I have finally made the decision that I was mulling over for the past three years. I paid off my car three years ago and had been playing with the idea of getting a new ride, but has procrastinated due to various reasons.
I told myself that I would enjoy a few years of not having to pay for my car instalment, and it is a financially prudent thing to do. But the truth is, I was too lazy to deal with the hassle of selling my car. Plus I’m not willing to sell it way below market price should I opt for the trade-in option.
But all good things must come to an end. After 10 years, I’ve finally decided to upgrade my ride because I found an easy and the least troublesome way to do it.
Here’s my experience and some lessons I’ve learnt in selling a car that will be helpful to Malaysians:
What’s the market rate?
First of all, before you decide which platform you are going to sell your vehicle on, you need to know what your car value is. The price for used car depends on the manufactured year, mileage and most importantly – the condition of your car.
For example, I was looking to sell my 2007 Perodua Myvi EZ 1.3.
So, I started looking up cars of the same model and year on e-commerce platforms to see how much people are selling it for. Once I have an idea, I also asked myself what I am willing to sell it for. However, remember, the listed selling price on these ads by private sellers are usually market selling price and it is much higher than trade-in price.
After I’ve done some research as a seller, there are a few factors that might in negotiating a higher price such as:
- Lower mileage (I compared it to other cars of the same year.)
- Accident free
- Overall condition
With that in mind, I started looking for platforms to sell my car.
Where to sell your car?
One thing I was pretty sure of was, I did not want to sell it on my own because I just did not have the time to meet various potential buyers and negotiate pricing with all of them.
It was not just a waste of time and resources, it could also pose some danger as I was not keen to meet random strangers.
This brought me to Carsome. It sounded pretty straightforward but I was not sure I could get the price that I want. There was no harm in trying though.
First, I set up an appointment on their website by just filling up my car and personal details. This takes less than two minutes, and I get an estimated price for my car after the submission at RM11,800. However, I was only willing to let go at RM13,000.
Screenshot from Carsome
Then, I received a call from Carsome to verify my details and make an appointment for an inspection. The inspection was carried out at their inspection centre at Kelana Jaya.
Carsome have also just launched another inspection centre in Old Klang Road, so you can choose the inspection centre that is the nearest to you.
SMS from Carsome for inspection appointment
How much can you get?
On the date and time scheduled, I showed up with my car and met up with the inspector-in-charge. He checked for signs of previous accidents, the engine and the interior of the car and also did a quick test drive.
Inspection at Carsome
After the inspection, which took about 15-30 minutes, he informed me of the issues found. Then, he offered me a price based on my actual car condition, which if I was agreeable to, I could just transfer the ownership and walk away without the car.
Sounds easy? Of course, I thought my car could definitely fetch a higher price than what was offered. So, I opted for the bidding option. At this point, the inspector-in-charge asked me what was the price that I’m willing to accept at the bid, and I told him it has to be at least RM13,000.
The inspector-in-charge also discussed the reserved price for the bid, this is the starting price of the online bidding. He advised me on the suitable reserved price, which is usually the same as the price offered after the inspection.
My appointment for inspection was on March 1, 2017, and the e-bidding happened on March 3, 2017. I was told to wait for an SMS and email with a link to the bidding site which would be up for three hours. The bidding will be participated by 600+ certified used car dealers around Malaysia.
SMS from Carsome on the e-bidding
You can monitor the bidding online using the link sent to you via SMS. Here’s how the bidding dashboard looks like:
Bidding on Carsome
If you are unable to monitor it live online, you will also receive an SMS and email to inform you that the bidding has ended. By clicking on the link in the SMS/email, you’ll be able to accept the final bidding price instantly.
SMS from Carsome at the end of the e-bidding
The bidding went on for three hours as promised and I got a price that was higher than what I initially wanted. (Yay!) Immediately after the bidding ended, the inspector-in-charge called me to congratulate me on the good price and reminded me that I have 24 hours to accept the bid.
The price that was offered by Carsome was a trade-in price and the price that I would like to let go is at RM13,000. I’m happy that I was able to get a price that is higher than my expected price through Carsome’s bidding platform.
Accepting the offer
Selling the car was a major decision for me. Although I started the process of selling it on Carsome, it took me a while to finally bring myself to accept the offer. That was more of an emotional decision I needed to make, but I eventually did.
When I have accepted the offer, a new appointment was set for me to transfer ownership of the vehicle and hand over the car. I went back to Carsome’s office in Kelana Jaya on March 8, 2017.
The paperwork took less than an hour, and at the end of it, I bid my car of 10 years goodbye, and got on an Uber (worth RM20 that Carsome paid for) to wherever I wanted to go.
The money was transferred to my account at the same time. The whole process done without having me breaking a sweat within a week!
From my personal experience, the process was pretty seamless and convenient, but that’s probably because my vehicle was problem and accident free. For a car that has had an accident before, the price would probably reflect that.
Although the price might not be as high as the market selling price, the service was free and it definitely saved me a lot of time. I did not have to do the legwork to handle the documentations involved in selling my vehicle. It was pretty much hassle-free from the start till the deal was sealed.
I chose the bidding option which took more time compared to taking up the first offer by Carsome, but I find it flexible that customers are provided with two options. Those who would like to sell their car off as soon as possible have the option of selling it within 24 hours!
However, if price takes precedent in your consideration, you can still opt for the second option, which is online bidding. Both options save the sellers from having to deal with multiple “potential” buyers with no guarantee of selling their car in a short time and at a good price.
If you are looking for the easiest way to sell your vehicle at the best price possible with the least effort, Carsome has to be one of the more attractive options to do so.
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