Help me sell my car (not whoring my fs thread - i need advice)

[Gregor]

Firstly let me say this isn't a whoring thread trying to get more exposure. After the recent thread on for sale ads I've been thinking and really want people's input on my carsales ad. I've been a little shocked at the lack of calls I've had about the car - i'd at least expect a few more time wasters but I'm getting almost nothing.

I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. The car isn't engineered but I'm working on that but maybe there's something else that's putting people off and I'm just not seeing it. Any input is welcome but try to keep it constructive please, pointing out that it's an n16 might get a few cheap laughs but isn't something that i can really do much about.

I originally had it up for 13.5k to see what was around but i think 11.5k ono is a reasonable starting point.

The ad text is below, pics can be seen in my FS thread (link in my signature):

Vehicle 2000 NISSAN PULSAR N16 ST
Price $11,500*
Kilometres 125,000
Interior Colour Black and Grey
Colour White
Transmission 5 speed Manual
Body 4 door 5 seat SEDAN
Drive Type Front
Engine 4 cylinder Unleaded Multi-point injected 1.8L (1769cc)
Towing Braked 1,000kgs
Towing Not Braked 600kgs
Reg Plate BA98RX
Reg Expiry MAY-2011
Road Worthy Certificate Yes
Vehicle ID 7965293
Brief Comments Professionally modified, very clean car. Turbo 1.8L with looks and power. Price dropped.

CommentsNot many cars in this price range offer the combination of power, looks, condition and age that this car has. Modifications have been professionally done to all areas to make it great to drive while remaining practical for daily use.

The car makes140kw at the front wheels and a dyno sheet can be provided. Supporting mods have been done to allow more power. No shortcuts taken and a lot of money has been spent with receipts to prove all work. The car is in excellent condition but it's time for me to move on to other projects. Don't be fooled by dodgy vehicles with inflated power or quarter mile claims.

Modifications:
Engine
Standard QG18DE decompressed to approx 8.2:1 compression
TD04L on custom manifold running 10 psi
Front mount intercooler and custom stainless steel piping
Microtech ECU
Bosch ignition coils
400 CC injectors, Fuel pressure regulator and upgraded fuel pump
Custom dump pipe and 3" exhaust including high flow cat
Heavy duty clutch designed for turbo pulsar applications

Suspension
Lowered 1.5" on Kings low springs
Whiteline front strut brace
Whiteline rear sway bar

Appearance:
Body kit including front bar, modified rear bar and side skirts
Window tints (darkest legal %)
Colour coded door handles and bump strips
16x6.5" Wheels

Stereo
Alpine MP3/WMA headunit, Hertz spilts, Pioneer 6x9", Alpine monoblock
amp for a sub (sub not included), Alpine 4 channel amp running the front and rear speakers.

It's never been listed as a write off and I've never been involved in an accident. I'm the second owner and I've had it since it was about 18 months old and had done around 15k. It has always been garaged.

May 2011 rego and a new battery has been fitted

[desssa]

you are not alone
(inserts michael jackson song)

[Gregor]

I'm certain the car (and most likely yours too) would have been gone within a couple of weeks in the days before the P plater turbo bans but surely it isn't that bad at the moment.

[MiDGet]

modded plus turbo dude...
people dont want that these days.
when i sold my turbo SSS. i swapped it plus cash(not enough) but i got rid of it. A loss of a thou or so and a swap for a stockish or stocker car... is better than holding onto a modded car...
as the stock car will be sold faster than the fully modded one...
hope ive helped..

[desssa]

although im at rock bottom on price id consider keeping it ..not worth doing my nutz on really..only issue is im just in the process of modding the mps but dont want to spend money if i still have the zr

funny thing is ,i know its going to sell car is immac in every way ..

[Gregor]

I'm in a similar position desssa, i'd like to get rid of it but I think my price is reasonable and the car is good. I'm not going to let it go for 7 or 8k just to get rid of it, just wanted to make sure that i hadn't put something in the ad that seems sus to others.

Midget - i get what you're saying but not much i can do about the mods. It'd be a fair bit of work to make it non turbo and borderline impossible to make it standard.

[MMA Fun]

Best of luck mate, sounds like a good and nice car.

[MiDGet]

im not sure you do get what im saying... Sell the car for a stock car plus cash.. you will have to take a bit of a loss tho...
Then clean up and sell the stock car alot faster then an outright sale on the turbo.

[ryan]

maybe no one wants an n16 turbo. or an n16 for that matter.

[Squid]

i'm having issues selling my rotor. can't get rid of it so i'm thinking of getting a roof rack for it so i can turn it into a semi-practical car.
modified cars don't sell easily these days thanks to crackdowns on them and the flood of cheap modified imports. you either have to split it and sell it separately or stick to a price and wait for a buyer to come

[Gary]

your range of potential buyers isnt too big

that, i think is the killer

i sent PM, my opinion posted here certainly wont help sell your car, but if you are genuinely confused about your dramas maybe it'll help

[Gregor]

Midget - I'd consider a swap + cash, might have to put that in the ad.

Thanks ryan. I see where i went wrong now.

Good luck to the other guys selling cars, from this feedback at least it doesnt seem like there is anything wrong with my ad itself then which was my biggest concern. I know i've got a relatively small market to sell to but the last thing I wanted was for what I've written to scare someone off or send the wrong message to a potential buyer.

[ryan]

Thanks ryan. I see where i went wrong now.

I wasn't being sarcastic.

If people aren't in the market for one, you're not going to sell it. Don't be shocked that you can't sell a car that wasn't overly popular to begin with. The N16 was never marketed as a performance car, everyone knows it was marketed at older people. You've taken it away from that market now and theres only a small few who would be interested.
Looking at carsales, you can get an 04 S2 for cheaper than what you're asking. And as everyone on this site (at least) knows, modifications mean diddly squat when it comes to resale value.

For the mean time, you might be the only one who will appreciate what's gone into it, but for other people looking to buy a car, it could be seen as just an S1 N16.

Not trying to sound like a cvnt, and maybe with the kind of people on this forums agreeing with your price because they can appreciate the work the goes into pulsars, average joe blow probably couldn't give a shit and thinks your price is too high. Maybe!

Your car is unique, and will probably take a long time to find the right buyer for the right price.

[Ringers]

yep, no one wants to buy mine either... ffs

[Gregor]

I wasn't being sarcastic.

If people aren't in the market for one, you're not going to sell it. Don't be shocked that you can't sell a car that wasn't overly popular to begin with. The N16 was never marketed as a performance car, everyone knows it was marketed at older people. You've taken it away from that market now and theres only a small few who would be interested.
Looking at carsales, you can get an 04 S2 for cheaper than what you're asking. And as everyone on this site (at least) knows, modifications mean diddly squat when it comes to resale value.

For the mean time, you might be the only one who will appreciate what's gone into it, but for other people looking to buy a car, it could be seen as just an S1 N16.

Not trying to sound like a cvnt, and maybe with the kind of people on this forums agreeing with your price because they can appreciate the work the goes into pulsars, average joe blow probably couldn't give a shit and thinks your price is too high. Maybe!

Your car is unique, and will probably take a long time to find the right buyer for the right price.

I know you weren't being sarcastic, but it was the sort of response i expected but doesn't really help much. I get what you're saying but if price was an issue i thought I would have gotten a few people making stupid offers or wasting my time but its been really quiet. As for mods not adding value - again a fair call to a degree but most DET pulsars are sold for a couple of grand over what they would be worth stock which is about the same buffer i've got in. Similar condition and km would set you back about 7k, negotiate 1-1.5k off my asking price and theres only 3 grand difference not what id call outrageous considering the work done.


This wasn't supposed to be a cry about not being able to sell my car, I certainly understand it takes time to move something like a highly modified pulsar. But what I was concerned about was maybe I had sounded like a dodgy used car salesman or something in the ad looked bad. If it means waiting I can do that. I appreciate everyone's input including ryan and gary i was after realistic opinions and not all will be positive.

[McWombo]

Also, your location isn't helping.

[Gregor]

Really? I'm an hour north of the CBD - a bit less on a good day, not sure how that would be a big deal. Maybe it would knock out some of he south sydney market but its not that far from the west/north/eastern suburbs.

[McWombo]

Really? I'm an hour north of the CBD - a bit less on a good day, not sure how that would be a big deal. Maybe it would knock out some of he south sydney market but its not that far from the west/north/eastern suburbs.

True, but you're not really close to anyone. A lot of people don't like travelling outside their home base (more than 30 mins away). Not me though. I've travelled to Nowra (5-6 hour round trip) a couple of times for cars I didn't end up buying.