How much prep is too much prep??

[NCS_Pete 0]

Hello 

 

We're relatively new to the game been trading a year but we're doing well enough although its massively quietened down for January. 

We are a small family run business Mother, Farther, Two sons me being one of them. we have an on going argument about vehicle prep and condition. My Dad likes the idea of making the cars absolutely immaculate and thinks no one will buy if they're not. we still make money but it eats time and profits doing this work. I was just wondering how much prep is acceptable usually? Our cars range between 3K to 15K as a guide. obviously on the more expensive end cars sell better based on condition but at the cheaper end, do they still sell well with scuffs and bumps?. in more experienced trader opinions are we doing too much?. 

Our cars are offered with the following; 

12 Months M.O.T - 6 Months Warranty (warranty wise) - up to date service if needed - Paint Remedied to immaculate - Alloys Repaired if scuffed. 

 

Any advice is appreciated

 

Thanks       

 

      

[AutoJacob 34]

I have found that below £2K very fussy.. £2K - £3K you can get away with things like small rips in leather seats, scuffed alloys, minor dents.

[It's me 615]

walk up to each car in turn with your arms folded (as if you were the lady of the house sick of looking at cars with your husband and wishes he kept the stinky one he has already) and walk round and round the car,do the same inside then under the bonnet,can you fault it,it is quite acceptable at this stage to use your foot to point as customers invariably do 

would you buy it?

if not then mint again

my motto is if someone walks having made the journey ive failed 

dont have walkers

a vehicle can never be over cleen

i use the double mint it approach

if you dont like getting your finger nails dirty get some illegals to do the dirty work for you for the price of some belly pork then do the double minting yourself

see

easy

goodas luckas

[Nick M.K. 574]

Any prep you do over the minimum required to sell it quickly for the going retail price is effectively too much. 

Knowing where to stop takes years of trial. 

[It's me 615]

6 minutes ago, Nick M.K. said:

Any prep you do over the minimum required to sell it quickly for the going retail price is effectively too much. 

Knowing where to stop takes years of trial. 

[It's me 615]

i have just gone round a car with my pointy paint brush doing a door shut ,you never finish minting a car till its sold

its laziness to have 4 customers but only 2 like your standard

i have a reputation for mint cars,it was a long battle to get that status but its the first words that come out of customer referals mouth and i love it,if i have what they want its sold  so why break the mould

[David Ayers 171]

1 hour ago, boring dave said:

my motto is if someone walks having made the journey ive failed 

dont have walkers

Agree.

Also always bare in mind the first thing which happens when someone takes a new car home is family and neighbours want to have a look.

 

[MrV 66]

Do a smart repair course and do the paint damage yourself, personally as long as your not slicing your margin too much a car can never be too clean etc, I've never lost a sale and my personal opinion is that having a, gleaming car creates trust with the customer, they may think "wow this has been looked after, if they prep their cars to this level they must know what they are doing" etc etc

[Mark101 536]

There is no standard answer.

Mechanical prep I go OTT

Bodywork, I avoid anything that is beyond a touch in or at worst a Smart repair.

Valet and tyre shine the fuck out of everything - floor mats cover any obvious and impossible stains.

[Mojo121 229]

38 minutes ago, MrV said:

Do a smart repair course and do the paint damage yourself, personally as long as your not slicing your margin too much a car can never be too clean etc, I've never lost a sale and my personal opinion is that having a, gleaming car creates trust with the customer, they may think "wow this has been looked after, if they prep their cars to this level they must know what they are doing" etc etc

You've never made one either so that's not a valid point, sorry. 

[justlooking 48]

5 minutes ago, tradex said:

Satin black for the others

Generic satin back Rattle can or black carpet dye spray? I bloody hate cheap carpet that has ingrained dirt, recent example was a 10 plate focus. Could’ve been there for hours Hoovering. 

[Mark101 536]

10 minutes ago, tradex said:

Satin black for the others

Same but doesn't work on cream

[It's me 615]

52 minutes ago, Mark101 said:

There is no standard answer.

Mechanical prep I go OTT

Bodywork, I avoid anything that is beyond a touch in or at worst a Smart repair.

Valet and tyre shine the fuck out of everything - floor mats cover any obvious and impossible stains.

have you ever glued any mats down though on holed carpets

[MrV 66]

47 minutes ago, Mojo121 said:

You've never made one either so that's not a valid point, sorry. 

I've never made one? 

[It's me 615]

53 minutes ago, tradex said:

Satin black for the others

ive just screwed 12 cans down to £2.42 a can so going overboard this month with da spray

[Mark101 536]

8 minutes ago, boring dave said:

have you ever glued any mats down though on holed carpets

I started out doing Smart repairs - paint, windscreens, fag burns et al (only thing I could never master was PDR) - I know very well how to "hide" damaged upholstery.

Edit: sorry, that sounded arrogant and it wasn't meant like that - it should have had a  at the end.

Edited January 24, 2019 by Mark101

[It's me 615]

 

3 minutes ago, Mark101 said:

I started out doing Smart repairs - paint, windscreens, fag burns et al (only thing I could never master was PDR) - I know very well how to "hide" damaged upholstery.

Edit: sorry, that sounded arrogant and it wasn't meant like that - it should have had a  at the end.

                

Edited January 24, 2019 by boring dave

[Mark101 536]

Just now, boring dave said:

That is definately one way to hide a fag burn 

[Max Branning 149]

The more expensive the car the more prep required, this stands to reason.

On a sub 3 grand car i would say fresh MOT, good valet and maybe a service is all that's necessary.

3 grand plus and i would be looking at getting paintwork, alloys refurbed etc but at the end of the day it depends how much profit is in the car. 

Do not prep the profit out of it !

[EPV 631]

4 hours ago, Nick M.K. said:

Any prep you do over the minimum required to sell it quickly for the going retail price is effectively too much. 

Knowing where to stop takes years of trial. 

That's it in a nutshell I think. It's vague, doesn't help you but ultimately it's very true.

I pretty much mint cars up but I enjoy it, take the time to make them irresistible to someone interested and my ration of sales to viewings is about 95%. I would hate it if I was showing someone a car thinking to myself "please don't notice the bumper scuff, please don't notice the bald tyre, please don't notice the smashed alloys, please don't look in the glovebox as it's caked in crumbled peppermints"

I ask for top money relatively speaking for my stock, so I think people are entitled to expect something that looks 3 years old when it's 8 years old.

2 hours ago, MrV said:

Do a smart repair course and do the paint damage yourself, personally as long as your not slicing your margin too much a car can never be too clean etc, I've never lost a sale and my personal opinion is that having a, gleaming car creates trust with the customer, they may think "wow this has been looked after, if they prep their cars to this level they must know what they are doing" etc etc

Do a smart repair course and do it yourself!

Wait until you're stocking 12-15 and selling your forecourt regularly, you wonder how you have time to piss never mind paint

[Mark101 536]

11 minutes ago, EPV said:

Wait until you're stocking 12-15 and selling your forecourt regularly, you wonder how you have time to piss never mind paint

This.

I can’t believe I used to fuck around (or find the time) on doing my own prep especially paint.

Only time I do my own prep now is a quick Boss Gloss before a viewing of the cars are dusty.

[trade vet 703]

You can never do enough on the appearance.I used to spend hours valeting,minting and transforming stuff.You can go back to the same car time and time again and find something else to improve it.I still know ‘prep stars’ from years ago and they still command top retail money from transforming stuff at minimal cost,such is their skill using machine polishers,touch ups,printers ink on bodywork and their work on interiors and under the bonnet is something else.

[Nick M.K. 574]

4 minutes ago, trade vet said:

I still know ‘prep stars’ from years ago and they still command top retail money from transforming stuff at minimal cost,such is their skill using machine polishers,touch ups,printers ink on bodywork and their work on interiors and under the bonnet is something else.

Do you know any "photography stars" that achieve the same result only with a mid-range camera and some talent :-) 

I know people that ABSOLUTELY go to town on the prep, spend 4 days to a week just valeting and detailing a car only to then go and take a blurry dark photo of it with their old phone, advertise it on Gumtree and trade it out unsold in 90 days. 

Learning what you need to do to a car to make it sell takes a long time and so does learning what you DON'T have to do. Will you believe me if I tell you that I've never cleaned or had an engine cleaned properly in 14 years of dealing?

[trade vet 703]

19 minutes ago, Nick M.K. said:

Do you know any "photography stars" that achieve the same result only with a mid-range camera and some talent :-) 

I know people that ABSOLUTELY go to town on the prep, spend 4 days to a week just valeting and detailing a car only to then go and take a blurry dark photo of it with their old phone, advertise it on Gumtree and trade it out unsold in 90 days. 

Learning what you need to do to a car to make it sell takes a long time and so does learning what you DON'T have to do. Will you believe me if I tell you that I've never cleaned or had an engine cleaned properly in 14 years of dealing?

You work on your own and don’t do any minting...? .It is different for you internet,appointment only traders.With pitch hopping punters your stock has to be mint at all times because they might buy something else to what they came in for.I do believe you about jet washing engines,let’s face it there are a lot of punters now who buy without looking under the bonnet.However,us old guys like it mint under the bonnet.

[NOACROSS 414]

23 minutes ago, trade vet said:

You work on your own and don’t do any minting...? .It is different for you internet,appointment only traders.With pitch hopping punters your stock has to be mint at all times because they might buy something else to what they came in for.I do believe you about jet washing engines,let’s face it there are a lot of punters now who buy without looking under the bonnet.However,us old guys like it mint under the bonnet.

Agreed.