1997 960 Volvo Sedan, in Sarasota County FL

I owe 6k on this car. It carries 148k miles but is in pretty good
(between good and fair), condition. How can I get the MOST money for
this selling it outright(?). In other words, is there any repairs,
enhancements, etc I could do to increase the value? Obviously I am
'upside down on it!
I really do love my Volve, but I drive a lot (am in outside sales); the
gas is killing me and I am afraid the car is going to start 'nickle and
dime-ing' me with repair work.
Thanks for any suggestions!
K--

 

I would take it to an auto detailer, have them clean it inside and out,
maybe even get the engine cleaned.

Then I would make sure you know everything that has been done to
maintain the car, any work done or parts replaced. Also be prepared to
inform the buyer of any problems you see with the car.

I think the best way to sell a car is for it to be clean, have
information to inform the buyer of what he/she's buying, and not
surprise the buyer with things going wrong soon after (if there are
problems).

Check the Kelly Blue Book Value for private party kbb.com and see how
you compare.

 

Make sure it is tuned up and runs reasonably well.

Spend most of your time and money DETAILING the car, interior,
exterior, heck take it to a DIY carwash and powerwash the engine bay.

Then list it in the classifieds at your local newspaper, also IPD and
craigslist.

 

From your description I would say that you are going to have a hard
time paying off your loan when selling the car. According to
Edmunds.com such a vehicle is worth under $2,000 as a trade-in value and
around $2,500-$3,000 in a private party sale.

 

Carefully with that. It is VERY EASY to get water into ignition and
other critical components by blasting away at the engine bay with a
pressure washer.

John

 

I've never found Edmunds to be useful for relatively sought after cars,
the few Volvos I've sold I got about double what the listed book value
was, and for a while late model 240s were going for closer to 3x book
value and real nice ones still are.

 

THANKS! for the encouragement!
The car does run well. I was having a problem w/ it starting, recently,
but replaced a Relay switch and am not having anymore problems!
One thing... there is a clingin' noice coming from the engine. Do you
think I should change the spark plugs?
Thanks again for the encouragement!