Ask the Experts: Selling Your Race Car Online

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It may seem straightforward enough, but the process can be made simpler—and more profitable—by selecting the right site and optimizing your listing.

Whether a racer is stepping up—or down—to a new class, clearing out the shop, or just ready for a new adventure, there are many places to sell his or her no-longer-needed race car. The worldwide reach of the World Wide Web makes it a popular marketplace, and options there tend to fall into two categories: ad sites and auction sites. 

Ad or Auction?

RacingJunk, founded in 1999 as a drag racing website for grassroots racers, now reaches millions of users with ads in more than 40 different categories. In many ways, RacingJunk functions like a 21st century version of newspaper classified ads. The seller posts an ad, potential buyers reach out, and the deal is closed between buyer and seller without any intervention from the site itself. At RacingJunk, that process is free to private party sellers and buyers, unless the seller chooses to pay for upgrades, like a featured position on the site, a photo gallery, or visibility upgrades to make the listing stand out.

Online auction site eBay got its start in 1995, and its eBay Motors division “is home to more than 7,000,000 unique monthly vehicle shoppers,” said Kevin Considine. As with an ad site, the seller posts information about the car for interested buyers, but on eBay the sale can take place in one of two ways: via the traditional auction system of increasing bids over a set time frame, or through the Buy It Now process “that allows sellers to send or accept offers,” Considine said. Either way, the auction site is involved in the transaction and the transfer of funds, and it takes a commission from the sale.

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“Listings should be as detailed as possible to clearly outline the vehicle’s history and intended discipline,” said eBay’s Kevin Considine. On an auction site, setting a reserve price ensures the car won’t sell unless bids reach that threshold.

“The main difference between a site like ours and an auction site is that you get to control what the car sells for,” said RacingJunk’s Ian Downey. “At an auction site, it will sell for what it sells for.” 

But that can also be a good thing. “Auctions can initiate a burst of bidding activity that may drive the price higher than anticipated,” said Considine. Many auction sites also allow the seller to set a reserve or minimum price, so the car won’t sell unless the bids reach that threshold. 

Maximize the Listing

Getting the most out of an online sale begins with the listing itself. Downey advised sellers to start by doing some research to determine their car’s value. “There’s the price the seller thinks the car is worth, but then there’s the market price. Go to our website, and others too, and search for cars like your vehicle that others are selling. See what they’re selling it for. Do some compare-and-contrast to see if your car should be listed for more or less than what other vehicles are listed for.”

It’s important to have photos of the car before starting to post the ad, Downey said, or the whole process—which can take just minutes—will come to a stop until the photos are ready. 

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Listing a car on RacingJunk.com is free, though sellers can pay for upgrades to make a listing stand out. Upgrades can include a RacingJunk Club membership, featured status, a red border, and bold text, as seen in the top ad, and a larger thumbnail photo, seen in the middle ad. 

There’s also an art to writing the ad, Downey said. “You know your vehicle. If you wanted to sell your vehicle to yourself, what would you say?” Because RacingJunk has specific categories for race cars—from Dirt Oval to Truck and Tractor Pulling—“a lot of times your vehicle will be placed next to vehicles that are similar, so you need to find ways to make it unique.” Detail is good, “but don’t write a novel about every single thing on the car.” In fact, he said, leaving some details out will encourage prospective buyers to contact the seller, who can then use that personal interaction to help sell the car.

“Taking basic steps like providing detailed listing titles and vehicle descriptions is important for boosting searchability and buyer confidence,” Considine said. “Listing specific modifications and upgrades is particularly important when selling a race car. For example, if the listing is for a rallycross car, take the time to specify suspension upgrades and ride height, differential types, and brakes. Listing a stock car? Highlight engine specs, chassis and body work, and anything else that may be relevant to the buyer.” 

Selling Safely

Scammers are “all over the Internet,” Downey pointed out, but in his experience the less-than-honest have traits that reveal them. “Scammers don’t want to talk to you on the phone; they want to email or text you because they know nothing about what you’re selling.” Get a potential buyer on the phone, he recommended, “and build some type of relationship with this person so you feel like they’re trustworthy.” 

When the deal is closed, “don’t get scammed out of the money,” Downey added. Banks may make money available in the seller’s account within 24 hours of receipt of funds, “but the bank can have a seven- to 14-day process to make sure the check is not fraudulent. I’ve seen situations where the check came in, money went into the account, the item was shipped, and 10 days later the bank said that check wasn’t valid and took the money back. If you sent the car out and the person took ownership, now you have to go through the legal system to get the vehicle back.” Sellers should find out from their bank how long this vetting process will take for various types of payments, including electronic transfers, and then be up front with the buyer about the time frame before the car will be transferred. 

Considine said eBay Motors “offers tools to protect both sellers and buyers. If sellers opt to auction their car, setting a reserve price is a great way to hone in on serious buyers.” The site also offers third-party inspection services through WeGoLook “so sellers and buyers can confirm the vehicle is exactly as described. At the transaction phase, Escrow.com is another valuable service that enhances safety and security by vetting both the buyer and seller, and holding funds until the vehicle has been shipped, inspected, and accepted by the buyer.”

Downey offered this final piece of advice: “When you want to sell something, be committed to selling it. Answer the phone, call people back, have conversations. If you don’t, you might miss the person who might have been the sale for you.”

Sources

eBay Motors
ebaymotors.com

RacingJunk
racingjunk.com

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