up to standard.

[Mick_Marsh]

I would also suggest it would be easier to sell in good going order than it is to sell as a doer upper.

As isuzurover says, look at the dollars.

Having said that, I may be moving one of mine on. I'll be going through the same decisions as you soon.

[BilboBoggles]

I think a lot depends on your conscience and how much you value your time...


Not meaning to be rude, but I think if you can live with yourself then you can do a few cheap repairs and flog it off. Then you will get a reasonable amount back at the expense of a buyer beware...

Otherwise you could spend upwards of $4-5k fixing a clutch / cooling system etc, and then not get that much in return. If you are going to spend that much getting ti back to good condition they it's a shame not to enjoy the benefits....

But I'd suggest getting the roadworthy before you advertise it. I got caught out with a quick RWC quote, and then after advertising for a few months I agreed on reasonable price, but when I went to get the actual RWC the damned Discovery **** it's guts out. It had had a rebuilt transmission but they had not torqued the box bolts together properly, and it blew a couple of seals... So $3500 later for a small oil leak I ended up with much at all for it...

I don';t think there is one right answer - but you also have to price in your aggravation and time sodding around getting things fixed. So in the end it might be better to put it up on gumtree as is where is.

[landy]

Just my thoughts.
1. Can you do the work yourself?
2. What is your time worth?

Regardless of method of repairs price up parts/get estimate of repairs. Look on carpoint or carsales ect and get an idea of your cars market value. Defenders hold there value and many people are looking for them. Then work out if fixing it up will get you what you want considering your time value as well. If you decide not to fix it up be honest in your ad. I'm sure you will easily move it on for a fair price.
I was in the trade for a long time. You ALWAYS have someone who thinks you're trying to rip them off but most people are fair if you are honest with them.
Being a Defender You will more than likely sell to someone who wants to build his or her own ultimate touring wagon and want yours simply because of the lower price.
As said, just my thoughts.

Cheers, and good luck!

Nino.

[steveG]

In my experience, if you've got big ticket items to fix, it's likely better to flog it as-is. If you invest a lot of money in new parts it just pushes the price up and you've got more dollars invested.
If it's just a case of a water pump and few bits and pieces and RWC then thats usually worthwhile.
Do the numbers and then add another grand on to your costs for a buffer. If it still looks better to fix up (and you have the spare cash to invest) then go for it.

Steve

[Lyle]

Thanks guys I appreciate all your input, I guess my other worry is that if I do fix it up I won't be able to part with it... I can do most of the work myself it is just the time involved I guess. I may have to get it checked over for RWC and write a list of what's required and do the math and go from there.
Cheers.

[Bigbjorn]

Are you in Queensland? If so, you need a Safety (RWC) Certificate to not only sell a registered vehicle but to advertise it for sale. If your car is old and not worth much, then professional repairs needed to get a certificate may be uneconomical. Many low value cars are offered for sale unregistered because of this. You need to carefully do your sums.