You face a difficult task whether you’re buying or selling a car in Ireland. Private sales require a significant amount of work on your end, but they’re typically easier than selling your vehicle through a shop. However, purchasing a car requires roughly the same amount of work, whether you’re buying privately or buying through a third-party service.
If you’re interested in getting rid of the family van or if you want to pick up something slick, don’t let the industry’s twists and turns keep you from your goal. With a little bit of research, you’ll find success in either field.
Selling your car in Ireland
When it comes to selling cars in Ireland, you need to focus on the power of your advert. This means creating a compelling piece of copy designed to a) inform people of the quality of your vehicle, and b) make that quality seem desirable.
No matter what, you want your advert to be honest. When you’re putting the initial work together, make sure to include:
Make and Model – When was your vehicle made and who was it made by?
Mileage – A vehicle’s mileage tells potential buyers about the state of the car’s engine, tyres, and other machinery.
Colour – While not as important as the functionality of the vehicle, a car’s colour may attract certain types of buyers.
Tax & NCT – What financial commitments outside of the down payment will a potential buyer have to work with when cooperating with you?
Service History – Have you had work done on your vehicle before? Be explicit and let a buyer know what problems they may face in the future.
Number of Owners – Did anyone own the vehicle before you did?
Features – What do you love about your car? How were the tyres stored? Emphasise the details you find unique and compelling.
Price – Naturally, with tax outlined and the car’s many intricacies laid out, you’ll need to set a price. Compare your vehicle to other used ones currently on the market to find an average cost. Be prepared to haggle with any potential buyers. In fact, you may want to price your vehicle above the market average to better pad your income, should the buyer in question want to lower the price based on past maintenance complaints or otherwise.
Photos – No advert is complete without photos of the product. You need to include well-shot photos of all aspects of your car, less you risk frightening away potential buyers.
Cleaning your car for sale
Once you’ve posted your advert, all there is for you to do is wait. Well, wait and clean your car. It’s good practice to send a buyer away with a clean vehicle. This means attending to:
You also want to try and have a new NCT certificate on hand to reassure your potential buyers that you’re being honest about your vehicle’s mechanical history.
To allow or disallow test drives
You should also consider allowing potential car buyers to test drive your vehicle. While you do not have to do this, doing so will instil a level of trust in your buyer and better ensure that your vehicle gets sold.
Buying a car in Ireland
If you’re on the other end of a vehicle sale, you have just as much of a preparatory responsibility as a seller does. However, you don’t have to rely on random ads to find the vehicle you want. Instead, you can work with several third-party services, including:
Cars Ireland
Done Deal
AutoTrader
Cars.ie
When it comes to finding the car of your dreams, try and take the following steps:
Search different third-party services or dealerships. You’ll need to know what kind of vehicle you want, but you also might learn something about your taste during this preparatory period.
Research any used cars you’re interested in. As mentioned, a reliable salesperson will have the car’s mechanical and owner history on hand.
Upon well-researched interest, propose a sale amount. Again, haggling and negotiations are part of the car-buying process all around the world. You may want to start the process by going low and seeing where the buyer is willing to compromise.
Explore additional features – will you need to purchase winter tyres? Summer tyres? Wet weather tyres? See if the buyer will include some of these add-ons in exchange for a rate closer to her desired price.
Purchase the vehicle.
Register the car in your name.
Secure the minimum liability car insurance for your area, as car insurance is required to drive legally throughout Ireland.
So long as you’ve done your research, you should be able to shop for and purchase the car that best suits your needs.
Don’t let the process of buying or selling a car in Ireland worry you. When you go into either process well-informed, you’ll be able to successfully meet your goals.