Are Irish motorists still avoiding Autos like the plague? (bar top end )

[monkeyboy]

Hi

My GF is trying to sell a BMW Coupe, 1.9L engine. Due to the time of the year and the fact that it is an Auto it is proving very difficult to sell.

It genuinely is quite immaculate and has been cared for well and serviced 100% by BMW but it just wont shift.

Many people say 1.9 is underpowered for an auto but I have driven many a car and I would have this over many cars for whats being asked.

Are we just still wary of the Autos and its old bad rep?

 

[ubiquitous]

What's an Auto? Automatic...?

 

[monkeyboy]

Yeah !

 

[Purple]

Irish drivers don't like small to medium sized automatics. They are worth less second hand. The opposite applies to Mercs.
A BMW coup would be considered to be a driver’s car so an automatic is an even bigger turn off. That with a general softening in the second hand market (especially in cars that are expensive to insure) and your girlfriend might have to drop the price.

 

[jhegarty]

What year and price might help us say if its over prices...

But as said about BMW drivers (3/5 series) are generally not automatic drivers...

 

[westside]

A couple of years back I had a 01 Audi A3 1.6 Auto and sold it within 3-4 days. I was unsure with it being a auto if it would sell and was really surprised by the number of calls I had. I guess it does depend on the make/model.

The single most important factor when selling a car privately is price. Your car must be priced quite a bit less that what a garage would charge for the same car for straight cash. There are a lot of used cars out there and nothing make a car stand out like a very good asking price.

 

[PetrolHead]

The single most important factor when selling a car privately is price. Your car must be priced quite a bit less that what a garage would charge for the same car for straight cash. There are a lot of used cars out there and nothing make a car stand out like a very good asking price.

I couldn't disagree more strongly!

Wording of ad, good pictures and where you advertise are far more important than price.

Taking the OP as an example...

Make sure all the optional extras are listed, even the ones that sound obvious (CD, front fogs, etc, etc)

Make sure your picture is of a high quality, in good light, from a good angle, the car is clean and it's pictured in a good location

Finally, consider who might want to buy it and choose where you advertise based on that. For example, a BMW specialist magazine for brand enthusiasts or maybe a publication for older people, especially women (don't give me grief... think about who might want a 1.9 coupe auto...) may work.


Good luck.

 

[SunshineSupe]

Folks:

Not sure what was meant by the problems with automatic transmissions as mentioned by the OP...

I lived in the US for years and drove both automatics and manuals and never had a problem with an automatic (by contrast, I had to replace clutches on manuals several times).

In any event, if you live/spend alot of time in Dublin, I personally could not understand why somebody would ever get a manual (aside from the cost). The start and stop traffic here is, as we know, awful, and the automatic really helps to make it a more relaxing trip (IMHO).

Different strokes for different folks!

Sun

 

[monkeyboy]

The car is 00 and looking for less than 11k, it really is a steal IMO.

Dublin motorists should really cop on to the fact that an auto for 99% of your driving conditions is far better than the "real" driving experience you get very occasionally on an open windy road with a manual !

Ill never drive a manual either again so long as I live in a city as Dublin.

 

[peno]

The car is 00 and looking for less than 11k, it really is a steal IMO.

Dublin motorists should really cop on to the fact that an auto for 99% of your driving conditions is far better than the "real" driving experience you get very occasionally on an open windy road with a manual !

Ill never drive a manual either again so long as I live in a city as Dublin.

Agreed not sure why the automatic market hasn't caught on here yet. I am driving my first for the last 2 months and would never go back to manual.

In addition my wife who was very nervous starting to drive and kept putting it off due to clutch control gear change etc is now much more confident in the autoomatic. She can learn to drive without worrying about changing gear etc and just concentrate on the road. Much better way to teach someone to drive.