Mark101

I have exactly the same deal. Another revenue stream to compensate for some of the poorer margin cars (no one mention my Fiat 500 please )

+1 on that but I must add a caveat (applies to all warranties). A warranty will only be valid if the vehicles servicing schedule is up to date. So, on the surface 3 months warranty can look very reasonable and give both you and your buyer some comfort - however, when that timing belt snaps and the warranty company check out the history to find it hasn't been done, that bill is back on you. So, warranty insurance about £40 (nice) factor in at least a light service (if the history is out of date and something we do anyway) and maybe even a major service - suddenly, to make your warranty worth the paper it is written on - it may end up costing you several hundred pounds. I used to self insure my warranties becuase my level of claims being virtually zero. I put the money that I would have paid Warranty Holdings (remember them?) in a separate account and used this as contingency funds. Now, I don't have my own workshop or the time, staff etc to manage this effectively, so I think paying a 3rd party is the best option for me. That's my advice, rightly or wrongly.

Didn't Arthur Daley (not to be confused with our Arfur Dealy) have a pitch? Nuff said

Thanks Jacob and Arfur

very good

Hi Guys Quick question - is there a website that gives you Road Fund Licence costs per year by registrtaion number. My website defaults to zero tax. DVLA - you have to put the bloody V5 number in, reg number etc. AT - you have to find similar cars (or pay for an ad) Cheers, Mark

Bet it isn't quiet where I am going - BCA Online - NOW (oops, I'm late)

Too right "There's a cheaper one up North" Well go and see or buy that one; hope it's as clean as this one otherwise you'll have had a wasted trip and mine will still be the same price but atleast then you will understand the meaning of value over price.

I'm in a completely different league to you (i.e. have far less stock) Sold 1 and gone 99% sold another - bought specifically for someone and they are chasing me to collect (it's in prep) Enquiries are up 10 fold - but so are the messers

When will our Spring actually arrive - save for one or two days, it has pissed it down relentlessly and I think I know why. I bought a 1 Series cab a couple of weeks ago! On that one day that was sunny, I took four enquiries for that BMW including one test drive (from another timewaster whom loved it but had others to see including a hatchback). Since that day, cloudy and rainy all the time. I know it's a summer car but are people really that influenced by the weather - with live in the UK, we know summer is coming and we know it can and will rain. I tell you what, if I still have the car in say a months time, watch me + £1k it.

I am never offended, once one can admit to being fat and ugly, everything else washes off my back now. I sell the story and am upfront before people come here. They have two options as I do have the use (but I don't want to mix work with friends) of a storage unit. I say, I have two locations, one is simply a secure storage unit and I also trade from home because most of my customers like to view cars outside of business hours and they seem very happy with that. I am going through a similar thought process to you - we live in a nice road (which makes neighbours less tolerent I suppose) and are at the head of a cul de sac. Luckily we have a reasonable amount of land (about 0.5 acres) which includes an undeveloped plot which is mine. Now, do I get a pitch or unit or do I create something from home (thius adding value to my property, give me far more storage and away from neighbours)? The woods are ours too in the background, so only have one real neigbhouring property. Mrs is not too keen but only because of her allotement which we only started last year.

You'll do better going in if there's one local to you - make some BS up that you're going to buy some parts from them

I don't know for sure James (it's worked for me on my personal cars) but you're dealing in fairly late stuff, so have you tried giving the main dealers a bell with reg and VIN? Normally be on their system.

For me, I have taken the entry level package from Car Dealer 5. I am a real novice when it comes to this sort of thing, give me Excel, Word or PowerPoint and I will dance all over it but websites, blogs, social media etc and I am a dinosaur. Car Dealer 5 helped me so much, I can upgrade my package in line with business growth and it is so easy to navigate both as a site owner and, more importantly site visitors - looks alot more expensive than it was and even my techy friends say how great it looks. I see my website as a way to pull people in as it helps gloss over the fact I am a home trader. It creates the impression that I trade from a bonefide site and you can sense that mood change when you direct people to your site - they suddenly realise that you are professional trader as opposed to a jobbing trader. Also for me is the support from Car Dealer 5, they are very patient (they need to be with me) and I was fully up and running in less than 1 day of paying my invoice.

It's weird, I have a phone line at home for broadband but have never plugged a phone in. Purely in an attaempt to add credibility (as far as a home trader can), I bought a phone and plugged it in, now I can answer the phone with the company name as no one I know on a social level has my "home" number. I thought in this day and age, everyone would simply call my mobile, displayed beneath my landline but actually I couldn't have been more wrong, with atleast 80% of calls coming via the landline.

Great website, nice stock - I would publish a landline number instead of or as well as your mobile, that's my only critique

Stationery wise - Vista Print premium cards (they're ok actually) Invoices, Deposit forms, PDI sheets - all home made in Excel (I love Excel) but look the part Customer gets PDI, Invoice, Deposit Form (if applicable), Warranty Booklet and Contract and a business card all neatly placed in one of those card board A4 folder/envelope things - total stationery per car = about a quid

Welcome - these guys are great and if you take on board everything that is said, you'll do well - good luck

Exactly - finance is cheap. I look in awe at some people's websites - Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc etc and wonder, how do they ever get to this - amazing. Then............, I take a look on Companies House, see Stock of £500k ish and still think wow, scroll to liabilities (£600k) - Balance sheet -(£100k) - who's the winner - me!

Couldn't agree more, selling is easy if the car is right - challenge is buying stock at the right price and managing the costs of prep (which should be to a high standard) whilst retaining a decent margin. Having said that, seperating yourself from plastic traders whom act like trade when buying (i.e. they want trade pricing) and sell as private (i.e. no comebacks or warranty) - zero prep, zero servicing, maybe a wash if they can be bothered and happy to draw £200 over gate price. With the internet naturally creating an overly price sensitive buyer, this is my biggest single challenge. Get the customers through my door and I can sell but getting them here when cars are advertised so much cheaper is a massive hurdle. I just wish every customer would look beyond the unserviced, unwarranted, short MOT full of advisories, poor paint or unrepaired cheap crap and come and see a properly prepared, long/full MOT'd, freshly serviced, valeted, warranted and HPI clear type of cars we all sell - that doesn't come cheap but cost of ownership is beyond some peoples mentality. I feel better now

Does that work with Chrome? I'm hopeless with computers Sorted it, thanks James - it automatically blocks Flash but I have unlocked it for BCA. Roll on tomorrow

For BCA? I will try anything, it is horrible bidding without sound. Thanks

I'm really enjoying liking your posts Simon I have just bought a new computer and thought, I wonder if the like button has gone but it's still there! Only issue now is BCA Online doesn't have sound or video - they do mention newer browsers aren't supported.

That's what I paid for the last one - for the top ad (21 days, extra images and images within search)

And open the doors