Selling a car that's not "paid off"...
 

Hey guys,

I have a question about how this works... I want to sell my 350Z right before it hits the 50k miles mark. I've paid off all but $2900 and want to sell it asap (for various reasons). I don't have the free cash laying around to pay it off right now. My question is, how do I sell something while Wells Fargo still has the title? What are my options to get as much cash out of this as possible?

The used car market right now is HOT and cars are selling for 10%+ more than bluebook value. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here's what I've got

2006 Black Base Model
49000 miles
Kinetix PLenum
Carbon Fiber Sway bar
StopTech Big Breaks & Rotors (Front)
JWC PopCharger
Excellent Condition Inside/Out

What would you ask for a 305Z like this? I'm at a loss of how to proceed! Thanks guys

http://i51.tinypic.com/x58bwm.jpg

You CAN sell a vehicle with a lien.

You CAN NOT transfer a title with a lien.

HUH? What alternate universe are you living in? Have you looked in the Marketplace here to see what people are asking for their Zs. That will give you an idea what to ask for yours. You won't get that much of course.

Sell your StopTechs and put it torwards your loan.

Edit: sell all your aftermarket parts and apply it to your loan.

Are you sure you didn't sleepwalk to your computer and write this?

Dave is right. What people are asking and what they are getting nowadays are two very different things. Especially as we move into the winter season. October/November and January 2011 are the worst months for used car sales. Manufacturer/dealer incentive to get rid of 2010 models at cheap prices as well as the psychological "1 year older" in Jan 2011 are just right around the block.

If sports cars are selling at 10% over blue book, that's only because the blue book has them listed 25% below what is the current reality.

As stated above, sell your aftermarket parts, especially those breaks. Apply that to the loan and get it paid off. People don't want to buy and pay extra for aftermarket parts on a modified car.

I want to see pics of the carbon fibre sway bars please. What are stoptech breaks? If something is broke, you may want to fix it before selling.

thanks for the advice guys - and yes used car values are soaring...here's an NPR article about it from yesterday...

With the economy stuck in neutral, auto dealers have been offering all kinds of incentives and deals on new cars. But prices for used cars have actually been rising quite sharply.

For example, the average price for a three-year-old Chevy Suburban is up more than 30 percent over last year's.

According to Gary Collins, owner of Auto Brokers, a used car lot near Boston, buyers looking for a Ford F-150 extended four-wheel drive pickup with just over 100,000 miles would have paid at least $2,000 to $3,000 less last year than the current asking price of $13,500.

With the economy just barely growing, why are used car prices going up so much? As is often the case in economics, it has to do with supply and demand. According to Joe Spina, an analyst with Edmunds.com, there has been a decrease in the supply of used cars.

"The availability of cars is half of what it used to be," says John Esterakis, who runs John’s Auto Sales, just down the block from Auto Brokers.

Esterakis explains that with the recession, people have been buying and leasing fewer new cars. As a result, there have been fewer cars coming off leases and getting traded in. The "Cash for Clunkers" trade-in program did not help, destroying used cars that could have been bought.

So you may not have realized it, but the nation is in the grips of a used-car supply shortage. And that is what has been driving prices up.

"The cost of [used] cars has increased probably 30 percent," Esterakis says.

I work selling used cars online... Kelly Blue Book is way overprised right now and is actually up for sale due to a poor business. Sales for cars used ECONOMIC cars are up, sports cars are down. Your better off going by edmunds, and asking for 10% over and expect getting 10% less. Sell your mods first.

ex: my 08 nismo w/ 11k miles on KBB is 32, edmunds is 27. 27 is a LOT closer value. don't use KBB any more....

edit: also fyi used cars prices are up as people cannot afford new cars, but what they fail to mention is the used cars that are up in price are known as 'sub-prime' cars. These cars have extreme interest rates and are usually not about 8-9k

get a loan for $2900, pay off car, get title, sell car, pay loan

What kind of collateral (besides the car) does he have for getting a loan? That could get really expensive in terms of interest, and it might be a while before the car sells. It's better to talk to the bank, get informed on exactly to handle the transaction, and make it as easy as possible for the potential buyer.

Why not just be up front with potential buyers that you owe money on the car and that they will have to go to the bank with you and when they write the check you pay the 2900 out of that and the bank hands you the title and you sign it over.

Some buyer will not want to go through this hassle, but outside of getting a personal loan that seems to be your only option.

Years back I actually took the title of the car I was trading for and since the loan value of each cars were very close the bank just restructured my loan and swapped titles.

The hard part is finding a buyer willing to go along

Be open with the buyer, provide a bill of sale, and make sure your local branch of the bank has the title at their location before the sale. If all of this is done you can have the car sold, paid off, and the title tranferred all in one day.

Some people may not be willing to wait the extra little bit, but, if they want the car bad enough they will. Just keep in mind depending on the bank the check is from and your bank's policy, they may not make the full amount of the buyers payment available anywhere from a day to a couple weeks. Always want to keep your ass covered when it comes to checks from individuals.

I've sold a car with a liend against it before. It's pretty easy. Just make sure you have a bill of sale signed by both parties that covers all aspects of the sale. You can usually get one from your state's dmv. Then the buyer can cut you a check for the entire price of the vehicle and make it out to you and your bank.

lol....you guys are funny.

# 1 market is crap. I get people looking for junks to buy all day long. I am selling DUKE's car for him here on my Lot. He owes on the car but he can still sell it. Either you sell the car for the amount that you owe, and pay it off that way. Or you find someone that is willing to take over the payments and then you transfer everything toward them. That might take a week to process, but you are able to accomplish it that way.

I followed the seller to his bank - gave them the casier's check and they printed the lien release letter.

That and a signed title was all i needed...

:+1:

With caution.......;)

Went through that hassle back in July and learned a lot about buying a used car. In my case I paid off the guys loan. I dunno if anyone is willing to buy a vehicle where they cannot satisfy your loan because then they cannot get the title. Ask for payoff and hope someone is willing to pay that amount.