ASP

There you go-learnt a new phrase today! Cheers Arthur, much appreciated. Out of interest, is it standard practise to ask the customer first what they see as a fair valuation for their car, or do you go in with a fixed price and stick to it?

Happy new year guys...just a quick thought I've had over the Christmas period. I've got a couple of cars at the moment which are more than likely going to attract somebody looking to PX their current vehicle. Being relatively new to the game, and having only stocked first time buyers sort of cars, I've never actually taken a car in PX (although every advert I've placed since I started has said PX welcome). Trading from home and keeping my overheads low, I don't use CAP or Glasses, and use autotrader search within 60 miles of my home to value the cars I buy at the block. Just wondering how you guys value PX's in the same situation as me. Do you simply do what I normally do, search AT to find retail price and then deduct to get the margin I want from their PX? I will of course be retailing whatever comes my way. Cheers in advance

I can imagine this will have an effect on auction buyers fees too. Surely they'll need to cover the lost surcharge by raising the tip for everyone, regardless of how they're paying

Happy New Year chaps

Good luck Grant Hoping to be in your position in a couple of years time after an overall successful first year of trading full time. Unit looks good Arthur. Is the plan to keep your model the same, customers buying on the basis of your vids or are you going to be changing that? I assume you tax and keep your cars on the roads around where you live currently?

They've got to make a living though I guess, what use is the pipe work without he bleed screw? ive had similar issues on a mini R50 looking for the plastic trim which goes around the bottom of the bumper and they would only sell the whole bumper. Again, main dealer part for around £50 (half of what breakers wanted for a whole bumper)!!

Cheers Grant, useful to know. Like you said, even when I'm prepping cars, I usually find new parts, if you shop around, to be as good value as used from a breakers. Esecially seen as my nearest breakers is around 20 miles away!

Interesting views guys - cheers. Seems like most of you work on similar 'rules' Am I right to assume that you can replace parts with used ones? They don't have to be new?

Agreed-a failing battery would be very annoying from a customers point of view. Interesting views guys - I wasn't PDI'ing when I sold that car, but I now use Lawgistics pads which are great, and touch wood no issues thus far. One thing which really riles me is when people text or Facebook message with issues, I find that so faceless, would prefer a call any day. I replied to a Facebook message from a lady complaining that the Mini she bought was loosing coolant, with my usual message asking them to call me to discuss further and I never received a call or any further contact from her. I assume she was trying her luck and she didn't have the bottle to call!

Recently had a guy call back a couple of weeks after buying a 2007 Astra. He'd had problems with his battery and had had to jump start the car on several occasions. He was polite and not really asking for anything but advice on what to do. I suggested he went to get the battery voltage read and go from there. Turns out the battery was completely dead (probably the original). He then called back and asked if I was willing to help towards the cost of a new battery. I offered to pay half (£40) as I put away £100 from each car for this sort of situation. Now, I made it very clear that it was a goodwill gesture and that I wasn't liable for consumable items like this, but he was nice about how he dealt with it and he left me a cracking review via Auto Trader, and was really surprised and pleased that I was willing to help. So my question is, how much goodwill do you guys show towards customers? Does it very much depend on how they go about it, do you offer none at all (give them an inch and they'll take a mile). I also feel that a small goodwill gesture like this MAY prevent him from coming back if anything further happens (perhaps a bit naive there!!)

what is your website Kenji?

You’re right Trade Vet, that clause is in the contract

Thanks for all your responses guys, it’s much appreciated. My figures might seem odd, so let me clarify a few things. I’ve only very recently starting investing in more expensive vehicles, I’ve spent most of the year buying sun £1000 vehicles, hence, I’m not yet at the VAT qualifying level. I was increasingly finding that, almost every car I was buying at this value needed serious, expensive work doing. I do everything myself, but clutches and gearbox on axle stands are not pleasent and very time consuming! I do everything myself, valeting, mechanical work etc. Im going to get rid of the three I’ve got and go backo the drawing board, search the private classifieds etc. When I’ve looked before, it seems that private sellers want close to retail money on the cheaper cars, so I guess your profit has to come from the negotiation. Whatever you can negotiate, will be your margin. Spares and repairs is something else I’m going to pursue, I’m not scared to get stuck in and I like the idea from Rory about specialising in a couple of models and really getting to know common faults. Having been hit with a couple of Corsa D head gasket failures from auction, I know them fairly well! And sorry for the gross and net confusion-business is new to me, but I want to do it properly. My overheads, although low to many of you, are still significant. £245 monthly trade insurance, plates, website management/email account I have a £3500 overdraft in the business account so this could be utilised. I think it’s only around £20 a month too

Cheers for the response...Trade Vet - I'm on the cusp of VAT registration currently - 3/4 cars and I'll be over 85k. Currently, it's almost impossible to give a weekly figure. I've been netting a minimum of £600 per vehicle, £100 of which goes into my self funded warranty pot. I'm only selling between 4/6 a month, which doesn't leave much of a wage once expenses have been taken out! Cheers Mojo, when I started out full time, I was only buying cars at £1000 or less including buyers fees, which allowed me to turn over more stock, but I was getting so many pricey problems I've now moved onto silver check assured, newer, lower mileage, FSH, pricier cars and fingers crossed, haven't had any major faults with cars bought Completely agree, feeling very uneasy with everything in these three cars. When you say blocked them, do you mean you put them through auction S&B?

Evening Chaps, Since going full time in March of this year, things have been going well (Selling bread and butter small hatchbacks and first time cars from home). However, I am struggling with cash flow and finance as a whole. Currently, I have three cars (10k invested) advertised and until one of them sells, I simply do not have the money to buy any additional stock (frustrating, seen as I have plenty of space for upto 10 at home). Essentially at the moment, I don't really have a business. As people have said before, it needs to be a production line, selling and buying X amount per week, not as and when I have the money because I've sold a car. Just curious really as to how people started, perhaps similarly from home, and how you funded your initial investment. I know 10k is nothing in this game, but that's what I had at the time and I wanted to give it a proper go full time after years of dabbling part time (Before you ask, doing everything by the book!) Two options really, look into getting some sort of finance (business loan) or go back to work for a year or two to raise what I would otherwise have borrowed. Thanks in advance guys, Alex

Haha, good post Tradex. Bit worrying that a Volvo truck mechanic wouldn't change the box and clutch himself. I've changed a clutch on axle stands on my gravel drive...

Hi JSR, I doubt the fact that it's manual is having much effect. If it was a bigger barge (E or S Class then I think it'd be more of an issue). Photo's look pretty reasonable in my opinion. You've written the description similar to how a dealer would write one. Remember that the person buying your car probably specifically doesn't want to buy from a dealer, therefore I reckon the description could benefit from more gushing text about the way you've loved and maintained it during your ownership. How have you priced it? I usually search 60 miles and take an average of similar models. Make sure it's similar to those vehicles and it will sell. More than likely just a waiting game - 2 weeks isn't a huge amount of time for a car to be advertised and to not have sold. I'm relatively new to this game, so just my two pennith worth

Little Spender, if the rent on the pitch you’re looking at is £1000 a month, how would two sales a month not be worth it? I would have thought that margins smaller than that, you’ll have an uphill battle

I don’t have a pitch, but with my margins, a couple a month would pay for rent and rates at the pitch figures you stated. Surely that would make it worth while in itself?

I guess a fair amount of thought needs to go into what you stock. For example, the guy down from me sells odd ball stuff, cars that I can imagine I'd be stuck with for a while. But he's in a small rural village, with plenty of families and older people and they obviously go down well. For me, the first time market works well for me. Plenty of fairly well heeled parents around these parts who don't have a problem spending up to £5000 on a first car for their son/daughter. Out of interest Tom, do you think the sort of stock you sell through walk on's differs to what you sell through online enquires?

I don’t have any first hand experience, but I know from talking to the garage down the road to me, he has no website and advertises nowhere online, yet turns over, at least 3 a week. They are a family run petrol station/MOT testers/repair garage so I assume will rely on customers word of mouth (same family director for the past 30 years) I spoke to him recently actually, and said that he purposefully avoided the Internet because of customers ability to compare similar cars and their prices. He openly admitted that they are marked up far too high for net advertising. For him, he can mark up a car probably £500-£750 more than I could on the basis that the customer has probably brought their car for MOT’s with him for 20 years, isn’t comparing prices and trusts him with their life!

A smaller auction house I sometimes use state that undeclared total losses are covered by their indemnity. I haven’t had this issue with them, but as it’s a family business, I can imagine that they’d be far more helpful than a national auction house. Aston Barclays T’s and C’s seem to suggest that they check the vehicles to ensure they haven’t been total losses so perhaps it would get caught before even going into auction?

Some great advice and interesting tales of woe...update, having spoken to Moto Novo again this morning they have stated that their “financial interest in the vehicle” relates to the fact that they haven’t yet been paid by AB. Once they are paid from the proceeds of the auction, the car will be removed from the HPI register as finance outstanding. AB will be paying Moto Novo today, so within 48 hours the car will removed from the register. I’m still confused as to why Moto Novo have passed their cash flow issues onto me, the little man, but there you have it!

I’ve only been trading since March this year and I’ve already fallen out with BCA met! Manheim and Aston Barclay for me

Thanks for your advice Chaps. Think the best thing to do would be to advertise the car and continue too chase Moto for the car to be removed from the finance register... like I said, this is the first time I’ve bought a newer finance company owned vehicle so it’s a new one for me!