Team-BHP - Should you fix up your car's dents & scratches before selling it?

The roads of India are a battleground. And if you drive in India, it is a good chance that your car has at-least a few battle scars. Scratches around the corners, the odd dent. Possibly even a cracked rearview mirror casing that was caused by an errant biker. :Frustrati

It is also a good chance that you never got around to getting these mostly minor issues fixed. I mean, why bother getting you car detailed when it is going to get tarnished with scratches again? Why bother repairing that tiny dent on the rear fender when it doesn't really affect the way the car drives?

And life goes on.

Now the time has come to sell your car. My question is: Should you invest in a final touch up or repair job to bring the car back to its former visual glory before you sell it? Is the amount of money you spend on this worth the additional price you can ask for the car? Or does it make no major difference to the resale value?

I would instead prefer to service the car and sell it. That way owner is sure, no additional expense is required except the visible one. I would not bother with repaint, as then it can be attributed to many other things, and you will need to get into another level of discussion.

let the new owner decide what he wants to do with the car, now that he will own it.

I would say 'No'. Fixing even minor scratches/dents means repainting (and tinkering in some cases) either the entire side/panel or spot if you really get skilled painter. Many buyers like the original paint, even with minor scratches. But if it is a major dent and if it is likely to drive the potential buyers away, it is better to get it fixed.

I have not done it in the past. I do a good service and keep it looking neat and clean but never went to the extent of touching up scratches and dents. And as a pattern i’ve noticed that those who point out those scratch , dents etc within the first minute of seeing the car aren’t the ones who buy it eventually. They try this tactic to drive price down.

I would like to give my car free from any defects, serviced in top-notch condition wherever possible. Remember, it can be a first purchase for someone who may have never experienced similar asset before. In case, anything cannot be repaired or needs attention, it should be transparently shared with the new owner so that he can take a call before buying.

I feel that minor scratches, chips and dents can be ignored. Don't sell your car as a fraud though, claiming everything runs fine. Get it serviced, may be change tyres and battery if they're ending their life cycle. Then let the buyer decide if they're okay with it.

I would prefer being absolutely transparent while selling any of my cars. This gives me a lot of peace of mind that on tomorrow I don't have to receive frantic calls from the subsequent owner about the faults that he later found with the car.

To what extent I need to fix the car really depends on a lot of factors:

How old is the current car
How big is the expense going to be to fix the car Vs the price I will get in return
What is the perceived value of the car in the market
Buyer profile - Used car dealer or an individual
Buyer's needs - His first car or his need for a car for temporary reasons

I would do all that I can to explain the way the car has been maintained and even explain where it would require attention too.

There are lot of instances of fraud in the used car market today. Although buyers are becoming extremely cautious day after day, there are still a lot of buyers who remain gullible.

The way you expect a used car to be in good mechanical condition that would require less expenditure to get it back in shape is exactly how I as a seller would prefer my car to be sold.

Needless to say, I have not sold any of my cars till now but have been company to many of my friends and colleagues whenever they went shopping for used cars or selling their own in exchange for a new one.

Quote:

Originally Posted by locusjag (Post 4938859)

Fixing dents and repainting can work against you as the seller in our perverse market. The buyers suspect a major accident once they find out, whereas your reason for fixing it all up were only minor dents and scratches.

Well said! We sold our Ignis recently and it had battle scars on the front bumper - caused by motorcycles in two separate occasions in b2b traffic. The cladding on the bumper and the casing for a foglamp was also broken. Fixing those will also need repainting the whole bumper. So, I left it like that during the last service - I take all our cars for service every 5k kilometer irrespective of the brand - the lockdown too didn't help!

Sure, the car doesn't look that desirable aesthetically when one is trying to sell, but the eventual buyer appreciated the openness. And I knocked off the amount needed to fix the bumper from the agreed amount. That was win win if you ask me. The buyer can fix or not fix that based on his comfort and I completely avoided the hassle and the possible stories. This works when the car is sound mechanically though. Else, people will rightly get the notion that it was abused and not cared for.

A rule of thumb is that anything larger than the size of a credit card should be fixed. Anything minor can be ignored as it is very normal in Indian traffic.

My dad actually sold our Innova with a big dent on the rear trunk door. Didn’t affect anything, but he never wanted to spend big $$$ on getting a new door (no one would repair the dent) and took the small hit in resale.

When selling my car, I would just be honest and share all the information about the car with the potential buyer. In addition to all original vehicle ownership documents, I have complete service and repair records for the entire life of the car, this should dispel any apprehensions/doubts a serious buyer may have. Heck, I even have ALL records for Alignment, balancing work carried out, every years insurance policy and even Pollution (PUC) certificates for the entire life of the car.

Also, I would make sure that mechanically the car is fine and serviced at the time of selling it. I think, this matters a lot more than fixing minor dents and scratches. From my own experience in Bangalore, with today's traffic, I find it almost impossible to keep any vehicle totally scratch and dent free for long periods. I have given up on having that OCD and made peace with myself. Of course I take the best possible care to avoid the dents and scratches, but in the end they're simply inevitable :)

So my earlier response was based merely by reading the title that says "Should you fix up your car before selling it? " for which I responded on how I will always be particular about fixing my car "mechanically".

But when I looked at the description for the survey, it says "Should you fix the minor dents and scratches on your car at the time of selling it?"

Request mods to edit the title accordingly.

Voted yes. Primarily to give a good impression to a prospective buyer, gain confidence that I am not trying to pawn off a poor quality car. When I go to buy a preowned car and if I see that the seller has made some efforts to improve the car including a recently done service, my confidence does go up a notch.

Since I have bought and sold mostly pre-owned cars, the money that you need to spend in fixing/cleaning up is offset by the additional amount you can quote due to the improvements you are doing.

Of course, if it is something we cannot do, best to be very transparent about it.

Edit: On minor dents and scratches, probably not. Anything slightly major and ugly, I would fix.

As many of the members would say, the most important thing is to be transparent about the issues.

If you spend money to repair it, you will naturally be expecting a higher price and it will mean you need to find buyers who appreciate what you did and be willing to pay extra. If you do get any repainting done, alway take before and after pictures to assure the buyer that the repaint is just minor cosmetic stuff and not any major accident repair. This would be the route I will take - it like dealing with such buyers, but you have a smaller target audience.

If you want to entertain very price conscious buyers, it is better to disclose the outstanding repairs and pass on the discount. Unfortunately in India, lowest price is the best USP of a product, esp in used car market. Not every buyer wants to put Michelin tires, pay top dollar to A.S.S for servicing and repair. Even in this case, I would have the critical issues taken care of so that the car is in a perfect working condition. I am talking about tires, batteries, dents etc type of repairs which need not be taken up before selling.

Most sensible buyers would value the transparency and honesty more than repair before sale vs after sale. In fact, if you list "known issues" in your ad, you automatically attract sensible buyers :)

Voted No.

I would rather spend on making the cars mechanically sound making sure it drives without faults.

Tell the potential buyer about the dings and scratches or minor dents and let them decide. I would definitely give the car a proper wash and polish treatment before showing/selling the car.