The wonders of the internet have made used car trading so much easier than before.
While there are undoubtedly a few people who subscribe to the one car for life philosophy, for the majority of us however, there will come a time to say goodbye to our current pride and joy in order to start the next chapter of our automotive journey.
The process of saying goodbye though is a lot more than just a sentimental and emotional one. That is because there is also a financial aspect to be taken into consideration when letting go of your pride and joy. To put it bluntly, what is the maximum amount of cash I can extract for my current car?
Granted, many of us would typically just take the easy route of trading-in the existing car for the upcoming one. Or perhaps just take it to a used car dealer to just avoid the hassle of the selling process altogether. Having said that, with the magic of the internet at our fingertips these days, why not instead forgo paying other people’s lunches and take this task (and all the money that comes with it) into your own hands?
Now to the unexperienced, this might seem like a daunting idea. In truth though, the entire process is actually the exact opposite of that, and basically just involves 5 simple steps:
1. Take a few good pictures of the car that you are selling
A picture is worth a thousand words, so the more pictures available the easier it will be to get a bite from prospective buyers. These pictures of course need not be of a professional quality, but considering that everyone has a top quality camera built into their smart phone these days, some decent quality shots should be an easy task for even the most amateur photographer.
Top tip: Try to capture as much detail of the car as you can in one photograph. When in doubt, just go to any automotive website and refer/emulate the photos that catch your eye.
2. Prepare a short description regarding your car
The keyword here is short as no one really wants to read a long winded tale about the car you are intending to sell. Having said that, the advert should nevertheless contain all the basic information regarding the car, as well as any highlights that will make your car stand out from the crowd. Also, be honest about the true condition of the car.
Basic information: make, model, variant, year of manufacture, colour, mileage, price, location.
Highlights: service history record, number of prior owners, accident damage history, modifications made
3. List your car online
This is perhaps the easiest step here as most of the work has already been done in steps 1 and 2. However, this is also curiously the part of the process that most inexperienced sellers get nervous about.
Don’t be afraid however as the process of posting an advert on the major online marketplace like www.mudah.my is meant to be as user-friendly and idiot-proof as possible. Best of all, posting an ad here is absolutely FREE.
4. Deal with prospective buyers
Once the ads are up online, it is now time for arguably the most daunting yet most fun part of the selling process: fielding enquiries and purchase requests from prospective buyers.
Now at this point of the selling process, there may be some buyers who will attempt to take control of the selling process by means of offering a good deal. Remember however that the buyer has the car that you are selling. So you technically have equally (if not more) control of this process, and shouldn’t simply agree to a deal, no matter how good it may sound.
This thinking also translates well to when meeting with the buyer face-to-face to look/discuss further about the car being sold. The general rule here is if, and only if, all the terms of the sale are agreeable between both the buyer and the seller, then only do you shake (or fist bump in these pandemic times) on the deal.
Seller’s advice: Whenever you feel uncomfortable with how a deal is going, there is absolutely no harm in simply walking away and waiting for another buyer to show up. Better safe than sorry.
5. Puspakom and title transfer
Just before the celebrations of finally selling the car though, there is still one more step in this whole selling process to take care of. And that involves a visit to Puspakom for the Transfer of Ownership vehicle inspection and JPJ for the transfer of the vehicle title.
While this may seem tedious, speaking personal experience at least, both these steps are actually quite a hassle-free process that should take no longer than half a day to complete. Though remember to bring along all the documents associated with the car (Vehicle Registration Card or Vehicle Ownership Certificate) and yourself (IC) on both these visits.
Speaking first of the Puspakom inspection, it is simply just a case of making an appointment at the nearest inspection centre and forking over RM30.00 for the inspection service that encompasses the vehicle’s identification, tinted glass and its general condition. Puspakom also has a ‘Mobile Van’ inspection service that will come right to your door step (in Klang Valley only), though it does cost fractionally more, with prices starting from RM100.00 per car.
As for the JPJ part of the ownership transfer process, both the seller and buyer need to be personally present at the centre for biometric fingerprint authentication when the sale is between two private parties. Fill out a few forms and pay RM100.00, and the new registration card for the new owner should be ready within the day.
Alternately, there are also numerous ‘runner services’ that will be able to sort this whole bureaucratic process out for you for a free that varies between RM600.00 to as high as RM1,200.00 which in this economic climate is better for you to take a day off work and do it yourself and save this high fee.
