how long to sell a C3, best way to sell a C3

[L48]

I am interested in opinions about how long it took to sell a C3, and what you did to sell it (newpaper ad, hang a sign, swap meet, online, whatever).

Some guy trying to sell me online advertising said statistics show it is about a 90 day process for classic cars, but of course he wants me to buy his extended advertising package.

If you bought one, how long did it take from the time you decided to buy a Vette until the time you had one in the driveway?

 

[milo30]

It took almost a year before I finally purchased mine. I shopped around looking for the one that I was happy with. In my price range, it was later C3 or C4s. I didn't care too much for the C4 body and the C3 it was hard to find one in the condition with some horsepower that I was looking for.

When I was shopping, I mainly used the newspaper and corvette trader but that was about 7 years ago. There are alot of options out there today with everything online.

I know that people would follow me places and ask me to sell. I turned down some offers that knowing what I know now, I should have jumped on. It was just too hard to find the "right" one for me at the time.

Considering that you are looking at a relatively small percentage of buyers that will buy something like one of these, unless it's a rare model, 90 days wouldn't suprise me at all. Actually I would have thought it to be longer than that with the way the economy is today.

 

[Red73BB]

it took me about one year to sell my 73BB, but I would not come down in price and I wasn't aggressive in selling. I listing in a large newspaper only once and recieved many calls, but only one person showned up after staying home the entire day waiting for jerksad I had a for sale sign in the window and that is what sold it at a car show. be patient, and it will sell at your price.

 

[6880 Mike]

...If you bought one, how long did it take from the time you decided to buy a Vette until the time you had one in the driveway?...

Saw the '68 on a Saturday morning while I was away from home; went home and got the wife, then went back and talked to the seller Saturday afternoon. Was at the bank on Monday afternoon and drove the car home that night. She still belongs to me. Wife does not.

Saw the for sale sign in the windshield of the '74 on a Saturday afternoon. Stopped, talked to the owner, and looked the car over. Ditto for the bank on Monday. Back at the bank Tuesday afternoon with wife and seller, signed necessary paperwork. Drove the car home while wife drove the family car. '74 and wife are now both gone. I wish I had one of them back.

Saw my neighbor driving a new-for-him Mustang on a Sunday afternoon and asked where his '80 L-82 had gone. He had traded it on the Mustang and it was at a local dealer's where the sales office was closed on Sundays. Was on the spot Monday morning. Car was in the shop when I got there undergoing clean up prior to being put on the lot. Told the salesman exactly what car I wanted without having actually seen it that morning and completed the paperwork. Had to cool my heels for about half an hour while they got the car out of the shop and up to the front of the building. She was still wet and dripping water from being washed. Drove her home that morning. We're still together.

 

[born2saw]

I looked for 6 months before I found my 1975 convertible--about 2 miles from my house!! (local newspaper ad).

When I sold it 7 years later (about 2 years ago) I placed an ad in the local paper and in a regional paper for vehicles only the Auto & RV magazine (http://auto-rv.com/). They have an eastern & western Ohio edition. It only took about 2 weeks to sell, but I had it priced right.

My 1990 I bought from a friend at a good price while I still had the 75. I sold it in the same paper about 1 1/2 years ago--it took about 6 weeks to sell.

I found the 2000 on line at Corvette Trader Online. It was actually only about 100 miles away.

Good luck!

 

[67vet]

You might want to think twice about using a "Broker" to sell you online advertising. If you do, make double sure of everything that is promised and find out how you will benifit from them doing it rather than you.
Good luck on what ever you choose.

 

[L48]

You might want to think twice about using a "Broker" to sell you online advertising. If you do, make double sure of everything that is promised and find out how you will benifit from them doing it rather than you.

Thanks for the advice. I started with their website and bought the package to do 8 weeks on the web and 1 Corvette trader book - national circulation (can I name the website/book here?). So they were soliciting me for extra services - but I had to buy it before they went to print of course. I chose to see what action I get from the first publication before I give them any more money.

 

[RON S.]

MY EXPIERENCE

WELL I GUESS I HAVE TO BE A FIRM BELIEVER IN WORD OF MOUTH. WHILE COMING FROM LOOKING AT ANOTHER CAR THE WIFE CALLED ME AND SAID A CO-WORKERS HUSBAND WAS SELLING A 1981 VETTE. SHE TOLD ME WHAT THEY WERE LOOKING FOR, I SAID WELL I'LL TAKE A LOOK FIGURING IT WOULD NEED ALOT OF WORK. WELL THAT WAS LAST THURSDAY THEY AGREED NOT TO SHOW THE CAR TO ANYONE ELSE UNTIL I LOOKED AT IT. WELL GUESS WHAT THAT SATURDAY I WAS DRIVING HOME IN A 44K MILE VETTE THAT JUST NEEDED A GOOD DETAILING. THE CAR HAD ONLY HAD 300 MILES ADDED TO THE ODOMETER IN 3 YEARS!! SPREAD THE WORD FREINDS,FAMILY AND PEOPLE AT WORK. GOOD LUCK

 

[Red Dogs]

Don't be in a hurry

When the time is right the right guy ( or lady ) will come along and the deal will happen.
I started looking after Carlisle a few years ago,(always been a car guy, I already had a 73 Mach 1 that I've had since 79 and the wife has a 41 Chevy), one Sat. our local club was going on a Tour and we were meeting at a Dunkin Donuts, I saw this 81 coming across the parking lot and it caught my eye, as I was walking towards the Donut Shop I saw it pull into the drive thru line and laying on the top of the dash was a " For Sale " sign, so I stopped the line and told the guy I wanted to talk to him, the next day ( Sunday) I had the guy meet me at my buddy's gas station and put it up on the lift and looked it over real good, the next day( Monday ) all it took was a quick call to the bank and he delivered it that night. I neglected to tell the wife about my plans, 3 weeks later she started talking to me again, the good news is I still have them both, Her and the Vette, plus the Mach 1 and the 41 Chevy. I took some good advice from my Step Dad and had her own set of keys made up real soon, plus the first thing I fixed was the A/C, now on a hot day if we're gonna take one of the old cars out she wants to know if the Vette is ready to go. Now she says it's her turn to pick the next car plus she's gonna pop for a new garage to keep all the toys in !!! I suppose if she insists I will let her have her way !!

 

[Koop]

Put it in a well publicized auction (not Barrett Jackson) that European dealers are known to attend. Pay for a premium time, have the car completely professionally detailed. Weeks prior to the auction place ads in several different craigs lists (and any other free web sites you can come up with) with photos and a link to the auction house web site feature of your car to draw in more bidders, make sure to note in the ad that you intend to pull the reserve at the auction. Sit with your car for the preview time, show off how nice it is, start it, run the AC when ever anyone shows any sign of interest not matter how slight. And give away free (Sam Adams) beer to people that you think are serious. Keep mentioning that you're going to "pull the very low reserve". The no reserve thing will draw in extra bidders that think they're going to steal this one, this is key. When you have a bunch of bidders then the dealers and drunks that didn't look the car over think "that must be a good one" and start bidding. You've just created a bidding war!

When your turn comes drive your own car in, look proud of it. Your car will sell in less than 10 minutes. With the current currency exchange rates your car will likely sell for more than it's worth to a nice (drunk with lots of money) European fellow that will export the car to the Netherlands, then it will go off to other parts of Europe never to be seen in the US again.

No reserve man! hnoes

Go for it!

 

[L48]

Wow I have not posted here in quite a while. Thanks to all who replied to my thread back in the day. It took a while back then but I did sell the car in March of 2009. A couple years later I got into hobby endurance road racing and proceeded to liquidate all my Corvette inventory and 98% of my small block Chevy inventory. I thought my Vette days were over but alas I bought a C4 earlier this year. More on that later...