selling stuff - pretty difficult

[Bren]

Having tried to offload my 17k mile GSXR 750WN on an ebay  auction (start price £800, reserve £1200 - one person bid £800) with no joy, I am coming to the conclusion that even cheap stuff seems impossible to get rid of at the mo.

 

Either because of the recession, lack of job security or some other unknown reason, nobody wants to pay the going rate for anything - everybody wants a bargain.

 

Looking at what SD1's seem to be selling for at the moment, if I have mine professionally painted I wil probably lose money even though I have done everything else myself.

 

Maybe it's just that the likes of EBAY only seems to attract bottom feeders these days, at the moment it seems that the best thing you can do is keep hold of what you have and run it into the ground.

[dollywobbler]

Certainly seems it. No-one wants a cheap toy, like my Merc. Either they want super-cheap, super-economical, or they want to splurge on something really fancy.

[Cavcraft]

Strange market at the moment. People are being told we're in a recession or whatever so don't want to spend money on toys, and those that do have watched too much telly and want everything for nothing.

 

I have found though that listing things with almost anything but a 99p start on eBay puts people off. I maintain it's the thought they might get a bargain that gets them bidding and quite likely a lot of people would bid past your £800 start price without thinking about it. Actually starting it at £800 puts them off though because of the 'bid for a bargain' mentality.

[Faker]

That gixer is mint!

[Bren]

Thank you - photographs don't do it justice.

 

Still got the OE can and downpipes to go with it., loads of MOT's, just had rear pads and braided hoses all round.

 

Only reason I offered it for sale was I am now middle aged and would have liked something more sedate!

[nacho man]

The last few cars I have sold on ebay I have used classified ads, they all sold pretty quick and painless, they is no excuses, my parrot bid when I was feeding my unicorn etc etc but then you probably dont have as much interest but if they turn up they should be half serious about buying.

[Faker]

my parrot bid when I was feeding my unicorn etc etc!!!.

Excellent

[londonm]

I was flung off the back of one of those, and went over the roof of the car that hit us. In slow motion I watched my mate go head first through the rear side window of the car that failed to stop at the junction. Happy memories......

[fordperv]

That looks a really nice example (I would love to own that if I could insure it) I would've thought someone would've taken your arm off for it. I say keep it and enjoy

[Bren]

I lumped it on ebay again and sold it for a paltry £850. The guy who bought it could'nt believe his luck - he was a trader who has it up for £1695.

 

I actually had one comedian offer £450 for it. I know times are hard but you wont get anything for £450.

 

So the quest starts for a replacement - I am looking at early hayabusas' - I have around £2.2 k to spend, unfortunately I will have to adopt the same approach when buying/bidding that I was subject to when selling - it will be low ball offers and see where we go.

 

Anybody had any experience of busa's? Anything to watch out for besides camchains and rusty fuel tanks?

[Sigmund Fraud]

I am now middle aged and would have liked something more sedate!

 

I am looking at early hayabusas'

 

Proof that bikers are crazy, if any was ever needed... An 190MPH monster chosen as the 'sedate' option

[Bren]

The busa has a better riding position plus I won't be up and down the gears like I was with the gixxer.

I appreciate what you are saying, "Sedate" and "Hayabusa" dont normally appear in the same sentance.

[garbaldy]

The market for bikes is a bit strange. My neigbour has the twin of yours which he paid a wopping £600 and that was a dealer part ex. I bought my zzr with full mot for £500. You can get a hell of a lot of bike for no money nowadays. Have you also noticed the amount of zero percent on new bikes that can be had.

[Junkman]

Nothing has changed at all. It never did. It has always been the same and if it ever changes, it will so only for the worse.

 

If you want something, it's desirable, collectible, prized (and priced accordingly), OMGrare, classic and fast appreciating.

If you want to sell the very same thing the very same day, it's the most undesirable old fashioned tat and you can be grateful if you don't have to pay someone to take it away.

 

There have also been recession/crisis/hard times arranged for as long as I can remember. Not once in my life was I told that the crisis is over, or as much as interrupted for a brief period, however, I was asked frequently to vote for some filthy rich halfwit who will do something about it, guaranteed, and do something about it they did indeed, the whole dreary lot of them, fuck you very much.

I don't even know what crisisless times would be called. It's permacrisis, that's the order.

 

However, it also is very obvious that for some things there is a secondhand market, for others not. Things for which a second hand market exists are obviously things that command a scene tax, antiques, collectibles, etc. Things for which no real secondhand market exists, are condoms, food, and Saabs.

 

Not being familiar with the motorbike market at all, I wonder to which of the above a GSXR in non-1100 flavour belongs?

[Station]

Always start on 99p auction with a reserve. That way if it sells, you pay something like 20 quid, instead of a percentage of final sale. Plus it gets bidded up. Everything I've put up with a starting price has never sold. I think people like the certaintly of seeing someone elses bidded on it. Or something.

[Faker]

Noooo. I didn't think you were still selling it! That was an absolute bargain!

[HMC]

Selling sub grand motors is hard work, ive gone off e bay totally due to my time being valuable to me and not having a lot of tolerance for being messed about

[Junkman]

Are you being less messed around where you are now and if yes, where do you now offer your wares?

[Lankytim]

My bargain Citroen AX is proving impossible to sell, despite it being a pretty good motor with nothing wrong with it. Anything really cheap (like this AX) just seems to attract penniless losers and TXT MSG timewaster twats.

[Sigmund Fraud]

Agreed that it's a very strange market out there and anything non-mainstream seems to take ages to sell... 

 

I sold three cars over the last year, all of them through Car&Classic. The story was the same : half-arsed ad placed by my good self, lots of interest over the first couple of weeks from timewasting idiots, then silence. A couple of months later, when I had almost forgotten about the ad, a genuine buyer phoned, came to view the car and paid what I wanted for it.

 

Thankfully, I didn't need the space or money urgently, so I didn't mind. But someone that does may have no option but to advertise on mongBay or mongtree and be flooded with '£100 COLEC 2NITE M8?' offers