Selling through a dealer

[Pum]

Hi, oh forum lumminaries.

My 1994 Grif 500 is up for private sale in the classifieds. An independant TVR dealer called me and suggested that I sell through them on commission. They reckon people are very wary of buying TVRs of that age privately, but they have many potential customers after Grifs and none in stock. He said he could probably get most of his commission out of the extra he could sell it for as a dealer, as he can give that peace of mind customers want, and a warranty.

What, oh lumminaries of PistonHeads, do you reckon? Good idea or a load of BS? Should I go for it?

[snorky]

be careful - some past horror stories on here of cars being sold and then the company goes bust and car is gone and so is your money. Not saying don't do it just be careful HOW you do it.

[SteveGRF]

I would go for it sounds like you should get what you want for it & thier management commission will be paid from the extra they sell it at for you. However ...... would not like the idea of handing the car over to them until you get your cash ... due to recent nightmare stories about dealers going bust etc.

[Zippee]

snorky said:

be careful - some past horror stories on here of cars being sold and then the company goes bust and car is gone and so is your money. Not saying don't do it just be careful HOW you do it.

As above - When Dream Machines went bust a few on here got burned badly including one chap who lost his 20k Cerb. Make sure you don't hand over any form of ownership to new owner or garage until you have the money in your bank.

[Pum]

Thanx for the quick replies chaps, and good points I hadn't considered. However, the whole point of the arrangement would be that the dealer would sell the car from their forecourt as a dealer sale, with all the benefits to the customer that comes from that. I assume that if I keep hold of the V5 registration doc, and they have no receipt of sale, then if they go bust I can prove that the car is mine; if they sell it then they would contact me to bring in the V5, do a receipt and hand over the cash. Sound reasonable? Cheers.

[Pum]

If I were to name the garage/dealer in question would poeple who have successfully done this with them be able to confirm so, or is that not a good idea? Not sure of etiquette on this.

[Zippee]

Pum said:

If I were to name the garage/dealer in question would poeple who have successfully done this with them be able to confirm so, or is that not a good idea? Not sure of etiquette on this.

Can't see any reason why not as you'll be asking opinions rather than naming or shaming.

[SteveGRF]

When I originally brought my car from a very well known dealer in Hazelmere (with no problems at all), they appeared to have an arrangement with the seller who left the car with them on the day I inspected & test drove it.
I.e the dealer advertised it & the owner kept the car until sold, popping it into to the dealer when a potential buyer needed to view etc.
I later found out that they made £3K commission on the car I brought (less their prep costs), understandably they make thier money feed thier overheads & you take your choice etc.

[Gazzab]

Not sure V5 is much help if the car is sold etc...

[YKB]

The V5 is NOT a proof of ownership. It just shows the registered keeper. I'd get a letter from the dealer agreeing that the car remains your property until full payment is received. Or get a dealer you can 100% trust.

[Pum]

The dealer is TVR Centre, Barnet. Anyone have experience of selling through them before? Any know if they are in imminent danger of going bust? Cheers.

[Pied Piper]

I would want to keep the V5, and also have a contract of sale from the dealers stating clearly that they are selling the car on your behalf,have no capital tied up in the car, who is responsible for insurance should anything go wrong.

Be aware that any work that the dealer agrees with the buyer will come out of the sale price of the car, make sure the dealer agrees all work and costs with you before the sale is agreed.

Agree what will happen on test drives, make sure the dealer will supervise all test drives and they will check and copy drivers licence before taking the customer out.

It is a good way of selling a car as you won't have the hassle of dealing with all the potential buyers.

Good luck and I hope the sale goes well.

[Graham]

I've seen soo many people get burned on sor deals, where the car is sold and they never get their money or the car back you'd have to be on crack to think it was a good idea.