There are more ways to sell a used car than ever, and that's even more true when it comes to selling classic cars or vintage cars. Thanks to the internet, classic car enthusiasts can find an exponentially larger audience around the world than ever before with minimum hassle. Options to sell your vintage or classic car include auctions and forums, as well as more traditional routes such as a private sale via one of the big listings sites.
In this guide we cover what you need to consider when selling your muscle car, hot rod, classic pickup truck, or vintage sports car, including where to market it, how to represent it, and what constitutes a classic in the first place. When thinking about these options it's a good idea to keep in mind who you’d ultimately want to buy your vehicle, and use that as a guide to finding the right outlet.
The Best Ways to Sell a Classic Car
- Option 1: Internet Forums
- Option 2: Internet Auctions
- Option 3: Listings Sites and Selling Online
- Option 4: Print or Facebook Groups
- Advertising Your Classic Car for Sale
- Is a 25 Year Old Car Considered a Classic?
- Is Now a Good Time to Sell a Classic Car?
Option 1: Internet Forums
Internet forums represent a great market for advertising a classic car online. Good forums are very active, with tens of thousands of posts and thousands of members interested in nothing but that make and model of vehicle. Almost all have Cars for Sale sub-forums that are either free for private sellers or provided at a nominal cost, and they're populated by forum members who are ready to buy.
Note that you almost always have to be a member to post a For Sale ad in forums like these. There’s generally no provision for guest members to sell cars, so you’ll have to take the step of registering as a member and getting a username and password.
That’s not such a big deal, but what you should be aware of are the rules around which members can post in these sections. All forums are different. Some forums require that you have a minimum number of posts (usually 10) before you can either post a classified ad or send a direct message. Ten posts isn’t a huge hurdle to overcome, but it does get in the way of getting your car listed as soon as possible.
If you’re driving something recognizable, like a Camaro or a Corvette, there are probably multiple active forums you’ll want to investigate and post your ad to. But even if you’re driving a Maserati Karif or a Renault Caravelle, there’s a forum for it, there are people who are interested in buying your vehicle, and they know the value of your car better than anyone else.
Option 2: Online Auctions
eBay changed the game of selling a car online back in the 1990s, but it's not perfect. The fees can be confusing, bidders can be fake, and sniping software that bids automatically just as an auction is about to end, can make it an unfair platform for qualified bidders.
All of those problems led Randy Nonnenberg to develop the auction functionality at Bring a Trailer (BaT). Every seller can list a car for $99 on Bring a Trailer. If you can’t take pictures, you can pay an extra $250 to have quality photos taken. Bring a Trailer also decided that no real money would come from the seller’s end. Instead, they charge a 5 percent buyer’s fee, capped at a maximum of $5,000. The success of this site, and newer rivals including Hemmings Motor News and Cars and Bids, has had a massive effect on classic car auctions and the classic car market in general. As asking prices rise, things look better for sellers (and a bit worse for buyers).
Another thing these newer sites often do is place a $500 hold on the credit card of anyone registered to bid. That $500 is forfeited and given to the seller if the bidder flakes and doesn’t complete the transaction. It’s enough that fake bidders just don’t seem to be a problem.
Option 3: Listings Sites and Selling Online
And of course, there are the mass-market automotive listings sites like Autotrader, Cars.com, eBay Motors where you can list your car privately. CarGurus does not offer private listings, but you can use our Sell My Car service and have local dealers bid on it. You can also sell many cars 100% online, courtesy of various instant cash offer websites.
Note, however, that instant cash offer technologies are driven by demand, so vintage and classic cars aren't necessarily a perfect fit. Many buyers want to see older vehicles in the metal and take a test drive.
Similarly, a dealership probably isn't the best buyer for your classic car. Most dealerships are in the business of selling new cars, and old cars are—at best—a distraction. You definitely don't want to trade in something that could have vastly more value to a private collector-car buyer. There are classic car dealers and consignment specialists, and they do provide a valuable service, but if you want the best sale price it's a little less valuable now that you have so many other car sales options at your disposal.
Option 4: Print or Facebook Groups
It might seem old-fashioned, but advertising your vintage or classic car in print is still an option, and might help you reach a more traditional audience. Titles including Hemmings Motor News and Old Cars Weekly are still around, and they’ll still take your money for an ad.
Social media is the modern equivalent, and model-specific Facebook groups (think those dedicated specifically to the Chevrolet Corvette or the Chevrolet Camaro, for example) can also be worth a try if you're happy to run through the usual steps of selling your car privately.
Advertising Your Classic Car for Sale
Now that you know the options of where to sell your classic car, now let's think about how to do it. Broadly speaking, the steps are similar to selling any car, but there are some nuances specific to the world of classics.
Know Your Car's Worth
Determining a classic car's value is a bit of a challenge. The car's condition can make the difference between a $3,500 vehicle and a $350,000 vehicle. As such, pricing guides like Edmunds or Kelley Blue Book (KBB) might be inaccurate. A better source of information is the valuation tool at classic insurance provider Hagerty.
Locate the Paperwork
Internet auction sites are going to require a scan of your car's title to be sure that you actually own the car before they’ll allow you to list it for sale. You'll also want to generate some kind of bill of sale, especially if you're selling from a state that doesn't issue a title for old cars.
Detail the Vehicle
Nobody’s telling you to have a full professional detail—though it wouldn’t hurt. Just a general cleaning can make it a lot easier for a potential buyer to take the next step and either contact you for more information or place a bid. Get your vehicle “car show” ready, and you’re more likely to find a buyer paying top dollar.
Take Good Photos
When it comes to selling a potentially high-value collectible car, paying a photographer to take pictures is worth every penny, whether you’re selling a Rolls-Royce or a Pontiac. Especially if you’re selling on one of the auction sites, you’re essentially working with a virtual showroom. If you don't want to pay a professional, check out our taking photographs of your car for sale.
Be Descriptive
We’ve seen this phrase in for-sale ads a million times: “Pictures tell the story.” No, they do not. Most of the auction sites have questionnaires you’ll be expected to fill out to provide more information on your vehicle. Don’t fill these out with one-word answers. Be descriptive and give buyers a chance to understand why they should pay more for your car. Describe any work completed. Show receipts.
Run a Vehicle History Report
This is less important if you’re selling something older, but if you’re selling a later model classic or special interest vehicle and you want to point out things like its one- or two-owner history, or that it was always registered in the dry southwest, a vehicle history report is a good way to do that.
Is a 25 Year Old Car Considered a Classic?
Buying and selling a classic car isn't like buying any other used car. According to some insurance companies, a “classic,” vehicle needs to be at least 20 years old but not more than 40 years old. Other bodies stipulate that a classic is between 25 and 45 years old. After a certain age—generally 40 or 45 years—classic cars become antique cars. To buyers and sellers, however, a classic can be anything from a 1965 Ford Mustang coupe (more than 55 years old) to a 2001 Porsche Boxster (barely 20 years old).
Is Now a Good Time to Sell my Classic Car?
It’s a good time to have classic cars for sale. Many shoppers in the current market are willing to pay a premium if they deem the vehicle a classic, and a desirable one at that. Simply put, you’ve never had more options to sell a classic vehicle, and you’ve never had a more deep-pocketed audience willing to buy. Getting top dollar is up to you.
