Advice For Selling A Used Car

[SanDiegoFIRE]

I am looking to sell an older luxury sedan, and was wondering the best way to go about it, as well as potential considerations during the process.

The car is a 2006 Mercedes S500, and while there are many resources available to help price the car competitively, I was wondering what people's opinions were considering the following:
1) The car is probably worth $12-15k given condition (very good, no serious accidents) and mileage (lower than typical for this age car)
2) I will be buying a new car (not a Mercedes and much less expensive vs what the S500 was new) to replace it
3) I am willing to try to sell the car myself, but not if the process will take more than a month or two (cost of ads and value of time, both for myself and the money!)
4) I am concerned about scammers, privacy, etc - while I don't mind responding to lots of emails and phone calls, I would prefer meeting people in person to a minimum if possible - how realistic is this?

What are the best options besides placing private party ads and trying to sell it myself?  Craigslist vs Car Max vs Cars.com/KBB selling services vs selling to a Dealer vs Trade In at purchase?  How much money would I really be saving in an ideal scenario doing it myself vs the options mentioned previously (or other alternatives I'm missing)?

Thanks in advance

[ShoulderThingThatGoesUp]

CarMax is good and honest in my experience. You will get a little less money but boy is it convenient. The times I or family members have gone in to them, we set a mental price beforehand, and CarMax beat it on their first try.

If you have a friend with a parking spot on a busy street, buy some 'FOR SALE BY OWNER' signs and put them on the car with your phone number. I don't remember whether we sold the car that way or on Craigslist. You will get some annoying calls and some people from four counties away who want it but don't know how they're going to get to your area. But most people are completely pleasant. I am not a people person and it was fine.

[math-ya]

I use craigslist all the time to sell stuff and have had great luck. I have sold 3 cars with it.  The one trick I have to weed out the people that are time burglars is that I never put my phone number in the ad.  I tell people to give me their number and call them on my schedule. It is usually very easy to tell by their response if they are serious buyers or tire kickers.

[Pooja Sharma]

You should try Craiglist, cousin of mine have sold almost everything there from household furnitures to mobiles and cars. I am sure you will find your buyer there.

[MayDay]

When we sold our car on CL, I listed it on Friday, had one showing on Friday night, two on Saturday, and the first Sat person bought it. I had them give me their number and I called them.

Couldn't have been easier. We've sold two other cars on CL and for both of those, the first person to come look bought it.

All three were fuel efficient Honda's/Toyotas, I don't know if selling a luxury car would have different buyers and be more difficult.

[pjm123a]

I too have some sold some older cheaper cars using CL. I'm talking about $2 to $3 k here. In my most recent transaction the buyer came and test drove the car. He decided he wanted it. He paid me and I signed over the title and gave him the keys. Later that day he came with another person and drove the car away. That worked well. I'm not sure it is reasonable though to expect to do a cash transaction for the amount the original poster has in mind ($12 - 15k). I have another car that I would like to sell for about $12k myself. Any thoughts on how to handle the transaction safely? I have heard that you can get burned even if someone pays you with a cashier check (the bank later dishonors it).

[math-ya]

when dealing with large amounts of money, I will go to the bank with the buyer to make sure nothing goes wrong. everything can be completed there.

i really like selling cars on craigslist because when people give me an offer that is lower than my asking i just say "no, i just put the ad up, and im waiting to see if someone bites at this price. i will lower the price $100 (or whatever) each week till it sells for my asking price." Buyers sure do hate this no negotiation tactic but it works for me every time.

[Mother Fussbudget]

when dealing with large amounts of money, I will go to the bank with the buyer to make sure nothing goes wrong. everything can be completed there.

i really like selling cars on craigslist because when people give me an offer that is lower than my asking i just say "no, i just put the ad up, and im waiting to see if someone bites at this price. i will lower the price $100 (or whatever) each week till it sells for my asking price." Buyers sure do hate this no negotiation tactic but it works for me every time.

+1

[Eric]

This should probably go without saying, but take good pictures!  And lots of them!  During the day, with good lighting, so that people can see that this car is in good shape.  That will help immensely.

And as mentioned above, when dealing with this amount of money, do it at the bank.  Meet at his bank, so you can either watch the teller issue the check or have them transfer the money directly to your account.  Anyone who isn't willing to do follow this simple step is a scammer.  Period.