Selling a used car is preferable to trading. You’ll receive close to full retail value rather than accepting wholesale value if you trade.

Prepare to sell your used car :

Psychology is a powerful and important part of buying and selling cars. Perception can be reality. What a potential buyer thinks and feels about your used car might be a Chevrolet car, BMW, Honda, Mitsubishi etc is more important than facts and figures. If a potential buyer sees your car is filthy inside and out, she is very likely to assume, rightly or wrongly, that you don’t take any better care of your car in other ways.

The implication might be that you don’t change your oil, don’t perform regular maintenance, don’t make necessary repairs, and don’t take care when driving. So, the simple fact that you didn’t take the time to clean up your car could easily kill a possible deal.

Although some savvy buyers might look past the dirt on your car and see it for what it really is, you really don’t want to assume that this will always be the case. On the other side of the coin, a beautifully immaculate car can cover up poor maintenance and serious problems. Buyers who are blinded by the glow and shine can make serious mistakes if they don’t look further.

Pricing properly :

One of the biggest predicaments facing used car sellers is what price to ask. A price that is too high will discourage potential buyers. A price that is too low means money unnecessarily thrown away.

Unfortunately, there are no standard prices for used cars. There are a number of guidebooks (some only available to dealers and lenders) and online pricing sources, such as Edmunds, Kelley Blue Book, and NADA Guide, that are just that — guides. Prices can vary from one area of the country to another and can be affected by short-term new-car discounting and rebates.

Where to sell your used car :

There are essentially two ways you can sell your car, depending on how quickly you want to sell and how much money you want. First, you can sell wholesale. This means you sell to a dealer for a low wholesale price and the dealer resells at a higher retail price to make a profit. Carmax is an example of a major dealer that buys used cars from individuals.

If you have a relatively new, clean, low/average mileage vehicle, you should talk to new car dealers who have a used car lot. They may be interested, especially if the car is of the same make that they sell new.

Otherwise, talk to independent used car dealers, especially CarMax, if you have them in your area. Wholesale auctions in your area are also a possibility, but be aware that there are fees involved.

How to negotiate :

Light haggling should be expected when selling a used car. The buyer typically knows you set your price high and wants your “selling” price. They may have already done some pricing research.

Start by offering your asking price and explain why you feel the price is fair, based on your own research. Point out the positive features and characteristics of your car. Some good “positives” could be the following:

    * low mileage
    * add-on equipment
    * original owner
    * no accidents
    * low insurance costs
    * low maintenance costs
    * remaining warranty
    * good gas mileage

Closing the deal :

After you and the buyer have agreed upon a price for your used car, all that remains is the exchange of goods, title, and money — and a paper record of the transaction, generally called a Bill of Sale.

It is always nice to know all the pertinent information regarding a certain car for sale which interests us, so that when we go to a car dealer to purchase such vehicle we are well informed as far as its features and capabilities.

This basic rule applies not only to cars and the automotive industry but to electronic gadgets, properties,etc.

 When people hear the word “news” the first thoughts that come to mind are war, people killing each other, natural disasters, robberies (white collar, blue collar or plain old thieves), fashion, and any other event which catches our attention but there are in fact, all sorts of news and the automotive industry makes one of them.

It is very exciting to know when our favorite car manufacturer comes up with new and improved models such as the Audi A4 (2009 model) or the all new Ferrari car California. Before spending in such beautiful models it is a very intelligent thing to do to shop around, compare and actually read car review magazines or even better, blogs and forums which have active users who can share their experiences after owning a certain vehicle; networking is the key to a smart purchase.

Keeping up with all of these news is time consuming and a hard thing to do, unfortunately as useful as forums are, most of them don’t offer a direct feed where the user can subscribe and read all the latest discussion topics and articles through one news reader. Luckily, this feature is available on blogs, which can refresh their content as often as possible and provide handy tools to keep subscribers up to date through RSS feeds, this way a car enthusiast can subscribe freely to several car news blogs and sites which offer feeds and download all the news and headlines to one program.

Other newsworthy event within the automotive industry are “car shows and conventions”, depending on the place where you reside there are many ways to access up to the minute information about such events. Some are held in the US and create a great buzz, others in Canada and Europe. Many will agree that such conventions are the best events next to Xmas, Hanukkah, New years eve, etc.

Networking and exchanging ideas with other people around the world pays off, using the web to get detailed information about a certain vehicle leads towards a smarter decision which will satisfy not only your taste but your budget.

Have your own time to judge a car. After all you are going to spend your hard earned money. It should not go wasted on a futile product. You must spend enough time with plenty of daylight to test each car. Taking a friend while going for a test drive will help you to select the right car. Never bring kids and pets.

Judging a used car may become difficult. You may come across to different problems while selecting for a used car. Try to consider the following steps:

-Inspecting a car during the darkness may hide all its faults. It is a healthy choice to inspect a vehicle during daytime. Daylight helps your visual examination. Choose to delay if the day you have decided to go for inspecting a car turns to be a rainy day. Rain makes thin, worn paint look shiny and bright. It also shields the prior paint work.

-Sometimes when an interested buyer gets into the car, he complains about foul odors like smell of cigarettes, cigars, pet’s urine. If this happens with you too, then never go for the same product. Go on to the next one.

-See if the car is providing you every feature that is necessary for the safe drive like comfortably getting in and out of the car and are you able to sit comfortably to reach to the pedals.

-Ensure that the brakes, clutch and accelerator are not a hindrance in your careful and comfortable driving. Many people never concentrate on the driver’s armrest. You must see that your right hand armrest should not interfere with the gearshift. It can happen with the expensive luxury cars too.

-If you are examining the windshield for chips and cracks then do examine the wiper blades too. If its blades are good in condition then you can have a cool breath. The car you are going for has well kept by car dealer. You may check the rear wipers and washers on SUVs, station wagons and hatchback cars.

-If the car stops in between when you are taking a test derive in it, then the dealer may complaint you to have violated the equipments of the vehicle. You can escape this by prior checking that the sales person is carrying a copy of the dealer’s insurance card with him.