Why won't my car sell??

[mario147]

My '06 147 Selespeed is the first Alfa I've ever owned. It has been very reliable and a perfect car to drive. It was always garaged and under cover at work.

I have since downgraded my car to a Corolla, since I now drive further to work and my car bakes out in the sun all day. I didn't want to watch the Alfa turn into a worthless possession.

But I can't sell the car!! I get people coming to look at it, and they all say it's a beautiful car. But then they say the dreaded line that I keep hearing over and over again.... "but we've heard Alfa's are unreliable......." and I know where that conversation is going! It always means I will never see or hear from them again.

Why can't I sell this car?

Am I asking too much?

[Barry Edmunds]

mario147
There are all manner of reasons why a car will not sell quickly or s quickly as the owner thinks it should.
You may be asking too much for the car. Where have you advertised the car and what details have you included in the adds? Have you made full service history available to potential buyers?

You may need to look further afield for potential buyers.

The only reliability issues I am aware of with 147's relate to the selespeed transmission, otherwise I beleve they are reliable.

Might be worth asking the people who are raising Alfa reliability questions if they speak from experience, if they own a current model Alfa or where they get such information from.

Barry

[Brad M]

You may not get very many resposes to you thread. Unfortunately due to a recent fracas on this forum and enforcement of forum rules, members are not allowed to comment of for sale adds unless you are intending to buy the car. You might want to re phrase would original post as to "whats the best way to sell an Alfa 147" for example.

Given the topic is in the South Australia area, and the poster has requested feedback ... your comments are not accurate.

[Evan Bottcher]

Hey Paul - it would be inappropriate to comment on someone's advertisement without permission, but this is a question fairly posed and not in the classifieds section.  I'm not going to hold back, hope this is okay.

Mario147 - I'm surprised the redbook price is that high for a selespeed.  The sele has a very bad reputation, probably well deserved, and it's pretty well known even outside of the Alfa community.  The Selespeed has certainly been the cause of a *lot* of revenue to guys who drive tow trucks.  You're very unlikely to have anyone buy it near that price from this forum.  If you need to move it in a hurry you're going to have to drop the price a long way, otherwise just keep fishing on carsales etc. until you find someone who 'just has to have it'.

Good luck!

[Sheldon McIntosh]

Mario147 - I'm surprised the redbook price is that high for a selespeed. 

Especially since the selespeed is valued at $1500 more than the equivalent manual, which unfortunately bears no resemblance to reality at all.  Manuals seem to be worth more than selespeeds, purely because of the bad stories.  I believe the selespeeds were pretty reliable by 2006, but that stigma will always be there I suppose.

Oh, and also, you've got it advertised at the upper limit of what the redbook says. 

You're very unlikely to have anyone buy it near that price from this forum.  If you need to move it in a hurry you're going to have to drop the price a long way, otherwise just keep fishing on carsales etc. until you find someone who 'just has to have it'.

Good luck!

[Paul Gulliver]

Given the topic is in the South Australia area, and the poster has requested feedback ... your comments are not accurate

Brad,

Not trying to be a smart arse but  does that that mean if i want to sell my Alfetta and ask for "expressions of interest "chosing to post it in the Techincal 116 or General Interest discussion forums  as opposed to the classifieds forum then its open slaver  for  gratuitous advice.

Surely if the poster is asking

Why can't I sell this car?

Am I asking too much?

Any response  ( as , noted in the previous  2 posts ) is going to entail comment on price , condition etc and be in breach of forum rules.

Despite the fact that it is on a regional forum,  it's surely comment on a classified . In addition on this or a concurrent post he has refered the forum to a car sales add.

If i'm being a dickhead ( you won't be the first to suspect it )  on this please let me know here or a PM.

Cheers ( and in good faith )

Gully

PS :  It might be hard and not what Mario wanted to hear , but i agreed with what both Evan & Sheldon have posted

[branko.gt]

..... members are not allowed to comment of for sale adds unless you are intending to buy the car.....

this is not a for sale add nor is it posted in "for sale" section and and is an open invitation for comment

don't see what the problem is ...


on the subject of the sale, i think that couple of years back the bottom fell off the Alfa resale value, not that is t was great before that either
There is a lot of choice for buyers and the car will not sell for a good price in a hurry.
On the other hand, good maintenance record, well kept car inside and out and very low mileage may find a right buyer.
As for the price, the higher the price the longer the wait, the longer the wait the older the car and commanding lower price.
If you take into account what is the cost of waiting for 6-8 months before selling the car you may consider dropping the price.
On the other hand if someone is really interested they will make an offer...
but there are a lot of 147's there for sale, yours has to have to catch someone's attention before it sells ...

[branko.gt]

Given the topic is in the South Australia area, and the poster has requested feedback ... your comments are not accurate

Brad,

Not trying to be a smart arse but  does that that mean if i want to sell my Alfetta and ask for "expressions of interest "chosing to post it in the Techincal 116 or General Interest discussion forums  as opposed to the classifieds forum then its open slaver  for  gratuitous advice.

Surely if the poster is asking

Why can't I sell this car?

Am I asking too much?

Any response  ( as , noted in the previous  2 posts ) is going to entail comment on price , condition etc and be in breach of forum rules.

Despite the fact that it is on a regional forum,  it's surely comment on a classified . In addition on this or a concurrent post he has refered the forum to a car sales add.

If i'm being a dickhead ( you won't be the first to suspect it )  on this please let me know here or a PM.

Cheers ( and in good faith )

Gully

PS :  It might be hard and not what Mario wanted to hear , but i agreed with what both Evan & Sheldon have posted

Only specific for sale posts are protected from inappropriate comment and it is fair enough that they are. It was really bad, we had more responses slagging the asking price or the car than any actual requests for further information. It had to be stopped. This is quite a widely accepted practice on inteweb forums that have for sale sections.

This is not a "for sale ad" and as such not protected from "gratuitous" commentary (as long as the language does stays family friendly)

And an obligatory comment on topic, selespeeds are easier to sell if they are red because girls prefer both selespeed and red .. ( not to be with the owner of such a car but to own such a car,  just in case someone gets any ideas ... )

[Paul Gulliver]

Branko,
I liked your second answer better, and agree with what you have said .

The corrosponding "for sale" thread posted by Mario 147 in December 2010 and updated  earlier today has been removed.

[branko.gt]

Branko,
I liked your second answer better, and agree with what you have said .

The corrosponding "for sale" thread posted by Mario 147 in December 2010 and updated  earlier today has been removed.

It was supposed to be one answer but quoting two posts, so i made it in two posts, being lazy. I can see now how the first part can be little inflammatory on its own and without the second part ...

[vin sharp]

A perfectly good Selespeed unfortunately also carries the burden of doubt that troublesome ones have put out there.
I am also amazed (or not) that so many people take off the cuff comments by the Top Gear crew as gospel; therefore all Alfas are great until they break down on the side of the road every second time you take them out of the driveway........Seriously the number of non car club type people who have quoted this to me over the past few years!!  It makes you wonder what real world effect this really does have out there in noddy land.
The ONLY car I've ever had break down and towed away in disgrace is a late-ish , EFI, ESP, SRS, ABS, Multi-valve,  fully imported JAPANESE model........and if I advertised it for sale, no problems, no third-degree questioning.
So I hope those Alfas that are appearing at the Top Gear event this coming weekend don't give those Pommy mugs a chance to say "Told you so!"
Vin.

[lombardi]

I can't understand why people have mindset  misconceptions on reliability issues with ALFA's and still come and waste time to the seller when theyre minds are already made up of not purchasing the vehicle-THIS TERM IN THE TRADE I GUESS IS TRANSLATED INTO TYRE KICKERS- it has to be one of the more punishing tasks to sell a 2nd hand car,cause u are dealing with a lot of time wasters and the ignorant public. CIAO

[wankski]

hey guys....


why fight the perception??

do you really think a 70k alfa 5 yrs later would sell for damn near 1/4 of its new price, if it had the market appeal of merc, bimmer or even lexus??

let them eat cake i say...

could not afford my latest and greatest car otherwise...


I can understand if you're pissed if you bought your alfa new tho...


as for your current sale - i find it completely disingenuous for someone to come inspect your car and then bang on about reliability problems.... either they were never serious or were trying to get you to lower your price to $50 or some other insultingly low price..

f em...

Second hand alfas have always only sold to ppl in the know.... embrace this fact.... do you really want to sell your baby to some dunderhead? I personally would be sus of a PO who didn't care where the car was going in its second or third life... that screams to me that the car is some kind of 'trojan horse'... no thanks..

keep the faith - a good buyer will come... car looks nice!

[John Hanslow]

Remenber that the market has factored in depreciation, repairs and 'concerns' with each make and model and it normally follows a bit of logic.

That said, Alfa's are good value and if there is some cost in repairs, well I alawys note that a reasonable purchase price makes up for it - a set off really.

Cheers.

[mario147]

I am also amazed (or not) that so many people take off the cuff comments by the Top Gear crew as gospel; therefore all Alfas are great until they break down on the side of the road every second time you take them out of the driveway........Seriously the number of non car club type people who have quoted this to me over the past few years!!  It makes you wonder what real world effect this really does have out there in noddy land.

I'd like to apologise if I've broken a forum rule btw. It was not intentional.

As for the quote above, I can't believe how true this is!! I had a guy call me last Saturday and tell me that he knows the Alfa is the best looking car on the road, but Top Gear reported it was unreliable (I now hate the show!!  ) I told him that my Corolla is an '07 and doesn't have cruise or traction control, doesn't have a sunroof, no leather interior, no alloy rims, no style and he will pay the same money for one as the Alfa is worth. I didn't know what else to say.

I guess I am asking for too much, but I am waiting for an offer... any offer! Even if it's $2k less, I might consider it. But no-one has even done that. I could understand if people were getting it checked out by a Mechanic and the car was a lemon, but it's not. It has been so reliable and fun to drive. No-one has even been interested enough to have it checked by the RAA. No-one has even had the bonnet open for more than 30 seconds!!

I've never had an Alfa before and don't think I'll ever buy one again. This has been the worst experience I've ever had trying to sell a car. I can always sell the Corolla, but whether I lose a lot of money on the Alfa now, or in 3-4 years time, what is the difference? I just want the thing gone from my garage now...

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions. I will persist in trying to sell the car, and even drop the price.