I have a 1999 Honda with 125k miles. No dents or significant scratches. A little bit of rust. Interior has been kept up well. There’s some fading, but no tears or holes.
It did not pass the Marlyand state emissions inspection. The code that came up, I was told, indicated a problem with the catalytic converter. To replace that, I was told by someone else, would be over $2000. I don’t have that, and don’t need to invest in this car. It’s not my main transportation. I can’t afford to keep insuring it. It’s doing no one any good in my driveway.
The car, with all it’s features - but able to pass inspection according to Kelley’s would be around $2300 in a private sale. Edmunds includes the option of “Rough” condition, and gives a price of $1620.
I want this sale to happen quickly but also need to get as much as I can out of it.
Would it be out of line to ask $1200? $1000? I intend to be right up front about it not passing emissions.
How about “$1200 OBO” - it lets a potential buyer know you’re willing to dicker. Just decide ahead of time what the lowest offer you’ll take will be.
Have you considered donating it? I understand some organizations will take vehicles that can be repaired. You won’t get cash, but you’ll get a tax write-off.
Meant to mention in the OP that my plan is to leave the ad active on Craigslist through the weekend, and if there’s no response donate it through the American Diabetes Association.
My son’s car needs new tires. If I can get enough cash for that out of this.
I’m floundering a little because while I am a confident and capable woman who can change tires and spark plugs and understand matters automotive, the buying and selling of cars has been something I was happy to let other people handle. My husband, whose car this was, was an excellent negotiator. If he listed the car for $1200 somehow the buyer would give him $1400 and a pair of tickets to a baseball game.
I’m not expert but I think even the “rough” condition price given in price guides assumes the car is road-legal, which it appears yours is not. I also think you ought to disclose the known issue, or you could face problems down the line. On the other hand, $2,000 seems a huge sum just to replace a bad exhaust, even including the catalytic converter. I’d be thinking of a figure more like $500. As such, your best bet may be to take it to a car dealer, explain the issue, and they may be happy to give you $1,200 for it, because if they can fix the issue for (say) $200, they can still sell it on at a profit.
$2000 strikes me as way high to replace a converter on a Honda. Offhand, I’d expect it to be in the 600-1000 range. With complete vehicle info (model, submodel, engine size) I could tell you what I’d charge for it.
Assuming the repair cost is in that neighborhood, 1500-2000 may not be too much to ask.
First, take it to a car parts place that does free check-engine-light code readings (which are most, I think). I’m pretty sure there’s no code for catalytic converter. It’s probably an oxygen sensor. They are relatively cheap, but they usually have to be replaced by an exhaust shop because they get totally corroded on.
Then google “1999 honda {model} catalytic converter” You may have to include the engine size.
Dealer prices are insane on most converters - so there is an ‘aftermarket’ market.
You seldom get any cash when you donate a vehicle - just a tax deduction that doesn’t do anything for you until you file your taxes next year. And I hear they are getting very stingy with the deductions.
If you have CarMax in your area, they’ll give you a “no-haggle” price for the car.
I’d go get that, and then see if you could price it up from there a bit and see if you got any bites.
(Back when I was buying another car, I was really surprised when CarMax appraised my old shitty beater at $1400; I was thinking that if I got $750 for it, I’d count myself lucky.)
There is code for catalyst efficiency. It is virtually always caused by a faulty converter. Any good repair shop can replace an oxygen sensor.
Yes, dealer prices for most converters tend to be really high. However, field experience has shown that for many cars, aftermarket converters are not quite up to the task – the catalyst efficiency code will reappear within a year.
Nah, by “as is” he meant that he would not repair anything. It was clear he was going to tell the buyer about any problems he knew of.
You can try to sell it in one of the Maryland counties that do not require inspections. These are the ones that do: Anne Arundel County
Baltimore City
Baltimore County
Calvert County
Carroll County Cecil County
Charles County
Frederick County
Harford County
Howard County Montgomery County
Prince George’s County
Queen Anne’s County
Washington County
Or, if you have a relative living in one of the non emissions counties, see if you can re register at that address.
Okay new question. Let’s just say for argument’s sake that someone hastily posted the car for $1200. And now people are clamoring to look at it, promising me cash right now. I’m at work, the car’s at home. Even if only half of the people who’ve said “I want to see it first. I’ll be waiting for you when you get there” actually do show up that will still be 4 or 5 people.
How do I choose who to sell it to without my house getting egged or hurting anyone’s feelings?
I did manage to say no to the guy who wanted me to drive it to Virginia. Had no answer when I said “If I drive it there and sell it to you, how will I get home?”
How do you choose who to sell it to? You start with whoever replied first. If they try to barter tell them you are firm on your price and you know it’s a hot price because you have x more buyers waiting to look at it.
Er, sounds like it might be a bit late now, but I would have mentioned that in most places Hondas are just about the fastest movers there are in the used car market. Pricing them to sell quick doesn’t require much of a discount, as you’re learning.
AFAIK Carmax won’t touch anything more than 7 or 8 years old.
OP, anything that runs is worth $1000 or so. 125,000 is relatively low miles so I think $1200 is a pretty fair price, and inform the buyer that it may have a catalytic converter problem. There are plenty of people interested in Hondas so I don’t think you’ll have any problem selling.
I don’t know about that… the $1400 truck I sold them in 2006 was a 1995 model with about 225k miles on it and a messed up gearbox. If they’ll buy it, they’ll buy just about anything.
Plus, there’s no mention in their FAQ about not buying older vehicles. I think they just auction them off in Mexico or something.
