Your once-trusted car with kilometers of memories on the clock and a sentimental place in your heart has begun to cost you more than you bargained for. Repair bills are piling up and you wonder if footing the bill for the next service makes sense in the long run. Though it hurts to even think about it, selling your car has become a serious consideration. But who will want to buy a non-running car? And where can you find the best price to help you get back on the road as soon as possible?
Here are 6 methods of dealing with your non-running car so you can make an informed decision about your next steps:
#1 Repair it
The main question to weigh up (if you’re considering forking out cash for a repair job) is whether it will cost more to repair your non-running car or sell it?
In the instance where your car is no longer operational, you want to get back on the road (and to your daily tasks) as quickly and cost-effectively as possible. You must also factor in the alternate transport costs of getting to and from your various destinations in order to accurately calculate the true cost of repair.
Get quotes from a few credible repair shops and weigh them up against the cost of selling your car. (Receive a quick quote here).
#2 Sell it privately
Patience is a virtue. And if time and energy is something that you possess in bucket loads, this may be the way to go. But bear the following in mind:
- Not all cars are equally desirable on the online marketplace
- Over time you may reap a good financial reward, but this is not guaranteed
- There are many opportunists and scammers out there who may want to take you for a ride.
- If you sell your car privately, you become responsible for the paperwork regarding change of ownership or deregistering your car.
#3 Trade it in
There’s no doubt that you want to find a more reliable car to replace your less trusty non-running wheels.
The resale value of your car is determined by the demand, mileage and condition of your car. Where there is low demand, high mileage and damage (from an accident or mechanical troubles) the more difficult it becomes to sell your car.
Dealers want to sell your car as quickly as possible in order to incur less costs from keeping the vehicle on their showroom floor (or at a repair shop) and they generally will not buy non-running cars or will give you a really low price for your damaged car.
#4 Donate it
The greater the damage on your car (whether it’s on the exterior or interior), the smaller the options you might have for selling your car.
If you do not wish to receive any money from your non-running car (and it may be useful for someone else), consider donating it to a charity or someone who can fix it up and make use of it for a small price.
Perhaps an NPO can sell it for a good cash price and keep the proceeds to support their good work.
#5 Sell it to a scrap yard
If your non-running car would otherwise lie idle in a driveway gathering rust and dust, selling it to a scrap yard is an effective way of making a few rands and doing your bit for the environment.
Scrap yards buy cars and generally pay you according to the weight of your car’s scrap metal. They do not look at the value of the car’s individual running parts, which are generally more valuable than the rewards reaped from scrap metal sales.
#6 Sell it to a reputable auto-salvage dealer
Looking for a safe, hassle-free and competitive cash offer for your non-running car?
Look no further than a trusted auto-salvage dealer like Sellyourdamagedcar.
They take the hassle out of selling your damaged car by using algorithms and historical data collected through the sale of between 3 000 and 3 500 vehicles per month since 2015 to determine a realistic price for your car.
They will buy your vehicle in any condition (whether it’s water damaged, accident-damaged or non-running) and give you free towing, a safe and speedy online process, a competitive offer and instant cash. Plus, they handle all the painful paperwork of deregistering your car.
