I'm contemplating selling my car. My kids will be driving soon and I'll need to buy another car or two. Can't justify keeping the FD. I see pricing all over the map. I'm not interested in holding out for top dollar and putting up with all the hassel; just a fair price. I've owned the car since new and here is the description:

1994 chaste white base model
87,300 original miles
Mazda reman installed at 85,000
Parts installed with reman at 85K:
Clutch and TO bearing
all water hoses
all fuel hoses
all vac hoses
all belts
plugs and wires
Matched and flowed stock injectors

Mods installed at 85K:

New '99 spec twins
Effini y-pipe
Apexi intakes
Knightsport twin downpipe
Apexi n1 dual CB
Apexi FC and datalogit
Innovative WB
CSF race radiator
Petite coolcharge II IC w/duct
Greddy elbow & piping
Dual Hallman MBC's
Stock RI dual oil coolers
R1 lip and brake ducts
Stock R1 strut bar
Defi boost and EGT gauges in dual dash pod
GAB Super R shocks
RSR down springs w/ all new rubber

I have every single stock part that came on the car including the muffler and front cat and receipts for all expenses. Purchased in SoCal and spent the last 10 years in Seattle. She runs like a Swiss watch. Everything works like the day I took her home almost 15 years ago.

I'd be grateful for some honest input on this and if I'm in the wrong forum, I apologize and request the moderator move the thread.

 

Prices vary widely in different areas. I have a 94 white PEP with 65k, new 99 turbos, and a new engine (not a reman). The car is pristine. I would like to think I could get at least 20K for it.

My best advice to you is to keep it, and don't let the kids near it

 

that is one very very nice car
even though the economy is not doing so good, i still think if someone really wants a clean FD, they will pay good money when they find yours.
and if i was in your position i would ask for no less then 20 000$

 

I would think 20k would be a great place to start. There was a similar car in mileage and cleaness to yours parked at a local dealership. Sold for 20k in a few weeks. Granted that was about 10 months ago, and things have changed a little since then.

 

A car like this is not worth selling. It sounds like a peach - but the market does not value peaches, so you will probably not get much more than the typical crappy 83k mile FD: $13-$15k. You can ask for $18-$20k but you will be dealing with tire kickers for months. In the last 4-6 months many cars have lost 20-30% of their value and current KBB and NADA numbers have not caught up with the market. The one and only Pearly White FD (with fewer miles) did not even make $19k recently.

 

18-20 k for it. thats what it should be worth. but i bet you would have a hard time selling it at that price. not that's its not worth it, just that the economy is in the *****.

Maybe put it up for sale in the summer, you would have a better bet selling it then, rather then in the winter. Nice car though, and GL!

-Mark

 

if you want a fair sale that does not take a year then 16-18k, if you want a fast sale the 16 and below. economy sucks, the car is only worth as much as someone is willing to pay for it.

 

I dont think you will get alot for it. Connor is 100% right. Unfortunately .

 

I really don't want to deal with months worth of tire kickers. Honestly, I'd rather sell it for less and perhaps have a little more chance of "picking" a good home for it. It would take more money than I could ever imagine to alleviate the sorrow I'd feel if I thought I sold it to a buyer who was likely to trash it.

I've thought about reinstalling all of the stock hardware and selling off the car and aftermarket parts separately but it's so nice the way it is and I'm not up to undoing what was just completed 2 years ago.

$20K would be nice and way less than replacement value for a comparable car but I don't see it happening.

I'm hoping $15-16K.

 

you should get 15-16 easy with the right advertisement.

throw some pics up of your baby so we can help "price" it

...well not really, I just want to see pics and that's a good excuse :-)

 

im feeling you pain aswell............i knew i should have sold my toys before deploying

 

Well personally, if I did not already own an FD I would gladly pay the full 20 for your car...I understand your time constraints, what with the economy and your kid's wanting cars soon. As cliche as this sounds, maybe take a little bit of the strain off your wallet and suggest the kids get local jobs to start saving money to buy their own cars? Personally I was raised in a not so "well-off" family and I was forced to save my money and buy my own car. I have to agree with whoever said that the market doeesn't honor "peaches". Also, parting with a car you've had since 94, I cant imagine thats something you want to do. But if your 100% sure you want to sell, then I'd say put it up for $17-19k for maybe a month, if you dont get any hits you can try dropping the price, but I'd hate to see your FD go for less than that...Best of luck whatever the final decision...And hopefully you dont get too many of the joy-riders and Formula D fan-boys that will assuredly come by for an attempt at a test drive...

 

20k isn't realistic in todays market. Banks aren't going to loan anywhere near that amount so it makes it very hard to sell. Plus their loan values don't compensate for modifications. Alot of the owners here forget our cars are 15-17yrs old. Most shoppers are going to want to pay the KBB person to person sale amount.

 

+1

 

Actually, it is possible that a prospective buyer will not be able to get a loan for any amount for a 10+ year old car in this lending climate.

I also have to agree with a previous poster re buying cars for your kids. This bad habit seems to be peculiarly American. Tell your kids to work in McDonalds for a summer and buy their own fricken cars.

 

I've not settled on if I'm buying the kids cars, handing down one of my others or making them take the bus.

The real killer is the quadrupeling of my insur premiums with two 16 yo males in the household.

And please don't offer any silly advice about fighting the insur company. My personal balance sheet would be very appealing to potential litigants and I'm not about to go with some screwy insur company or spoil my long relationship with my current one trying to save a few bucks.

I'm all for giving my kids the responsibility of a job (I've worked since I was 13) but I also want them to continue to excel in school, participate in after school sports, date and have some time to be 16 yo. That's a full plate. Given all that, they won't make enough income to buy safe and reliable transportation, fuel and insur. I'm not about to have them driving some clapped out peice of sh@t that forces me to spend my free time repairing it, breaks down in the middle of nowhere or forces me to have to get out of bed in the middle of the night to come pick up a stranded kid.

Besides, how can I keep the FD and tell my boys they can't ever drive it. I may need them to take care of me in my old age.

 

I'm having that same problem selling my 04 M3. I set the price really cheap in hopes of moving it quickly...but people are having a hard time getting a loan even for a 04 car....and I'm only asking for 20k!

 

Those E46 M3s (and E39 M5s) are getting very cheap of late. My local Craigslist has bucketloads of them on sale.

I'm had no trouble getting a loan for an '02 recently (a peachy 540i) but it was only for $10k. Do you have over 100k miles on it? My bank would only lend for sub 100k cars.

This is a great time to buy a used car - but a horrible time to sell. I'm probably going to have to dump my older BMW for peanuts.

 

Ow! There is a reason for that unfortunately: 16 year old have an accident rate twice that of 17 year olds and triple that of 18 year olds. I've never met a 16 year old male that I'd let wax my car, let alone drive it.

Get a separate umbrella policy to protect against such lawsuits. It may save you money on your auto policy too because you can reduce the liability amounts (which will be absorbed by the umbrella policy).

 

If you think your insurance company really cares how long you've been with them you are delusional. They're a business. They're going to only pay out what they're contractually obligated to, and you'll have to fight to get them to do that.

As stated previously, get an umbrella policy then find the cheapest rates you can for auto. You might also consider putting the kids on a separate auto policy from your own.

 

Thats not true, they do care. My geico rate is ALOT cheaper due to the duration we used them.

 

no it has 71k on the odo. But yea horrible time to sell! definitely a buyers market. It's shifting from used cars now to new. There are tons of rebates and 0% that is starting to happen.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/perso...l?iref=24hours

 

He is talking about the treatment that you will get when you make a claim.

 

Your FD sounds absolutely pristine. I do not think you should have any problem selling it for $16k. Good luck with the sale should you decide to go ahead with it.

 

Haha, way to plan ahead...Well Its good to hear you have such a level head about the whole idea. In response to the person who said that people will want to only pay what KBB says its worth, (not trying to call anyone out here) I was thinking that the kind of people that would be looking at purchasing an FD with the market in this kind of condition wouldn't be someone just looking for any old thing to drive, its cause they seriously want an FD, so I would expect them to be willing to pay a higher amount. Again...best of luck...you could always write Leno and ask him if he already owns an FD...?