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Newbie question: sell now, or fix then sell?


Guest mossywell
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Guest mossywell

I’ve got a bit of a dilemma and as a newbie that knows considerably far less than I should about my Supra TT, I thought I’d ask some advice.

 

Basically, my wife wants me to sell it so that we can get an MPV for our 1 year old boy (and the fact that I only do about 2.5K miles a year in it). :( for the sale, :D for the boy. Problem is that:

a. I have no idea how much it’s (the car, not the boy) worth.

b. There are a few (minor I hope – but again, I’m not 100% sure) things that need to be done to get it in top condition. The body work’s excellent but then it’s only done 35K miles (97 P reg). However, it need an error code 52 (front knock sensor) fixing and the exhaust need a hole fixing / exhaust replacing. Oh, and the radio light’s gone so you can’t tell what you’re listening to! (You might have seen it on Autotrader.)

 

Anyway, my question is that seeing as it’s soon due for a full service / MOT anyway, do people think that I should take it in to get all this done and then sell it, or see if a dealer’s interested, or try to sell it privately or even put it up on the cars for sale forum here without fixing these minor things? Clearly, I don’t want to spend a load on it if it’s not going to affect the value (having no idea how much this lot costs to fix), so I’m kind of in a dilemma as to what best to do.

 

PS. I live in Wimbledon (of tennis fame), so anyone know of a decent service garage in the area – if that’s what people think I should do?

 

Sorry for the woolly questions! :confused:

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Depends how much money you're willing to loose!

Obviously someone will buy it as is...but at a fair discount.

 

Personally I'd repair the error code. Perhaps leave the exhaust and radio to the buyers choice, but note it discounted accordingly.

 

Post more details here (price, model, pics) and you never know if an enthusiast will grab it.

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Guest mossywell

carl0s:

Sorry, I didn't want to go overboard on the spec side of things in case the administrators said I was going off-topic and should be in the "cars for sale" section instead!

 

A very quick spec: "Spec: 6 speed manual, model RZS, (chassis E-JZA80-ALFVZ), 2JZ GTE engine, Twin Turbo, 1997 P reg Black metallic paint, Oz alloys and 4 new tyres, new timing belt, wide bore exhaust, side skirts, HKS electronic valve controller (not VVTI), air intake system and blow off valve, Flashpoint CAT1 alarm, twin airbags, full black leather throughout. Taxed to end December 2005, MOT to Jan 2006. FSH. 34500 miles."

 

If the web site admins are happy, I'll post some pics in this forum. If not, and people think it's best, I'll re-post in the cars for sale bit and put pics up there.

 

Does december make that much difference to price?

 

Pete:

Does it depend on how much I'm willing to lose? Like, if I spend to fix these irritations now, will I more than recoup my costs compared with selling it as is?

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Id fix the error code, get the exhaust patched up at a local garage or powerflow (cost me a tenner on my old exhaust) and then leave the radio as it is or source a cheap standard one and put that in. Again shouldnt cost you a lot but the less negative points you advertise on the car the better.

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Pete:

Does it depend on how much I'm willing to lose? Like, if I spend to fix these irritations now, will I more than recoup my costs compared with selling it as is?

Sorry, I meant that I think you'll be offered more money if you repaired the bits. (Except the radio - no one buys a car for the radio)

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As above, get the error code checked out and sorted, you could fix the exhaust for a tenner and buy a second hand double din head unit, put up a request in the wanted section as a lot of people get aftermarket radios.

It isn't the best time of year to sell as obviously it is the most expensive time of year for most people, present buying etc..

It does sound like a nice car though, if you could hold off till the warmer months it would be snapped up.

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It all depends on what you want for it.

 

if you're willing to sell it for sensible money, taking into account the faults, then stick it up cheap, if you want the most you can get (not much these days at the moment :( ) do the work to make it perfect.

 

Personally I'd get the knock sensor error fixed, that's going to put off all but the most enthusiastic buyers.

Have you tried resetting the ECU, it may have just flagged the problem up and needs a reset to clear it. Try doing that and then running around for a bit to see if the Check engine light comes on.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about the exhaust, most people change that as one of the first things anyway, just allow a few quid in the price

 

Good luck with it.

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carl0s:

A very quick spec: "Spec: 6 speed manual, model RZS, (chassis E-JZA80-ALFVZ), 2JZ GTE engine, Twin Turbo, 1997 P reg Black metallic paint,

 

Well, it's not a VVTi (I assume?), but it's the last of the non-vvtis. So I presume it's facelift? and it's six-speed. It's not Royal-Sapphire Pearl, but even so, it's a very desirable motor.

 

The time of year thing.. well it just seems that no body is able to sell their cars for decent money at the moment. I'd say £10k would be easy, if anyone wanted to buy one!

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I saw this on autotrader - when it disappeared again I thought you'd had an easy sale.

 

The radio and exhaust - don't worry too much...depending on where the hole is. I suspect a lot of potential buyers would be happy to stick something aftermarket on themselves. The knock sensor however is a different matter, and a sensible buyer would be cagey about something that might result in the engine going bang...Are you sure it's the sensor?

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Guest mossywell

Ark: Just quoting from the manual. :) The ECU gives error code 52, which the manual says is a knock sensor problem (bad contact, short circuit). When the light comes on, the car doesn't misfire or do anything unusual (always 2nd gear) and I certainly can't hear any knocks / detonations.

 

Supragaz: re the pics. I'm not shy, but this isn't the forum for selling cars AFAIK and the general advice seems to be to hold onto it until spring / summer next year. If everyone disagrees and says, "no - put some pics up on the car for sale forum" then I will.

 

carl0s: Correct, non-VVTi (feb 97)

 

Wow you're starting him driving at a young age!!!

Hmm - gives me an idea... He gets the MPV, I keep the Supra... Oh. There's the small matter of the money. :rolleyes: (OT: why on earth are MPVs so expensive?)

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mossywell, your Sup is easily worth 10 - 11k all day imho. Even with the bottom almost dropping out the Sup market lately

 

A 6 speed TT facelift with low mileage in Black?

 

Definitely up there with the most desirable Sup's to own without a doubt. You ask all Sup owners which model they first wanted and nearly all will say a 6 speed TT in black - I know I did.

 

If time isn't an issue then by all means wait til the new year before paying for any advertising. But either way, get it in the Classifieds on here in the mean time. I would also sort the knock sensor out though. And personally the other problems I wouldn't fix nor would they stop me buying a car. But hey, that's me.

 

Good luck with the sale bud!

 

PS - Surely a child seat fits in the back of the Supra? If so, your lad would be at least 10 before he'd be too big for the back seats! Child seat for now then seat belts when he's big enough!:clap:

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Guest mossywell

:) Actually, the child seat does fit on the front passenger seat and according to the consumers association it's not illegal with an airbag and indeed the newest evidence suggests that airbags and child seats aren't as bad as originally thought. However, I still don't feel comfortable with the idea (and there's no room for the wife in the back). :)

 

Anyway, a big thank you to everyone that's responded - mkivsupra.net is fantastic. :D Here's my plan of action based on the feedback:

 

- Get the service done and error 52 sorted.

- Get the exhaust bandaged at most, and forget the light on the radio / CD.

- Put it up for sale on the cars for sale forum here pretty much right away. Tomorrow possibly (hangover permitting).

- Might have to wait until spring / summer for the market to bounce back for the best price (placate wife in meantime if possible)! Think of £11k as a lower limit.

- When I sell, it... :cry:

 

PS. Anyone good at servicing Supras in Wimbledon area? The drive to Phoenix Watford is a bit of a trek for me.

 

Cheers everyone!

Mark

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Mark, good luck with the sale mate.

 

I reckon you'll sell for the price you want as it sounds a top motor. I know there's a new lad on here (captainchaos?) who was looking for a Sup and was willing to pay 12k for a much older car than yours!

 

I'll post a link up on his thread to this - he's along way away but a good Sup is worth travelling for.

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Guest mossywell
Mark, good luck with the sale mate.

 

I reckon you'll sell for the price you want as it sounds a top motor. I know there's a new lad on here (captainchaos?) who was looking for a Sup and was willing to pay 12k for a much older car than yours!

 

I'll post a link up on his thread to this - he's along way away but a good Sup is worth travelling for.

 

Thank you very much. I I'd really appreciate that.

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:) Anyone good at servicing Supras in Wimbledon area? The drive to Phoenix Watford is a bit of a trek for me.Mark

 

If you find anyone, let me know :)

 

 

 

Personally I think £11k is a bit ambitious. I'd be over the moon if someone offered that to me for mine. (Not selling, just in case anyone fancies it :rlol:)

 

But you can always try and see what you get. Bearing in mind that you don't actually want to sell the car, the more you put it up for, the longer you get to drive it :)

At the end of the day, you can always reduce the price, but you can't increase it once the car is sold and you realise that the buyer got a bargain.

 

Good luck with it. It is the right spec, just wait for the right buyer to come along.

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Guest mossywell
You need to pay your membership fee as well if you haven't already - otherwise you can't advertise in the for sale section.

I didn't know that but it's still terrific VFM. :)

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