The last thing you want any prospective
buyer thinking is that the car you are selling could use a good
cleaning. Why? The way you present the car when you are trying to
sell it speaks volumes on how well you have taken care of it.
If you can't afford to drop a couple hundred on a good, quality
detail job, fear not! Car detailing is hardly rocket science, and
merely requires your time and a lot of elbow grease. Simply spending
a day making your car sparkle like the day it rolled off the showroom
floor will not only net you a buyer more quickly, but bring you more
money as well.
You might find it hard to believe, but simply giving attention
to minor details, can get you $300-$1500 more for your car! And you
might not even spend a single penny. Only a few hours of your time.
A well known secret of used car dealerships is the importance of a
GOOD detail job. If you've never heard of auto detailing, you'd be
surprised at what it can do for an automobiles' appearance.
What does it mean to 'detail' an automobile?
Think of it this way. Paying special attention to every DETAIL
of the car. Interior, exterior, under the hood, in the trunk.
Using special cleaners and enhancement products, the detailer
will bring out the "shine" in practically any old clunker.
The typical price range for an auto detail is $50-$90. Prices
are slightly higher for larger vans and trucks due to their size.
Look in your local yellow pages for local auto detailers. Take the
time to call a few up and inquire about the 'price for service'.
Be sure you tell them what type of automobile you have so they will
be able to give you an accurate quote.
If you do not want to spend the money for an auto detail, take
it into your own hands, but be prepared to get a little dirty.
I can't stress enough the importance of a sparkling clean car.
You MUST clean out everything if you want to get top dollar for your
auto. People WILL spend more money on a car that has a "shine" to it.
It gives the impression that the car has been well taken care of
over the years.
Think about it, would you spend your hard earned money on a car
that looks completely trashed?
Start with the interior. Why? Because you don't want to wash and
wax the outside, then vacuum and clean the inside which will just get
the exterior dirty again.
If you don't have a powerful vacuum that can handle the carpets and
seats, ask a friend or neighbor. When asking, inquire about a steam
cleaner. This is optimal for a deep, thorough clean. If you don't
have a friend with a steam cleaner, I highly recommend renting one
for a day from a place like Home Depot, the value of shampooing your
interior pays off immediately, not only do you get your carpets looking
brand spanking new, but any odors that have been ground into the
carpet are removed in the process and leave you with a "new" carpet.
When you are cleaning the interior, don't forget to clean under the
seats, inside the glove box, ashtrays, trunk, anywhere and everywhere
dirt and grime has accumulated. If you are at all mechincally nclined,
I highly recommend removing your seats before cleaning the carpet, you
will be amazed at the stuff you find hidden in cracks you can't otherwise
get to, I have found french fries in the weirdest places in cars that
you would otherwise deem spotless.
If you do not have these products already, really consider
purchasing: a quality dash/plastic cleaner, stay away from ArmorAll,
all it does is manage to make your plastics greasy and nasty to touch.
Also get a quality carpet cleaner, use a tried and true product you use
at home, carpet is carpet, whether in your home or in your car. For the
exterior, I recommend dedicating a solid four hours to the process,
get a claybar, and a good three step product: cleaner, polish, and
sealer wax.
Plastic cleaner - Those who have used a product like this before
know what it can do for your interior. It literally brings back luster
and shine to your dashboard, steering wheel (make sure you let it set
before driving, these products will make your steering wheel slippery),
plastic stripping, and door panels. Use it wherever appropriate.
Engine Degreaser - Have you taken a look under your hood recently?
You might be surprised to see how dirty it is. Engine degreaser such
as Simple Green will make short work of that filthy engine. Follow up
by dressing all your plastics and rubber hoses with the same stuff
you used for your interior, it is amazing how well your engine bay
will pop when everything is like new and sparkling.
Exterior - A claybar and three step wax will bring even the worst
paint jobs back from the dead. You will be amazed at the way your
paint shines, whenever I am feeling down on my car and start
considering selling, all I have to do is give the exterior a good
detail, and I sway myself not to sell. Buy a bundle of quality terry
cloth towels, and go to it, ideally you want to be inside out of the
wind and especially the sun when you do this, you don't want to be grind
any dirt into your paint in the process! This process will by far take
the longest, and your arms and shoulder will no doubt be burning at the
end, but oh boy is it worth it. I recently detailed a friend's car for
him before he took it into a dealer for a trade in. The dealer admitted
to giving him $2000 more on the trade in simply because of the detailing
I did for him! And all he had to do was give me a hundred bucks to spend
half a day on it. If you don't want to or can't spend the time to do it
yourself, find a neighborhood kid who obviously details his own car, you
would be surprised how cheap you can get the work done for if you just
look in the right places.
Don't forget to spend some time cleaning the jambs on your doors,
hatch/trunk, hood, and especially the wheels and wheel wells. Bonus
points if you take the time to power wash the bottom side of your car
as well, car saavy people will take a look under the car, they will
be expecting to see a filthy mess under there, if you have taken the
time to make it sparkle as well as the rest of the car, you will impress
the buyer.
The prospective buyer will be impressed when they show up, every
little detail goes a long way.
Does your automobile have any minor damages? Broken taillights,
door handles, mirrors, glove box, ripped carpets and seats?
You may find that you can fix many of these minor damages for a
very minimal cost. Why will this help you sell your car?
Think about this.
Most shoppers will ask a number of auto related questions -
How many miles? Original owner? Any accidents? Is there anything
WRONG that I should know about?
If you have to say "Yeah, there's a broken taillight, the glove
box doesn't open, and the passenger door needs to be opened from the
inside." This immediately gives the prospective buyer the opportunity
to offer you a substantially lower price.
It will be much harder to get the price that you're looking for if
there are little defects with your automobile. Fix as much as you can.
It'll pay off in the long run.
As a common courtesy, get your oil and filter changed, have your
coolant flushed, change your spark plugs and wires if needed, get a
tune up, and in general do as much as possible to get your motor
running as smoothly as possible, in the selling process, the less
a potential buyer can find wrong, the more likely you are to get
exactly what you want for your car.
By simply taking the time to make your car look and run its best,
you will find that your automobile will not only sell faster, but will
sell for more money. Not to mention, when a buyer comes to look at the
car and gushes about how immaculate everything is, you can take pride
in knowing you did the work yourself, and you will get top dollar for
your car.
Good luck and happy detailing!
Brian Jump
